By Claire Korzen
Writers around North Carolina have an opportunity to receive a grant of $10,000 through the NC Arts Council’s yearly Artist Fellowships. Writers, songwriters, and composers are all eligible to apply for the 2013-2014 Fellowship cycle; applications are due at 5:00 pm on November 1, 2012. The NCAC welcomes writing in any medium: prose, poetry, playwriting and screenwriting, spoken word—even literary translations. These Fellowships help support artists at all level of their careers, and writers should feel welcome to apply for this chance at distinguished statewide recognition.
The Council began awarding Artist Fellowships in 1980 to honor artists’ contributions to our state’s cultural growth and further outstanding artists’ creative goals. Artists may use these $10,000 grants to set aside time to work, pursue specific creative ideas or artistic development, buy supplies and equipment, and fund related expenses. Professionals specific to each discipline evaluate all of the applications, and they make their final decision primarily on the quality of the sample work submitted. They also consider the artists’ plans for use of the funds and how the grant can make a difference to the artists’ works.
To submit your online application, you will need to complete a multi-part application. Along with an online profile, the application will include a narrative, describing how you plan to use the fellowship; a résumé emphasizing literature-related activities; work samples; and supporting materials, which vary by genre. Work sample sizes vary by genre as well; while prose writers, playwrights and screenwriters need twenty to thirty double-spaced pages, poets need ten single-spaced, single-column pages of material. Spoken word artists should submit a recording of up to ten minutes of solo performances of their original poetry.
Almost 200 writers have received Artist Fellowships over the years. Recipients include our state’s current Poet Laureate Joseph Bathanti and former Poet Laureate Kathryn Stripling Byer, who was inducted into the North Carolina Literary Hall of Fame this month.
For a full list of guidelines and eligibility requirements, visit the NC Arts Council’s Artist Fellowships Overview.