Writers who are Black, Indigenous, or People of Color (BIPOC) and reside in Detroit, Houston, or New Orleans may apply for United States of Writing (USW) grants. The purpose of these grants is to support BIPOC writers in presenting virtual events that will engage communities in these cities as part of Poets & Writers' ongoing initiative.

TIMELINE

1. Application Deadline: September 30
2. Grantees Notified: October 15
3. Projects Take Place: October 16-December 31

ELIGIBILITY

To be eligible, applicants must:

1. Identify as Black, Indigenous, or a Person of Color (BIPOC)
2. Be a resident of Detroit, Houston, or New Orleans, including surrounding metro areas of each city.
3. Be a published writer of poetry, fiction, or creative nonfiction, or have performing credits as a spoken word artist.

PROJECTS

1. Projects may include readings, workshops, or community conversations (such as panels, discussions, town halls, or Q&As) in the genres of poetry, fiction, or creative nonfiction.
2. Projects must take place between October 16 and December 31, 2020.
3. For the time being, only virtual projects occurring in real-time will be funded.
4. Previously recorded projects are not eligible.
5. Virtual readings and community conversations should be live streamed through an audio/video platform which is open to the public.
6. Virtual writing workshops should include real-time online instruction of workshop attendees by a live facilitator, and can be open or closed to the public, dependent on workshop needs.
7. Recording virtual projects and archiving them through a publicly accessible platform, such as YouTube or Vimeo, is encouraged.

GRANTS

1. Project grant amounts are determined by the number of sessions (reading, workshop, or community conversation).
2. Grants offered are: $250 for a one-session project, $500 for a two-session project, and $750 for a three-session project
3. Project grants may be used to cover any costs associated with the project, including writers fees (for the applicant and/or other writers taking part in the project), marketing and publicity, project documentation, or other production costs required to make the project a success.
4. Grantees are paid as independent contractors and are not employees of Poets & Writers. (Note that grants generally are considered taxable income.)

EXPECTATIONS

Grantees are expected to:

1. List their events on the Poets & Writers online literary events calendar
2. Use the appropriate credit lines and logos in all publicity
3. Tag Poets & Writers as requested in all related social-media posts
4. Submit a final report within thirty days of the project’s conclusion.

Click here to access the grant application: https://poetsandwriters.formstack.com/forms/usw_project_grants_application