PEN America has recently announced the PEN America Writing for Justice Fellowships. The application portal opens on April 15th and the deadline to apply is July 1st. More information from PEN America below and on their website.
The 12 month-long Writing For Justice Fellowships will commission writers to create written works of lasting merit that illuminate critical issues related to mass incarceration and catalyze public debate. The aim is to harness the power of writers and writing in bearing witness to the societal consequences by capturing and sharing the stories of incarcerated individuals, their families, communities, and the wider impact of the criminal justice system. Our goal is to ignite a broad, sustained conversation about the dangers of over-incarceration, and the imperative to mobilize behind rational and humane policies. As an organization of writers dedicated to promoting free expression and informed discourse, PEN America is honored to have been entrusted by the Art for Justice Fund to engage the literary community in addressing this pressing societal issue.
Fellows may be emerging or established writers, working in fiction, non-fiction and journalism, poetry, drama, or mixed genres. Fellows will receive an honorarium of $10,000, and may request up to $5,000 in additional funding for travel and research. In addition to financial support, Fellows may choose to be paired with a mentor to serve as a source of guidance for the project, and the cohort will convene in person twice during the course of the Fellowship. PEN America will draw on the expertise of the members of Writing for Justice Advisory Committee, as well as our network of agents, editors, publishers, partner organizations and outlets in order to assist efforts for publication and dissemination of the work of the Fellows. Opportunities for sharing the created work through public forums will be organized in New York City at the PEN World Voices Festival, the Fellow’s home community, and possibly additional locations.
The best Writing For Justice Fellowship applications will demonstrate how the proposed project plans to engage on issues of reform, fuel public debate, and facilitate the possibility of societal change. Currently and formerly incarcerated writers are highly encouraged to apply, and special provisions will be made for incarcerated writers to participate through alternative methods.
Develop your ideas and work on your writing skills this Spring in these short courses at the NYU SPS Center for Applied Liberal Arts:
Fiction Writing Through Immersion
Character Development in Fiction
Creative Writing for Beginners
Summer 2018 writing courses are now also open for registration. Refer to this online PDF document for a full list of course descriptions and browse all writing courses and register through the SPS website here.