Money to research and write, no institution required. 15 opportunities open now, 8 big ones opening this winter, and the $1,200 grants database your library may give you for free.
Please Note: This post was researched and drafted using LLMs.
Most fellowship lists are written for academics and assume a university behind you: a department, a letter from a dean, a PhD. If you’re an independent scholar, a nonfiction writer, a freelance journalist, or someone who left academia and kept working, many of those listings are quietly closed to you. This (monthly?) post is for you. Every listing below was checked on the funder’s own page for who can actually apply, and each one is tagged so you can scan quickly:
You’ll find two sections below: what you can apply now (grants and residencies, year-long fellowships, essay prizes, and rolling grants), and what’s coming up in the next six months. The big money (NEH, Whiting, New America) opens in early 2027, and the best applications start now.
Everything was checked on October 11, 2026. Deadlines change, so always confirm on the funder’s page before you start.
These five say outright that they’ll consider independent scholars, writers, journalists or practitioners. You’d need to move for the year (or a semester), but they pay like a job.
Love Ethic Faculty Fellowship, Notre Dame Institute for Ethics and the Common Good
$80,000 salary plus university benefits, including health insurance, a $1,500/month housing allowance and $1,000 for research · Deadline: Oct 26, 2026
Five fellows for 2027–28 on the theme of love and ethics, from any discipline: philosophy, theology, psychology, law, literature, the arts. “Although most Faculty Fellows hold appointments at colleges or universities, the fellowship is also open to independent scholars, journalists, artists, and others.” Fellows without a faculty job get the full $80,000 salary. Residential at Notre Dame, August to May (fall-only is possible). The deadline is close, so start today if it fits.
Affiliation: no · PhD: no · Fee: none stated · International: yes, “we welcome applications from scholars based outside the United States” · Contract: no → Details
Edmond & Lily Safra Center for Ethics, Fellows-in-Residence, Harvard
Up to $80,000 for practitioners (set case by case), plus up to $3,000 for research · Deadline: Nov 15, 2026
Open to “practitioners, and researchers from industry, government, and NGOs” as well as faculty, on “any topic pertaining to the serious ethical questions of our time.” The key line: you need “a PhD, professional degree, or a minimum of 5 years of equivalent professional experience.” Residential in Boston, September to May, at least four days a week. References are contacted only if you’re shortlisted.
Affiliation: no · PhD: no (5 years’ professional experience counts) · Fee: none stated · International: yes, “regardless of citizenship” · Contract: no → Details · H-Net ad
Anschutz Distinguished Fellow in American Studies, Princeton
$90,000–120,000 (full-time range; one semester is pro-rated) · Deadline: Nov 15, 2026
For “distinguished writers, critics, journalists, musicians, artists, or other contributors to the arts, letters, public service, or commerce. Candidates need not be academic scholars.” The catch: it’s a teaching fellowship. You teach one undergraduate seminar of up to 15 students for a semester and give a public lecture, so you apply with a draft syllabus.
Affiliation: no · PhD: no · Fee: none stated · International: not stated · Contract: no → Details
Käte Hamburger Centre CURE, Saarland University, Germany
€6,100–7,200 a month for 6–12 months, starting October 2027 · Deadline: Nov 30, 2026
Up to twelve fellowships on “cultural practices of reparation”: how societies live with harms that can’t be undone, from war and colonial heritage to climate change. Explicitly open to “freelance researchers, artist researchers, or independent scholars,” but a completed PhD is required. Housing can be rented through the university.
Affiliation: no · PhD: yes · Fee: none stated · International: yes · Contract: no → Details
Princeton University Center for Human Values, Fellows in Law and Normative Thinking
Residential fellowship for 2027–28 (pay not stated in the ad) · Deadline: Dec 3, 2026
Invites “faculty members of any discipline, legal practitioners, and independent scholars” to spend the year on law and normative questions, written for “academic generalists.” You need a doctorate, a JD or an equivalent professional degree, and must be on campus daily.
Affiliation: no · PhD: doctorate or JD · Fee: none stated · International: yes (“domestic and international scholars”) · Contract: no → Details
Royal Institute of Philosophy Essay Prize: “Humans and AI”
£1,000 plus £500 in Cambridge University Press books, and publication in Philosophy · Deadline: Dec 31, 2026
An annual prize from the UK’s Royal Institute of Philosophy, this year on humans and AI. Judged anonymously.
