• Citizens of India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Bhutan, Nepal and Maldives living in their home countries for the duration of the mentorship (January to December 2024). Afghan writers are exempt from the residence clause and may be based anywhere in the world. Please do not apply if you live outside your home country or plan to do so during the fellowship period. All applicants will need to show proof of citizenship and residence. 
   

• Applicants must be working on one of the following long-term projects:

  • a book of fiction

  • a book of nonfiction

  • a translation

  • a series of linked reported pieces

  • a volume of poetry

 

• The projects may include short stories, memoirs, travel narratives and more as long as they fit into the mentioned genres and, apart from the proposed translations, are in English. ​
   

• Introducing "Beyond Ability": ​In 2023, South Asia Speaks is launching a mentorship for writers who identify as a person with a disability. The disability can be locomotor, visual, hearing, psychosocial or neurological in nature. Writers with learning disabilities are welcome as are writers with chronic illnesses and rare diseases that might not fall under the purview of 'disability' in their respective countries. Disabled writers who come from the intersections of marginalized caste, class and gender identities are encouraged to apply. The mentorship will be conducted online by poet and author Abhishek Anicca. Applicants are requested to mention any specific accommodations that they might require. Applicants for Beyond Ability are exempt from all our exclusion guidelines, however only writers who are yet to publish a book may apply. 

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