Wednesday’s Work-in-Progress: Five Ways to Finish Applications for Grants, Fellowships, and Residencies

Raise your hand out there if you have recently applied for a grant, fellowship, residency, or similar competitive opportunity. Raise two hands if you’ve applied for multiple opportunities.

I’ve recently emerged from a series of such applications. Six applications, to be exact. I’ve already heard good news about one of them – a tuition-free seminar that begins imminently. And I’ve lost out on another (a fact I discovered only by checking the program website and finding the winners’ names posted there). But I’m waiting to hear from the others.

Part of me thinks that I could have/should have completed even *more* applications. And part of me wonders how I managed to finish the six that have been safely submitted.

It’s the latter part that inspires this post, because as I prepared each of my recent applications, I realized that I was benefiting from a series of lessons learned: (more…)

Monday Markets for Writers

Monday brings the weekly batch of no-fee competitions/contests, paying submission calls, and jobs for those of us who write, especially those of us who write fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction.

  • Attention, Canadian poets! “The Arc Poetry Soci­ety is seek­ing pro­pos­als for the pos­i­tion of Poet-in-Residence. The 2013/2014 pro­gram will rep­res­ent Arc’s 4th vir­tual res­id­ency; Tim Bowl­ing is cur­rently filling the pos­i­tion. This is a vir­tual res­id­ency, so the Poet in Res­id­ence will not be required to relocate.” Pays: “The con­tract fee for the poet in res­id­ence will be $9,000 (sub­ject to con­firm­a­tion of fund­ing), which will be paid on a monthly basis. Stand­ard writer’s fee rates will apply for pub­lic­a­tion in Arc.” No application fee. Deadline: February 15, 2013.
  • Speaking of poetry: The University of Iowa’s International Writing Program “is proud to present an online, seven-week poetry writing course this February. The course will include seven live online sessions and will be conducted via virtual classroom software. The course is free of charge and all sessions will be conducted in English.” Participation will be limited to fifteen writers, and international writers “are encouraged to apply.” Deadline: January 28, 2013.
  • Bronx residents: Applications for the BRIO (Bronx Recognizes Its Own) Awards are now available. These awards “provide direct support to individual Bronx artists who create literary, media, visual, and performing works of art. 25 BRIO grants of $3,000 each are awarded to Bronx artists. BRIO award winners complete a one-time public service activity.” There is no application fee. Deadline is Friday, January 25, 2013.
  • The River Teeth Nonfiction Conference “is offering four scholarships to students currently enrolled in writing programs (graduate or undergraduate). Registration fees will be waived for the recipients of the scholarships. All other expenses (travel, room, board) are the responsibility of the scholarship recipient.” Apply by March 1.
  • From Carol Tice, of the “Make a Living Writing” blog fame: “[M]y guest-post well is nearly dry, so it’s a good time to pitch me ideas. For those who don’t know, I pay $50 a post (and it’s pretty competitive to get an assignment, so bring your best idea we haven’t covered before!) Read my guidelines first, if you want a chance at getting a post approved.” (NB: I’ve had the good fortune to guest-post for Carol, and I recommend the experience highly!)
  • Monday Markets/Jobs/Opportunities for Writers

    Monday brings the weekly batch of no-fee competitions/contests, paying submission calls, and jobs for those of us who write, especially those of us who write fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction. (Even during the holidays, when the listings can be a little thin!)

