Are you a passionate, committed young writer hungry for an opportunity to dedicate time to your writing practice?

Dunedin Fringe – proud producers of the NZ Young Writers Fest (13-14 September 2025) – and the Robert Lord Writers Cottage Trust enthusiastically invite you to apply for a two-week residency (Friday 5 September - Saturday 20 September 2025) in the Robert Lord Writers Cottage, Ōtepoti/Dunedin, to work on a writing project and participate in the festival. 

The residency is open to young writers aged 18–35 resident in Aotearoa. The residency must be completed in person in Ōtepoti | Dunedin. 

We highly encourage Māori and Moana writers to apply, and writers from other historically excluded communities. 

Please note: due to a significant reduction in funding for the 2025 festival and its associated opportunities, sadly we’ve had to reduce the duration of the 2025 Residency to two weeks rather than four. If you have any questions about this change, please contact Kate Schrader, Co-Director and Creative Producer: kate@dunedinfringe.nz 

Accessibility note: the Robert Lord Writers Cottage (RLWC) is a heritage building and has physical accessibility constraints (narrow gate and doorways; steps at the rear). If you wish to discuss these in more detail, please contact RLWC Trust Chair Vanessa Manhire: vmanhire@gmail.com. 

The NZ Young Writers Fest celebrates the cutting edge of contemporary writing with the next generation of literary talent in Aotearoa. The festival welcomes young writers (aged 15-35) of all kinds to celebrate a diverse range of wordsmithing including slam poetry, playwriting, songwriting, short fiction, novels, zines, screenwriting, poetry, journalism, blogging, critical content creation, podcasts, review writing, and more. The festival is by young writers for young writers, but audiences of all ages - from curious young minds to literary loving adults - are welcome. Read more about the festival’s history and goals at this link.

Note: due to the funding reduction in 2025, this year’s NZ Young Writers Fest will take place over a 2 day weekend instead of over 3-4 days, and will feature fewer events. However, Dunedin Fringe remains committed to keeping this vital forum for celebrating young voices alive, and we look forward to welcoming young writers and audiences alike in September 2025.

For information about the opportunity, remuneration, eligibility, application requirements and festival information, please follow this link. The application form is available at this link: applications close Friday 30 May 2025.  

If you have any questions, please contact Kate Schrader, Co-Director and Creative Producer: kate@dunedinfringe.nz 

The NZYWF 2025 is made possible thanks to generous support from the Robert Lord Writers Cottage Trust, Creative New Zealand, the Otago Community Trust, the Dunedin City Council, the University of Otago Division of Humanities, and other sponsors, supporters and friends.

Image: Young Writer in Residence 2024 Sherry Zhang (章雪莉/Xue Li Zhang), pictured centre, chats with festival participants. 
Photographer: Don Townsend