Dreaming of Being a Writer? This Pilot Program Will Make You the Next Szymborska

It's never too late to debut. You just need the right conditions. That's why the Wrocław House of Literature and Wrocław UNESCO City of Literature in cooperation with the Wisława Szymborska Foundation invite everyone who wants to write their first book to the unique program "Residences with Szymborska".

Would you like to enter the world of literature? There is no better place to do so than… Wisława Szymborska's apartment.

Wrocławski Dom Literatury and Wrocław UNESCO City of Literature in cooperation with the Wisława Szymborska Foundation announce a new edition of "Rezydencja u Szymborskiej" . The programme, whose previous laureates include Anna Adamowicz , Damian Kowal and Mirka Szychowiak , invites for the first time people who are still before their debut.

- Raymond Chandler made his debut at the age of 44. Andrzej Sapkowski was not much younger, introducing the world to the story The Witcher in 1986. A few months before his 40th birthday, Maria Dąbrowska published her first volume of poetry, whose career, like Sapkowski's , blossomed only after the age of forty. At the age of 37, he made his debut with the book Jerzy Pilch . There are plenty of such examples - we read in a press release from the Wrocław House of Literature .

Books, sample photo / photo: Unsplash, Syd Wachs

The creators of the program emphasize that it is increasingly difficult to debut today . Working on a book takes a lot of time and, contrary to appearances, requires appropriate conditions .

The Wrocław House of Literature rightly notes that most competitions , scholarship programs , and residencies are aimed at people who already have some literary achievements. It is therefore good to give a chance to people who have their "moment of glory" still ahead of them.

Of course, they cannot be complete newbies. In addition to the fact that applicants should be of legal age and connected with Wrocław or Lower Silesia , they must have two publications in paper or online magazines in their literary portfolio.

The person who is selected will be able to spend a very creative literary September in Wisława Szymborska's apartment in Kraków and will receive a one-time scholarship of PLN 2,000 gross.

Applications can be submitted until July 14 via the form on the Wrocławski Dom Literatury website. The winner's name will be announced in the second half of July and... we hope that this will not be the last time we hear it!