Why am I the only black person in any of my Dungeon and Dragons groups? I started playing Dungeons and Dragons recently, and that’s a question I can’t get out of my head.
One of the first things you have to do when playing Dungeons and Dragons is to create a character. When I did that for the first time, the thing that immediately struck me is that most of the fantasy ‘races’ you can pick for your character are very similar to those you can find in The Lord of the Rings. Due to legal reasons, Hobbits are called Halflings, but elves, dwarves and orcs exist in Dungeons and Dragons just as they do in Middle Earth.
The Lord of the Rings books were published in the 1950s and have shaped almost all of medieval fantasy. Dungeons and Dragons isn’t the only one. Even pieces of fiction like Game of Thrones sometimes define themselves by the way they diverge from these expectations. These are powerful tropes that have had generations of staying power. And who set them? A white man in the mid-1950s. And not just one white man. Think of Robert E. Howard and C. S. Lewis. Sci-fi is the same. We have Philip K. Dick, Isaac Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke.
I could go on. When we look at the titans of sci-fi and fantasy, the authors who have set the table for these genres; they are almost entirely white men. Even today things are not that different, but how could they be?
The very essence of sci-fi and fantasy, the dreams and nightmares that fuel its content are ones created traditionally by and for white men. This doesn’t mean that no one else can engage with or enjoy these genres of fiction, but it just isn’t made primarily for us, not totally, and deep down I think we know it.
When I was a teenager, I decided to write a sci-fi novel of my own. It was filled with big ideas and heavily inspired by the things I had read and watched beforehand. Its main characters were white, all of them. It wasn’t something I thought about consciously, it’s just what felt right for these genres. I’m a black man and even when creating my own story, I couldn’t see someone who looked like me at the centre of it. It felt wrong to have a black boy as the main character, and that sucks because look at the position of sci-fi and fantasy in our current culture.
Star Wars, Star Trek, all of superhero media, The Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones. These aren’t niche pieces of geek culture; they are the most popular pieces of mass market storytelling.
When our society looks to escapism; sci-fi and fantasy are where we look, but these genres aren’t just a pleasant distraction. The pieces of work here are also some of our society’s biggest contributors to fictional allegory, it’s been a place for centuries where fiction is used to comment on and reflect on our culture.
Sci-fi and fantasy have a key role in our society, but they can’t truly fill that role, not in its current state. When genres like sci-fi and fantasy are predominantly written by one group of people for so long, the tropes and expectations that run through those genres don’t and can’t represent the needs of everyone else.
We have escapism, but for who and from what?
We have allegories, but what commentary do they wish to make about society and which ones do they not?
When we write about the future, whose future do we see?
We are missing something.
Imagine a version of sci-fi and fantasy that builds empathy between people by telling the stories and mythologies of a diverse group of people.
Imagine a version of sci-fi and fantasy that explores the hopes, dreams, and potential futures that all people have, not just a select few.
The saddest things though, are the things I can’t imagine. A fear I have sometimes is that our expectations and tropes about sci-fi and fantasy are so set in stone that any ideas I may have about the genres are just going to run downstream of the ideas some white men had eighty years ago.
When I was younger and I read and watched the Lord of the Rings, I knew deep down that on some level it was not for me, a black man. Pretty much all the characters in the story are white, the only dark-skinned characters were Orcs and goblins. But I fell in love with the world and the characters and the stories, so I felt like this didn’t matter. Last year, a prequel series to the Lord of the Rings was released, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.
There was immediately controversy amongst a segment of the fanbase because non-white characters were added to the franchise for the first time. It was a shock to me when I heard this, but it wasn’t just the racism that hit me. It was the realisation that the whiteness of this piece of fiction, something I was overlooking because I loved it so much, was a thing some fans really liked and wanted to preserve.
And this isn’t just a Lord of the Rings thing, this same dynamic exists all across the genres of sci-fi and fantasy whenever any type of diversity is introduced into a long-running franchise.
When we tolerate a status quo where only white men can write popular sci-fi and fantasy, we attract and provide space within these genres for people who only want white men to be able to write sci fi and fantasy. If the only future we can depict in these genres is one by and for white men, then people who find that fact important will make these genres their homes.
But if that is true then surely the opposite is as well, and if that’s the case, then maybe we can make things better. Every segment of this industry has some amount of power to enact change, we just need to have the will to use it.