Affiliation: no · PhD: no · Fee: none stated · International: yes · Contract: no → Details
Saja Parvizian Essay Prize
$250 and publication in the new journal Studia Philosophiae Systematicae · Deadline: Feb 26, 2027
Small, but “independent scholars are welcome,” and any area of philosophy qualifies.
Affiliation: no · PhD: no · Fee: none stated · International: not stated · Contract: no → Details
J. Anthony Lukas Work-in-Progress Award
$25,000 (two awards) · Deadline: Dec 3, 2026
For a nonfiction book already under contract with a U.S. publisher. If you signed a book deal this year, this is the first door to knock on.
Affiliation: no · PhD: no · Fee: none · International: partly (needs a U.S. publisher) · Contract: yes, with a U.S. publisher → Details
Yaddo residency (Saratoga Springs, NY)
Room, board and a private studio, with modest Access Grants to help with costs · Applications Nov 1 – Dec 20, 2026
A residency for “professional creative artists from all nations,” writers included. “Yaddo has a strong tradition of internationalism.” The winter round covers residencies from May 2027 to March 2028.
Affiliation: no · PhD: no · Fee: $35 · International: yes · Contract: no · Not open to current degree students → Apply
Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, book grants
Typically up to $60,000 · Next proposal deadline: Jan 1, 2027 (also May 1 and Sept 1)
For general-audience books about science, technology and economics. Grants go “to individuals or to affiliated nonprofit organizations.” Start with a short letter of inquiry; full proposals are by invitation.
Affiliation: no · PhD: not stated · Fee: none stated · International: not stated · Contract: a contract or strong publisher interest helps → Details
Knight Science Journalism Fellowship, MIT
$87,500 for the academic year, plus $5,000 for travel and housing, health insurance and childcare help · Applications Nov 15, 2026 – Jan 9, 2027
For full-time science, health, tech or environment journalists, staff or freelance, with 3+ years on the beat. “International candidates are encouraged to apply.” You live in Cambridge for the year. (The deadline is earlier than in previous years.) KSJ also runs a $40,000 fall fellowship for journalists in Africa and the Middle East, with the same dates.
Affiliation: no · PhD: no · Fee: none stated · International: yes (MIT sponsors J-1 visas) · Contract: no → Apply
Ucross residency (Wyoming)
$1,500 stipend plus room, board and studio · Applications open Nov 1, 2026, deadline Jan 15, 2027
A residency on a working ranch, for writers and artists “from all over the United States and the world.”
Affiliation: no · PhD: no · Fee: $40 · International: yes · Contract: no → Details
Fund for Investigative Journalism: regular and seed grants
Up to $10,000 (seed grants up to $2,500) · Deadline: Jan 29, 2027
Freelancers are eligible, and books count alongside articles, documentaries and podcasts. Seed grants cover the early work: records requests, a first reporting trip.
Affiliation: no · PhD: no · Fee: none stated · International: partly (foreign stories need a U.S. reporter or a strong U.S. angle) · Contract: no → Apply
Emergent Ventures (Mercatus Center)
No set amount · Rolling
Grants for unusual, ambitious people and ideas, from a market-liberal think tank. The application is a short online form, and they “don’t care much about your formal education, credentials, or awards.” It’s a long shot, but a cheap one.
Affiliation: no · PhD: no · Fee: none stated · International: yes, “all parts of the world” · Contract: no → Apply
Economic Hardship Reporting Project
$750 to $5,000 depending on format · Rolling, through a pitch portal
For independent journalists covering poverty, class, labor and inequality in the U.S.: news stories, features, personal essays, documentaries, comics, photo and audio. The grants are partial, meant to get work moving.
Affiliation: no · PhD: no · Fee: none stated · International: not stated (stories must be about the U.S.) · Contract: no → Pitch
Pulitzer Center Global Reporting Grants
Usually $5,000–10,000 · Rolling
For staff and freelance journalists “worldwide,” covering reporting costs for underreported stories. There are separate tracks for rainforests, environment and data, and AI.
Affiliation: no · PhD: no · Fee: none stated · International: yes · Contract: no → Apply
These windows aren’t open yet. Where a funder hasn’t announced its 2027 dates, the listing says expected and gives last year’s dates.
