Worldwide: For those with a genuine curiosity about the world around them, the Journey of a Lifetime is a grant of £5,000 for an original and inspiring journey anywhere in the world. The recipient of the award will receive training in radio broadcasting from the BBC and will record their experiences for a BBC Radio 4 documentary. The aim of the award is to inspire an interest in the people and places of the world and to discover new radio broadcasting talent. The application deadline is October 4, 2014.
‘Ordinary Guru’ Writing Competition: Have you ever met an everyday, ordinary guru who helped you break a myth that held you back, sparked insight, or helped you see the world a little differently? If so, tell us your story by entering the Ordinary Guru Contest. You can submit a short story, essay, memoir, photo essay, cartoon, graphic novel or poem. First Prize: $5,000. Second Prize: $2,500. Third Prize: $1,500. Open only to legal residents of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia, and Canada (excluding Quebec), who are 18 years and older. Free to submit; deadline: August 31, 2014.
All Aboard, Writers! Feel uncomfortable about signing up for the Amtrak Residency program, but still want a free ride? You can still write without worrying about what you’re giving away. BiblioCrunch is giving away an Amtrak long-distance roundtrip train ride from NYC to Florida. You get to pick either Orlando or Miami. Apply here by 7/31/14.
‘Love on the Road’ Travel Writing Competition: Malinki Press seeks stories about two people making a connection, whether this connection is platonic, the kind that leads to a wedding, the kind that just leads to a bed, or the kind that leads to a heartbreak. We’re interested in stories about two people traveling together, a traveler who meets someone while on the road, or a person who meets a traveler passing through. We’ll accept submissions from May 1, 2014 to July 31, 2014. Submissions should be 4,000 to 6,000 words and can be fiction or nonfiction. They must be original and cannot have been previously published. Submissions from LGBTQ writers are welcome. Winners announced in September and awarded prizes of $200, $100, and $50, respectively. We will work with Dublin-based Liberties Press to publish Love on the Road 2014: Another Twelve Tales of Love and Travel as a trade paperback. We will also make the paperback available via Amazon and Flipkart, and publish it as an ebook.
Wales: Gladstone’s Library’s Writer in Residence program now seeking submissions for four residencies in 2015. Each of the winning writers will be awarded a full month’s residency in the wonderfully creative atmosphere of Gladstone’s Library. During that month, each writer will publish two blogs about their stay, run a one-day workshop on the craft of creative writing, and host an evening event where they talk about any aspect of their writing life. Each residency comes with full board and lodging, travel expenses within the UK and a stipend of £100 per week. Free to apply; deadline June 30, 2014.
Eco-preneurs: Do you have an innovative idea that could change the world? Verizon’s ‘Powerful Answers Award’ invites idea submissions through June 30, 2014, will reward $1,000,000 to the winning proposal.
Germany: Residential fellowships in the Künstlerhaus Schloss Balmoral in Bad Ems are awarded to international visual artists. For the residencies for 2015, applicants’ artistic work should focus on or have some connection with or make reference to Dada, the artistic movement which will have its centenary in the following year 2016. The federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate is especially well placed to celebrate this centenary, as it is home to two of the historical initiators of Dada, Hugo Ball, born in Pirmasens, and Hans Arp, to whom a museum in Rolandseck is dedicated. The fellowships are endowed with 1,400 € a month. Two fellowships are awarded for the period of three months. Four fellowships are awarded for the period of nine months. All residential fellowships run from June each year. All artists invited will have their registered secondary residence in Bad Ems for the time of their stay (compulsory registration). Artists must be free of all professional commitments for the period of their fellowships. The fellowship holders are provided with a furnished living/bedroom with shower/WC and a studio including electricity, water and heating. Running costs (electricity, water and heating) will be paid by the Künstlerhaus. Each apartment is equipped with an individual telephone and internet access. If required, the room is also wired up for radio and television. The lounge, the dining room and the kitchen are for joint use. Due to the historic nature of the building, the apartments and studios in terms of their size and equipment are normally only suitable for one single person. Pets are not admitted. Free to apply; deadline: June 28, 2014.
