Updated March 2025
Sarah Selecky International Inc. is committed to protecting your privacy. This Statement of Privacy applies to Sarah Selecky International Inc.’s websites (“Selecky Websites”) and governs its personal data collection and usage; it does not apply to other online or offline sites, products or services.
Sarah Selecky International Inc. collects personal information for the purpose of billing your online purchases. All payments are all processed through an external Payment Service Provider. We only have access to the last 4 digits of any credit card or payment information.
Sarah Selecky International Inc. does not collect any information about your individual computer hardware and software. Any information collected about computer hardware and software of our users is generalized and can’t be tracked back to any individual.
Sarah Selecky International Inc. and its operational service partners collect and use your personal information to process your product or service orders and to deliver the products and services requested. We will also use your personal information to stay in touch, and let you know about future offerings, opportunities, and free resources available to you.
Sarah Selecky International Inc. does not sell, rent or lease its customer lists to third parties, ever. We will only keep your personal information for so long as our customer relationship with you lasts or for the duration of time required to satisfy our legal obligations.
Sarah Selecky International Inc. may access and/or disclose your personal information if required to do so by law or in the good faith belief that such action is necessary to: (a) conform to the edicts of the law or comply with legal process served on Sarah Selecky International Inc. or Selecky Websites; (b) protect and defend the rights or property of Sarah Selecky International Inc., including its website; or (c) act under exigent circumstances to protect the personal safety of users of Sarah Selecky International Inc. or the public.
Personal information collected on this site may be stored and processed in Canada, the United States and/or any other country in which Sarah Selecky International Inc. or its affiliates, subsidiaries or agents maintain facilities, and by using this site, you consent to any such transfer of information outside of your country.
Sarah Selecky International Inc. offers its customers choices for the collection, use and sharing of personal information. You may withdraw your consent to our use of your personal information at any time, and may otherwise notify us of your preferences, by contacting us via support@sarahselecky.com. You may also stop the delivery of future promotional emails from Sarah Selecky International Inc. by unsubscribing at the bottom of any email you receive from us, or simply responding with your request to be removed. Upon your request, we will inform you about the personal information we hold concerning you. Concerns with our compliance with the EU General Data Protection Regulation may be raised with the appropriate Data Protection Authority: http://ec.europa.eu/justice/article-29/structure/data-protection-authorities/index_en.htm
Sarah Selecky International Inc. is committed to protecting the security of your personal information. When we transmit highly confidential information (such as a credit card number) over the Internet, we use a secure payment gateway so your information is protected.
Conditions of Use – Use of the Sarah Selecky International Inc. website constitutes agreement to our terms of use. We encourage you to review the following information carefully.
Sarah Selecky International Inc., Story Is a State of Mind, Sarah Selecky Writing School, and other marks indicated on our site are trademarks owned exclusively by Sarah Selecky International Inc.. The use of these trademarks and trade dress is prohibited if used in connection with the sale of any product that is not Sarah Selecky International Inc.’s, in any manner that seeks to disparage or discredit Sarah Selecky International Inc. or in any manner that may cause confusion among our customers.
All content on this website (which includes text, graphics, logos, icons, images, audio and video clips, digital downloads, and software) is the exclusive property of Sarah Selecky International Inc. Our content is protected by Canadian and international copyright laws and we reserve all rights contained therein.
Some portions of this website permit username and passwords to be used. You are responsible for protecting your unique username and password and you agree to be responsible for all activities performed under your user account.
Sarah Selecky International Inc. grants you (the user) a limited license to access and make personal use of this website. This license does not include the right to modify any material, or any portion thereof, without the express prior-written consent of Sarah Selecky International Inc.. This license excludes the download or collection of logos, product descriptions, pricing, text, graphics, audio and video clips, and/or copying account information. This website or any portion of this website may not be reproduced, duplicated, copied, sold, visited, or otherwise exploited for any commercial purpose without express prior-written permission of Sarah Selecky International Inc. You are prohibited from using meta tags or any other hidden text utilizing Sarah Selecky International Inc.’s name or trademarks without the express prior-written consent of Sarah Selecky International Inc. Any unauthorized use of this website voids the limited license granted by Sarah Selecky International Inc.
