Open call / ‘25 Writing Fellowship

The Johannesburg Institute for Advanced Study (JIAS) invites applications for its ninth Writing Fellowship programme, which will run from 1 April - 30 June 2025.

The 2025 Writing Fellowship centers on the theme of Global Blackness. At JIAS, we use the term “global Blackness” to signal our investment in exploring the multiplicity of Black experience, intellectual traditions, and perspectives as well as modes of Black theory.

We ask: What are the geographies, practices, and theories of Blackness with which we work? How is Blackness instantiated in different spacetimes?

The fellowship invites applications from established scholars, creative practitioners, and thought leaders, with preference given to individuals in, from or closely aligned to Global South contexts. Applicants should submit a clear motivation, outlining a definite writing project (such as a book in progress) or creative project (such as a new body of work) they plan to work towards over the residency period, as well as why Johannesburg (and JIAS) presents a meaningful location in which to nurture their practice. JIAS welcomes exploratory, interdisciplinary research projects, as well as collective-based projects. Past fellows have included novelists, poets, playwrights, scientists, independent researchers, and journalists.

The JIAS Writing Fellowship offers a productive platform for experimental research and creative work in the Global South, allowing space and time for thinking and making, without the regular constraints of academic/professional life, such as teaching, marking, and administration. As such, fellows are urged to keep outside scholarly commitments to a minimum over the 3-month residency period.

Each Writing Fellow will receive:

• Flights (single return economy ticket, to and from Johannesburg)

• Accommodation in a private residential suite at JIAS

• Daily breakfast and lunch during the week (Mon-Fri)

• Monthly enrichment activities

• Access to the facilities of the nearby University of Johannesburg

• A taxable monthly stipend (total budget over 3 months: ZAR 90 000)

How to apply:

Applicants should share the following as PDF documents to: jiasinfo@uj.ac.za, with the following email subject line: “2025 Writing Fellowship Application [insert full name]”

• CV, bio & headshot (may include links to websites or other relevant resources)

• Brief motivation on why Johannesburg and JIAS present a meaningful location for the proposed research project (max 250 words)

• Research project outline, detailing a definite writing project (such as a book in progress) or creative project (such as a new body of work) you plan to work towards over the residency period. This can include a synopsis or abstract for publications, screenplays or scripts, or an artist’s statement/project outline for creative projects (max 1000 words). Where relevant, images and links can be included in the PDF document.

Eligibility:

Writing Fellowship applicants should hold a PhD qualification and demonstrate meaningful engagement within their field(s) of research (such as publications and research projects). Creative practitioner applicants need not have a PhD, but should demonstrate a strong track record of exhibitions, projects and interdisciplinary research. Preference may be granted to applicants from or closely aligned to Global South contexts, as well as women and gender-diverse applicants of colour.

Application Deadline: 

4 January 2025, midnight SAST

Virtual interviews of long-listed applicants will be during the first two weeks of February.