Summer Fellowships

Application Guidelines

In 2012 Fishtrap will award three fellowships to bring emerging writers to the 25th Anniversary Summer Fishtrap: A Gathering of Writers, which will be held July 9-15, 2012 at Wallowa Lake, Oregon. A Fishtrap Fellowship, valued at over $1000, covers the cost of the seven-day retreat, including a five-day morning workshop (in any genre), readings, panel discussions, open mics, food, and lodging for the entire week (Monday evening through Sunday noon).  

Fellowships are intended to recognize and encourage writers showing promise at an early stage in their careers. The opportunity to attend and participate fully in Summer Fishtrap is the paramount benefit of this award. Recipients are featured readers at an evening program during the week, their work is sent to all faculty for that year prior to the event, and they are listed and featured in Fishtrap press releases and other promotional materials and on the Fishtrap website.

In return for a Fishtrap Fellowship award, Fishtrap asks the award recipients to participate fully in the entire Summer Fishtrap program: enroll in a writing workshop, give a reading, stay in the provided on-site housing, eat meals at the community-style cafeteria with other participants, and attend all readings and panel discussions throughout the week. In addition, we ask that Fellows mention their Fishtrap Fellowship award on CVs and in their own promotional materials, in print and on the Web, whenever possible.

Selection is on the basis of a writing submission (any genre), cover letter, and resume, all of which will be evaluated by the judges. Extensive publication (or any prior publication, for that matter) is not expected. In keeping with Fishtrap’s stated mission of “promoting clear thinking and good writing in and about the West,” applicants should be from the West or writing about the West. Our 25th anniversary theme is Catch and Release: What we hold on to, what we let go, and the one that got away.  If your interests dovetail with this theme in some way, let us know.

More than 100 Fellowships have been awarded since 1990, and many Fellows have gone on to important publication and full-time careers as writers and teachers of writing. Previous Fishtrap Fellows include novelists Kathleen Tyau and Robert Stubblefield; poets Charles Goodrich and Marilyn Johnston; short fiction writers Kelly Mager and Geronimo Tagatac; and non-fiction writers Ellie Waterston and Christine Colasurdo. 

Application period for 2012 Fellowships is now CLOSED.