The residency is designed for poets who have at least one book (either published or under contract) and no more than two books. Eligible poets are encouraged to apply.
The SpiR is housed in the Lawrence house, a gift to the English Department from John and Renee Grisham. This house is three bedrooms with a large study, just down the street from William Faulkner's Rowan Oak, and in walking distance to the University (though the SPiR might find a car handy for trips to town, etc.) I'm delighted that we can offer a travel reimbursement and an honorarium of $1,500 thanks to the generosity of The Department of English, The College of Liberal Arts, and the Division of Outreach and Continuing Education. In addition, the SPiR will receive ten broadsides of his or her work, designed by Jan Murray.
The residency is designed to provide ample writing time to the SPiR while also allowing the University of Mississippi's summer course offerings to be enriched by the presence of a active poet on campus.To this end, the SPiR will be involved in the campus community and the University of Mississippi MFA program by giving a poetry reading and making 1-2 class visits a week.