Writers Residency Programme at Sangam House

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 session will run for approximately three months from mid-November 2009 to mid-February 2010.

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.

In addition to general applications, Sangam House offers a select amount of specific fellowships.

For more details on the residency programme and the fellowships available, click here. The deadline to send in your applications is 31st July, 2009.