Grants for Canadian poets of modest means
DC Reid Poets’ Grant
Highlights
Grant Amount
- $5,000
Deadline to Apply
- Applications are now closed.
Grant Amount
- $5,000
Deadline to Apply
- Applications are now closed.
Eligibility Criteria
- A professional writer with at least two published books of poetry
- Earned less than $30,000 from all income sources in the previous tax year.
- Canadian citizen or permanent resident living in Canada.
- Actively working on a literary project of poetry.
Eligibility Criteria
- A professional writer with at least two published books of poetry
- Earned less than $30,000 from all income sources in the previous tax year.
- Canadian citizen or permanent resident living in Canada.
- Actively working on a literary project of poetry.
Contact
Amanda Hopkins
Program Director
ahopkins@writerstrust.com
About the Grant
The precarious financial nature of the vocation belies the tremendous cultural influence of poetry.
The precarious financial nature of the vocation belies the tremendous cultural influence of poetry. Canadian poets need support outside of the spotlight. The DC Reid Poets’ Grant will anonymously deliver grants of $5,000 to poets of modest means to help fund their writing. Established by author DC Reid, the program was created to support working poets.
In between fly fishing trips, Reid has published 18 books including 11 collections of poetry, a novel, a work of literary nonfiction, and five books on fishing. His poems and stories have been published in magazines around the world and his fishing articles have been published in magazines, newspapers, and on websites across North America. A 2015 PoeTrain Laureate, he holds a BSc in zoology and biochemistry from the University of Calgary, an Honours BA in English and philosophy from the University of Liverpool, and a master’s in public administration from the University of Victoria. His most recent book is Poems: Selected and New, published by Ekstasis Editions.
Each year, the DC Reid Poets’ Grant will deliver $5,000 to eight poets selected by an anonymous jury.
Like most poets, I began my writing career with limited means.When family assets were shared, I saw an opportunity to support poets in their ongoing financial struggle. This was the impetus for starting the DC Reid Poets’ Grant program.
—DC Reid
Sponsor
DC Reid is an author and a steadfast advocate for the Canadian literary community, having served as the president for the Federation of BC Writers, Victoria Book Prize Society, and League of Canadian Poets. He has won more than twenty awards for his work, including the 2023 Professional Outdoor Media Association of Canada gold medal for books for his memoir A Man and His River: a 25-year love affair with a wild island waterway.
In 2024, Reid made the incredible choice to invest $1.5 million in Canadian poetry by establishing an endowment at Writers’ Trust of Canada over ten years. Annual earnings from the DC Reid Poets’ Grant fund will help talented poets of modest means more easily navigate precarious circumstances that may be preventing them from creating.
In between fly fishing trips, Reid has published 18 books including 11 collections of poetry, a novel, a work of literary nonfiction, and five books on fishing. His poems and stories have been published in magazines around the world and his fishing articles have been published in magazines, newspapers, and on websites across North America. A 2015 PoeTrain Laureate, he holds a BSc in zoology and biochemistry from the University of Calgary, an Honours BA in English and philosophy from the University of Liverpool, and a master’s in public administration from the University of Victoria. His most recent book is Poems: Selected and New, published by Ekstasis Editions.