Funding

Partial / Stipend

Program dates

TBA

Fellowship•Netherlands · Amsterdam

Nederlands Letterenfonds Fellowship

Netherlands Institute for Advanced Study (NIAS-KNAW), with the Dutch Foundation for Literature (Nederlands Letterenfonds)

Application Deadline

August 25, 2026

Official Page

The Nederlands Letterenfonds Fellowship places one literary writer at the Netherlands Institute for Advanced Study (NIAS), an institute of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences at Korte Spinhuissteeg 3 in Amsterdam. NIAS and the Dutch Foundation for Literature have run this writer-in-residence position together since 1999, reserving one five-month semester of each academic year for a writer. The 2026–2027 edition is open to established writers of literary fiction and non-fiction based in the Caribbean Parts of the Kingdom: Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, Saba, Sint Eustatius and Sint Maarten. The fellow works full time on a writing project of their own choosing inside a residential community of international scholars, joining weekly seminars and everyday exchange across disciplines. The residency runs from February to July 2027.

Benefits & funding

  • Personal stipend of €3,500 per month across the five-month period.
  • Reimbursement of an international return ticket to the Netherlands.
  • Subsidised accommodation in Amsterdam, arranged through NIAS.
  • A private office at NIAS, with library and research facilities.
  • A place in the NIAS fellows community: weekly academic seminars, workshops and interdisciplinary exchange.

Eligibility

  • Open to writers based in the Caribbean Parts of the Kingdom: Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, Saba, Sint Eustatius and Sint Maarten.
  • For writers of literary fiction and non-fiction working in Papiamentu, Papiamento, English from the Islands or Dutch.
  • Applicants are expected to be at a mid-career or senior stage, with a proven track record, sustained literary quality and a professional publishing practice.
  • A solid command of English is required, since English is the working language at NIAS.
  • The proposed project should be past its opening phase, already in research or writing.
  • The fellow is expected at NIAS four working days a week and takes an active part in the community.
  • No degree, age or work-experience requirement is set.

Can you apply?

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  • Residence required

    Aruba · Bonaire · Curaçao · Saba · Sint Eustatius · Sint Maarten

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Application process

  1. 1
    Check the two hard conditions: being based in one of the six Caribbean parts of the Kingdom, and writing literary fiction or non-fiction in Papiamentu, Papiamento, English from the Islands or Dutch.
  2. 2
    Prepare three documents: a project proposal with the motivation behind it, a bibliography or overview of the literary work to date, and a digital copy of a recent publication.
  3. 3
    Email the package to Eva Prakken at the Dutch Foundation for Literature (e.prakken@letterenfonds.nl).
  4. 4
    Submit by 25 August 2026, 12:00 noon CET, which is 06:00 in the Caribbean parts of the Kingdom.
  5. 5
    The Dutch Foundation for Literature screens applications for eligibility, then an independent ranking committee assesses literary quality, the quality and feasibility of the project, and its fit with the NIAS environment.
  6. 6
    The Foundation sends a ranked recommendation to NIAS, which makes the final decision in consultation with its Academic Advisory Board.

Program timeline

  1. Call for applications opens

    6 July 2026

  2. Application deadline

    25 August 2026, 12:00 CET (06:00 Caribbean time)

  3. Fellowship period begins at NIAS

    February 2027

  4. Fellowship period ends

    July 2027