Short Filmmakers: Apply To YouTube’s Next Director Award, open to all aspiring directorial talent of any age as long as they have less than two years film or advertising industry experience as a director and are finished with their full-time education. New directors are invited to submit any form of film — under five minutes long — including short films, music videos, commercials and branded content. Winners will receive mentorship from YouTube and D&AD, ranging from one-on-one sessions with high-profile filmmakers and producers to full agency representation. Additionally, winners will also receive a newly designed D&AD Pencil, as well as funding from MOFILM to work on a commissioned brief. The first entry deadline is June 25, 2104. Submit your film here.
Sisters, Oregon: Artists invited to apply for month-long residencies at Caldera Arts Center in Oregon’s Cascade Mountain range. Caldera Arts Center is nestled on 120 acres in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains 16 miles west of Sisters, Oregon. There is a $35 application fee, but no other residency fees. Deadline to apply: June 15, 2014.
Sausalito, California: Headlands Center for the Arts’ Artist in Residence (AIR) program awards fully sponsored residencies to approximately 45 local, national, and international artists each year. Residencies of four to ten weeks include flexible studio space, chef-prepared meals, comfortable housing, and travel and living stipends when available. AIRs become part of a dynamic community of artists participating in Headlands’ other programs, allowing for exchange and collaborative relationships to develop within the artist community on campus. Artists selected for this program are at all stages in their careers and work in all media, including drawing, painting, sculpture, photography, film, video, new media, installation, fiction and nonfiction writing, poetry, dance, music, interdisciplinary, social practice, and architecture.
- Application period for 2015 program is April 22 to June 6, 2014. 2015 Program runs March to December, 2015.
- Each Program year is divided into three seasons: Spring, March – May; Summer, June – August; and Fall, September – November.
Corvallis, Oregon: The Long-Term Ecological Reflections program hosts the Andrews Forest Writing Residency, which occurs twice a year. Creative writers whose work reflects a keen awareness of the natural world and an appreciation for both scientific and literary ways of knowing are invited to apply for the Andrews Forest Writers Residency. The resident writers live at the Andrews Forest for one to two weeks, interact with the scientists, explore the forest, and write. Writers are encouraged to visit designated study sites for reflecting on and writing about the forest and their relation to it. These writings, which will form a collection spanning hundreds of years, will be gathered in permanent archives at Oregon State University, and are accessible via the web-based Forest Log. For the Andrews Forest Residencies, writers are provided:
- a comfortable, three-room apartment at the H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest;
- access to a majestic ancient forest and world-renowned research site;
- opportunities to interact with research scientists as they go about their work;
- opportunities to have their writings included in The Forest Log.
The residencies are intended to provide concentrated time for personal creative work that promises to further the exploration of the relationship of humans to the rest of the natural world. Writers provide their own transportation and take care of their meals while at the Andrews. The apartment’s kitchen is well equipped with cookware and dishes. A computer lab in the headquarters building can be used to access the Internet. Residents should bring a laptop if they so desire. Residencies are available in the fall and spring. Applications for the fall retreat are due in May, and applications for the spring retreat are due in December. We will post the Call for Proposals on our website well in advance of the deadlines. Application for Andrews Forest Fall and Spring Retreats: PDF Word
Deadline: December 1 for the Spring Retreats; May 15 for the Fall Retreats
Worldwide: The Arts Envoy Program shares the best of the U.S. arts community with the world to foster cross-cultural understanding and collaboration and to demonstrate shared values and aspirations. American arts professionals– including performing artists, visual artists, poets, playwrights, theatrical and film directors, curators, and others– travel overseas to conduct workshops, give performances, and mentor young people. Programs seek to connect with international publics who might not otherwise have the opportunity to engage with American arts professionals. Participants must be: at least 18 years old; U.S. Citizen; and an expert/professional practitioner in the arts field. Program length: 5 days to 6 weeks.
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Do you have an arts residency, creative competition or opportunity that you’d like us to feature? Feel free to contact us via email or one of our social media channels. Please note: We can only feature those that don’t require program fees (beyond a standard application fee) to participate. Thanks!
