The American Library in Paris Visiting Fellowship
Enriching cross-cultural intellectual discourse since 2013
What is the Visiting Fellowship?
The American Library in Paris Visiting Fellowship was created in 2013 to nurture and sustain a heritage as old as the Library itself: deepening French-American understanding. The Visiting Fellowship is made possible by the generous support of The de Groot Foundation.
The Fellowship offers writers, researchers, and creators the unique opportunity to spend a month in Paris working on their own creative project while contributing to the cultural life of the Library.
In addition to working on their own project, Fellows present a public program during their residency that engages our audience and members around a central theme. The theme for 2025-2026 is Ways of Seeing.
What is Ways of Seeing?
Ways of Seeing is a theme that invites exploration of how we perceive and interpret the world through art, literature, media, and culture. Inspired by John Berger’s influential work and the broader concept of understanding perspectives, this theme encourages Fellows to delve into new ways of thinking, creating, and connecting. Programs could explore topics such as visual storytelling, cultural perception, cross-cultural exchange, or innovative approaches to creativity and representation.
Fellowship Details:
Residency Period: One month, between September 2025 and June 2026. Fellowships are not available in July or August due to the Library’s programming hiatus.
Stipend: $5,000 USD paid prior to the Fellowship period to cover travel, accommodation, and expenses in Paris.
Eligibility: Open to writers, researchers, journalists, poets, screenwriters, playwrights, directors, and documentary filmmakers. International applicants are welcome.
The Fellowship Includes:
- An orientation day that includes meeting Library staff, a guided tour of the collections and archives, and lunch.
- A Library membership with full access to the Library’s collections, archives, and e-resources.
- A commitment to spend at least three half-days per week in the Library during the residency working on your personal creative project.
- The opportunity to develop and deliver a one-hour public program tied to the theme of Ways of Seeing. This program could be a talk, workshop, panel, performance, or other creative format.
- Opportunities to attend fundraising dinners, cocktail gatherings, or exclusive events as a representative of the Fellowship.
- Participation in filming promotional material for the Library and your Fellowship experience.
- A final exit interview to share feedback and insights about the Fellowship experience.
- An expectation to acknowledge the Library and Fellowship in any publications or media resulting from the project.
How to apply
Applications for the Visiting Fellowship require:
- A single PDF file (maximum 5 pages) containing:
- A one-page cover letter and a two-page CV.
- A one-page narrative description of your personal creative project, including its timeline, current stage, and how the Fellowship at the Library will contribute to its success.
- Three brief (max. 50 words each) proposals for a public program tied to Ways of Seeing.
- Two professional references (names and contact information).
- A €30 non-refundable application fee.
Frequently Asked Questions
No, your personal project does not need to directly tie to the theme. However, your project should have a meaningful connection to being in France, particularly Paris. The residency is designed to support projects that are enriched by the unique cultural, historical, or artistic environment of Paris or that benefit from being developed in this vibrant setting. Your project should make it clear why being in Paris is essential or adds value to your work.
The Fellowship is open to applicants from any country or background.
No, Fellows are expected to be present in Paris during the period of the Fellowship.
Yes. We give equal weight to applications from France-based creatives.
While you do not need to be a published author to apply, many of our Fellows have one or more previous publications under their belts and often have a publishing contract secured for their next project.
The $5,000 stipend is intended to cover travel (approx. $1,000), accommodation (approx. $1,000), and other living expenses while in Paris.
In your cover letter, you should introduce yourself and your work. You might also like to add why you are interested in spending time at the American Library in Paris and its community (in Paris) in particular.
In the interest of fairness, we are unable to advise potential applicants on their materials.
No. Once an application is received, you cannot swap or add materials.
We typically receive between 250 and 500 applications in our annual cycle, and we award two Visiting Fellowships per year.
The application fee is 30€.
Applicants experiencing significant financial hardship or those who are unable to pay the fee are encouraged to contact fellowship@americanlibraryinparis.org.
Requests for fee waivers will be reviewed once the application opens until three days before the application deadline.
All applicants can expect to hear back from us with a final decision by July.
Visiting Fellows are chosen through an application process. Writers-in-Residence are invited directly by the Library, and are typically more senior or established authors. We do not consider proposals for Writers-in-Residence.
Visiting Fellows are chosen through an application process. Cultural Fellows are invited directly by the Library, and are more senior and established multi-disciplinary artists working across mediums. We do not consider proposals for Cultural Fellows.
Please contact fellowship@americanlibraryinparis.org if you have any other questions.