This site is provided by Sarah Selecky International Inc. on an “as is” and “as available” basis. Sarah Selecky International Inc. makes no warranties, either expressed or implied, as to the operation of the site or the content contained therein. You expressly agree that your use of www.sarahselecky.com and www.sarahseleckywritingschool.com is at your own risk. Sarah Selecky International Inc. cannot warrant that this site, our servers, or email communications affiliated with the use of this website, are free from viruses. Sarah Selecky International Inc. will not be responsible for any damages of any kind resulting from use of this website, including but not limited to direct, indirect, incidental, punitive, and consequential damages.
From time to time, Sarah Selecky International Inc. offers its clients special offers and discount codes to be used in conjunction with this website. These offers are frequently disseminated via this website and through email to those who have registered for our email database. We encourage our clients to redeem these special offers, but we respectfully ask that you not exploit them. Sarah Selecky International Inc., at our sole discretion, will determine if all purchasing criteria has been met to qualify for stated discount or free product. If you successfully circumvent the software safeguards of this website in order to receive several free products with your order, then we will (at our sole discretion) remove any extraneous free product from your order or cancel the order in its entirety. You will be informed of any order changes via the phone number or email address listed with your order.
Sarah Selecky International Inc. reserves the right to modify, alter, delete and update these policies at any time we see fit. Such alterations do not nullify our rights if infringements or breaches occurred under a previous version of these conditions.
A treat for you, since you made it to the end of this document! Now that you are familiar with dense legal language: try writing a short story in the form of a Terms and Policies Agreement. Play with the form and the sentence structure. Have fun with it.
xo,
As we increase the number of payments available in each payment plan and the window for payment grows longer, our admin time managing these plans goes up.
The admin fee consequently increases for the number of payments in a plan:
Please note: we only offer payment plans up to the completion date of the program.
All programs purchased from Sarah Selecky Writing School are experiential investments in your writing education. When you purchase a program, you are agreeing to explore and practice something new. When you enroll in a guided program, you are committing to completing it, and making all payments as scheduled.
If something difficult is happening in your life and you’re struggling to keep up with the program, we will work with you privately and give you extra support (encouraging emails and phone calls, extra time to work on assignments, compassion, time, and energy) to help you feel successful. We’ll go above-and-beyond to take care of you.
That said, unless specified below, all purchases are non-refundable. (Note: depending on their structure and framework, some of our programs may have different refund policies. See below for details on specific programs.)
It’s challenging to offer a money back guarantee on a creative experience. The very nature of these experiences is that they often bring you closer to that which you most resist: this friction is a natural part of creative growth and transformation. So it’s impractical to guarantee success from these programs, or to invite you to “return” the experience if you feel unhappy with the outcome.
Before you purchase any of the programs offered by Sarah Selecky Writing School, we encourage you to explore our website — read Sarah’s newsletters to find out if her opinions on the writing life make sense to you, inspect our offerings, take a look at our testimonials — before you invest.
Having a no-refund policy makes it all the more powerful for you when you commit to your writing. Of course, if you are having problems getting the program or product to function properly, please notify us and we will work with you to get it sorted.
By purchasing one of our programs, you are choosing to make your writing a priority. This is an exciting and power-filled choice! With this in mind, please purchase mindfully. Check in with your gut, your schedule, and your spending plan before enrolling to make sure this is right for you.
Thank you.
Many of our programs involve small classroom discussions facilitated by a teacher. These groups are special: they enhance and amplify the learning for everyone in the group, as each individual brings their own experiences to the collective. Through group involvement, your learning becomes experiential and long-lasting. Participation is an essential part of these group dynamics.
