Adirondack Center for Writing

What Adirondack Center for Writing does

Adirondack Center for Writing (ACW) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit literary organization founded in 1999 and headquartered at 15 Broadway, Saranac Lake, New York. It serves writers, readers, teens, incarcerated adults, and educators across the entire 6-million-acre Adirondack Park through a portfolio of programs including the High School Writing Retreat (annual since 2005), the Howl Story Slam storytelling competition (in its tenth season, co-produced with North Country Public Radio), the Kickass Writers Festival, the Anne LaBastille Memorial Writers Residency, PoemVillage, Poetry Machines, and the Prison Writing Program at Ray Brook Federal Correctional Institute — described as the longest-running federal prison writing program in the country. ACW also publishes the annual Wild Words teen anthology and produces the Teens Speak Out Loud podcast. ACW is led by Executive Director Nathalie Thill, with a small team (1-10 employees) supplemented by a Program Manager (Obi Taswell) and Communications Manager (Kaet O'Brien).

ACW operates no proprietary technology platform; its core delivery mechanism is in-person programming and community events held at venues including Pendragon Theatre, Harrietstown Town Hall, Saranac Lake Free Library, Adirondack Folk School, Paul Smith's College, and regional breweries, with application intake for the residency handled via Submittable. ACW's revenue model is that of a community nonprofit: tax-deductible donations and charitable contributions are the primary stream, supplemented by modest program and event fees (e.g., $10 Howl Story Slam tickets, $100-$250 Teen Lit Camp, $30 residency application fee, $5-$9 Wild Words anthology), and by grants from named foundations including the Anne LaBastille Estate, Cloudsplitter Foundation, Charles R. Wood Foundation, Lake Placid Education Fund, and Saranac Lake Public School Education Fund. The go-to-market is community-led, with demand generation through social media (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube), an email newsletter, regional earned media, and word-of-mouth within the North Country literary community.

Name

Adirondack Center for Writing

Legal name

Adirondack Center for Writing

Website

https://adirondackcenterforwriting.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Adirondack Center for Writing is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit literary organization founded in 1999 in Saranac Lake, New York, serving writers, readers, teens, and incarcerated adults across the 6-million-acre Adirondack Park through workshops, festivals, residencies, and community programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Literary Arts Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Book Publishers (513130)

SIC

Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)

akta.pro primary industry

Literary Arts & Writing Organizations (BPAGAHAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Writing Retreats & Intensive Bootcamps (EDAMAMAK), Fiction Writing Workshops (Short Story, Novel) (EDAMAMAA), Writing Skills & Composition Enrichment (EDAMAJAC), Writing Critique Groups & Peer Workshops (EDAMAMAJ)

Keywords

• Literary arts programming
• Writing workshops
• Community storytelling events
• Writers residency programs
• Nonprofit literary services

Headquarters

HQ city

Saranac Lake

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, ACW relies primarily on donations from individuals, foundations, and corporate sponsors. The website features a donation portal and clearly states that all donation amounts are tax deductible.
2. Event Tickets and Program Fees: ACW generates revenue through ticket sales for certain events and programs. Teen Lit Camp ranges from $100-$250, Howl Story Slam events are $10, and the Kickass Writers Festival offers various ticket tiers including First Draft, Paperback, Hardcover, and Rare Book options. Most events are free to attend.
3. Residency Application Fees: The Anne LaBastille Memorial Writers Residency charges a $30 application fee to help fund the free residency program for selected writers.
4. Anthology Sales: ACW sells copies of the Wild Words teen anthology for $5 suggested donation for pickup and $9 to ship, generating modest revenue while supporting teen writers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Adirondack Center for Writing is a community-centered 501(c)(3) nonprofit literary organization that promotes writing and reading across the six-million-acre Adirondack Park through workshops, writing retreats, residencies, festivals, story slams, anthologies, podcasting, and arts installations. It serves teen writers, incarcerated adults, adult writers, and general readers through in-person programming at venues throughout the region, supported by donations, grants, sponsorships, and modest program fees.

Product overview

The Adirondack Center for Writing operates as a nonprofit literary organization offering a diverse portfolio of programs and resources for writers, readers, and storytelling enthusiasts across the six-million-acre Adirondack Park. The core programs include writing retreats for high school students, the Howl Story Slam live storytelling competition (now in its tenth season), the annual Kickass Writers Festival featuring acclaimed authors, and the Anne LaBastille Memorial Writers Residency providing free two-week stays for selected writers. Additional offerings span community engagement initiatives like Poem Village (installing poems in storefronts during National Poetry Month), Poetry Machines (mobile poetry installations), and the Prison Writing Program at Ray Brook Federal Correctional Institute. The organization supports teen writers through the Wild Words anthology and Teens Speak Out Loud podcast, while providing resources for readers and writers via the ADK Literary Map. Events like Queer Lit Night and Teen Lit Camp further expand accessibility to literary arts across the North Country region.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• PoemVillage: Annual village-wide beautification project that publishes poems in windows in Saranac Lake during National Poetry Month, started in 2016
• Poetry Machines
• Howl Story Slam
• Wild Words
• Kickass Writers Festival
• Anne LaBastille Memorial Writers Residency
• High School Writing Retreat
• Prison Writing Program

