RESIDENCY AWARD: NATIONAL ARTS COUNCIL (NAC) –
INTERNATIONAL WRITING PROGRAM (IWP), UNIVERSITY OF IOWA
The National Arts Council is pleased to partner with the University of Iowa’s renowned International Writing Program (IWP), to offer fully-paid 10-week residency awards to up to two Singapore writers in 2018. Singapore writers of the nation’s four official languages, English, Chinese, Malay or Tamil, are welcomed to apply for the 2018 Fall Residency (August – November 2018).
Previous IOWA Writers-in-Residence from Singapore in recent years include Yu-Mei Balasinghamchow, Yeow Kai Chai, Amanda Lee-Koe, Stephanie Ye, O Thiam Chin, Amanah Mustafi and Sharlene Teo.
The addition of one more residency award offers more opportunities for Singapore writers to participate in IWP. The residency is open to writers who write in one of Singapore’s official languages – English, Chinese, Malay and Tamil. The selected candidates will be required to be conversant in English. The final number of candidates to be selected and funded every year is subject to the merits of the candidates and the competitive assessment criteria as outlined by IWP.
1. Objectives of the Award
This initiative is part of the National Arts Council’s ongoing efforts to:
· develop Singapore artists through their participation in relevant established international residency platforms;
· open up opportunities to nurture Singapore’s artists, address skill gaps in the arts industry and facilitate knowledge transfer to benefit the Singapore arts community; and
· enable networking opportunities with international counterparts and provide first-hand insight to the international arts world.
2. Eligibility
Applicants eligible for this residency should:
a) be Singapore Citizens or Singapore Permanent Residents who are practicing writers of fiction, poetry, creative nonfiction, drama, or screenplays and are actively engaged in the literary arts industry;
b) possess a record of past achievements (at least one published book or volume, or a sizable number of works in anthologies, journals, literary magazines), strong artistic merit, wide recognition among their industry peers, commitment towards advancing the art form and contribution to the Singapore arts scene;
c) be in the process of creating a new, original work;
d) be inclined to learn, explore different perspectives and share their own knowledge and perspectives on creative writing;
e) (for writers working in Malay, Chinese or Tamil languages) have a facility in speaking English sufficient to benefit from a 10-week writing residency where intensive discussion of literary and cultural issues forms a vital part of the experience;
f) be comfortable with cross-cultural dynamics and interested in close interaction with artists from diverse cultures and backgrounds through numerous IWP-led outreach and engagement events.
3. Assessment
Applications will be assessed competitively against each other, according to the following criteria:
a) Artistic merit and potential of the applicant, based on the information provided in the application form and supporting documents such as writing samples;
b) The applicant’s ability to undertake and commit to completing the programme;
c) The benefit of the proposed programme to the applicant’s creative and professional development; and
d) The applicant’s capacity and commitment to developing and contribution to the Singapore arts scene.
4. Terms of Award
The selection process is highly competitive and only up to two Singapore writers will be offered the Residency each year. The Award includes the following:
· Residency programming and administrative costs, accommodation, meals and lodging which will be paid to the University of Iowa;
· Up to 100% support towards return economy class airfare for one (inclusive of international and domestic flights and taxes) from Singapore to Iowa and the application fees for a non-immigrant visa.
Note: The Award excludes any additional costs incurred by the participants.
5. Conditions of Award
A. An applicant, upon being notified that his or her application is successful, shall inform NAC of his or her acceptance within 14 days after the day of the notification, failing which the award will be deemed to have been withdrawn.
B. The successful applicant:
a) Should devote his or her whole time to the Residency and apply himself or herself to the Residency to the best of his or her ability and to the satisfaction of the supervisors, tutors and instructors associated therewith;
b) Participate significantly in the Residency offerings;
c) Comply with the rules and regulations in force at, and the directions of, the Institute and the place of training to which he or she may be attached;
d) Expect to be involved in any NAC publicity (across a variety of media) regarding the International Artist Residency any time before, during or upon completion of the Residency;
e) Should execute the following deliverables within 2 months upon completion of the residency:
Written Evaluation Report detailing:
i. new creative project/s accomplished during the residency;
ii. summary of key learning points and residency experiences
iii. short and long-term initiatives for employing ideas and skills gained; as well as other visual supporting documents and;
Evidence of Work accomplished during the Residency period
iv. Copy of new creative project or writing developed during the residency program, including draft manuscript/s of new work/s.
These reports and draft manuscripts are for archival purposes only and will not be published and/or circulated publically.
6. Application Procedure
All applications are to be submitted through email (in PDF or Word format) by 5pm on 15 March 2018 to: . Late or incomplete applications will not be accepted. The application must include the following documents:
1. Completed application form;
2. Detailed curriculum vitae of applicant, focusing on applicant’s literary works;
3. Representative samples of two past works in English[1] (between 10 to 15 pages each);
4. Proposal letter (which includes the writer’s statement of purpose, objectives, outline, activities, and details of the new work to be written during the Residency).
For enquiries, please contact Firda Raffid (DID: 63469438, Email: ).
7. Notification of Outcome
All applicants will be notified of the outcome by NAC by May 2018. NAC and IWP’s decision is final. NAC reserves the right not to disclose reasons for approving or rejecting an application. The successful applicant will receive a Letter of Offer stating the terms and conditions of the award and expected outcomes after the program.
NAC-IWP Open Call – December 2017
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[1] Chinese, Malay and Tamil-language writers will need to submit samples of their work translated into English. Writers are strongly encouraged to work with a professional literary translator to produce these translations