Martin Dibner Memorial Fellowships

In partnership with the Maine Community Foundation, the Maine Writers & Publishers Alliance is proud to offer the Martin Dibner Memorial Fellowships for Maine Writers. The Dibner Fellowships provide full funding to attend the MWPA’s winter Snowbound Writers Retreat, autumn Harvest Writers Retreat, spring Black Fly Writers Retreat, OR a multi-week workshop happening during one of those seasons. The fellowships are awarded on a mixed need and merit base. Please see the guidelines below.

Martin Dibner (1912-1991) was the author of nine novels and four books of nonfiction.When Westbrook College’s Joan Whitney Payson Gallery opened in 1977, Dibner was hired as its first director. A native of New York, Dibner moved to Maine in the early 1970s and was a devoted mentor and teacher to younger writers. Read more about Dibner and his work at the Maine State Library.

Submissions are open for the Black Fly Writers Retreat and Multi-Week Spring Workshops through April 1, 2024.

• The Martin Dibner Memorial Fellowships for Maine Writers are open to Maine residents* (1) who have not published a full-length book and (2) who are 18 years of age or older at the time of the application. *Both full-time and part-time Maine residents are eligible to apply (by “part-time,” we mean seasonal residents who grew up in Maine and have a regular presence in the state and/or those who own a home in the state).

• The fellowships are open to writers in all genres.

• There is no fee to apply.

• All prospective fellows must submit a brief biographic note, statement of intent, and work sample via Submittable.

• Applicants who fail to submit a complete application, do not follow the submission instructions, or miss the application deadline will not be considered. Please make sure to follow the submission instructions carefully.

• Previous Dibner Fellows are eligible to re-apply two years after receiving a fellowship.

• You will find full, detailed submission guidelines upon applying through the button above.

Please note: If you would like to attend an MWPA writers retreat even if you DON’T receive a Dibner Fellowship, you MUST reserve you workshop spot via the normal registration process; this fellowship application does NOT reserve a spot for you should you not receive the fellowship.

Please read carefully. Incomplete applications will not be considered. You will find full, detailed submission guidelines once you click on the fellowship you’d like to apply for.

• No email or mail submissions will be accepted.

• Submissions must be made via Submittable at the link below.

• Receipt of applications will be confirmed via email.

• Winners will be announced as quickly as possible after the deadline; please allow at least two weeks.

• Please refrain from repeated inquiries as to when winners will be announced.

All Dibner Fellows are required to submit a one-page report within two weeks of the retreat or workshop. The report should describe how the fellow benefited from the experience, and particularly how it helped to advance the fellow’s writing, career, or literary aspirations. Excerpts from these reports may be used by the Maine Writers & Publishers Alliance or the Maine Community Foundation when publicizing the Dibner Fellowships.