Novel Incubator

Get Your Novel Publication-ready!

“It is without a doubt the best thing I’ve done to help my writing career.”
—Robert Fernandes

Ready to get your novel out into the world? If so, GrubStreet’s competitive and affordable MFA-level course is for you. Over 12 months, writers will revise their novels, study the novel form, and gain a thoughtful introduction to the publishing world.

Applications for the 2023-2024 Novel Incubator are now open! Applicants can apply here. The application deadline is February 13th, 2023, by 11:59PM EST. All applicants can expect to hear from us by late March, 2023. 

Thinking of applying? GrubStreet offers an informal Q&A session with alumni and instructor, Michelle Hoover. The next Open House will be held Online on Zoom, Saturday, January 28th, 2023. Michelle will answer any questions you have about the Incubator, including the workload, the application process, what the program does and doesn’t entail, the schedule, the philosophy behind our approach, and anything else on your mind. Register for the free info session here.

Please note that the upcoming round of the Novel Incubator will take place in-person in Boston at GrubStreet's Center for Creative Writing in the Seaport. Occasionally, classes may be held on Zoom if it becomes unsafe to hold in-person meetings due to COVID-19. You can see GrubStreet's latest in-person meeting status here.

The Novel Incubator is divided into three phases:

• Phase I (May - August): Students receive full critiques of their entire novels in a workshop setting and craft lectures directly applicable to the novel form.
• Phase II (September - December): Students focus on discrete chapters and study the mechanics of chapter-writing as well as micro-editing.
• Phase III (January - April): The final phase will follow the same format as the first, except that students receive full critiques of their entire revised novels. Students also submit their revised novels to an outside reader, an established author who will offer comprehensive macro feedback and suggestions for revision.

Prominent local authors, editors and/or agents will visit as guest speakers. At the end of the program, students will have a chance to meet with an agent and/or editor as part of the Manuscript Mart at the Muse and the Marketplace conference; this agent or editor will read an excerpt of the student's novel with an eye toward representation.

To hear from authors who graduated from the program, check out Our Diploma is Your Published Novel: The Books of the Novel Incubator and Novel Writers, Here Are Your Top 5 Reasons to Be an Incubee.

Questions?

If you have specific questions about the Novel Incubator program, email [email protected] or call the office anytime at 617.695.0075.