Roderick Centre Online Fellowship for Regional and Remote Writers
Presented in partnership with the Roderick Centre for Australian Literature and Creative Writing (RCALC), the Roderick Centre Online Fellowships offer professional development, mentorship and peer feedback.
Applications open: 3 February 2026
Applications close: 3 March 2026
Online fellowship dates: 24 August - 4 September 2026
Places: Six writers will be selected for the online fellowship
Who should apply: Writers living in regional and remote parts of Australia, specifically living in the government-designated ‘Category 3 Regional Centres and Other Regional Areas’. Category 3 postcodes are listed here.
This excludes writers living in the Gold Coast, the Sunshine Coast, Newcastle/Lake Macquarie, Wollongong/Illawarra and Geelong. The Blue Mountains is considered regional if west of Katoomba.
Fees: There is a $25 application fee for this fellowship. The $25 application fee covers the expenses of paying for the assessors. However, if this is unaffordable for you, you can select to have this fee waived.
The Roderick Centre Online Fellowship exists to foster connection and offer progressional development for writers living in regional and remote areas. Facilitated by Mary Anne Butler across two weeks, writers will share their work, learn from experienced authors with a connection to regional Australia, and benefit from two one-on-one mentor conversations with Mary Anne, focused on their current project.
Newly established in 2024 thanks to a generous bequest from the late Colin and Margaret Roderick, the Roderick Centre for Australian Literature and Creative Writing (RCALC) aims to foster the reading and writing of Australian literature in all its forms, and to encourage the study of Australian literature and literary cultures.
The online fellowship program will include:
Two one-hour online sessions (one-on-one) with Varuna writing consultant, Mary Anne Butler
Two online Q&A sessions, with award-winning authors Jock Serong and Inga Simpson
Facilitated professional networking opportunities, including the opportunity to share work, talk about process, and receive feedback
Online fellowship participants need to be available between 12pm - 1pm AEST, on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays across the two-week fellowship. To get the most out of the program, participants should spend at least three hours dedicated to writing and reading each day.
This program is for writers living in regional and remote parts of Australia, specifically living in the government-designated ‘Category 3 Regional Centres and Other Regional Areas’. Category 3 postcodes are listed here.
This excludes writers living in the Gold Coast, the Sunshine Coast, Newcastle/Lake Macquarie, Wollongong/Illawarra and Geelong. The Blue Mountains is considered regional if west of Katoomba.
HOW TO APPLY
Assessors will be looking at your writing experience, clarity of focus and objectives (how you will use your time), and the merit of your writing. They will also consider the balance of the group, with a view to ensuring the program has a collegiate atmosphere.
Please refer to Varuna’s general submission guidelines for any questions on formatting your work.
MARY ANNE BUTLER
Multi-award-winning playwright Mary Anne Butler has spent two decades mastering the art of dialogue. Her plays have won the Victorian Prize for Literature, Victorian Premier’s Award for Drama, Shane and Cathryn Brennan Prize for Playwriting, an AWGIE and two NT Chief Minister’s Book of the Year Awards. Her teaching experience combines a Masters in Arts Education, a Masters in Creative Writing, a Diploma of Acting from VCA and a Dip Ed in English/Drama. She’s currently undertaking a PhD in Literature, writing a novel which investigates how we write hope into the realist fiction of the Anthropocene.
INGA SIMPSON
Inga Simpson is an award-winning New South Wales writer focused on the natural world. Her novels include The Thinning, Willowman, and Mr Wigg. She has also published a nature writing memoir, Understory: a life with Trees, and two picture books for children, The Book of Australian Trees and The Peach King. Inga has PhDs in creative writing and English literature and her essays, short fiction and photos have appeared in a range of journals. Her latest release, Once We Were Wildlife: stories, explores the boundaries between the human and more-than-human worlds.
TESTIMONIALS
“The opportunity to meet diverse writers and be taken seriously as a writer myself was invaluable. The encouragement I received during my fellowship was all I needed to put my head down and get writing! Thank you for providing this space (virtually) and motivation.”
“The structures set up felt very strong and supportive, highlights included the feedback session with Mary Anne Butler and meeting other writers. I looked forward to each day knowing I had a session. Thank you so much.”
UPCOMING COURSES, FELLOWSHIPS AND EVENTS
