X-TRA is launching a new initiative in the fall of 2022: the X-TRA Editorial Fellowship. We invite writers and critics who wish to contribute their intellect, energy, and insights to our collective editorial process, to apply!
The first Editorial Fellow will be invited to serve on the journal’s Editorial Board for a full year, starting in January of 2023. The Fellowship is a paid position, with a stipend of 12,000 USD.
The application deadline is November 21, 2022. The Editorial Fellow begins in January 2023.
We will prioritize Los Angeles-based critical writers and editors from the BIPOC and LGBTQIA communities, which are increasingly visible in the international visual art world but less present in the critical communities that respond to, advance, and advocate for the arts.
The ideal candidate will be a critical thinker engaged with the visual arts who hopes to develop their own practice as a professional editor and critic. They will be at a crucial moment in their editing and writing practice, where they need space, time, and a community of editors to support the development of their discursive writing and editorial skills.
The Fellowship is intended for an individual who has already had some experience editing and writing. While we look carefully at all applications, current students with significant workloads are not suited for this Fellowship. We will prioritize writers and editors (of all ages) who are just starting out over mid-career and established individuals.
The time commitment is, on average, twenty hours per month. The Editorial Fellow will attend monthly Editorial Board meetings (approximately three hours long) and participate in the lively process of choosing and developing the issue content. In between meetings, the Fellow will engage in conversations with our Editorial Board and the wider X-TRA community. With guidance from Editorial Mentors, they will participate in the rigorous editing process of several pieces published in X-TRA. This work averages 20 hours per month. The Editorial Fellow will also be strongly encouraged to pitch and write a piece of their own, which will then undergo X-TRA’s editorial process toward publication.
The entire Board accepts and reviews all open submissions from writers and artists. It is a consistent goal of the Editorial Board to cultivate young and diverse writers. Each accepted submission is edited by a minimum of two editors; this collaborative process ensures that X-TRA always presents a surprising array of perspectives and ideas.
How to apply: Applicants are asked to provide a letter of interest explaining their background and commitment to the discourse around the arts, along with a resume and writing samples by November 21. Demonstrating an interest in X-TRA and the thinking they find in its pages will be a plus. We are particularly interested in hearing about what the Editorial Fellowship would mean for them creating a sustainable, long-term practice as a writer, critic, and editor at this point in their career.
Please send these materials to kate [at] x-traonline.org with the subject line “Application to Editorial Fellowship.”
The X-TRA Editorial Fellowship is supported by the Board of Directors of Project X Foundation for Art & Criticism, publisher of X-TRA. This program is made possible through the generous support of the California Arts Council’s 2022 Arts and Cultural Organizations Program Grant and the Wilhelm Family Foundation.