Publishers can look for and publish a diverse group of authors and better support the authors on their lists. Readers can be less conservative in their book buying choices and seek out and buy books by non-white authors. Established writers can seek to support and mentor other non-white writers.
This can all be done today. And maybe if it is then sometime in the future I might find another black person in one of my Dungeon and Dragons groups.
Children’s author Alex Falase-Koya has been reading and writing since he was a teenager. His debut novel ‘Marv and the Mega Robot’ was inspired after Alex struggled to find superheroes in fiction who looked like him. By creating Marv, a superhero whose strengths are kindness and imagination, Alex hopes to have created a character to whom all children can relate. He is also the co-writer of Marcus Rashford’s first fictional book, The Breakfast Club Adventures: The Beast Beyond the Fence. A previous winner of Spread the Word’s 2018 London’s Writers Awards for YA and Children’s Fiction, Alex lives in Honor Oak with his two cats.
Illustration by Clio Isadora.
class="post-71714 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-network-knowledge"Love Re-imagined by Sara Jafari
First and foremost, I want to start with a love letter of sorts for the romance novel. With so much suffering and trauma in the world, romance is a genre that above all shows the power of human connection. Romance is joy. And in more traditional romances, one can expect a happy ever after; no matter the trials and tribulations the two characters face. It’s a genre that inspires hope. For many, reading love stories and romances has the power to be an act of self-care, a small luxury and promise that you’ll allow yourself some down time and escapism. As well as being a much-loved genre, romance novels are hugely profitable. Last year romance novels were reported as being the highest earning genre of fiction in the US. So, it’s safe to say the genre is beloved by many.
My own love of reading is partly owed to romances. I enjoyed books as a child, but it was when I was a teenager that I became a voracious reader. Young adult fantasy and paranormal romances were the books that triggered that change. When reading those stories, I was completely swept away and would spend whole weekends and summer holidays reading non-stop, only to eat or use the bathroom. And yet, despite this adoration of the romance genre, I often felt removed from the heroines in the stories. I enjoyed their worlds, and the love they experienced, but I had the sense that the protagonists weren’t like me. I very rarely related to them; I could put myself in their shoes, but I knew their shoes were not like mine. Consequently, ideas like romance and falling passionately in love appeared more like a fantasy, than a reality, for my teenage self.
Back then, I distinctly remember searching the internet for romance novels featuring British Iranian Muslims. Though, to be honest, I would have settled for Iranian, Muslim, or even Asian (the widest of brackets but even then, it was a struggle to find). I think one main pull of romance fiction is that you’re supposed to see yourself in the protagonist. This means you’ll be able to be swept away in their romance, and you’ll feel their conflict and hurt when things go wrong. And you will likely experience their joy when things do eventually go right at the end. But what message is it sending if the characters that get to experience such joy – and love – look nothing like you?
For myself, and numerous other people of colour, we are often required to make various leaps to imagine ourselves as the heroine in romance novels. As a British Iranian Muslim, my romantic experiences and background were starkly different to the characters I was reading as a teenager – and even now. Back then, I didn’t speak to boys, go to parties, or drink alcohol. So, seeing characters who did all these things, without any internal conflict such as feeling religious guilt, or external conflict from their family obstructing them from such behaviour, required a mental leap for me to imagine myself as them. Even beyond these deep-rooted character details, the visual aesthetics of most characters in a romance are often white and thin. If you read and watch enough romances, there is the danger that subliminally you might come to surmise that only white, thin women are deserving of grand and earth-shattering love. Given the fact that many of us begin reading romance novels as teenagers, such ideas can dangerously embed themselves into our minds without us even realising it.
The main reason I began writing, and wrote my debut novel The Mismatch, was because I longed to see myself reflected in a love story. I had never read a book featuring a British Iranian protagonist – and that is not for want of trying. We are hugely under-represented in literature generally, let alone in love stories. I wanted to write about my specific experience of being a British Iranian woman, who comes from a Muslim background, and navigating love and relationships for the first time in her early twenties. The sheer number of messages I received – and still receive – from women proclaiming it felt as though I had copied and pasted their lives in my novel astounded me. Many said it was the first time they’ve felt represented in literature, let alone a romance. I am glad I was able to provide that for some people – though I wish for more representation in publishing.
