The Amazon Literary Partnership announces Grant Recipients for 2022

This year, Amazon Literary Partnership are delighted to announce that we will be providing grants to more non-profit literary organisations in 2022 than ever before, with the Amazon Literary Partnership striving to support and champion writers of all ages and stages on their creative journey.

Pictured above; The National Centre for Writing Escalator cohort for 2021/2022 (Credit – Jo Millington)

Grants have been awarded to groups across all corners of the UK, with a focus on supporting a diverse range of voices from nonprofit writing centres, organisations who empower those from underrepresented communities to tell their own stories, as well as groups who offer a platform to aspiring writers.

This year’s grant recipients include continued relationships with organisations Literacy Pirates and ArtfulScribe, as well as a wide range of new groups such as the Margate Bookie, The Literature Prize Foundation and Hosking Houses Trust.

One of the new organisations receiving a grant this year is Fighting Words Northern Ireland, who has been a force for creativity in Belfast and beyond, providing over 10,000 creative writing opportunities for schools, youth groups and young writers aged 6 to 18.

Mrs. Rebecca Gregory, a teacher from Holy Family Primary School who took part in Fighting Words’ New Worlds project said: “Some of our children come from a socially deprived background and are not always afforded the rich opportunities that other children are, therefore any opportunity to widen their experiences is needed and welcomed. From working with Fighting Words, the children have learned to be freer with their writing and not afraid to just 'go for it!' We have loved our time with Fighting Words and would love the opportunity to develop this fabulous work in the near future.”

Another new organisation to receive a grant this year is Serendipity Institute for Black Arts and Heritage, based in Leicester, with a mission to centre perspectives from the African and African Caribbean Diaspora, embedded as part of cultural experiences for all. Amazon Literary Partnership is once again also helping to fund BlackInk, a magazine first published for Black History Month in 2020. The publication, in its third edition, has supported over 60 artists and writers to tell their stories. BlackInk features two initiatives to platform emerging talent; Launchpad and the BlackInk New Writing Competition, in partnership with Writing East Midlands.

Speaking on her experience at Serendipity, former winner of the BlackInk New Writing Competition Ioney Smallhorne said: “As a writer, rejection is as familiar as bread -  so receiving recognition from such esteemed judges is a real source of encouragement. I would like to thank Serendipity and Writing East Midlands for supporting African and African Caribbean writers.”

Amazon Literary Partnership are also proud to continue supporting The National Centre for Writing, with the organisation specialising in supporting and nurturing established and emerging writers in their craft. Their Escalator programme is an annual talent development scheme open to unpublished early career fiction writers, of which Isabelle Higgins was a part of for the 2021/22 cohort.

Commenting on her experience, Isabelle said, “Escalator has been invaluable in giving me confidence in myself, learning to see myself as a writer, being part of a wonderful community of other emerging writers and receiving expert advice from my amazing mentor as well as others in the field.”

Photo by Jo Millington

Speaking of the grant received last year and looking ahead for 2022, Waltraud Elizabeth Pospischil, Founder Trustee at Arkbound Foundation said, “The support of the Amazon Literary Partnership grant in 2021 enabled us to publish the work of disadvantaged and under-represented authors whose work covers important social and environmental themes. Going forward, we are using the support provided to build upon a sustainable publishing delivery model that opens up writing to everyone, in combination with workshops and mentoring, via our dedicated website www.crowdbound.org."

“It has been our mission to grow the Amazon Literary Partnership in the UK and now, in its third year, we can say we are supporting more organisations than ever before," commented Darren Hardy, Manager for UK Author and Editorial Programmes, Amazon.co.uk. "It is so important to celebrate writing in all its forms to foster diversity in both written and spoken words. From fiction, poetry and scriptwriting to freedom of speech and self expression, we are proud that we can continue to fund groups which provide writers with platforms to have their words heard and celebrated.”

• Africa Writes (Royal African Society)
• Arkbound Foundation
• ArtfulScribe
• Arvon
• Comma Press
• Creative Future
• Edinburgh World City of Literature Trust
• English PEN
• Fighting Words Northern Ireland
• First Story
• Hosking Houses Trust
• Kernow Education Arts Partnership
• Literacy Pirates
• Literature Works
• Ministry of Stories
• National Centre for Writing
• New Writing North
• New Writing South
• Papatango Theatre Company Ltd
• Royal Society of Literature
• Scottish Book Trust
• Serendipity (Serendipity Artists Movement Ltd.)
• Super Power Agency
• The Literature Prize Foundation
• The Margate Bookie
• The Society of Authors
• The Writers' Summer School
• Writing East Midlands

Building on the success of the previous two years, the Amazon Literary Partnership provides grants to UK literary organisations that empower a whole host of writers, no matter what age or stage they find themselves. In 2021, we supported a variety of literary groups, ranging from organisations that manage after school workshops, to writers’ retreats crafting specially-devised programmes to cater for deaf writers, all the way through to organisations running their own literary festivals to highlight the words and work of underrepresented writers and groups which provide a platform for budding scriptwriters.

Applications for 2023 grants from the Amazon Literary Partnership will commence towards the end of this year.

Learn more about the Amazon Literary Partnership