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The Diverse Worlds grant is intended to foster the creation of speculative work that features worlds rich in diversity (as rich as our own world).
a) This grant is initially intended to support new and emerging writers from underrepresented and underprivileged groups, such as writers of color, women, queer writers, disabled writers, working-class writers, etc. -- those whose marginalized identities may present additional obstacles in the writing / publishing process.
b) If we raise sufficient funds, we may add a second grant for work that best presents a diverse world, regardless of the writer�s background.
Please note: your project does not need to center on identity issues. We also do not expect or want work that simply attempts to check off all the boxes in a tokenistic way, but rather are looking for writing that offers deep characterization, complex cultural landscapes, and strong literary quality overall.
For example, an excellent novel is Nicola Griffith's award-winning Slow River, which features queer women protagonists; another is Lois McMaster Bujold's Miles Vorkosigan series, whose white male protagonist deals with a host of personal disability issues, while ethnic, gender, and other issues play out in the cultural background. Other titles include:
Samuel R. Delany�s work � gender, race, orientation, class
Karen Lord's The Best of All Possible Worlds � gender, race, sexual orientation
N.K. Jemisin's The Killing Moon � race, religion
Ann Leckie's Ancillary Justice � gender
2) The grant is designed to foster new, in-progress work (rather than recognizing already published work). We intend that grant funds will facilitate completing the work.
3) Preference will be given to book-length works (novels, collections of short stories). Nonfiction and poetry are not currently eligible.
4) This grant is open to anyone who self-identifies as belonging to one of the groups identified above (based on ethnic/racial identity, gender, sexual orientation, class, ability-levels, religion) or any other group they believe is underrepresented in speculative fiction.
5) This grant is also open to all levels of publishing experience. But we consider this a pro-level grant, and as a guideline, recommend that you have published at least one pro-level short story or book before applying.
6) Grant applications will be open for a limited reading period annually.
Would it be better if the word ‘literary’ were inserted after ‘speculative’ in the first sentence? Then no one is likely to submit artwork, filk music, etc.