WNDB provides emergency grants to diverse authors, illustrators, publishing professionals, and K-12 educators who are experiencing dire financial need. We aim to bolster these marginalized groups by giving grants between $500 and $1,000 each. Since 2020, the Emergency Grants provided funding to 91 authors, illustrators, publishing professionals, and educators experiencing financial need.
Guidelines
The Emergency Grants are now OPEN to new applicants. 2023 Update: Currently, WNDB is prioritizing applicants who are publishing professionals.
Beginning in 2020, the Emergency Grants have provided funding to 91 authors, illustrators, publishing professionals, and educators experiencing financial need. We're grateful to our sponsors who made this initiative possible.
To be eligible for assistance:
- Publishing professionals must hold or have held a position that focused on literature and must demonstrate a financial need due to any loss of income. Self-employed/freelancers and interns in publishing are eligible. Freelancers and self-employed people must demonstrate that they are regularly working with traditional publishers, literary agencies, or traditionally published authors as clients. Positions include but are not limited to: editors, agents, publicists, designers, book reviewers, and sales positions.
- Writers and/or illustrators must be traditionally published authors with at least one published or one forthcoming book (including the publication of a short story and/or essay in a traditionally published anthology) and must demonstrate a financial need due to any loss of income. The book must be published in the English language, whether published by a US-based publisher or a publisher abroad.
- Educators must currently be employed or have been employed within the last 12 months at a United States-based K-12 school in a student-facing position. Educators must demonstrate a financial need due to any loss of income. Loss of income can include loss of employment due to discrimination, anti-CRT, or book ban protests.
Please note:
- All applications will be kept confidential. We will not list the recipients publicly.
- Applicants should receive a response in 14-21 days upon receipt of their application.
- Applicants must reside in the United States.
- Under Executive Order 13224, all 501(c)(3) organizations must confirm that grant recipients are not affiliated with federally identified terrorist groups. To comply, we must compile any of your former legal names that have been registered with the United States government. We are aware that we are asking for potentially sensitive information and we sincerely apologize for this intrusion. WNDB will keep this information in the utmost confidence and will never use any former name(s) in our correspondence with you.
- Given the volume of applications, we will not be able to respond to individual inquiries about the status of your application.
Application Form
Emergency Grants
WNDB will provide emergency grants of up to $1000 to diverse authors, illustrators, and publishing professionals in financial need.Emergency Fund FAQ
Application guidelines are available on the Emergency Fund for Diverse Creatives and Educators website above.
This grant is intended for individuals, not for organizations, nonprofits, or other collectives. You should apply for this grant as an individual for personal use.
Yes, freelancers and self-employed people who work regularly in publishing are eligible! You must demonstrate on your application that you regularly contract with traditional publishers and/or traditionally published authors to qualify. This includes freelance book editors, sensitivity readers, copyeditors, book designers, book illustrators, art directors, publicists, and more.
Yes, if you are currently interning at a publishing house (primarily focusing on literature in your internship, in any department), you are eligible for this grant.
Yes, if you have a short story or an essay published in a traditionally published print book, you are eligible. Being published online or in a magazine does not make you eligible, and neither does having a short story or essay in a self-published book.
We aim to respond to applicants who are awarded a grant between 14-21 days upon receipt of your application.
Yes, any information you submit will be kept strictly confidential by WNDB.
No, we will not announce the recipients publicly. If you receive a grant and wish to share the news on your own, you are welcome to do so.
Recipients of the grant will become eligible for another emergency grant if at least 6 months have passed since they received their grant. You may only receive a maximum of 3 total emergency grants.
No, applicants can only apply for themselves to receive the grant.
No, applicants must have at least one book-length title at a traditional publisher.
Your book does not need to be published by a US-based publisher but it does need to be published in the English language. It may be an English-language book published by a traditional publisher in another country.
Applicants may have at least one book currently published or at least one book forthcoming. If you have an announced book deal but your book has not yet been published, you are eligible for this grant.
Grant recipients must either be a published author, illustrator, or publishing professional recently furloughed or laid off. At this time booksellers aren’t eligible, but the Book Industry Charitable Foundation also has a fund specifically earmarked for booksellers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Our definition of diversity: We recognize all diverse experiences, including (but not limited to) LGBTQIA, Native, people of color, gender diversity, people with disabilities*, and ethnic, cultural, and religious minorities.*We subscribe to a broad definition of disability, which includes but is not limited to physical, sensory, cognitive, intellectual, or developmental disabilities, chronic conditions, and mental illnesses (this may also include addiction). Furthermore, we subscribe to a social model of disability, which presents disability as created by barriers in the social environment, due to lack of equal access, stereotyping, and other forms of marginalization.
Yes, previous recipients of our grants and other funding are eligible.
We can’t advise you on the taxability of your grant, so we encourage you to consult a qualified tax preparation professional.
We will send the money via check made out to the applicant or direct deposit.
Recipients may use their grant funds to cover household expenses, medical payments, debt, rent/mortgage, etc.
Applicants are welcome to submit for multiple projects if they would like. However, each applicant will receive a maximum of only one grant during this round of funding.
