OBJECTIVE
The Creative Writing Residency is open to writers of all stripes and any nationality. Jointly organised by the National University of Singapore’s University Scholars Programme (NUS USP) and The Arts House (TAH), the Creative Writing Residency 2011 aims to:
a) provide time, opportunity and environment for the Resident to complete a written work in the English language of substantial length and content;
b) provide mentorship for students and potential writers in Singapore, and stimulate new writing from them through public programmes organised by the Resident.
The completed work can be fiction or non-fiction, cover any topic, and may be in one of the following forms:
(i) prose;
(ii) verse;
(iii) stage play;
(iv) radio play; or
(v) screenplay,
or any other written form, subject to approval.
The completed work must be in the written medium, which can either be published (in print or electronic media) or performed. The work must be of a standard ready for publication and for a public reading/lecture by the end of the Residency, or shortly thereafter.
The Residency will last from August 2011 to July 2012. The successful applicant will be given a monthly stipend of SGD3,500, time, and lodging for one year to create a new work. A bonus of SGD3,000, subject to performance appraisal, will be paid out at the end of the Residency.
WHO MAY APPLY
The programme invites applicants of any nationality. Applicants must:
a) Be a published writer;
b) Not be enrolled as a full time student in an undergraduate or graduate programme or fully employed by any organisation at the time of appointment of the Residency.
ASSESSMENT CRITERIA
Selection for the Residency will be based on:
a) artistic achievement and potential of the applicant;
b) the strength of his/her proposal for activities during the Residency to conduct public programmes involving students and potential writers; and
c) interview performance (for shortlisted candidates only)
APPLICATION PROCEDURES Application form is available from www.usp.nus.edu.sg/happenings/2011/creative_writing_residency.html or www.theartshouse.com.sg/residency2011.html
Submit one copy of the form together with:
a) Curriculum vitae (with two references; photo optional)
b) six copies of a representative body of work to display accomplishment and commitment to a literary career;
c) a proposal for the Residency outlining his/her plans, paying special attention to plans for generating interaction and discussion among students and young writers in Singapore.
Applicants should submit works published no earlier than 2000. Applicants with works published earlier than 2000 may also apply. However, it must be noted that this Residency aims to nurture young writers and all things being equal, preference will be given to writers in earlier stages of their careers.
All manuscripts should be typewritten. Any handwritten work will be disqualified. Submit only copies and not the original. If the submission is a copy of an excerpt from a published source, the submission must include copies of the following:
- Title page showing title of work and name of author
- A page showing name of publisher and year of publication
- Contents page
REQUIREMENTS
a) The Resident must take up residency at Cinnamon College, the USP residential college at NUS, and work on site (i.e. Cinnamon College and The Arts House).
b) The Resident will be provided with the following support at Cinnamon College.
c) The Resident is to submit progress reports each quarter, and the second and fourth quarter reports are to include samples of writing completed during the Residency. Continuation of the Residency will be subject to review of the progress reports.
d) The Resident is required to make significant progress on a written work (agreed upon by the selection committee and Supervisors), which should be of a standard ready for publication in print or electronic media and a public reading/lecture by the end of the Residency.
e) Should the work be published following the completion of the Residency, the Resident must acknowledge the work as having been created during the NUS USP and TAH Creative Writing Residency.
f) The Resident is to conduct public programmes involving students and potential writers at both NUS USP and TAH during the Residency, generating interaction and critical discussion among students and potential writing talents in Singapore and stimulating new writing from them.
g) The Resident will mentor a maximum of six students during the course of Residency and will conduct weekly workshops at Cinnamon College at NUS, open to all students.
h) The Resident will mentor six potential writing talents at The Arts House. Both mentorships and workshops will result in a deliverable outcome, for instance, in the form of two simple publications (one at the half-year mark, the second at the end of Residency period) by the mentored students and writing talents.
CLOSING DATE
Application form and all supporting materials should be postmarked no later than 13 May 2011, and addressed to:
Professor John Richardson
Director
University Scholars Programme
Level 6 General Office
10 Kent Ridge Crescent
Singapore 119260
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
If the Resident is a foreign candidate, he/she will be under the employ of NUS USP subject to his/her satisfaction of any pre-employment obligations as may be required by NUS USP, including without limitation his/her obtaining a valid work pass to work in Singapore. The Residency will cover the airfare both ways.
Coordinators of the Creative Writing Residency reserve the right not to disclose reasons for approving or rejecting an application. Late, illegible and incomplete applications will not be accepted.
ENQUIRIES
For more information, please contact: enquiries@toph.com.sg or visit www.theartshouse.com.sg/residency2011.html uspbox13@nus.edu.sg or visit www.usp.nus.edu.sg/happenings/2011/creative_writing_residency.html
Download the application form here >>
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