IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT FELLOWSHIPS FOR CREATIVE WRITERS

The following are answers to some of the most commonly asked questions about Fellowships for Creative Writers.

1. In order to apply, you must meet the eligibility requirements by the deadline date. Commitments for future publication or production do not fulfill the requirements. No exceptions are made to the eligibility requirements.

2. You are not eligible to apply if you have received two or more Creative Writing or Translation Fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts at any time in the past. In addition, you may not apply for a FY 2008 fellowship in Prose if you have received any Arts Endowment Creative Writing or Translation Fellowship since October 1, 1998 (FY 1999). You may not apply for a FY 2009 fellowship in Poetry if you have received any Arts Endowment Creative Writing or Translation Fellowship since October 1, 1999 (FY 2000).

3. Only one application is eligible per year. You may not apply for a Creative Writing Fellowship and a Translation Project in the same year.

4. The manuscript submission must be in the literary form in which you establish your eligibility (i.e., fiction, creative nonfiction, or poetry). If you receive a fellowship, however, you will not be limited to writing in that form.

5. You may submit published work, unpublished work, or work in progress; all manuscript submissions, however, must be in typescript or clear photocopies of typescript. Photocopies from books or magazines will not be considered.

6. Manuscripts in languages other than English must be accompanied by nine copies of an English translation. The translation need not be done by the applicant. The application form must be submitted in English.

7. Absolutely no changes or additions in the manuscript will be accepted once your application has been submitted.

8. Your work will be evaluated up to the maximum number of pages allowed. Excess pages will be removed.

9. Fiction and creative nonfiction applications are reviewed by an advisory panel primarily composed of prose writers, representing both fiction and creative nonfiction. Poetry applications are reviewed by an advisory panel primarily composed of poets.

10. Manuscripts are judged anonymously by the advisory panel. If your name, initials, or identifying marks other than the title appear anywhere other than the cover page, your application will be rejected.

11. The manuscript should be representative of your best recent work, published or unpublished. It must be work for which you have sole artistic responsibility. The artistic excellence and artistic merit of the work contained therein are the criteria on which your application will be judged. Choose your manuscript sample carefully.

12. Financial and other kinds of need, the body of past work, geographic location of the applicant, academic career, professional reputation, etc., are not criteria for receipt of a fellowship.

13. We cannot accept collaborative works or joint applications. Fellowships are individual grants.

14. The Internal Revenue Code provides that the full amount of a fellowship grant is taxable to its recipient. If you have any questions about your own income tax liability, you should contact the Internal Revenue Service or your tax counsel.

Please read these guidelines thoroughly before you start to prepare your application package. Failure to follow the guideline instructions or to submit a complete application will mean that your application will be rejected. We are unable to contact you in case of omissions or inconsistencies in your submission.

If you have questions about your application, please contact the Literature staff at 202/682-5034 or davisg@arts.gov

National Endowment for the Arts · an independent federal agency
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Washington, DC 20506