University of Otago CISS Scottish Writing Fellowship
By Association for Scottish Literature | Posted: Wednesday Oct 22, 2025
Applications are open for the 2026 writing fellowship at Caselberg House. Deadline for applications: 31 October 2025.
Writers of Scottish residency, background or affiliation are invited to apply for the two-month University of Otago CISS Scottish Writing Fellowship at the Caselberg House in Broad Bay, Dunedin. Hosted by the Centre for Irish and Scottish Studies (CISS) at the University of Otago, and generously supported by the Stuart Residence Halls Council, the Eamon Cleary Trust, the Caselberg Trust and the University of Otago, the Fellowship provides an opportunity for a Scottish writer to live and work for a two-month period in Aotearoa New Zealand.
The aim of the Scottish Writing Fellowship is to facilitate and encourage literary and cultural exchange between Scotland and Aotearoa New Zealand. The Fellow will be invited to address and mentor students in the Irish and Scottish Studies and Creative Writing programmes and will participate in a number of public events. The Fellowship will run from 1 August to 30 September 2026.
The holder of the Fellowship will be accommodated at the fully furnished Caselberg House at Broad Bay on the Otago Peninsula. Fellows will not be charged for accommodation, internet access, heating and lighting. Pets are not permitted. The holder will receive travel costs to New Zealand and office space in the Centre for Irish and Scottish Studies / Mātai Airana, Mātai Kotirana. In addition, the University of Otago will pay a stipend of $5,000 per month to a person not already salaried by the University.
Previous holders of the CISS Scottish Writers Fellowship (and its sister award, the CISS Irish Writing Fellowship) include Damian Barr, Nicole Flattery, Janice Galloway, Lesley Glaister, Andrew Greig, Kathleen Jamie, Dame Fiona Kidman, Craig Robertson, Alexandra Sokoloff, Zoë Strachan and Louise Welsh.
More details and apply here: Centre for Irish and Scottish Studies, Centre for Irish and Scottish Studies | University of Otago