The DISQUIET International Literary Program is a two-week program that brings writers from North America and from around the world together with Portuguese writers in the heart of Lisbon for intensive workshops in the art and craft of writing.

The program is premised on several beliefs: That the conversations and exchange of ideas that result from meeting writers from around the world pushes one’s own work beyond the boundaries of the self. That all writers need a community to support and sustain them. That stepping out of the routine of one’s daily life and into a vibrant, rich, and new cultural space unsettles the imagination, loosens a writer’s reflexes… To those ends: Come be DISQUIET-ed with us!

The program offers:

• Intensive core workshops in Fiction, Memoir and Nonfiction, Poetry, and Writing the Luso Experience
• Unique optional workshops such as The Fernando Pessoa Game, Performance and Storytelling, Documentary Photography and others
• Discussions with editors from Dzanc Books, Guernica, Ninth Letter, McSweeney’s, New York Review of Books, St. Petersburg Review, and other North American and international publishers and periodicals.
• Lectures on Portuguese Literature and Culture
• Informal talks and readings with Portuguese writers
• Literary walks such as the Pessoa Walk
• Social events in some of the most interesting and unique venues in Lisbon
• Excursions within the city and its environs including Sintra and Cascais (some of these may require an additional fee)
• …and more!

Our faculty and guest writers are some of the most interesting and acclaimed in North America, all of whom have reputations as great teachers of writing. DISQUIET participants work closely with faculty and guests and spend considerable time together during program events and activities.

The DISQUIET program schedule is packed day-to-day, and it is designed such that there is something to do at almost any time of day or night—each evening is followed by gatherings at local tascas or many of the city’s terrific (and reasonably-priced) restaurants and bars. Some participants prefer to pick and choose which events they attend, opting to use more time for writing and/or exploring. All approaches are, of course, welcome.

Disquiet is open to writers of all levels and all ages 18 and up. We invite you to join us for writing workshops and a unique immersion in one of the mythic literary epicenters of the world.

The 2022 program will take place from June 26-July 8. We expect there will be some changes this year, but you can still get an idea of the shape of the program by taking a look at a previous year’s Program Guide and Schedule (2014). The current schedule will be available to participants by the spring of 2022.