W-G Foundation Application Guide

Hunt Fellowship in Public Writing

Applicant Profile

We will ask you to tell us about yourself. Our reviewers will not have access to any of the following information:

  1. Applicant contact information. This includes your full or chosen name (first, middle, and surname), email address, and other contact details. Please do know that, should you be funded, the mailing address you provide will be reported to the IRS and made publicly available, so we advise you to use your department, business, or PO box address.

  2. Applicant educational history and current position. This includes your highest academic degree, the discipline of your degree, the year it was awarded, the institution where you received it, and your current academic appointment. We will also ask whether English is your and/or your institution’s primary scholarly language. Note that we are currently only accepting applications from scholars who hold a doctorate in anthropology or from scholars with doctorates in related fields who hold an appointment in an anthropology department or program, or its equivalent in countries where the subfields are named differently. Applicants should be no more than 15 years beyond receipt of the Ph.D., with allowances made for periods of caregiving.

  3. Applicant personal information (optional). In an effort to promote greater equity in funding, we ask whether you are willing to share some confidential demographic information about yourself. We will remove any identifiers and analyze this data in the aggregate. This section of the application is entirely optional. Your answers to these questions will have no bearing on the success of your application. Our questions concern citizenship, gender identity, pronouns, sexual identity, disability, caregiving responsibilities, your parents’ highest level of education, income insecurity, race and ethnicity, Indigenous affiliation, and how you decided to apply for this program.

Project Information

  1. Project title. This should be 25 words or fewer and contain enough information to tell us what your book is about. Please do know that, should you be funded, the title you provide will be reported on the Foundation’s annual tax return filed with the US Internal Revenue Service. This tax return is a publicly available document.

  2. Short blurb or summary. Provide a concise description of the book. The summary should give us a clear sense of the subject, the central argument or story, and the audience you hope to reach. [Limit: 150 words]

  3. Three keywords or phrases that best describe your book project.

  4. Your subdiscipline and regional or topical area.

  5. We award this fellowship for a nine-month period of focused writing after June 1 of the year following the application deadline.

  6. Location where your writing will take place.

  7. Other sources of aid received or requested for the period of writing covered in this application. Include any support you have received or applied for that relates to this fellowship application. Here, we have in mind grants you might receive from other agencies and/or any compensation that might come with a sabbatical or other academic leave.

    In your application, we do ask you to list the permit(s) required for the proposed project and the estimated date(s) by which you expect to secure them. Your knowledge of the required permits will help demonstrate your awareness of ethical issues your research could raise. This information allows us to evaluate whether your project is feasible and whether you are prepared to begin conducting research. Depending on the project, examples of permits include research visas, approvals or exemptions from institutional review boards and other ethics committees, human subject approvals, animal care and use approvals, government clearances, excavation permits, letters of affiliation, and permissions from the local scientific, academic, museum, institutional, or tribal authorities who oversee your research area. Please do not contact the Foundation to ask which permits you need; instead, consult with your contacts and/or advisors.

  8. Are you interested in being considered for a workshop on the craft of writing with broad public audiences in mind?

    The Wenner-Gren Foundation is offering a week-long writing workshop in partnership with the School for Advanced Research in Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA. The workshop’s goal is to help participants build networks, develop new skills, and gain momentum for the work of writing for different audiences. Participants will close the week with a stronger set of writing tools, new connections with like-minded colleagues, and renewed energy for the work it takes to write well.

    We will offer this workshop in the summer of the year following the application deadline. Selected finalists and the grant recipient will be invited to attend. We will cover travel costs, and room and board for the week. There is no advantage or disadvantage to your fellowship application for selecting this option.

  9. You will be asked whether you used Generative AI in producing this application. If you answer “yes,” you’ll then be asked to describe the tools you used, the prompts you entered, the tasks you accomplished, and how you checked your work for accuracy. This information will not be provided to reviewers and will not factor into any award decisions. We are collecting this information to better understand how Generative AI is shaping the funding landscape. We will analyze responses in aggregate to track trends over time. See our Generative AI policy.

