Written By S. Kalekar

These are free-to-enter grants and fellowships for writers, poets, playwrights and journalists. Award amounts vary from a few hundred dollars to $70,000. For many, the payment is in installments; details are on individual websites.

1. Ohioana Walter Rumsey Marvin Grant

This prose grant is for Ohio writers who have not had a book published. No electronic applications.

Value: $1,000
Deadline: 31 January 2016
Open for: Authors 30 years or younger, who were born in Ohio or lived there for a minimum of five years.
Details here: http://www.ohioana.org/programs/ohioana-book-awards/
And here: http://www.ohioana.org/programs/ohioana-book-awards/

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2. Roth Residence in Creative Writing

Offered by Bucknell University, this residency provides up to four months of writing time. For 2017-18, it is open for writers of prose – fiction or literary non-fiction. There are two residencies, in fall and spring semesters. Some record of publication is desirable.

Value: $5,000
Deadline: 1 February 2017
Open for: US residents aged 21 or over, who are not enrolled as students in a college or university.
Details here: http://www.bucknell.edu/centers-institutes-and-resources/stadler-center-for-poetry/programs-and-residencies/philip-roth-residences-in-creative-writing.html

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3. Olive B. O’Connor Fellowship

Offered by Colgate University, this one-year fellowship in creative writing is for those finishing their first books. Fellows teach a creative writing workshop and have one public reading. Writers of nonfiction and poetry who have recently completed MA or MFA or PhD in creative writing are encouraged to apply.

Value: $40,500, plus travel expenses, health and life insurance
Deadline: 1 February 2017
Open for: Unspecified
Details here: http://www.colgate.edu/academics/departments-and-programs/english/creative-writing-fellows

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4. U.S.-Japan Creative Artists Exchange Fellowships

This fellowship offers three to five months in Japan for leading artists of all disciplines, including playwrights and writers. This is for those who live and work primarily in the U.S.; they encourage collaboration with Japanese colleagues.

Value: Up to $24,000 and up to $2,000 for travel
Deadline: 1 February 2017 for sending the cover sheet application form; 15 February for attaching the narrative application and work samples.
Open for: U.S. Citizens or permanent residents
Details here: http://www.jusfc.gov/creative-artists-programs/

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5. Arizona Commission on the Arts’ Professional Development Grants

This supports participation in artistic development and skill-building activities, or opportunities that contribute to professional growth and career development. Grants must be matched by a minimum contribution of 25% of the requested grant amount.

Value: $500-$750
Deadline: 2 February 2017
Open for: Arizona residents aged 18 years or older
Details here: http://azarts.gov/grant/professional-development/

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6. New York City Emerging Writers Fellowship

This one-year fellowship, offered by the Center for Fiction, is offered to nine writers. Applicants can be of any age, but must be in early stages of their careers as fiction writers and must not have had a novel or short story collection published or contracted by a major or independent publisher. Residents must remain in New York for the duration for the fellowship. Students in degree-granting programs are not eligible. They do not want application cover letters.

Value: $5,000
Deadline: 15 February 2017
Open for: Residents of one of the five boroughs of New York
Details here: http://www.centerforfiction.org/forwriters/grants-and-awards/

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7. Raiziss/de Palchi Translation Awards

The fellowship will be given in 2017 for the translation of modern Italian poetry. It is given to enable an American translator to travel, study, or otherwise advance a significant work-in-progress. It invites applications from those currently engaged in the translation of twentieth-century Italian poetry. There is a cash award and a five- week residency at the American Academy in Rome.

Value: $25,000
Deadline: 15 February 2016
Open for: U.S. citizens, or those who have lived in the US for the last 10 years, or those with Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) status, Temporary Protected Status (TPS) or Legal Permanent Status (LPS).
Details here: https://www.poets.org/academy-american-poets/prizes/raizissde-palchi-translation-awards

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8. Matthew Power Literary Reporting Award

This grant supports a promising early-career non-fiction writer on a story that uncovers the truth about the human condition. They are looking for “strong, character-driven narratives with detailed scene writing and lyrical description”, which had also characterized the work of Matthew Power, an award-winning journalist who reported empathically on the human condition. The award will not fund proposals to report on armed conflicts where journalists are already imperiled, nor projects that are mainly investigatory. Winners will receive visiting scholar privileges at NYU, granting them library access and, staffing and space permitting, an office. Journalists holding staff positions at established media outlets are ineligible.

Value: $12,500; one runner-up award of $2,500
Deadline: 21 February 2017 for proposals; 6 November 2017 for the completed project
Open for: Anyone aged 21 years or over
Details here: http://journalism.nyu.edu/about-us/awards-and-fellowships/matthew-power-literary-reporting-award/

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9. The Reporting Award

Supported by the Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute at the New York University, this is for a proposed work of journalism in any medium on significant underreported subjects in the public interest. The institute will select up to two winners. It will not fund proposals to report from locations where there is conflict that might imperil journalists, nor will it support projects deemed to have a high level of risk. Journalists holding staff positions at established media outlets are ineligible. The winner will have access to the NYU Bost Library.

Value: Up to $12,500
Deadline: 21 February 2017
Open for: Anyone aged 21 or older
Details here: http://journalism.nyu.edu/about-us/awards-and-fellowships/the-reporting-award/

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10. The Swann Foundation Fellowships

The foundation seeks to award one fellowship annually for ongoing scholarly research and writing projects in the field of caricature and cartoon. Fellows are required to make use of the Library of the Congress’s extensive collections, be in residence for at least two weeks during the award period, and deliver a public lecture on his/her work-in-progress at that time.

