Applying to The Center for Fiction / Susan Kamil Emerging Writer Fellowship Program

Application Instructions

Please submit a fiction writing sample. The sample must:

• not exceed 7,500 words
• be double-spaced
• be a Word document (.doc or .docx)
• include page numbers

The writing sample may be a novel excerpt or one complete short story. If you write primarily “flash fiction” or “short shorts” (1,000 words or less), you are permitted to submit multiple stories as long as the total word count does not exceed the previously stated limit. In any case, we recommend that you submit a sample that can be considered as a whole.

Please do not include any personal or identifying information on your writing sample. Writing samples containing this information will NOT be considered.

When your submission has successfully uploaded, please email a PDF or jpeg scan showing proof of residency to [email protected]. A New York driver’s license or non-driver’s ID card is the preferred proof of residency. A PDF of a current utility bill, bank statement, lease/rental agreement, or recent pay stub may also be used to show residency (please omit confidential information such as your Social Security Number). If you are a full-time resident of New York City but do not have any of these items, please e-mail [email protected] to discuss other proof of residency that may be provided.

Please do NOT include an application cover letter. Instead, please include your mailing address and phone number in the email with your proof of residency. Please do not include any other information unless absolutely necessary, such as questions or comments relating to your eligibility or the submission process.

Eligibility Requirements

Applicants must be current residents of one of the five boroughs and must remain in New York City for the entire year of the fellowship. Students who will be enrolled in degree-granting programs in 2027 are not eligible to apply.

This program supports emerging writers whose work shows promise of excellence. “Emerging” refers to the stage of career rather than age, and we welcome all legal adults (18+) to apply. Specifically, we define an “emerging writer” as someone who has not yet had a novel or short story collection published by a major or independent publisher and who is not currently under contract with a publisher for a work of fiction. Eligible applicants may have had stories or novel excerpts published in magazines, literary journals, or online. If at any point during the judging process an applicant signs a contract for publication or accepts an offer to study in a degree-granting program, he or she must alert us to have the application pulled from consideration. Please email [email protected] with any questions or concerns.

Acceptance

Applications are read and scored through a tiered process. Each submission is read by at least three participants in The Center’s community Readership. Top-scoring submissions then advance to a panel of accomplished authors, who select the final cohort. Decisions regarding acceptance are based on the merit of the writing sample submitted. Applicants will be notified in December, and Fellowships begin in January and last for one year.