  • The 6th Annual James Nicholson Political Poetry Prize, administered by the Town of Pelham Public Library, is open to residents of Westchester County, N.Y., 18 years of age or older. There will be a $500 prize for the winner. (Make sure that your library account is in good standing, since “awards will not be given to anyone with outstanding fines or fees.”) There are also categories open to middle-school and high-school students. All winners “must be available” for a reading and reception currently scheduled for Thursday, April 11, 2013, and the winning poems will be published in the Pelham Weekly. Deadline: February 18, 2013.
  • The state of Colorado’s Creative Industries Division offers Jumpstart Awards to “provide fresh energy to artists and creative entrepreneurs to help stimulate their creative business or organization, whether nonprofit or commercial. Our goal is to help grantees increase their revenue, gain new audiences, and improve management practices.” You must be a Colorado resident to apply. No fee indicated. “The maximum request is $1,000 and funds are paid on a reimbursement basis upon receipt of final report and expense receipts.” Next deadline is January 15, 2013.
  • “The Northwestern Ontario Writers Workshop (NOWW) requests proposals for an E-Writer in Residence. The E-Writer in Residence, who may be located anywhere in Canada, will provide manuscript critiques and workshops, delivered primarily by communications technology, to writers located in Northwestern Ontario cities, towns and isolated communities (including First Nations communities). NOWW will give priority to applicants who are poets (defined as having at least one professionally published book of poetry for which the poet has a publishing contract and receives royalties). NOWW welcomes applications from First Nations and Métis writers.” No application fee. Deadline: January 13, 2013.
  • And you’ll find LOTS of no-fee contests and paying calls in the new (January 2013) issue of The Practicing Writer. Consider it my New Year’s present to all of you. Happy New Year!
  • Friday Finds for Writers

    Treasure ChestThe weekly collection of writing-related resources, news, and reflections to read over the weekend.

  • For those of us with strong opinions and the urge to share them in writing (ahem): a helpful set of “10 Rules for Writing Opinion Pieces.”
  • Wise words for writers from Sharon Bially on “Marketing and the Spirit of Giving.”
  • Grant-getting tips from Jillian Keenan.
  • There is a lot of advice if you drill down through all of the links in this post on “What Writers Need to Know About Goodreads.” I, for one, can’t see myself devoting sufficient time and energy to making use of every tip. But the key take-away is this: “The key to goodreads is to become a member of the community first…and mention your writing only in context and when appropriate.”
  • And to conclude: some interesting details in this year-in-review post from Ploughshares, including data on submissions, payments, and more.
  • Have a great weekend, everyone. See you back here on Monday for the final post of 2012!

    Monday Markets/Jobs/Opportunities for Writers

    Monday brings the weekly batch of no-fee competitions/contests, paying submission calls, and jobs for those of us who write (especially those of us who write fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction).

  • Cha: An Asian Literary Journal has announced a contest for unpublished poems about “Betrayal.” Cash prizes for top three and up to five “high commended” poems. All winning poems will be published in the journal’s March issue. No entry fee. Deadline: January 15, 2013.
  • “The editor of The Buenos Aires Reader is “wide-open to submissions from writers writing in English, whether they are expats or natives, as long as they are describing life in Latin America. Yes, that’s right — you don’t have to just write from, in or about Argentina.” Will consider fiction, non-fiction, poetry, opinion, profiles and interviews. Pays: “USD $25 via PayPal, or ARS $100 in person. Payment is made within a month of publication.” No simultaneous submissions. (via Duotrope.com)
  • From Grub Street, Inc., (Boston): “Thanks to the generous support of our donors, each quarter we offer $200 scholarships to at least five writers. Recipients may use their scholarship at any time in the year. To apply for a Winter 2013 scholarship, please email the following to rowan@grubstreet.org by December 5th at 12pm: a 5-10 page sample of your work, and a one-page letter detailing your financial need and desire to take a Grub Street class. Applicants will hear from the selection committee within one week after the deadline.”
  • Paid, part-time internship opportunity with the Jewish Book Council in New York. Apply by December 17.
  • Coming soon: the December issue of The Practicing Writer. Featuring end-of-year book recommendations and, as usual, a slew of no-cost contests and paying submission calls. Don’t miss it!
  • Guidelines are now available for the NYFA Emergency Relief Fund that I mentioned here last week. Plus, PEN American Center has simplified its Writers Fund application for victims of Hurricane Sandy (grants up to $500).
  • “The Coe College [Iowa] English Department invites applications for a tenure-track appointment in Creative Writing and literature with an emphasis on poetry to begin in August 2013.”
  • Syracuse University (N.Y.) is looking for part-time faculty to teach AAS 338: Creative Writing Workshop. “The course AAS 338: Creative Writing Workshop exposes students to techniques of craftsmanship and use of meditation to expand the visionary experience, and aesthetic sensibilities that involve African American Culture. Students gain their experience through a workshop of poetry and prose.”