Value: $5,000; broken up into various smaller awards in recent years
Deadline: 24 February 2017
Open for: Candidates for M.A. or Ph.D. degree in the US, Canada or Mexico, or those in postgraduate research within three years of getting an M.A. or Ph.D.; also for non-U.S. residents that otherwise meet the academic qualification.
Details here: https://www.loc.gov/rr/print/swann/swann-fellow.html

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11. Knight Science Journalism Fellowship at MIT

This offers 10 science journalists a 9-month fellowship designed to enable them to explore science, technology, and the craft of journalism in depth, to concentrate on a specialty in science, and to learn at some of the top research universities in the world. Fellows must produce a research project during the academic year, which can form the basis of a story, or simply be a detailed report on an area of science. Fellows are required to audit at least one science course per semester but are otherwise encouraged to explore the wide range of offerings at MIT, Harvard, or other institutions in Cambridge and Greater Boston.

Value: $70,000 plus benefits
Deadline: 28 February 2017
Open for: Full-time journalists (whether staff or freelance) worldwide
Details here: http://ksj.mit.edu/the-fellowships/

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12. Scripps Fellowships for environmental journalism

Five fellowships are awarded each year at the University of Boulder, Colorado. This is for journalists interested in deepening and broadening their knowledge of environmental issues. Applicants may include general assignment reporters, editors, producers, environmental reporters, full-time freelancers and photojournalists. Prior experience in covering the environment is not required.

Value: $56,000
Deadline: 1 March 2017
Open for: U.S. citizens with undergraduate degrees and five years full-time professional journalism experience
Details here: http://www.colorado.edu/cej/scripps-fellowships/applying-program

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13. Edward R. Murrow Press Fellowship

This is for a distinguished foreign correspondent or an editor. The Fellow spends nine months full-time in residence at the Council for Foreign Relations’ headquarters in New York. The program enables the Fellow to engage in sustained analysis and writing, expand his or her intellectual and professional horizons, and extensively participate in CFR’s active program of meetings and events.

Value: $65,000 and a modest travel grant
Deadline: 1 March 2017
Open for: Those authorised to work in the US, including for the duration of the fellowship
Details here: http://www.cfr.org/thinktank/fellowships/murrow.html

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14. Mississippi Arts Commission’s Artist Fellowship

This honors Mississippi artists who demonstrate the ability to create exemplary work in their chosen field. For this cycle, the literary arts eligible are screenwriting, playwriting, and creative non-fiction. Fellow are expected to dedicate the funds towards expanding their ability to create new work. Fellowship funds may not be used to support academic research or study toward an academic or professional degree.

Value: Up to $5,000
Deadline: 1 March 2017
Open for: Permanent, legal Mississippi residents aged at least 18 years, and those who are not full-time students.
Details here: http://www.arts.state.ms.us/grants/artist-fellowship.php

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15. Leeway Foundation’s Art and Change Grant

This grant funds art (including literary) for social change projects. These must impact a larger group, audience or community, and is for artists with financial need. Artists need to work with Change Partners (may include mentors, editors, collectives, theatres) to apply; these partners cannot benefit financially from the grant.

Value: $2,500
Deadline: 1 March 2017
Open for: Women and trans artists in the Delaware Valley region: Bucks, Camden, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, or Philadelphia County
Details here: http://www.leeway.org/grants/art_and_change_grants/

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16. Alabama State Council on the Arts’ Artists Fellowships

Grants are for artists in various fields, including literature – fiction, non-fiction, poetry, screenwriting and playwriting. Fellows must maintain residency in Alabama during the grant year.

Value: $5,000
Deadline: 1 March 2017
Open for: For legal residents of Alabama, and those who have lived there for two years prior to the application deadline date.
Details here: http://www.arts.alabama.gov/grants/grant_individual.aspx

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17. The Kentucky Foundation for Women’s Art Meets Activism Grant

This supports feminist artists (including literary) and organizations in Kentucky to engage individuals and communities in artmaking that directly benefit women and girls in Kentucky. Applicants should be able to demonstrate their commitment to feminism, their ability to engage community members, and have a concrete plan for positive social change through arts-based activities.

Value: Up to $7,500
Deadline: 3 March 2017
Open for: Kentucky-based artists
Details here: http://www.kfw.org/grants/art-meets-activism/

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18. National Endowment for the Arts’ Creative Writing Fellowships

Fellowships in this cycle are for writers of fiction and creative nonfiction, to enable recipients to set aside time for writing, research, travel, and general career advancement.

Value: $25,000
Deadline: 8 March 2017
Open for: U.S. residents; there are also various publication track record requirements
Details here: https://www.arts.gov/grants-individuals/creative-writing-fellowships

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19. Awesome Foundation’s Journalism Grant

This is given to a journalism project that commits a brilliant, positive act of journalism in public interest. The project must be attainable and completed within three months of the award. The grant money cannot be used for personal expenses or operating expenses for an established organization. It must uphold the Fourth Estate Public Benefit Corporation’s principles, standards and practices of truth, transparency and community.

Value: $1,000
Deadline: Rolling
Open for: Anyone, anywhere, in any medium
Details here: http://www.awesomefoundation.org/en/chapters/journalism