In operation since 1973, the Martha Heasley Cox Center for Steinbeck Studies promotes John Steinbeck’s goals of empathy and mutual understanding through public programming, free curriculum for teachers, and fellowships for emerging writers.
The Steinbeck Fellowship is a one-year residency at San José State University which includes a stipend of $15,000. Up to six Fellows are chosen every year. Fellows are expected to give one public reading from their work and will be required to reside within the counties of the San Francisco Bay Area, adjacent counties of the California central coast or central valley during most of the academic year. Submit a project proposal, résumé/CV, writing sample (up to 25 pages), and the email addresses of three references. The application system will prompt your references to upload their letters of recommendation by January 31.
There is no entry fee.
The fellowship is named in honor of author John Steinbeck and is guided by his lifetime of work in literature, the media, and environmental activism. Currently, SJSU offers one-year fellowships in Steinbeck scholarship and in creative writing, including fiction, drama, creative nonfiction, and biography. Applications in poetry will not be accepted. In awarding fellowships, the selection committee considers the quality of the candidate's proposal and any factors that would lead to expectations of future publication and other achievement. The creative writing fellowship does not require that there be any direct connection between Steinbeck's works and that of the applicant. Applicants may not be enrolled in an academic degree program during the fellowship period.
Application deadline is January 5. Awards are announced in April.
Questions? Contact Dr. Keenan Norris, Steinbeck Fellows Coordinator, at keenan.norris@sjsu.edu