I wrote my novel not to represent every British Iranian Muslim, but one individual: my protagonist. I say this because while many related to my protagonist, some didn’t – and that is why we need more books by authors of different backgrounds. We don’t expect white authors to represent their entire community in one book, and so we shouldn’t expect that for authors of colour either. So, that’s why having truly diverse and inclusive publishing, not tokenistic publishing is needed, too.
Looking beyond ourselves, it’s also imperative to see a variety of people falling in love. Reading creates empathy, and it helps us understand each other. If we see people of many ethnicities and backgrounds in romance novels, it will no doubt send the message of unity – and that we are all deserving of brilliant love.
I reference this quote from Toni Morrison so much but it’s true: ‘If you find a book you really want to read but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it’. It takes so much to get a book published. Yes, we need more ‘diverse’ authors to write romances, but we also need publishers to pick these books up – to see the obvious need for these stories. We need them to put marketing budget behind such books to allow for a wide readership. We need investment. There are huge amounts of people who might shy away from reading (and writing) romance because they don’t see their experiences reflected within the pages and might think it’s not for them. It’s often in only seeing something that we can believe it. Beyond entertainment value, from a social responsibility standpoint, it is therefore immensely vital to see a range of people in love stories. Romance novels hold great power – and it’s long overdue that they reflect the society we live in.
Sara Jafari is a British-Iranian writer and editor. She is the author of THE MISMATCH and PEOPLE CHANGE (Penguin Random House). She founded and runs TOKEN Magazine, a platform which showcases writing and artwork by underrepresented writers and artists. Previously, she works in book publishing as an editor. She was in the London Writers Awards programme in 2018-19.
Illustration by Clio Isadora.
class="post-71640 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-news"Announcing the writers commissioned for our 30th anniversary
To celebrate our 30th anniversary next year, Spread the Word are commissioning six London-based writers across two categories to create new writing. We’re excited to share with you the six chosen writers.
30th Anniversary Emerging Writer Commissions
The Emerging Writer Commissions were open to unagented and unpublished writers from underrepresented backgrounds.
The commissions have been awarded to: Giselle Cory, Eliezer Gore and Naomi Walsh. These commissions were judged by Olumide Popoola and Joelle Taylor.
Judge Joelle Taylor said about the entries: “Choosing these shortlisted writers was a tough decision as we had such outstanding entries for the commission. But also, it was an easy decision, as these three writers brought such energy and excitement with them; as well as exceptional writing. I can’t wait to see how they develop across the programme, and to read the work they produce”
The 30th Anniversary Emerging Writer Commissions are generously supported by The London Community Foundation and Cockayne – Grants for the Arts.
30th Anniversary Deaf and Disabled Writer Commissions
The Deaf and Disabled Writer Commissions were open to writers facing disablist and/ or audist barriers.
The commissions have been awarded to Oli Isaac, Jamila Prowse and Ellie Spirrett. These commissions were judged by Ayesha Chouglay and Joe Rizzo Naudi.
Both commissions have an open brief and there is no theme which the work has to respond to. Instead, our selected writers are invited to be bold with their ideas, to experiment and take risks in their approach to style and content. The six commissioned writers are being matched with a mentor to work with on the short stories and poems they are writing, as well as to develop their writing careers. The finished pieces will be unveiled at Deptford Literature Festival in March 2025.
About the Writers selected for the Emerging Writers Commissions
Giselle Cory
Giselle focuses on life writing, in particular how the small acts of life add up to our identity or come into conflict with it. They particularly enjoy work that tries to understand social history through the lens of personal experience. Recent favourite authors include Claire Keegan, Caleb Azumah Nelson, Maggie Nelson and Guadaulpe Nettel. Giselle splits her time between writing and a career in the charity sector, most recently leading a small charity.
Giselle said; “I can’t believe someone is commissioning me to write! This will be my first commission and publication, and it feels really good to be engaged as a writer in this way. I hope that being on the programme will help me better situate myself as a writer, build my confidence and most importantly, produce some work I’m proud of. I’m particularly excited for the mentoring element, and look forward to working with an experienced writer who can help me take the work from draft to fully formed thing.”
Eliezer Gore
Eliezer Gore is a Zimbabwean-born artist who was raised in Lewisham. Through his art transforms concrete reality unveiling magical surrealist landscapes to deliver joyous affirming narratives.This year he staged an extract of his Debut Play “Return to Soil” at the Catford broadway for Lewisham Youth Theatre’s Hatch Festival. He is the 2024 Roundhouse poetry slam runner up, Born:: Free Writers Collective Alum and a Soho Writers Lab alum.
