Edinburgh Art Festival & The Skinny Emerging Writers' programme returns

The Skinny are teaming up with Edinburgh Art Festival for a fourth year running to commission four emerging art writers to write about the EAF25 Programme. The project aims to platform Scotland-based, early career writers from backgrounds underrepresented in journalism, through a mentored, paid opportunity to be published, in print and online, by The Skinny.

Three of the four writers will write two articles, each on a different element of the EAF25 Festival: one EAF commission, and one Partner Gallery commission. In a new development for this year, a fourth writer will be commissioned as the first Longform Emerging Writer, spanning two years (April 2025 to August 2026), to write an extended piece on EAF’s first Early Career Artist in Residence. All writers will be supported by a group workshop with The Skinny’s Art Editor, Rachel Ashenden.

Each writer will be paid £75 per article. The Longform Emerging Writer will be paid £300 to cover their work across the two Festivals, equivalent to four articles. There is also a separate access fund available for writers with additional support needs.

The Skinny and Edinburgh Art Festival's Emerging Writers programme is for...
– Writers who can show an interest in writing about visual art, especially in Scotland.
– Writers who have not written for the Skinny’s Art Section before.
– Writers who are historically underrepresented in Scottish cultural journalism, including: Disabled and neurodivergent writers, female writers, LGBTQ+ writers, writers of colour, working class writers, and writers from rural areas.

We are open to a range of creative approaches to the commission. Interview-based, research-based, personal, political, poetic — show us what makes your work unique!

As an Emerging Writer, you will...
– Take part in a writing workshop with Rachel Ashenden
– Write two articles for publication during EAF25 responding to two parts of the EAF25 Programme: one EAF commission, and one Partner Gallery commission.
– Receive a fee of £150.

As an Longform Emerging Writer, you will:
– Take part in a writing workshop with Rachel Ashenden
– Work closely with EAF’s first Early Career Artist in Residence
– Write a longform piece equivalent to 4 articles, to be published in August 2026.
– Work across 2 Festivals: EAF25 and EAF26.
– Receive a fee of £300.

To apply, complete this Google Form with information about yourself and your interest in this commission, including a CV and two samples of writing on visual art (published or unpublished). You can find information about past Festivals here, to get a sense of what you might be responding to. You may also want to read examples of Emerging Writers’ work from 2023 and 2024.

Application deadline is Monday 7 April 2025, 9am. If you have any other questions, please contact info@edinburghartfestival.com