I am writing this post for all the people who just got the special email that says “Congratulations, welcome to the Viable Paradise cult” (paraphrasing) and now you’re panicking.

For those of you reading this who haven’t gotten in: Viable Paradise is not the only workshop. You don’t need a workshop to be a writer.

It took me three tries to get onto the island. First time, rejection. Second time, wait listed. Third time, accepted. By that point, I had already had forty short fiction sales. I was a writer before I made it into the workshop.

Again, this is not the only path to being a writer. You will continue to be a writer by writing. Collecting all the writing workshop infinity stones will not fill the hole in your heart left by — anyway.

Ok my anxious writer friend, here’s what I wish I had known before I went to Martha’s Vineyard in 2025. (This post was written in 2026.)

Getting there: Fly into Boston Logan and either pay $400-500 (2025 cost) to MVY’s small airport, OR buy the Peter Pan bus ticket (~$60, negligible difference buying early or closer to) from BOS to Woods Hole, then the ferry, Steamship Authority (~$20 in 2025), to either Vineyard Haven or Oak Bluffs. (One of these will be closed at the end of the workshop, because you’re going in on the tail of the season and leaving after things are closed.) You can buy the Steamship Authority tickets on your phone while you’re on the two hour bus ride to Woods Hole.

When to arrive / when to leave: Best to try to arrive Saturday before things start on Sunday so you can be less stressed, explore Martha’s Vineyard (again, this is the tail end of the season so things may be closed at the end of your time on the island). Meet your cohort / roommates. Then leave on Saturday — if you could do it, not the earliest ferry rides because the staff will be driving you to the ferry and they would have stayed up late the night prior. (You might have too.) You will tell the staff your arrival and departures as they drive back and forth.

Food: As soon as you get off the ferry, the staff’s going to take you to the Stop and Shop that’s right by the ferry. I only bought a loaf of bread and some ham. I had two roommates so I wasn’t clanging around the kitchen, making elaborate breakfasts. You also may be prioritizing sleep over a balanced breakfast. Some people rolled out of bed in the minutes prior to the start of class and came down the stairs.

For lunch / dinner, the staff will make the food. You will tell them your dietary restrictions and preferences.

Lodging: Stay at the Island Inn, Building G. There is lovely windy fall weather but we did have a rain out on one morning and the stairs to the lecture & food area are external. If you stay in a townhome, the most able bodied person should be upstairs because those stairs are trying to kill you. They are slippery metal, narrow steps and a tight spiral. The rooms you’re staying in are right above the big combo classroom and dining room.

Which room? You may have to search site:airbnb.com "island inn" in order to get images of the individual rooms. The rooms are numbered 28G-39G on the lower level, 40G-51G upper. As of May 2026, I could find rooms / images on airbnb. In 2025 they were on guestybookings.com.

How I got to sleep: white noise app, ear plugs, eye mask. I was in the upstairs townhome and there is no door, and the bed was right above the front door. One roommate was in the twin beds room, the other was on the sofabed in the living room.

You should get a spreadsheet going with your cohort in your discord / slack. Here are the headers I used for my group:
Name, pronouns, arrival day, arrival ferry, departure day, bedtime, wake up time (class starts about 8:30), open to roommates (yes/no/maybe/found), room booking status, 2+ roommates ok?, gender identity, roommate identity preference, any other details, allergies. This will help you figure out roommates amongst yourself and then rooms. One person will make the booking (they charge half at booking, and the rest when you’re closer, within a month iirc) and y’all can venmo/zelle money between yourselves.

Writing: bring your laptop, you’ll email a couple things to the staff during the week. You’ll write a thing, it’ll be fine. There is no ranking, scoring or competition. They will not yeet you from the island for writing the worst / shortest / longest piece. They will give you parameters on the island.

Schedule: Things started at 8:30 am and the mandatory stuff ended by 8 pm. I go to bed early (9 pm) and there were music nights that I was like ‘hm, that’s nice’ and went to bed.

What do you actually do? Attend lectures, read your cohort’s work and critique group, write, one-on-one meetings.

Walks: There are optional pre-dawn morning walks. It’s a nice time to chat with your cohort and your instructors and watch the sun rise, collect some shells. Don’t worry about the ticks, we never got into the brush in our morning walks.

Masking: yes, mask except when eating and in your own room. I didn’t get sick which was good because I went straight to visiting my grandmother. They will have extra masks. Please wear your mask properly, over the nose.

Make your own discord / slack / something to congregate virtually prior to the time on the island. Make a spreadsheet for getting to know people. Headers included: person, social media, websites, discord, emails, location, fav books / movies, hobbies, writing books / podcasts. I also included links to all the Island Inn rooms so people could see the room layout and decor choices. There were choices.

Laundry: there is a pair of coin operated washer and dryer.

My preparation: I did not read everything of every instructor. Some people brought books for people to autograph, or book plates. Consider some questions for each instructor, because surprise you’ll get already scheduled time with 2 people. I got Valerie Valdez and Max Gladstone, both lovely! You will also get time to chat with instructors during meals, walks. They may put up time to speak to you all. They’re human, calm down.

What happens after: hopefully you remain in contact with your cohort in that discord / slack you made. There are alum meet ups at cons. This is a nice thing to put on your cover letter. You can now join Codex Writers if you weren’t already qualified.

Is this a cult? You will leave the island. There’s no mandatory tattoo or anything like hazing. (There’s a code of conduct too.) The staff is amazing, and mostly VP alum. They have dealt with drama and imposter syndrome. They’re like the RAs of the dorm.

Still have questions? Ask the staff first, or search online for alums. (Many thanks to the alums who guided me on the nuts and bolts.) I guess you could ask me too, Wen Wen.