Products and services

• High School Writing Retreat Annual two-day writing retreat for high school students hosted at Paul Smith's College, featuring workshops with guest writers, performances, and mentorship for talented local teen writers from the Adirondack region.
• Howl Story Slam Live storytelling competition where participants share true personal stories told in under five minutes, judged by audience members; held at venues across the Adirondacks in partnership with North Country Public Radio.
• Kickass Writers Festival Annual two-day literary festival featuring readings, workshops, talks, publishing programs, performances, book fair, and author meetups celebrating writing and storytelling in all forms; offers First Draft, Paperback, Hardcover, and Rare Book ticket tiers.
• Anne LaBastille Memorial Writers Residency Free two-week residency for six selected poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers annually (three from the Adirondacks, three from anywhere in the world) at a lodge on Twitchell Lake in the Adirondacks; $30 application fee and optional $60 editorial feedback add-on.
• LaBastille Women's Writing Weekend Writing-focused retreat specifically designed for women writers, held at the lodge near Twitchell Lake in the Adirondacks.
• Poem Village Annual village-wide beautification project where poems submitted by writers of all ages are published and installed in storefront and home windows throughout Saranac Lake during National Poetry Month.
• Poetry Machines Mobile poetry installations that travel around the Adirondacks, dispensing free original poems to community members at various locations throughout the region.
• Prison Writing Program Year-round writing classes for incarcerated adults at Ray Brook Federal Correctional Institute and Adirondack Correctional Facility, including workshops in grammar, short fiction, memoir, journalism, and creative writing; includes published anthologies and visiting-writer instruction.
• Wild Words Teen Writing Anthology
• Teens Speak Out Loud! Podcast Podcast platform giving teenagers a venue to share their voices and creative work with the broader community, hosted by Adirondack Center for Writing.
• ADK Literary Map Interactive map showcasing famous works of literature linked to the Adirondack region, from classics to contemporary works across multiple genres.
• Queer Lit Night Community event gathering queer readers and writers for the celebration of LGBTQ+ literature through readings and connection.
• Teen Lit Camp Week-long summer writing camp for teens ages 12-16, where participants write, design, and produce their own teen literary journal under the guidance of author Rebecca Donnelly; priced $100-$250.
• Kathleen Fagan Adirondack Writer Series Speaker series featuring best-selling crime writers for readings, talks, and book signings, hosted in partnership with the Adirondack Folk School in Lake Clear, NY.

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• North Country Public Radio (NCPR)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHowl Story Slam is a partnership between Adirondack Center for Writing and North Country Public Radio, two organizations that believe in the power of stories. NCPR provides media coverage and promotion for story slam events.
• Adirondack Mountain Club (ADK)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Kickass Writers Festival programming, specifically the Outdoor Gathering flora identification walk. Co-branded event drawing on Robin Wall Kimmerer's concepts and Patricia Ononiwu Kaishian's work.
• Adirondack Folk SchoolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partner for the Kathleen Fagan Adirondack Writer Series. Crime Writing event is the second installment of this series, held at the Adirondack Folk School venue.
• Paul Smith's CollegecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAnnual host venue for the 21st High School Writing Retreat at Paul Smith's College (7777 NY-30, Paul Smiths, NY 12970). Two-day writing workshops with guest writers.
• LiTNETminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerACW Executive Director Nathalie Thill sits on the board of LiTNET, a nationwide group sharing challenges and best practices of literary organizations and presses to raise awareness of literary arts.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• The Writing Barn: Austin-area creative writing center offering year-round workshops, retreats, and youth programs in a regional nonprofit/retreat model — overlaps ACW's mix of teen (Teen Lit Camp) and adult retreat offerings but at smaller geographic scale.
• Cave Canem Foundation: Nonprofit literary organization supporting Black poets via retreats, workshops, and publications — comparable in nonprofit literary-arts programming (workshops, residencies, anthologies) but with narrower demographic focus.

Direct peers

• Lighthouse Writers Workshop: Denver-based nonprofit creative writing center providing multi-genre workshops, literary arts classes, and community events — closely matches ACW's workshop + readings + community programming portfolio.
• Hugo House: Seattle nonprofit literary center running classes, workshops, writing retreats, fellowships, and public readings — analogous to ACW in offering year-round adult education, residencies, and community literary events as a 501(c)(3).
• Community of Writers: Olympic Valley, CA nonprofit running summer writing conferences and workshops (poetry, fiction, nonfiction) comparable to ACW's High School Writing Retreat and residency programming in retreat-anchored nonprofit model.
• Loft Literary Center: Minneapolis-based nonprofit literary arts center offering multi-genre writing classes, workshops, readings, conferences, and residencies — directly comparable to ACW in mission, programming mix, and nonprofit community-literary model.
• Highlights Foundation: Nonprofit writers' retreat organization running multi-day workshops and residencies for authors and illustrators — closely analogous to ACW's Anne LaBastille Memorial Writers Residency and writing retreat offerings.
• Poets & Writers: National nonprofit supporting the literary community with grants, workshops, readings, and resources — comparable peer in nonprofit literary arts infrastructure; ACW's ED Nathalie Thill sits on LiTNET board linking to this ecosystem.
• Hedgebrook: Washington-state nonprofit running a women-identifying writers' retreat on Whidbey Island — directly comparable to ACW's LaBastille Women's Writing Weekend in single-gender residency programming and estate/partnership funding model.

Broad incumbents

• Association of Writers & Writing Programs (AWP): National nonprofit membership organization supporting creative writing programs and literary arts — broader umbrella for the same ecosystem ACW operates in (LiTNET affiliation); comparable in nonprofit literary arts mission but at national rather than regional scale.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCCB14WqqHx-gEmFGDFdrf3g
• Facebookfacebook.com/adkctr4writing
• Instagraminstagram.com/adkctr4writing
• Xx.com/adkctr4writing
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/adkctr4writing

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Adirondack Center for Writing