Nederlands Letterenfonds Fellowships

The Nederlands Letterenfonds Fellowship programme offers literary writers based in the Caribbean Parts of the Kingdom an opportunity to work for a five-month period within an international academic community. NIAS and the Dutch Foundation for Literature describe the fellowship as a continuation of the Writer-in-Residence programme, supporting full-time devotion to an individual writing research project within a multidisciplinary environment.

The fellowship is intended for literary fiction and non-fiction writers who are based in Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, Saba, Sint-Eustatius, or Sint Maarten. Applicants write in Papiamentu, Papiamento, English from the Islands, or Dutch, and should be established writers at a mid-career or senior stage with a literary track record and a body of work demonstrating sustained literary quality and professional practice.

Selection includes an eligibility review by the Dutch Foundation for Literature, followed by assessment by an independent ranking committee appointed by the Dutch Foundation for Literature. The committee assesses literary quality of the applicant’s work, the quality and feasibility of the proposed project, and the extent to which the project and applicant match the environment of NIAS. The Dutch Foundation for Literature submits a ranked recommendation to NIAS, and NIAS makes the final selection after consultation with its Academic Advisory Board.

The fellowship is for five months and includes a personal stipend of €3,500 per month, travel reimbursement of an international return ticket, an office at NIAS, access to research facilities, and subsidised accommodation in Amsterdam. The residency is described as a full-time commitment, and fellows are expected to be present at the Institute four workdays a week from the opening of their semester until the end of their semester, with active participation through seminars, workshops, and informal exchanges.

• Open to literary fiction and non-fiction writers
• Based in the Caribbean Parts of the Kingdom: Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, Saba, Sint-Eustatius, or Sint Maarten
• Writes in Papiamentu, Papiamento, English from the Islands, or Dutch
• Established writers with a literary track record and a body of work demonstrating sustained literary quality and professional practice
• Intended for writers at a mid-career or senior stage
• Comfortable working within an academic and international environment
• Must propose a literary project that clearly benefits from a residency at NIAS
• Project should already be beyond its initial conception phase and sufficiently developed to make productive use of the fellowship period
• Expected to participate actively in the NIAS community through seminars, workshops, and informal exchanges with other fellows
• Comfortable with working language at NIAS: English, and must have a good command of English

• Personal stipend: €3,500 per month
• Travel reimbursement: international return ticket
• Office at NIAS
• Access to research facilities
• Subsidised accommodation in Amsterdam
• Participation in weekly academic seminars and interdisciplinary dialogue

1. Use the application route associated with the programme; the call is described as having been open for applications.
2. Submit an application; eligibility is first reviewed by the Dutch Foundation for Literature.
3. After eligibility review, the independent ranking committee assesses eligible applications.
4. NIAS makes the final selection after consultation with its Academic Advisory Board.

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