Eliezer said; “I’m looking forward to stretching my story telling ability by weaving a narrative across a series of poems.”
Naomi Walsh
Naomi is a writer and creative based in SE London. Born and raised in Barnsley (South Yorkshire) to parents hailing from Sierra Leone and Liverpool, she likes to explore identity, mixing, sonder, and (be)longing in her work. After reading English at the University of Leeds, she spent 7 years working full time as a PR manager in London, earning a PR Week 30 Under 30 award, before going freelance in 2024 to pursue her writing.
About the writers selected for the Deaf and Disabled Writers Commissions
Oli Isaac
Oli is a writer based in London. Their passion for writing stems from growing up with a severe stutter and experiencing how language can fail us. Currently, Oli is developing their debut audio play as a recipient of Audible Theatre’s Emerging Playwrights Fund. They also teach poetry workshops, most recently with The Learning Cooperative. In 2024, Oli won the Verve Poetry Festival Competition.
Ollie said; “I am so honoured to have been selected by Spread The Word for this writer’s commission. I am grateful that they took a chance to support this writing proposal, given that neither I nor them really know how the project is going to end up. That level of trust and confidence is deeply heartening. I will spend the winter writing and experimenting with reflective, non-fiction essays, each one anchored by my local community garden in South East London. Non-fiction essays are an expansion of my current writing practice, but it is one I’ve been keen to move towards and test out. In poetry, I can often hide meaning between layers; in plays, I can build entirely new worlds. However, I’ve always deeply admired writers who seamlessly blend the personal, the philosophical, the poetic in their essays. It’s a challenge but one I am so excited to embrace, particularly with the one-on-one support and guidance of a writing mentor, and the help of Spread The Word throughout it all.”
Jamila Prowse
Jamila Prowse is an artist and writer, propelled by curiosity and a desire to understand herself. Informed by her lived experience of disability and mixed race ancestry, her work is research driven and indebted to Black feminist and crip scholars. She is an active participant in a rich and growing contemporary disabled artistic community and has been ongoingly researching, programming and creating around cripping the art world since 2018. Her writing has appeared in Frieze, Art Monthly and elsewhere.
Jamila said; “I’m extremely grateful and excited to be selected for the Spread the Word Deaf and Disabled Writers Commission. The opportunity comes at a time when I’ve had to rethink my practice in relation to an exacerbation in my disability and being signed off on long-term sick leave. It also marks the first time I’ve had dedicated professional development support around my writing. Doing so with the support and collaboration of disabled writers who inherently understand the unique barriers of living and working in an ableist world, means I feel uniquely understood and encouraged to find my way back to the process of writing, a form I’ve always returned to in order to better understand myself and my place in the world.”
Ellie Spirrett
Ellie is a poet, originally from Leeds, who started performing in Leicester and now lives in Greenwich. Ellie was a member of the Roundhouse collective in 2023/2024 and is now part of the Spread the Word Young Writers Collective. She writes about disability and ableism, chronic illness and the loneliness epidemic.
Ellie said; “I’ve never done anything like this before so I’m excited, nervous and proud. It’s great to be working somewhere where my disability is recognised and celebrated as part of what makes me me. I’m so excited to see where this takes me next as a writer.”
class="post-71008 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-opportunities"Announcing Deptford Literature Festival 2025 – save the date!
Announcing Deptford Literature Festival 2025 – save the date!
Deptford Literature Festival is coming back! The next festival will take place from Thursday 27 to Sunday 30 March 2025.
Run by Spread the Word in collaboration with independent creative producer Tom MacAndrew, Deptford Literature Festival celebrates the diversity and creativity of Deptford and Lewisham through words, stories and performance, with the local community and accessibility at its heart.
Alongside a rich programme featuring emerging and established writers, performers and publishers from Deptford and Lewisham, there are a number of specially commissioned pieces of writing that will be published and distributed in our Festival Magazine. Winners of the Disabled Poets Prize will be announced, and the Young Writers Collective will perform. You’ll be able to meet the Advisory Group for the campaign to make Lewisham the UK’s first Borough of Literature, which was launched at the 2024 festival, and share your ideas on what a Borough of Literature could look like. The advisory group, chaired by Aimée Felone, includes celebrated local authors and local residents of Lewisham. There’s still time to join the group – applications close on Monday 11 November.
