Hughes Fellow in Creative Writing

Position Numbers 00053304 and 00053305.

The English Department at Southern Methodist University is happy to announce the inaugural Hughes Fellowships in Creative Writing for the 2022–2023 academic year. SMU will award two fellowships, one in poetry and one in prose (fiction or creative nonfiction). Each fellowship will provide two years of support. Fellows will be expected to make significant progress on a major project, to teach one course in creative writing per semester, and to engage in the intellectual and creative life of the department and the larger Dallas literary community. This engagement will include one major presentation per year: a public reading of the fellow’s own work in the first year and, in the second year, a conversation with an established writer about their creative practice. Fellows should also be available to mentor undergraduates on an informal basis.

Annual compensation is $50,000 with full benefits. During the academic year, each Hughes Fellow will be expected to live in the Dallas area and hold no other professional or academic obligations. Only writers who have completed within the past five years—or are scheduled to complete by August 2022—an MFA or PhD in creative writing are eligible. A publishing record in nationally relevant periodicals is desirable but not required. As the Hughes Fellowships are meant to support emerging writers, applicants with second books in print or under contract will not be considered.

Application:

To ensure full consideration for the 2022–2023 Hughes Fellowships, the application must be received by February 9, 2022. Applicants should submit a cover letter, a CV, a writing sample (maximum twenty-five pages of prose, fifteen pages of poetry), and two letters of recommendation at http://apply.interfolio.com/100017. The cover letter should address what the applicant hopes to accomplish as a writer during the period of the fellowship at SMU. Questions about the position may be directed to the chair of the search committee, Richard Hermes (rhermes@smu.edu). Hiring is contingent upon the satisfactory completion of a background check. 

About SMU:

SMU is an inclusive community of teachers and scholars. We seek bold, curious, and creative faculty to position our students for success. We offer the rare confluence of a comprehensive global research institution and a close-knit intellectual enterprise in the liberal arts tradition. Like our hometown of Dallas, our campus is vibrant. Here, innovative thinkers conduct research that has lasting impact and transform big ideas into new products, inventive technology and world-changing solutions. Our welcoming learning community of faculty and nearly 12,000 students in seven schools embraces a world of people and ideas. To learn more about the rich cultural environment of SMU, please see: https://www.smu.edu/

SMU will not discriminate in any program or activity on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, sexual orientation, or gender identity and expression. The Executive Director for Access and Equity/Title IX Coordinator is designated to handle inquiries regarding nondiscrimination policies and may be reached at the Perkins Administration Building, Room 204, 6425 Boaz Lane, Dallas, TX 75205, 214-768-3601, accessequity@smu.edu.  Hiring is contingent upon the satisfactory completion of a background check.