Writers invited to apply for prestigious residency

Active established writers are invited to apply for the sought-after University of Auckland residency at the Michael King Writers’ Centre.

The Department of English in the Faculty of Arts co-hosts the residency, which enables a writer to spend six months from July to December 2012 at the Michael King Centre, a historic villa in Devonport. The writer also has an office in the English Department.

The residency is for established authors to devote themselves to a major project. Writers must be working on a specific project which may be in one of a range of genres including fiction, poetry, drama and non-fiction.

The University of Auckland residency is also an opportunity for an author to benefit from an academic environment, and to contribute to teaching and creative mentoring in the Department of English. It coincides with the University’s second semester.

The writer selected for the residency will receive free accommodation at the Michael King Writers’ Centre, use of the writer’s studio and a stipend of $30,000.

The current 2011 University of Auckland residency is held by playwright Michelanne Forster. She is writing a play set in present day New Zealand about a fiercely ambitious scientist and her family, including a son who questions the ethical basis of her research.

The Michael King Writers’ Centre aims to support New Zealand writers and promote New Zealand literature by providing opportunities for authors to work full-time. The residency is a partnership between the centre, The University of Auckland and Creative New Zealand.

Application forms and further information are available on the centre’s web site
www.writerscentre.org.nz. Applications close on Monday October 10, 2011, and the selections are expected to be made in November.