Soapstone was created to serve the needs of women writers working on fiction, poetry, drama, and other literary writing. Located in the Coast Range in Oregon, approximately eleven miles from the ocean, the retreat stands on twenty-two acres of land along the banks of Soapstone Creek. This is a salmon spawning creek, and the land around it, densely forested with cedar, maple and alder, is home to otters, beaver, elk, deer, eagles, osprey and many other species. In the summer the creek sports two swimming holes, and in the winter it widens to become a forty-foot river. Residencies are offered at no charge except for a fee of $2 per day which covers unlimited local and long distance calls.

Two writers share the facilities. The Water Studio is on the ground floor is accessible to women with disabilities. It has both electric and wood heat. The Wind Studio includes a sleeping loft and forty-foot high writing cube, both of which require climbing ladders to reach. Wind is heated by a wood stove on the ground floor. The two writers share kitchen, bathroom, sitting room and laundry facilities. The retreat is simply and comfortably furnished.

Women may apply in pairs or singly; those applying in pairs need to send two separate applications. There is a nonrefundable application processing fee of $20. Residencies may be one to four weeks in length; see the calendar for scheduling choices. No pets are allowed without prior authorization and all indoor spaces are nonsmoking.

Writers in residence must have an automobile, for Soapstone—one and a half hours by car from Portland—is eleven miles from the closest stores in the coastal towns of Nehalem and Manzanita. Writers need to bring their own food and linens; Soapstone provides pillows and blankets, firewood, electricity, basic telephone service and cleaning supplies. No staff person is resident on site, but one can be reached by phone in emergencies.