As our small writing groups form, they undergo a process of settling, stretching, and normalizing as individuals figure out how it feels to belong to the particular culture of the group. They learn how their strengths add value to the group, how to get their needs met, how best to interact with each other, and so on. Each writing group becomes its own ecosystem, which is part of what makes these small groups so valuable.
When someone joins a program late or leaves early, it disrupts the culture created within the group. This means the essential process of settling, stretching and normalizing the group dynamic must start again, as the group re-forms in a new way.
If this happens, our teachers must spend extra time cultivating the new group dynamic. They put care into their discussion with the person who withdraws, and/or the person who joins late. We compensate our teachers for their additional efforts in these circumstances.
This is a nonrefundable investment in your writing. When you make this purchase, you are promising to explore and practice. You’ll be paying for it the way you would pay for a degree, an all-inclusive retreat, a counselling session, an art show, or a ticket on an overnight train. I know that online sales expectations are distinctly pro-refund, and I understand the reason for that. I considered it for this program. But after some thought, I realized that I didn’t feel right about offering a money back guarantee on a creative experience.
Thought #1
What will I guarantee? This is not a course about how to get published or write a book (though both of those may be the result). This is a program that offers must-have fiction writing techniques and the critical thrill that comes from identifying those techniques in action; it teaches you how to maintain a state of mind that conducts creativity; it promises that you and your writing will enjoy spending time together again.
Is that guarantee-able?
Thought #2
If I did offer a money back guarantee on the above promises, it would be on the condition that the writer first completes all of the practice exercises and assignments and writes a report on every reading in each of the seven lessons. This person must submit a portfolio of his/her work to be eligible for full refund. This is interesting, but what it actually means is… (see thought #3)
Thought #3
I want you to be fully committed to do the work that’s involved. And I want you to be sure that this is the right program for you before you pay me for it.
What it comes down to is this: if you’re the right person for the Story Course, you will know it. And if you are ready to commit to your writing in a deep, life-changing way, you will feel it. If those two aspects happen for you at the same time, you should go for it.
Having a no-refund policy makes it all the more powerful for you when you commit to your writing.
Please explore this site, before you make your purchase. Read my letters, inspect my offerings, take a look at my testimonials. Get to know me and my methods first. I have strong opinions about the writing life – you should find out if my opinions make sense to you before you invest.
Your membership will auto-renew monthly. If you cancel your membership and choose to sign up again at a later date, you will have to sign up at the new current rate. Subscription fees are subject to change.
Cancelling your Membership:
This is a creative community that grows at the speed of trust. It is important for us to protect the integrity of creative relationships that are deepening over time. To keep our space brave and support this trust, we ask members to commit to spending at least 1 month in this space. (Refunds during this first month are uncommon and are only offered on a case-by-case basis in exceptional circumstances.)
Since this is a monthly membership, we do not offer refunds. You can cancel your membership at any point. If you choose to cancel your membership, you will keep access to the membership site and can attend the events until the end of your current billing period.
Example:
If your monthly instalments are normally paid on the 20th of the month, and you choose to cancel your membership on the 5th, you would continue to have access to Centered until the end of your current billing period. On the 20th, when you would normally pay your next instalment, you would instead lose access to Centered and would not be charged further.
If you have any questions about cancellation, please email us at support@sarahselecky.com.
The Story Course Intensive is a bespoke writing program with a highly intuitive and personalized enrolment process. Unlike most other writing classes, ours are deeply interconnected: every change affects the whole cohort. This is what makes this program unique, and why it works as well as it does.
Your commitment to this program creates a mutual investment with your teachers and fellow writers. It is in that promise that the magic happens.
Of course, we understand that life happens, too: it can be unpredictable, even when we make a promise in good faith.
The Story Course Intensive is based on the Story Course curriculum.
Unless you already purchased it separately before registering, enrollment in the Intensive requires the purchase of the Story Course ($475 USD), which you will continue to be able to access even after the Intensive is complete, or if you withdraw from the program early.
