Idaho: Idaho Writer in Residence

Idaho Writer in Residence Christian Winn. Photo by David Meadows

The Idaho Commission on the Arts (ICA), like 28 other state arts agencies, fosters creative writing through an individual artist fellowship grant program. ICA also honors outstanding writers with the public recognition, responsibilities and financial support of its Idaho Writer in Residence program. The three-year writer in residence post, which is the state’s most prestigious literary award, comes with an unrestricted $10,000 grant and the distinction of representing the standard of preeminence in contemporary literature. In turn, resident writers sow inspiration across the state by sharing their craft and knowledge through at least four public readings each year, two-thirds of which must take place in rural communities. Writers in residence, who may serve no more than two nonconsecutive terms and must forgo eligibility for ICA fellowships, are chosen by a panel of out-of-state judges who anonymously consider their professional accomplishments as well as written and audio samples of their work. The 2016 Idaho writer in residence is Christian A. Winn of Boise, a published author, a professor at Boise State University and cofounder of Storyfort, the literary component of Boise’s annual Treefort Music Fest. Find out more from ICA Literature Director Jocelyn Robertson.