Loft Literary Center
/OVERVIEW: The Minneapolis-based Loft Literary Center runs awards and fellowship programs for Minnesota-based writers.
IP TAKE: Minnesota writers will find ample opportunity for engagement and support at the Loft Literary Center. In addition to financial support via the prestigious McKnight Writers Fellowship, the center offers several accessible fellowship and mentoring opportunities for authors working a range of literary genres including children’s and young adult literature, spoken word, poetry and more. Most programs accept applications or nominations, but signing up for the organization’s newsletter is probably the best way to keep up with due dates and emerging opportunities.
PROFILE: The Minneapolis-based Loft Literary Center was founded in 1974 “in the loft space above Marly Rusoff's bookstore.” It originally served as “a grassroots gathering space for poets and writers to share their work and improve their craft.” Today, its mission is to advance “the power of writers and readers to craft and share stories, to create and celebrate connections, and to build just, life-sustaining communities.” It names core values of creativity, connection, justice, care, courage and curiosity.
The center funds a handful of grants and awards that support “promising Minnesota emerging and mid-career writers with grants and experiences that advance their work.” It also engages writers and readers through its extensive programming, which includes learning opportunities, readings, events and resources.
Grants for Creative Writing, Education, Racial Justice and Indigenous Rights
The Loft’s grant and awards programs support writers and teachers with a variety of grants and opportunities to develop skills and further projects.
Awarded in collaboration with the McKnight Foundation, the McKnight Writers Fellowship is awarded annually to five “accomplished Minnesota writers and spoken word artists.” Four of these awards alternate each year “between creative prose (fiction and creative nonfiction) and poetry/spoken word.” The fifth fellowship is awarded to a writer of “children’s literature, including poetry, fiction, or creative nonfiction.” All fellowships are awarded in the amount of $25,000. The foundation accepts applications for this program with a due date that typically falls in mid December. Profiles of recent fellows are available at the program page.
The Loft Mentor Series “offers twelve early career Minnesota writers the opportunity to work intensively with six nationally acclaimed writers of prose and poetry for one fellowship year.” Established in 1979, it is the organization’s longest running program and is funded with support from individual Loft members, the Jerome Foundation and the NEA.
Past mentors have included Michael Ondaatje, Marlon James, Sandra Cisneros and Louise, Erdrich, among many others. For information about recent recipients and upcoming application deadlines, check the program page or sign up for the Loft’s newsletter.
The Minneapolis Poet Laureate program was established in 2023 in collaboration with the City of Minneapolis’s Arts & Cultural Affairs Department. The program will name a poet laureate annually to serve as “an official ambassador of the city’s literary culture, connecting our community through the art of poetry.” The position also involves significant community engagement and participation in educational programming and civic ceremonies.
The program accepts applications from poets aged 18 or older who reside in Hennepin County, and the application due date falls in November for a laureate term that begins the following January. Additional guidelines are provided on the program page. The program’s first poet laureate is Heid E. Erdrich, the sister of the award-winning author Louise Erdrich.
The Mirrors and Windows Fellowship program was launched in 2018 to encourage and support “Indigenous writers and writers of color to write picture books, middle grade, and young adult literature.” The program annually provides up to twelve “emerging/early-career Minnesota Indigenous writers and writers of color” with five-month mentorships with “diverse published authors of books for children and young readers.” The application window for this program usually opens in October with a due date in November. Check back with the program page for additional guidelines and information about past and current mentors and fellows.
The Excellence in Teaching Fellowship annually provides four Loft teaching artists with a one-week writing retreat at the Madeline Island School for the Arts in La Pointe, Wisconsin to work on “on a writing project of their choice.” The program accepts nominations from Loft students. The fellowship includes accommodations, on-site meals and a per diem of $25. Profiles of past fellows are provided on the program page.
Important Grant Details:
The Loft Literary Center grants and awards are given in amounts specified by each program.
This organization’s programs are mainly limited to writers and poets who reside in Hennepin County or the state of Minnesota.
Most programs accept applications or nominations, but guidelines and due dates vary by program.
Keep up with opportunities by signing up for the organization’s newsletter.
Submit inquiries to the Loft Literary Center via email at loft@loft.org or by telephone at 612-215-2575.
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