Parents often dismiss the idea of a residency because it seems out of their budget – if not financially, certainly time-wise. However people are ingenious and the greatness of all artists (including writers!) lies in creativity. Here is a link to a phenomenal article by the wonderful arts group Fractured Atlas, who have compiled a great selection of interesting residency ideas–many of them quite suitable for a creative and industrious parent. Residencies are a wonderful way to play with reality – at a residency your writing is always first. Everything filters through the writing – all experiences. And while that is normal for writers, at a residency it is expected that these experiences will lead to actual writing. There is something magical about organizing priorities so solidly. Many parents actually do this at home. They assign an hour or two exclusively to their writing and nothing – no ringing phone, no buzzing dryer, no hunger pangs — are allowed to interfere. At home, there is a level of guilt most parents feel about taking this time. At a residency, the guilt is for the quick email you might send to tell your kids hello. Have a look at the article and see if any of this intriguing solutions to the time/budget problem are suitable for you!