Letter of Intent

The Hunt Fellowship in Public Writing has a two-stage application process. Applicants must first submit a letter of intent. After review, the Foundation will invite a small number of applicants to submit full proposals.

Your letter of intent should make a clear and compelling case for your book project. In language that an interested layperson could understand, tell us what your manuscript is about, why it matters, and why this is the right moment for the book. You should give us a strong sense of the audience you hope to reach and the impact you want the book to have.

The letter of intent should answer the following questions:

  • What is your manuscript about?
  • Why is it relevant now?
  • Who is it for, and what impact do you want it to have?
  • At what juncture in the publishing process are you?
  • Why are you the person to write this book and positioned to successfully publish it

The most competitive letters of intent will describe a serious nonfiction book grounded in substantial anthropological research and written for a general audience. Eligible projects may be trade books (published by major presses for general readers) or crossover books (published by academic presses but written and marketed for nonacademic readers). Books may be written in any language, provided they are intended for a general audience.[Limit: 1000 words]

If you are resubmitting, you will have the opportunity to include a brief statement about what has changed since your previous application. Applications must be submitted in English. [Limit: 250 words]

Abstract

Your abstract is a very important component of your application. In language that an interested layperson could understand, you need to convey what’s at the heart of your project. Your abstract should begin broad and go narrow, communicating the major theme or debate in anthropology your research addressed, then explaining the particular question you investigated. It should convey the “why,” “what,” “where,” and “how” of your research while giving the reader a strong sense of the publication(s) you plan to finish to communicate your results. Your abstract will be the shortest part of your proposal, but it will also be the hardest to write.  You will need to have a very clear idea of your plans to do a good job. You probably should write it last. [Limit: 200 words]

Book Proposal Questions

Invited full proposals should mirror a book proposal. Our word limits are strict. To make the best possible case for your work, it’s a good idea to use all the space provided.

Question 1: Introduction to the project. Introduce the book project in detail. What is the book about? What is the central question, problem, story, or argument? Why does this book matter now? How is it grounded in anthropological research, evidence, and insight? What will readers understand differently after reading it? [Limit: 3,000 words]

This section should make the case for the book as a work of serious nonfiction for general audiences. We are interested in projects that bring anthropological knowledge into wider conversations, contribute to urgent debates, and expand the audiences for anthropological work. The strongest proposals will combine intellectual ambition with accessible, engaging writing.

This program is focused on trade books (published by major presses for general readers) or crossover books (published by academic presses but written and marketed for nonacademic readers). The book may be written in any language, provided it is intended for a general audience. The proposal must be submitted in English.

Question 2: Chapter titles and descriptions. Provide the title of each chapter and a description of its contents. Your chapter descriptions should give us a clear picture of the structure, narrative arc, and argument of the manuscript. [Limit: 1,000 words]

Be specific about what each chapter will do. What scenes, cases, stories, histories, concepts, or evidence will it include? How does each chapter move the book forward? What will hold the reader’s attention from one chapter to the next?

Question 3: Author information. Tell us who you are as the author of this book. What expertise, experience, relationships, or perspective do you bring to the project? How has your research prepared you to write this book for general audiences? Why are you the right person to write it? [Limit: 300 words]

This should be a brief biography, written in the third person, outlining your experiences and expertise in research and publishing. Include awards or other previous indications of success and recognition.

Question 4: Target market and publicity strategy. Describe the intended audience for the book. Who do you imagine reading it? What communities, conversations, classrooms, public debates, or broader audiences do you hope the book will reach? [Limit: 500 words]

You should also describe how the book might find those readers. What is your publicity strategy? Are there organizations, publications, events, networks, media outlets, podcasts, newsletters, public programs, or other venues that might help bring the book to its audience? How will you help connect the book to readers beyond the academy?

