Open call at April writing residency in Trakai, Lithuania

April writing residency invites local and international writers, editors, critics and artists whose practice is centred on writing to apply for the inaugural season of its residency programme. Applications are open for residencies lasting from two weeks to two months, taking place between November 2026 and June 2027.

The residency is intended for local and international authors who use storytelling as a creative tool and are not afraid to experiment with text forms, language, or genre. April offers writers the opportunity to work within Trakai’s unique environment, delve deeper into their research and the local context, familiarise themselves with the contemporary cultural scene in Lithuania and its established and emerging participants, and develop new work – whether that takes the form of a chapter of a forthcoming book, a translation of their own or others’ writing, poems or essays, performance scripts, diaristic notes, the perfect title, a magazine, or many things yet unthought.

About

April is located in Trakai, a picturesque lake city 30 km away from Vilnius. In her monograph Narrated Trakai (Papasakoti Trakai, 2019), Dr Lina Liparskienė, a researcher at the Institute of Lithuanian Literature and Folklore, reflects on Trakai as a place of contradictions, fantasies and everyday life. She describes this historic city as caught between historical grandeur and provincial everydayness, a multitude of national identities and the looming aggression of the landscape in folkloric tales, unique gardens almost submerged beneath the lakes, the celebrated Trakai cucumbers, the wooden Trakai, the brick Trakai, a profound sense of boredom, and the economic hardship that has accompanied the city’s development.

Selected authors will have the opportunity to live and work in Trakai, in studios on the shores of Lake Galvė. Residents will be provided with the conditions to pursue their individual projects and, if they wish, actively engage with the cultural scenes of Trakai and Vilnius. The programme also offers professional support, including curatorial and editorial guidance, alongside expert consultations such as translation and proofreading. April will present a public programme featuring readings, performances, talks and discussions, film screenings, and educational events led by our guests and residents.

Studio

The studios are spacious apartments ranging from 26–42 sq m, designed for longer stays. Each studio includes a private bathroom and a fully equipped kitchenette. Every apartment features a desk, comfortable chair, sofa, large double bed, wardrobe, refrigerator, induction hob and tea and coffee-making facilities. Custom-made bed linen and towels are provided and changed weekly. Explore the studios to see how they look.

The residency fee includes accommodation, bed linen and towels, weekly cleaning, WiFi, bicycles, and access to shared spaces and the library.

Selected studios can accommodate up to four guests and include separate bedrooms. Residents are welcome to stay with their families. Collectives are also welcome to apply.  

Project

Applicants are invited to outline the project they intend to work on during their residency. This does not have to be a project specifically created for April – encouraging artists and writers to continue developing larger-scale projects during their stay.

Please note that while the residency welcomes a wide range of writing practices, it does not provide facilities for the production of work in other media.

Please also provide a list of your published writing (minimum three texts), which may include books, essays, scripts, experimental exhibition texts or other published works.

Duration

Individual residencies can last from two weeks to two months. Applicants are asked to indicate their preferred duration of stay. If selected, the final residency period may be adjusted according to studio availability and the residency schedule.

Costs

This call is open to both supported and self–supported residencies. During the announced period, April will offer four supported residencies and welcome up to six writers for the self–supported programme. When completing the application form, please indicate whether you wish to be considered for a supported residency, a self-supported residency, or both.

The fee for a self–supported residency is €600 Eur per month. The April team will provide successful applicants with acceptance letters and support applications for external funding to cover residency fees, travel, food and other associated costs.

Apply

Please complete the online application form and upload the following documents directly within the form:
– Artist’s statement or motivational letter (maximum 500 words)
– Current CV (maximum two A4 pages)
– List of published works (minimum 3 texts). Unless already included in your CV or discussed in your motivational letter.

The deadline for applications is 18 October 2026, 23:59, EEST.

This selection process is subject to a €15 application administration fee, payable when completing the application form. The application will only be automatically registered once payment has been made via this Swedbank payment link If you have any questions or experience difficulties with payment, please contact them at [email protected]

Residents will be selected by an international selection panel together with the April team. Applications for this inaugural open call will be reviewed by curator and writer Raimundas Malašauskas, poet and playwright Vaiva Grainytė, and curator, editor, critic Yana Foqué.

All applicants will be notified of the outcome by 4 November 2026.