Deptford Literature Festival is a festival for our local community with events for adults and children of all ages. For those who can’t come in person, there will be a range of activities and events that you can take part in from home. If you are interested in stories, writing or reading, or just curious about the vibrant literary scene in Lewisham, you’ll want to save the date in your diary.
The following opportunities connected to the festival are currently open:
- We are looking for three to five local artists, writers, arts or literature organisations to propose events to add to this year’s festival programme. Each chosen event will have a budget of up to £750 to bring their idea to life. The open call, launched today, will close on Friday 29 November.
- Three pieces of new writing are being commissioned as part of our Borough of Literature campaign. All three pieces will be published in the Festival Magazine and distributed on Saturday 29 March for free to festival visitors. The open call for proposals, launched today, will close on Friday 29 November.
- The Disabled Poets Prize is open for applications until Monday 4 November. The winner of the prize, which looks to find the best single poem and best unpublished pamphlet created by UK-based deaf and disabled poets, will be announced at Deptford Literature Festival on Saturday 29 March.
The full programme will be announced and events open for bookings in mid-January.
We’re looking forward to seeing you at next year’s festival. If you are able and would like to support the festival continuing to be free and accessible, please donate here: https://www.totalgiving.co.uk/appeal/deptfordlitfest
Published: 29 October 2024
class="post-70918 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-opportunities"Deptford Literature Festival 2025 Open Call for Events
We’re seeking London-based writers, poets, artists, arts and community organisations to apply to be part of the 2025 Deptford Literature Festival programme.
Deptford Literature Festival celebrates the diversity and creativity of Deptford and Lewisham through words, stories and performance. We are looking for three to five events to add to the Deptford Literature Festival Programme, created by writers, poets, artists, and arts/community organisations based in London, with a preference towards those based in Deptford and the borough of Lewisham, and/or delivering activity with clear connections to the area.
Each chosen event or activity will have access to up to £750 to make their event happen.
These activities could include: writing workshops, readings, community engagement, performances, talks, walks, participatory sessions, cross-arts activity, local heritage activity, or any literature-related activity that you think will connect with our audiences.
The only stipulations for your activity are that:
- it takes place on Saturday 29 March 2025 as part of the Deptford Literature Festival, and
- is literature based.
We have a strong preference toward artists and organisations based in Deptford and Lewisham, and/or for activity with a clear connection to the area.
The festival will be able to offer:
- Space at Deptford Lounge to host commissioned activity, if needed,
- Marketing and communications support through Spread the Word’s marketing channels, mailing list and a festival flyer, and
- BSL interpreters for your event.
Previous Festival programmes
If you haven’t attended Deptford Literature Festival before, you might like to take a look at programmes from previous festivals to give you a flavour of what the festival is all about.
How to apply
To apply, please follow the link below to submit a proposal of no more than 2 sides of A4, OR an audio or video file of no longer than 8 minutes. The proposal should include:
- Brief information about you/ your organisation,
- Links to examples of your previous work,
- An outline of your idea and how you plan to deliver it,
- A brief budget outlining your costs/ fees,
- Planned location/ venue for your activity and whether this is confirmed (see note below),
- Any technical considerations,
- Description of how your activity meets the remit of the festival, and
- Audience(s) you think will engage with your activity.
Please note we can offer space at Deptford Lounge to host commissioned activity. Alternatively, your activity can take place at other locations in Deptford. Please state in your proposal the planned location. If you are not planning on using Deptford Lounge, please let us know whether you have approached the venue(s) to confirm if they’d be willing to participate, and ensure that you factor any venue hire costs into your budget.
To submit your proposal, visit spreadtheword.submittable.com/submit
You need to create an account on Submittable in order to submit your application. This is free to do.
The deadline for applications is 10am on Friday 29 November 2024.
Applicants will learn whether their application has been successful by Friday 6 December.
Commissions will be decided by a panel of the festival producers. The festival producers reserve the right to amend the terms of the open call depending on funds available and other operational considerations. If you have any questions about this opportunity, please contact [email protected]
class="post-71084 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-opportunities"Lewisham, Borough of Literature Commissions – To All The Places I have Read
Spread the Word is pleased to announce that applications are now open for Lewisham-based writers, poets and spoken word artists to apply for the Lewisham, Borough of Literature Commissions – To All the Places I Have Read.
