The University of Stirling is to host the 2024 Dr Gavin Wallace Fellowship – a year-long writing residency which supports Scottish based mid-career and established writers to develop new work.
The news coincides with an invite to Scottish based writers – writing in English, Gaelic or Scots - to apply for the residency which will begin next March.
Alongside a stipend of £20,000 to support them through their 12-month residency, the University’s Literature and Languages division will offer the selected Fellow access to dedicated space on campus and support in designing tailored professional development opportunities including author appearances, attendance at research seminars and research trips.
Dr Liam Bell, Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing at the University of Stirling, said: “We're delighted to be selected as the host for the 2024 Gavin Wallace Fellowship. We’re hugely looking forward to welcoming a writer to join our community of writers – across both students and staff – and continuing an ongoing literary conversation between our beautiful campus and the written word which extends back to Norman MacCaig joining the English Department back in 1970 and which has seen notable alumni including Iain Banks, Jackie Kay, and more recently, Graeme Armstrong and Roseanne Watt passing through our doors.
“We’re excited to find out how the Gavin Wallace Fellow engages with the themes and ideas of the call and we can’t wait to see what wonderful, inspiring applications come our way.”
The University is keen to hear from a diverse writing community and encourages applications from mid-career writers from under-represented groups, particularly writers of colour and those from ethnically-marginalised communities, as well as writers who identify as disabled, working class, LGBTQ+ and their intersections.
Harriet MacMillan, Literature Officer at Creative Scotland, said: “We're extremely pleased to appoint the University of Stirling as this year’s host for the Dr Gavin Wallace Fellowship. The prestige of the Fellowship grows every year and the cohort of authors we’ve supported is a stellar list of first-rate Scottish literary talent.
"The project will see the University offer a writer access to an incredible range of creative programming and networks over the year of the Fellowship. This is a perfect context for the development of truly innovative and exciting work.”
The Dr Gavin Wallace Fellowship was established in 2014 in memory of Dr Gavin Wallace who dedicated his entire professional life to supporting Scottish literature. Following the sad loss of Dr Wallace in February 2013, Creative Scotland established an annual fellowship in his name to honour his memory and commemorate and continue his good work. The fund is supported by The National Lottery through Creative Scotland.
The University of Stirling’s division of Literature and Languages is located in the Pathfoot building at the University of Stirling, and houses the English Studies BA programme and the MLitt in Creative Writing. The University’s writing heritage is woven into the fabric of the building, with part of the eclectic Art Collection being the ‘House of Words’ which has poems from previous writing fellows displayed on the windows.
For further information about the Residency and how to apply, please visit the University's website.