The Story Course is non-refundable. Our Story Course Intensive refund policy does not include the $475 USD put towards the Story Course.
Please refer to our no-refund policy for the Story Course for more details.
Even if you enrolled early, and the program hasn’t begun yet, our commitment to you and the prep work involved begins on the day you enroll. Consequently, $1,000 USD of your paid tuition is non-refundable for all potential refunds. (If the Story Course was purchased during your registration, an additional $475 will be non-refundable, and you will continue to have access to the Story Course.)
If you register and withdraw from the Story Course Intensive without transferring your tuition to someone else or gaining a credit at the Sarah Selecky Writing School (see “Deferring your tuition” below), you may receive a refund with the following conditions:
From time of enrollment up to 15 days after the Intensive has begun:
Any remaining refundable tuition you have paid to date will be returned to you by the payment method you used to purchase it. If you are on a payment plan option, any future payments will be cancelled.
15 days+ after the Intensive has begun:
No refunds will be given 15 days after the program has begun, even if you cannot attend the class, as we will have already paid our teachers and admin staff. We appreciate your integrity and understanding. (For further explanation, please see the “Commitment to Group Programs” above.)
Payments made in full will not be refunded at this point. If you are on a payment plan option, any future payments will be cancelled.
Please see “Deferring your tuition” below for additional options.
As soon as you enroll in the Intensive, you receive access to our community membership site, Centered, for the duration of your semester. If you withdraw from the Story Intensive, you will lose access to Centered as soon as your withdrawal has been processed.
If you find someone to take your place in the program, at least 10 days before the beginning of the program, you will receive a full reimbursement for the Intensive portion of your tuition. Once we receive the payment from the person to whom you are transferring your spot, we will refund your money to you.
Note: If you purchased the Story Course as part of your Story Course Intensive enrollment, you will continue to be able to access the Story Course after transferring your spot, and $475 will be deducted from the amount refunded to you. Please refer to our no-refund policy for the Story Course. If the person to whom you are transferring your spot does not already have the Story Course, they will need to purchase it, in addition to their payments for the Intensive.
We want the best for you and your writing. If you enroll in good faith and your circumstances make it truly impossible to participate, your tuition can be deferred for a future year of the Intensive. You may also put the amount towards some of our other offerings.
Your remaining tuition can be set aside as a credit toward taking the program the next time it is offered, and, in certain circumstances, your credit can be put towards a different program, as listed below:
Refunds are uncommon and are only offered on a case-by-case basis in exceptional circumstances.
We are a small school, with a small team, and handle all of the communication and administration ourselves. We don’t run with a high profit margin, nor do we have the same capacity as larger schools and programs. Our refund policy is thoughtfully created so that we can respect our capacity as a small business and continue to offer courses and programming. These policies are developed with a lot of respect for our teachers, other students in the program, our admin team, and you, the writer taking the program.Thanks for your understanding.
We believe in the power of this program! We have seen again and again how those who complete the programs experience transformation in their writing.
If you wish to be considered for a refund because you believe the program is not working for you, please submit your work to demonstrate that you’ve completed each practice exercise and assignment up to the lesson where you withdrew from the program. At that point, we can begin a conversation about refunding your payments.
The coaching relationship can be intimate; it requires vulnerability, presence, and a strong level of commitment on both sides. For this reason, we are unable to offer cancellations or refunds for the following programs:
If there are extenuating circumstances, such as serious illness, we will consider cancellation or deferment on a case-by-case basis.
We want the best for you and your writing. Please contact us if you have any questions about our refund policies.
As a Canadian school with a global community of writers, we’ve chosen to price in USD for several important reasons that benefit our entire community:
For Canadians: 
We understand that exchange rates can present challenges for Canadians, and we’re always exploring ways to make our programs more accessible.
What’s also important to know is that we reinvest our revenue directly into the Canadian economy, with special attention to small local businesses, B Corps, and climate-friendly, ethical companies. Your enrollment supports not just our school, but a wider ecosystem of responsible Canadian businesses.
