Individual Arts Grants for Creative Writers in Canada

Funding Information

• You may request up to 100% of the eligible project expenses.
• You should apply to the appropriate level:
  • Level 1: Grants up to $7,500
  • Level 2: Grants up to $15,000
• They encourage you to submit a realistic budget for funds required to feasibly carry out the project.
• BC Arts Council intends to support successful applications at 100% of the request. However, in some cases, grants may be awarded for less than requested.

Eligible Expenses

• Grants are available to support:
  • Subsistence costs up to $750 per week. This includes living costs incurred while undertaking a project or activity, and can include housing costs, food, and local transportation.
  • Costs of materials directly related to the research, development, and creation of the project.
  • Rental of equipment or space when directly relevant to the project.
  • Fees paid to literary professionals to help complete the project, for example, an editor, dramaturge, or sensitivity reader.
  • Travel expenses directly relevant to completing the project.

Eligibility Criteria

• To be eligible, you must:
  • Be a Canadian citizen or Permanent Resident of Canada.
  • Be a B.C. resident who ordinarily resides in B.C. and has lived in B.C. for at least 12 continuous months immediately prior to the application closing date. You must be prepared to provide documentation to support your residency status (if requested).
  • Be an independent creative writer who has completed appropriate and relevant training in the discipline. Training may include education through post-secondary institutions, traditional knowledge transfer, and/or apprenticeship with a qualified practitioner.
  • Work at a level that is recognized as professional by other practitioners in a similar discipline and or by organizations in the discipline, including professional book publishers, literary magazines, recognized literary associations, and specialized presenters such as literary festivals and fairs.
  • Have a demonstrated body of work that meets the specific eligibility requirements for either Level One or Level Two, as outlined below.
  • Have final creative control over the proposed work.
  • Fairly compensate artists, arts and cultural practitioners, technicians, Elders, and Knowledge Keepers. Compensation must align with project and community contexts and industry standards within the field of practice.
  • Follow international intellectual property rights standards and cultural ownership protocols.
  • Follow the Criminal Records Review Act which requires that people who work with or may have unsupervised access to children or vulnerable adults must undergo a criminal record check by the Criminal Records Review Program.
  • Have completed and submitted any overdue final reports on previous BC Arts Council grants by the submission deadline for this grant program.
  • Be applying for either the first or second time with a project; if you have applied twice unsuccessfully for the same project, the proposal must be substantively changed.
  • Commercial activities, works resulting from commissions, or pay-to-play activities do not contribute towards establishing eligibility.
  • Level One Eligibility:
    • To be eligible for a Level One grant, you must have at least one eligible book (minimum 80 pages for poetry, 120 pages for prose, or 24 pages for a children’s picture book) published by a professional literary or trade book publisher engaging an editorial selection process, and for which you have a publishing contract and receive royalties, OR an equivalent.
  • Level Two Eligibility:
    • To be eligible for a Level Two grant, you must be recognized as a senior writer in your genre/s and professional communities.

For more information, visit British Columbia Arts Council.