Breaking new ground - literature

The purpose of this one-off grant initiative is to create a stimulus to assist in the creation of important new work by established Australian writers and picture book and graphic novel illustrators which breaks new literary ground for the writer and will also have a high expectation of publication or production.

Closing date: 7 March 2008
Decisions advised: June 2008
Projects may start: 1 July 2008

Amount: $40,000.

Funding is available for living allowances and/or assistance with travel and research costs associated with the preparation and writing of nominated projects.

Applications will be accepted in the following genres only:

• Fiction
• Literary non-fiction (defined by the board as autobiography, biography, essays, histories, literary criticism or analytical prose)
• Poetry
• Children’s and young adult literature
• Writing for performance.

What are the selection criteria?

Applications will be selected that best demonstrate:

• The creative substance of the project
• Literary merit, understood to encompass an assessment of the applicant's writing ability, focusing on style, appropriateness of form, skilled use of language, clarity of expression and sustained development of themes or ideas as evidenced by the supplied support material
• The extent to which the proposed work breaks new ground for the writer

Who is eligible to apply?

Publication record

Apply under this initiative if you have achieved any of the following publication/performance requirements:

• At least three full-length literary works published (including works of young adult literature or junior fiction over 30,000 words) or four or more full-length literary works performed
• At least eight children's books published (up to 30,000 words).
  

Individuals must demonstrate that by the closing date for applications, they have achieved the minimum publication requirements.

The following individuals are not eligible to apply to this category:

• Recipients of a new work or skills and arts development grant awarded in 2007
• Recipients of a two-year established writers' new work grant awarded in 2005, 2006 or 2007
  
• Recipients of a fellowship awarded in 2005, 2006 or 2007.

Applicants who apply to the breaking new ground initiative may not apply for a residency in 2008.

If you apply and are successfully funded under the literature breaking new ground initiative, and you have also made an application to the 2008 literature new work round or fellowship round, your literature new work or fellowship application will be automatically withdrawn from the literature new work or fellowship round.

Letter of support

To be eligible you must also provide a clear indication of publisher or producer support for the project.

This means you must provide with your application a letter of support from a publisher/producer on their company letterhead. The letter should state that the publisher/production company is interested in publishing/producing your completed work subject to the delivery of an acceptable manuscript/script and that you understand this condition. A letter from an editor, theatre director, dramaturge, etc, will not be accepted. The letter must be from the person who has the authority to offer that support on behalf of the publishing/production company involved.

A publisher should be one of those currently registered with the literature board. If you are unsure of who is a registered publisher please contact the board for advice.

Please note that writers who are also publishers cannot provide a letter of support to publish their own work.

What should you submit?

You must submit the required support material in addition to the application form.

Important

If you are not sure if you are eligible to apply for funding, please contact staff before submitting your application.

Please note that this initiative is being offered as a once-only opportunity and will not form part of the board’s normal grant categories in future years.