Question 5: Competing titles. Provide a list of competing or comparable titles. For each title, include the title, publisher, year, and a brief description of how your proposed book compares. [Limit: 300 words]

These titles should help reviewers understand the market for the book and the space it will occupy. You might include books that address similar subjects, reach similar audiences, use comparable narrative strategies, or model the kind of public writing you hope to produce.

Question 6: Writing plan. Describe what you will accomplish during the fellowship period. What is the current state of the manuscript? What work remains to be done? How will 9 months of focused writing allow you to complete the manuscript? [Limit: 500 words]

The research that forms the basis of the book must be completed by the time of application. This fellowship is intended to support writing, not new research. Applicants should be ready to devote a continuous block of time to completing a book manuscript

Sample Chapter

You will be asked to upload one full or partial sample chapter. The sample chapter should demonstrate the style, voice, substance, and accessibility of the book you are proposing. It should show reviewers how you will write for a general audience while remaining grounded in anthropological research and evidence.

The sample chapter may be drawn from any part of the manuscript. You may upload a complete chapter or a substantial portion of a chapter. Please choose the section that best represents the book’s promise as a work of serious nonfiction for nonacademic readers. [Limit: 5,000 words]

Resubmission Statement

If you are resubmitting an application that was unsuccessful in a previous funding cycle, you will need to include a resubmission statement. The Foundation accepts a single resubmission of a Hunt Fellowship in Public Writing application that was unsuccessful in a prior funding cycle. [Limit: 1,000 words]

In your resubmission statement, you’ll have an opportunity to tell us about the progress you’ve made since you last applied. How has your thinking developed? How have you refined your book project? How does this application differ from the previous one?

Optional URL for Access to Figures

You will have a chance to upload charts, maps, images, illustrations, or other figures that you refer to in your book proposal or sample chapter. Please use this option sparingly. Only include figures that are essential for communicating your plans and goals.

Bibliography

You should tailor your bibliography specifically for this proposal. Focus on your central research question and the broader conversations and debates that have inspired you. You’ll want to cite literature related to your approach to your topic, your research context, your methods, and any ethical issues raised by your research.

You’ll have a chance to upload your bibliography to our online application system. Please use a format compatible with Microsoft Word.

  1. Only list the sources that you cite in your resubmission statement or your responses to the project description questions. In-text citations should take the form of the authors’ name{s), year, and, where relevant, page number(s). Please format the citations as shown in these examples: (Baviskar 1995), (Friedner and Osborne 2015), (Nelson et al. 2017), (Zee 2020: 1068), (Baviskar 1995; Friedner and Osborne 2015; Nelson et al. 2017; Zee 2020: 1068).

  2. Your bibliography should not exceed 10 pages, using single-line spacing and 10-point font or larger.

  3. Make sure your bibliographic references are complete, listed in alphabetical order, and presented in one of the bibliographic formats found in major English language anthropological journals (such as Current Anthropology, Ethnos, or the American Journal of Physical Anthropology, among others). Whichever model you choose, be consistent throughout.

References Cited

You should tailor your references cited specifically for this proposal. Focus on your central research question, the broader conversations that have inspired you, and the sources that inform your book project. You’ll want to cite literature related to your approach to your topic, your research context, your methods, and any ethical issues raised by your research.

You’ll have a chance to upload your references cited to our online application system. Please use a format compatible with Microsoft Word.

  1. Only list the sources that you cite in your resubmission statement, book proposal questions, or sample chapter. In-text citations should take the form of the authors’ name(s), year, and, where relevant, page number(s). Please format the citations as shown in these examples: (Baviskar 1995), (Friedner and Osborne 2015), (Nelson et al. 2017), (Zee 2020: 1068), (Baviskar 1995; Friedner and Osborne 2015; Nelson et al. 2017; Zee 2020: 1068).
  2. Your references cited should not exceed two pages, using single-line spacing and 10-point font or larger.
  3. Make sure your references are complete, listed in alphabetical order, and presented in one of the bibliographic formats found in major English language anthropological journals, such as Current Anthropology, Ethnos, or the American Journal of Biological Anthropology, among others. Whichever model you choose, be consistent throughout.