Call for proposals: Writers Residency Programme 2024

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Samoa House Library (SHL) is now accepting proposals from arts & arts-related practitioners for our newly established Writers Residency Programme 2024. There is one Writers Residency opportunity which includes a stipend of $5,000, open to individuals, groups or collectives wanting funded time and space to write.

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SHL’s 2024 Writers Residency offers practitioners from art or art-related fields the opportunity to focus on the completion of a current text or the beginnings of something new. We want to encourage writing without the pressure of project deadlines. During the Writers Residency recipients will engage with the library and work with its resources, as well as contribute to its programming or organisation. This could take the form of reading groups, crits and/or suggested additions to the collection. 

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SHL is interested in supporting significant, urgent, and underrepresented areas of practice; collectively oriented or situated projects; archival interventions and projects relevant to the context of SHL. For example, projects relating to a history of place in Maota Samoa (Samoa House) or Karangahape Road, to our lineage from the closure of Elam School of Fine Arts Library, to library/archival studies, institutional critique, etc.

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SHL provides the recipient with a stipend and other resources, including mentorship from a practitioner of your choice, alongside ongoing support from the SHL staff. 

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Applications for the Writers Residency close on Sunday 31st of March for residencies to begin in May or June 2024, the duration and format to be decided in discussion with SHL staff.

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What’s on offer

Recipients will receive:

• A stipend totalling $5,000

• Up to $700 towards materials and/or publishing, per the resident’s requirements and ambitions 

• An allocated quiet workspace within the SHL facility 

• An allocated book buying budget to purchase specific texts relevant to your research practice or project

• Mentorship from a practitioner(s) of your nomination (who is remunerated for up to 10 hours)

• Full access to SHL, our collection of 7500+ texts and other resources 

• Residencies will be organised on a case-by-case basis with support from SHL staff, our Board of Trustees and advisers.

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Expectations

Recipients will be expected to:

• Complete approximately 110 – 150 hours (equating to approximately $45.45 – $33.33 / hour). The majority of your research and writing hours should be at SHL if possible, however arrangements can be made to work elsewhere on a case by case basis. Please note no travel budget is provided in addition to your stipend

• Nominate texts relevant to your practice to be purchased by the Research Librarian for SHL’s collection 

• Make a shareable resource available at SHL i.e. a reading list of texts / online sources / media that were key to your research and writing practice throughout your residency. To be included in SHL’s newsletter upon the conclusion of your residency!

• Communicate regularly with SHL staff 

• Engage with library visitors in conversation about your writing—this could take the form of casual conversations or hosting a public reading group session at the library 

• Compile a brief report upon completion (written, oral, video, visual)

 

Duration

 

Your residency must start by the end of June 2024. The term of your residency will be self-determined and organised in a way that is most beneficial to you. This could look like an intensive short period of writing, or regular weekly writing days over several months. Based on Arts Makers Aotearoa’s suggested fair artists’ fees, we suggest the resident spend approximately 110 – 150 hours on research and writing, equating to an hourly rate of $33.33 – $45.45

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How to apply/ Proposals will be accepted in either of the following formats:

• A written outline of your writing proposal and/or current project (approx. 1000 words)

• A video recording (max. 15 minutes)

 

Proposals should include:

• Your name(s) & contact details

• An introduction to your writing interests and proposed trajectory, including how your project relates to SHL and our occupancy in Matoa Samoa on Karangahape Road or our lineage.

• A basic budget of your project costs and needs (these may include printing, digitisation, subscriptions, inter-loans, editing services etc.) 

• Examples of previous work (if relevant)

• A short personal bio(s)

• Indicative dates and timeline (including proposed start and end, and a schedule of how you will allocate your time.

 

Please send your written or video proposals by email to samoahouselibrary@gmail.com. If you have any questions or would like to discuss the application process further, please do not hesitate to contact us.

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Our residency programme is supported through funding from Creative New Zealand.