MacDowell Fellowship (Peterborough, NH): a residency with a need-based stipend of up to $1,500 and travel grants. Open to artists “of all countries,” judged on work samples. Applications Jan 15 – Feb 10, 2027. → Details
NEH Fellowships: $60,000 ($5,000 a month). “NEH encourages submissions from independent scholars.” The 2026 call favored U.S. history and Western civilization, so see whether 2027 does too. Applications Jan 15 – Apr 14, 2027. → Details
NEH Public Scholars: $60,000, made for general-audience nonfiction. Open to writers “with or without an academic affiliation,” and “no advanced degree is required,” but you need one prior nonfiction book from a trade or university press. Apply to this or the Fellowships, not both. Applications Jan 15 – Apr 14, 2027. → Details
de Groot Fellowship, American Library in Paris: $5,000 and a month in Paris, including a public talk. “International applicants are welcome.” €30 fee, with waivers available. Opens Feb 1, 2027. → Details
New America Fellows: $15,000–30,000 for journalists, writers and thinkers with “big, bold ideas,” mostly remote. Expected to open in February 2027 (last year’s deadline was Feb 2). → Details
Silvers Grants for Work in Progress: up to $10,000 for criticism, arts writing, political analysis and reportage, open to writers “of any nationality.” You need proof that a publisher intends to publish the work, and an editor’s email can count. Expected to open in February 2027 (last year’s deadline was Mar 31). → Details
Berggruen Prize Essay Competition: $50,000 for one philosophical essay written for a general audience. They’re “not seeking peer-reviewed academic work,” and the theme changes each year. Expected to open in March 2027 (last year’s window closed Aug 17). → Details
Whiting Nonfiction Grant: $40,000. The book must be under contract with a U.S., UK or Canadian publisher, and you can live anywhere. Expected early 2027 (last year’s deadline was May 31). → Details
Note: Several of the biggest awards (Whiting, Lukas, Silvers) want a publisher behind the book. If you’re writing a book without a contract, this winter is the time for the proposal, so you can apply for these in the spring.
Applications in Spanish, Portuguese or English. Postulaciones en español, portugués o inglés.
Knight-Wallace Journalism Fellowship (University of Michigan): $85,000 + $5,000 relocation for a year of study. For journalists with 5+ years’ experience, staff or independent, any nationality. International deadline: Dec 1, 2026. In English. → Apply
[Spain] Finestres Literary Residency: a month of writing time with room and board, for writers of any nationality. Deadline: Nov 27, 2026. In Spanish (or Spain’s other official languages) or English. → Call (PDF)
[Uruguay] Fondo Concursable para la Cultura 2026: includes a research track, up to UYU 250,000, and a publishing track. For Uruguayans and legal permanent residents. Deadline: Dec 7, 2026. En español. → Convocatoria
[Argentina] Fondo Nacional de las Artes: Concurso de Valoración Patrimonial de Cementerios, Templos y Lugares Sagrados (Argentina): prizes up to ARS 3,000,000 per category, including one for finished research and essays on cemeteries and sacred places (already presented at a conference). For Argentines and foreign residents of Argentina. Deadline: Oct 27, 2026. En español. → Convocatoria
Pulitzer Center reporting grants (global, listed above): you can apply in Spanish or Portuguese. Puedes postular en español; você pode se inscrever em português.
Grant professionals rely on a database most independent researchers have never heard of. It used to be called the Foundation Directory, run by the Foundation Center. Both have been renamed: the organization is now Candid, and in April 2026 its directory became Candid search, covering 300,000+ funders, including foundations that give grants to individuals.
A subscription costs $219 a month or about $1,199 a year (Candid’s nonprofit rate), which is out of reach for most of us.
But you may not have to pay. Candid partners with more than 2,000 public libraries, community foundations and nonprofit centers across the U.S., often called the “Candid Community” (formerly the Funding Information Network). Any of them gives free access to Candid search on site: on library computers, or on your own laptop over the library’s Wi-Fi.
How to use it:
Candid also offers free online training at Candid Learning, available from home, which is worth a look before your library visit.
Know of an opportunity that welcomes independent researchers and writers? Hit reply. And if you’re applying to any of these, I’d love to hear how it goes.
Let me know if I should do this roundup monthly in the comments!
Yours,
Mona Mona
Listings were checked on October 11, 2026. Deadlines and terms can change, so always confirm with the funder before applying. Nothing here is a guarantee of eligibility.