Lannan Fellows Program

Lannan Fellows 2016-2017

2023-2024 APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED

If you’ve ever wanted to spend a year immersed in contemporary poetry/fiction/non-fiction then the Lannan Fellows Program will be of interest to you. The Lannan Center offers Georgetown graduate and undergraduate students the opportunity to attend readings and talks, as well as private seminars and dinners where they will meet and interact with acclaimed visiting writers. You do not have to be a poet or writer to apply for the fellowship, but you should have a vested interest in contemporary poetry, fiction, and non-fiction, and the way they operate in our world.

The program runs for the full academic year and has three requirements:

  • You must be a Georgetown student to qualify for the fellowship. However, you do not have to be an English major. The fellowship is open to all undergraduate and graduate students.
  • Fellows attend all Reading and Talks Events, which will be held in-person on the Georgetown University campus. Events consist of a seminar exclusively for Lannan Fellows from 4:30-5:30PM and a public reading from 7:00-8:00PM. The first required event will be held on Tuesday, September 19th and will feature National Book Award winning poet Arthur Sze. An optional welcome dinner will be held on September 26th. In spring, fellows also participate in a three-day literary festival featuring major thinkers, activists and writers, and which engages with the Lannan Center’s core principles of art and social practice.
  • In the spring semester Fellows enroll in the Lannan Seminar (ENGL-450 & ENGL-650), an advanced (3-credit) course. The Lannan Seminar meets Tuesdays, 3:30PM-6:00PM and will be taught by Prof. Carolyn Forché. It encourages dynamic critical thinking and creativity with a view to examining literary forms and practices; the work of individual authors; the relationship between writing and other arts; and the place of writing in contemporary culture. Fellows study and discuss the work of the year’s scheduled guests in the Lannan Readings and Talks series, participate in conversations with the guests, and attend their readings and performances. Fellows then produce an independent final project (creative or critical) under the guidance of the instructor. There are also opportunities for students to develop and share their own writing in several genres. Enrollment in this seminar is limited to the Lannan Fellows.

For further information, please contact Director of Programs, Patricia Guzman.

How to Apply

To apply, please write a letter of intent in which you explain your interest in becoming a Lannan Fellow. How might this intensive contact with the study of creative writing stimulate your creative and intellectual goals? You should state clearly what experience, if any, you’ve had with creative writing or the other creative arts (criticism or fine arts courses you’ve taken; literary, visual, or performance genres that interest you).

Again, you do not need to be a poet or writer to apply to the program, but you should have had some prior acquaintance with the practice or the study of the arts (in or outside of class) in order to benefit fully from the year’s events. You should demonstrate a firm interest in contemporary arts and letters and must show evidence of a serious commitment to independent study.

The letter should be approximately 250 words. Please include your year and major. Please e-mail your application to Patricia Guzman.