In January 2023, I attended the 2023 Winter Writers Retreat at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity with faculty mentors Lisa Robertson and Nasser Hussain, and guest mentor Holly Melgard. I was quite honestly thrilled to have been one of the 12 attendees selected from over 300 applicants to work on my first full-length poetry manuscript, which is now almost complete thanks to my time in the mountains. I can’t recommend applying to work at Banff enough! I’m already thinking about applying for one of their prestigious Leighton Artist Studios for a self-directed writing retreat in the near future, perhaps with access to the gorgeous library and Vistas buffet in mind. I am not usually one for winter travel, but being nestled in the Rocky Mountains in the snow proved to be highly conducive to focusing on my poetry and making new writer-friends — I returned from my 2 weeks in Banff feeling refreshed and ready to publish!