The Nagkahiusang Magsusulat sa Cagayan de Oro (NAGMAC), in partnership with the Xavier Center for Culture and the Arts (XCCA), is now accepting applications to the 2017 Cagayan de Oro Young Writers’ Studio to be held in October 2017 at Xavier University - Ateneo de Cagayan.
Divided into two literary genres — poetry and prose (fiction and creative nonfiction) — the CDO Young Writers’ Studio, formerly the CDO Writing Clinic, is an annual creative writing fellowship for 14 of the most promising emerging poets, fictionists, and essayists born and/or based in Northern Mindanao — Camiguin, Bukidnon, Misamis Occidental, Misamis Oriental, and Lanao del Norte. Seven fellowships are available per genre — poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction. (Applicants may apply for more than one genre.)
To be eligible, an applicant must (1) be born and/or based in any of the provinces of Northern Mindanao and (2) not have attended any regional and national writers’ workshops organized by reputable creative writing centers and institutes.
Entries (original and unpublished works) in Binisaya, Tagalog, and/or English shall be composed of any of the following:
• For a Poetry fellowship: 4 poems (not more than 60 lines each);
• For a Fiction fellowship: 2 short stories (2000 to 5000 words each) of any genre; or 1 novel chapter (3000 to 6000 words each) with a synopsis; or 3 flash fiction (500 to 1500 words each); or
• For a Creative Nonfiction fellowship: 2 works of creative nonfiction (2000 to 5000 words each) such as nonfiction memoir, personal essays, travel writing, or other hybridized forms; or 3 micro-essays (500 to 1500 words each).
Formulated to complement with the annual Cagayan de Oro Writers Workshop, this creative writing fellowship will include critiquing sessions, craft lectures, and other parallel activities to be facilitated by NAGMAC’s senior writers — poet Ton Daposala, fictionist Abigail C James, poet-playwright Mai Santillan, and novelist EJ Villena with poet, essayist, and editor Alton Melvar Dapanas as the workshop director. Other local writers will also serve as guest panelists.
The CDO Young Writers’ Studio aims to initiate a creative writing culture of mentorship and critiquing in the region and institutionalize an open training platform for beginners of the creative writing craft.
Accepted fellows will be provided with a certificate, lunch, and snacks. (There is no registration fee but fellows, if accepted, will shoulder their own transportation expenses to and from the venue.)
Electronic copies, in MS Word format, Garamond font 12, of the manuscript may be emailed to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with the subject Genre_CDOYWS (example, Fiction_CDOYWS). The author's name should not appear on the manuscript. On the email's body, kindly put your full name, address (within Northern Mindanao), institutional affiliation (workplace and/or school), mobile number, and a short bio note (150-300 words in the third person).
Deadline for the submission of manuscripts is on 5 October 2017. All inquiries must be addressed to the workshop director through the indicated email address.∎