This page lists funding opportunities for organizations and individuals. Deadlines and details will be updated regularly, but please check official guidelines for the most accurate information.
For Organizations
National Assembly of State Arts Agencies
The National Assembly of State Arts Agencies website contains a directory of state arts agencies, records of arts agency actions and funding, and other data about arts funding on the state and regional level. Organizations can use the site as a starting point to search for state funding.
National Endowment for the Arts Big Read
The NEA Big Read program supports community programming centered around the books chosen for the Big Read initiative each year. Organizations can apply for grants to develop such programs, which should encourage reading and reach diverse audiences. The books available for 2022-2023 programming can be viewed here. Visit arts.gov for guidelines and application resources.
This grant program provides project-based funding to arts organizations in the United States to provide public engagement with and access to the arts. Deadlines are organized by artistic discipline.
The next Grants for Arts Projects/Literary Arts application deadlines are February 15, 2024 (for literary publishing projects), and July 11, 2024 (for audience and professional development projects). Visit arts.gov for guidelines and application resources.
Challenge America grants offer support to small organizations for projects that engage with underserved populations to provide access to the arts.
The next Challenge America application deadline is April 15, 2024. Visit arts.gov for guidelines and application resources.
Poetry Foundation Equity in Verse Grants
Equity in Verse grants were created in direct response to the June 6, 2020, community letter to the Poetry Foundation requesting that it examine its historic cultural debt to poets of color. These grants are intended to provide support for nonprofit poetry and literary organizations, which includes presses and publications, led and staffed by people of color. Grants range in size from $10,000-$100,000, and all grants are for a 12-month period. The Poetry Foundation accepts applications for Equity in Verse grants twice a year (the deadlines are March 1 and September 1). The next deadline is March 1, 2024.
Poetry Foundation Poetry Programs, Partnerships, and Innovation Grants
Poetry Programs, Partnerships, and Innovation grants provide support to nonprofit organizations invested in at least one of the following priorities: broadening the audiences for poetry, increasing access to poetry, new collaborations and partnerships in poetry, and innovations in the field of poetry, including investments in new technologies. Grants range from $10,000-$75,000 and all grants are for a 12-month period. The Poetry Foundation accepts applications for Poetry Programs, Partnerships, and Innovation grants twice a year (the deadlines are March 1 and September 1). The next deadline to apply is March 1, 2024.
Whiting Literary Magazine Prizes
The Whiting Literary Magazine Prizes recognize excellence in literary magazines in a variety of categories and are awarded every three years. Applications for the next cycle will open in fall 2025 for 2026 prizes.
The Witter Bynner Foundation for Poetry Grants
The Witter Bynner Foundation for Poetry offers grants in the amount of $1000 to $10,000 to nonprofit organizations for projects that expand the awareness of poetry in the world. Letters of intent are accepted from August 1 to December 31 each year. Qualified applicants are then invited to apply by February 15.
For Individuals
NEA Creative Writing Fellowships
NEA Creative Writing Fellowships award $25,000 to creative writers in poetry or prose. The next deadline for Creative Writing Fellowships is March 13, 2024. The program operates on a two-year cycle with fellowships in prose and poetry available in alternating years. In 2024, the NEA is accepting applications in poetry.
PEN America Emerging Voices Fellowship
PEN America’s Emerging Voices Fellowship provides five months of intensive mentoring to emerging writers from groups that have been historically underrepresented in publishing. Fellows receive a $1,500 honorarium in addition to individual mentoring and access to fellowship programs. The application cycle takes place in January each year.
Whiting Foundation Creative Nonfiction Grant
The Whiting Foundation Creative Nonfiction Grant awards $40,000 to an individual writer in the process of completing a book-length work of creative nonfiction under contract with a US publisher. Guidelines for the 2024 cycle will be available in February 2024.