The Commissions support the campaign to make Lewisham the UK’s first Borough of Literature.
Deadline for applications: Friday 29 November, 10am
Who are the commissions for?
Three writers of poetry or short stories who are aged 18+ and currently living in Lewisham.
Writers should be from underrepresented backgrounds. By this we mean:
- Black, Asian, or Global Majority
- D/deaf and/ or Disabled
- LGBTQIA+
- Having had a Working Class upbringing
- On a low income (i.e. writers whose income is through benefits or paid on or below the London Living Wage hourly rate, and whose savings do not exceed the amount needed to pay for three months of living costs (rent, gas and electricity, food etc.)
- Care experienced
One of the commissions will be for an early stage writer who is unpublished and unagented. By this we mean:
- You do not currently have a literary agent representing you
- You do not have an existing book contract with a publisher
- You have not previously published a full-length work (i.e. a work of fiction or non-fiction over 30,000 words, or ten or more short stories published either in a collection or individually, or twenty or more poems either in a collection or published individually, or a full-length theatre script, screenplay, or radio play that has been professionally produced and/or broadcast)
- Previously self-published writers can apply with a currently unpublished work.
For full eligibility criteria, please see our Terms-and-Conditions, also available as a Word document.
About the commissions
Three writers will be commissioned to create either an original short story (1,000-1,500) or two original poems (no longer than 62 lines each) on the To All the Places I have Read. This work must be entirely new, rather than a development of pre-existing work.
We are seeking writers to create an evocative poem or short story inspired by the unique stories and atmospheres found within, for example, Lewisham’s local green spaces, cafes, libraries, community spaces and restaurants. The work will reflect the diverse experiences and voices of our community, capturing the essence of these gathering spaces and their significance in daily life.
The commissioned poems or short story should intertwine the collected narratives and ambiance of each location. The piece should evoke the character of each place/ establishment while highlighting common threads of community, connection and the power of stories.
The commissions will be shared in the Deptford Literature Festival 2025 Magazine. Commissioned writers will read their work at a Lewisham, Borough of Literature event as part of the Festival on Saturday 29 March 2025. The event will promote the importance of these gathering spaces and the stories they hold.
Development support will be given to support writers to realise their ideas.
An access fund is in place to make reasonable adjustments for writers who require this.
The commission development period will run from December 2024 to February 2025.
We are looking to commission writers who can show a clear idea of what they want to do for this piece of work, that is realistic to deliver within the timeframe and resources available.
Commissioned writers will each receive:
- £1,500 commission fee
- Development support from Spread the Word
- Publication of their work in the Deptford Literature Festival Magazine
- A platform to showcase their work to an audience at Deptford Literature Festival and online as part of the Lewisham Borough of Literature campaign.
Commissioned writers will be expected to:
- Produce a new piece of commissioned writing (short story (1,000-1,500) or two poems (no longer than 62 lines each))
- Meet project deadlines, including a deadline for print publication
- Showcase the commissioned work at an event as part of the 2025 Deptford Literature Festival on Saturday 29 March 2025
- Take part in a Lewisham, Borough of Literature panel discussion as part of the Festival about your work and creative practice
- Support the promotion of the completed commissions and the Lewisham, Borough of Literature Campaign.
Commissions timeline
Friday 29 November, 10am – Applications close
By Wednesday 4 December – All applicants are notified with the outcome of their submission
Monday 9 December– Shortlisted writers are invited to short online interview
Saturday 29 March – Commissions launched at the Deptford Literature Festival
Preparing to apply
If it is useful for you, you can view the application form questions and prepare your responses by downloading this drafting form.
How to apply
Please submit your application via Submittable at: spreadtheword.submittable.com/submit
Written, video or audio responses can be given to any narrative questions. You will need to submit a sample of your work in written English.
Please note you will need to create a Submittable account to make your online application. This is free to do. If you are having any issues with this, please contact: [email protected]
Deadline for applications: Friday 29 November, 10am
What happens after you’ve applied
We will read every submission and invite up to six writers to a short online interview with Spread the Word on Monday 9 December.
Who to contact if you have questions
If you have any questions about the commissions or about access, please contact: Courtney at Spread the Word, [email protected]