Kill Your Darlings Varuna Fellowship

Held in partnership with Kill Your Darlings, this fellowship provides a unique publishing opportunity for writers developing exceptional new work. This fellowship offers a week-long residency for the shortlisted writers in KYD 2019 Unpublished Manuscript Award. The winner of the 2020 KYD Unpublished Manuscript Award will be announced after the fellowship.

The residency includes manuscript feedback and intensive and personalised editorial mentoring with KYD publishing director, Rebecca Starford, independent writing time in your own private writing studio, accommodation and meals. Evenings offer the opportunity to meet with other writers and Rebecca Starford over dinner to chat about publishing and writing. 

After the residency KYD will keep in touch, offering further feedback as you develop your manuscript to a completed or reworked draft.

Key dates

Applications open 2 March 2020 and close at 5pm on 30 April 2020. Please note that applications must be submitted to Kill Your Darlings, not to Varuna.

If successful, you will be required to take your residency between Monday 21 September and Sunday 27 September, 2020.

What are KYD looking for?

The KYD Unpublished Manuscript Award seeks to support writers of adult narrative fiction and non-fiction in the development of their unpublished manuscripts.

For program information, submission guidelines and to apply, please visit the Kill Your Darlings website.

This project is supported by the Copyright Agency’s Cultural Fund.