Sponsored Residency
Sponsored Residencies (four weeks in total length) are open only to permanent residents of Nova Scotia. Successful applicants are provided with free residence and a stipend of $500 per week. Each successful applicant has the option of conducting their residency over a single 4-week period or over two separate 2-week periods.
The Delmore “Buddy” Daye Residency for a Black and/or African Nova Scotian writer, sponsored by the Delmore “Buddy” Daye Learning Institute, is still open to applications. The successful applicant will undertake their residency between Jan 28, 2024, and March 30, 2024.
The following Sponsored Residencies will re-open for applications in late 2023:
- Nova Scotia Indigenous Writer’s Residency for a Mi’kmaw and/or Indigenous writer, sponsored by author Amanda Peters.
- RBC Emerging Artists Residency for writers who have not traditionally published or self-published more than two book-length literary projects, sponsored by the RBC Emerging Artists program.
- William & Elizabeth Pope Residency for a writer applying to work on a poetry project, sponsored by the Robert Pope Foundation.
- Two Writers’ Federation of Nova Scotia (WFNS) Residencies, for which all sponsored residency applicants are eligible.
Sponsored Residency applications are assessed by a peer assessment jury (composed of three professional authors contracted by WFNS), with results returned within eight weeks of the application deadline. Once notified, successful applicants have two weeks to finalize their residency dates.
To be considered for a Sponsored Residency, the applying writer must meet the following criteria.
- You must be a permanent resident of Nova Scotia (i.e., you have lived in Nova Scotia permanently for at least one year and you file your taxes here). Out-of-province college/university students and seasonal residents are ineligible.
- You must be 19 years of age of older by the current program deadline.
- You must submit only one Sponsored Residency application to each application deadline, so take the time to focus on your strongest project.
Sponsored Residency application packages must contain all components listed below and must be submitted by the application deadline. Each application package must be submitted as a single digital document (in .doc or .pdf format) with a file name as follows: FirstName LastName – Sponsored Residency (where “FirstName” is your given name and “LastName” is your family name or chosen surname). Incomplete, late, non-digital, or misnamed application packages are ineligible.
A. Literary CV/resume up to 2 pages in length (single-spaced; in 12-pt Times New Roman or Arial font).
- Include relevant education (degrees, literary workshops, mentorships, etc.); publications & accomplishments (awards, previous residencies, etc.); public presentation experience (readings, performances, panels, exhibitions, etc.); and teaching/instruction experience.
- Emerging writer applicants may supplement a 1-page literary CV with a 1-page letter of support from an established writer or professional author, such as a past mentor.
B. Letter of intent up to 2 pages in length (single-spaced; in 12-pt Times New Roman or Arial font).
- Describe the project(s) to be worked on; the goals to be accomplished; and a detailed work plan (with daily or weekly breakdown) for the sponsored residency period.
- Please identify any barriers to literary creation and/or recognition that you face or have faced (personal, social, political, financial, etc.).
- Please describe what receiving a Sponsored Residency would mean for you (e.g., its impact on your project, on your writing practice, or on your writing life).
C. Writing sample from the work-in-progress of 8 to 10 pages (double-spaced for prose; single-spaced for poetry; in 12-pt Times New Roman or Arial font).
- Poetry samples may use other fonts only if typeface is integral to the project.
- If your work-in-progress is still in the planning stages, please submit previously completed work that best resembles the proposed project and include a description (of up to 1 additional page) of the relationship between that relevant sample and the work-in-progress.
If you require assistance in completing or submitting a Sponsored Residency application (whether technical, accessibility-related, or otherwise), please contact communications@writers.ns.ca as early as possible in your application process. Such assistance may extend up to one week after the application deadline has passed, but the initial request for assistance must be received by the application deadline.
All applicants will be notified of results within eight weeks of the Sponsored Residency application deadline.
Successful applicants are required to immediately submit the residency periods possible within their schedules and then to confirm final residency dates within two weeks of the notification date.
After application packages have been processed to ensure they are complete and eligible, sponsored residency applications will be shared with a peer assessment jury (composed of three professional authors contracted by the WFNS). Due to the volume of applications anticipated, we ask that you not query the office about the status of your application during the six-week assessment period.
All application packages will be assessed based on the following criteria, weighted equally:
- the merit of the writing sample,
- the impact of the proposed residency, as determined by the letter of intent, and
- the applicant’s capacity for successfully undertaking the proposed residency, as determined by the literary CV/resume and any accompanying letter of support.
Upon notification, successful applicants will be required to propose ‘preferred’ and ‘possible’ residency periods. The proposed residency periods of all successful applicants will be considered when creating a final residency schedule for the program year. If a successful applicant is unable to undertake the offered residency during the available periods, WFNS reserves the right to select another eligible applicant for the residency based on the recommendations of the peer assessment jury.
Applications are accepted only through the form at the bottom of this page. Please note that completing the application form is the final step in our recommended application checklist:
☐ Ensure your eligibility.
☐ Ensure your application package is complete and correct. In the event of an error, please contact our office to explain the issue before submitting a revised application package. No application package or revised application package can be accepted after the program deadline, so we encourage you to apply early.
☐ Pay the $54 Sponsored Residency application fee. This fee covers most but not all of the administrative and assessment costs for each application. As such, this fee cannot be refunded under any circumstance, including incomplete, ineligible, or unsuccessful applications. The Sponsored Residency application fee is $39 for WFNS members; if you are a member in good standing, please ensure you log in to your member account before checkout to apply your member discount. WFNS General Membership is open to anyone who writes, regardless of writing experience or place of residence.
To pay fee by phone, call us between 9am and 4pm on weekdays at 902 423 8116 with your credit card details.
To pay fee by mail, send a cheque (payable to “Writers’ Federation of Nova Scotia”) post-dated for no later than the application deadline.
☐ Complete and submit the online application form, visible at the bottom of this page when applications are being accepted. After clicking the “Submit application” button, please wait until the green confirmation message appears (confirming that your form has been successfully submitted) before exiting this page.
If the application fee presents a barrier, please contact communications@writers.ns.ca before applying. Funds are available to help underwaged writers with application fees.
2023/2024 Applications are Closed
2024/2025 Applications will open in late fall of 2023
Application form
For general questions or further information, please contact us at least two weeks before the application deadline. Requests for technical, accessibility, or financial application assistance can be received only until the application deadline.
Investors
The Writers’ Federation of Nova Scotia is grateful to Amanda Peters; the Delmore “Buddy” Daye Learning Institute; RBC Emerging Artists; and the Robert Pope Foundation for their investments in Sponsored Residencies during the inaugural year of the Jampolis Cottage Residency Program.
