Interested Writers

Every winter the Sangam House Writer's Residency Program invites approximately twenty writers to live and work on the Adishakti property outside Pondicherry, on the east coast of southern India. Lodging (single rooms) and food will be provided free of charge. Each writer is responsible for travel costs to and from Pondicherry. However, travel funds and bursaries are available through various cultural organizations.

Residencies are structured in 1-3 month intervals, determined by individual needs. We recommend a residence period of no less than 3 weeks for each writer. Of the invited writers, half come from the South Asian subcontinent (India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Bhutan, Nepal, and Sri Lanka) and half from other countries around the world. Sangam House is open to writers in all languages and disciplines. The next session will run for approximately three months from mid-November 2010 to mid-February 2011.

 Residents are selected through an application process. Interested writers are asked to submit the following three items:

Two letters of nomination.
These should be provided by a publishing or writing professional. Writing and publishing professionals are defined as: publishers, published writers, published translators, professors, editors, and literary agents. The letters should evaluate the work you propose to do at Sangam House or make reference to your previous work. Please have letters emailed or posted to the appropriate address below, independent and separate from your other application materials.
 
One non-returnable copy of a previously published book.
If the writer has not yet published a book, a 25 page work sample should be submitted. The book or work sample can be submitted in the writer's native language, English, or both.

One page statement describing the work to be undertaken while at Sangam House.
 
One non-returnable copy of a previously published book.
If the writer has not yet published a book, a 25 page work sample should be submitted. The book or work sample can be submitted in the writer's native language, English, or both.

All applications should include a cover letter with desired length of stay and contact information so that selected writers can be notified in a timely fashion.

Deadline: June 30, 2010 (All materials must be post-marked by this date.)

In addition to general applications, Sangam House offers a select amount of specific fellowships. Details about these fellowships are provided below. Please note that all applications will automatically be considered for the appropriate and relevant fellowships.

The LAVANYA SANKARAN FELLOWSHIP at Sangam House is open to Indian writers working in English with a preference for those writing fiction. The Fellowship covers board and lodge for the selected applicant(s) during their time at Sangam House (no more than 4 weeks and no less than 2 weeks). Please note that the Fellowship does not cover travel costs to and from the residency.

The PRAKRITI FOUNDATION FELLOWSHIP at Sangam House is open to a Tamil-language writer working in any discipline. The Fellowship covers board and lodge for the selected applicant during his or her time at Sangam House for 4 weeks. Please note that the Fellowship does not cover travel costs to and from the residency.

The ASIF CURRIMBHOY FELLOWSHIP at Sangam House is open to Indian playwrights working in any Indian language, including English. The Fellowship covers board and lodge for the selected applicant(s) during their time at Sangam House (no more than 4 weeks and no less than 2 weeks). Please note that the Fellowship does not cover travel costs to and from the residency.

Asif Currimbhoy (1928-1994) was one of the first Indian playwrights to write plays in English. Dumb Dancer, Goa, the Hungry Ones, and Inquilab, were mainly about the dispossessed. He stretched his material beyond the confines of the particular to produce an imaginative re-creation of the individual in conflict with the social and political system. Although he wrote in India, his career as a playwright blossomed in America. Goa was staged at the prestigious Martinique Theater on Broadway in New York City, The Hungry Ones at the Theater Company in Boston, and The Dumb Dancer & The Hungry Ones at La Mama in New York's Greenwich Village. His plays were banned in India for almost a decade. Finally in 1970, Goa was chosen to open the India National Center for Performing Arts in Dehli. His work has been translated into Bengali, Marathi, Hindi & Malyalam.

All South Asian writers resident in the subcontinent should submit to:

Arshia Sattar
3 Sharan Apartments
1 High Street
Cooke town
Bangalore 560 005
India

 All other writers should submit to:

DW Gibson
504 Grand Street, #H63
New York, NY 10002
USA

Inquiries from the subcontinent should be directed to Arshia Sattar: arshia.sangam@gmail.com

 Inquires from anywhere else should be directed to DW Gibson: dwmgibson@yahoo.com