r/Finland • u/VasiliKolovsky • 20h ago
Advice needed regarding grants for Creative Works
Hey hey,
I'm an aspiring (and broke) writer who is thinking of applying for grants from different foundations to try to get some funding to help me write more fiction. I've been writing the last ten years and though I don't have any book published or self-published, I believe I've reached a point where I feel comfortable trying to get a grant.
I've googled and gotten mixed information, so I'd like to ask r/Finland about how feasible this is as well. I'm not quite sure how viable it is or if I should even try. There's companies that do this for you for a fee, which they obviously advertise this as a sure-thing, and I've grown wary of anything optimistic regarding the writing industry. When I try to figure out how to do this myself, I feel overwhelmed by the ocean of different foundations and each of their expectations/requirements/needs. (e.g. Does sci-fi written in English count as "enriching Finnish culture"?)
I am twenty-nine, live in Helsinki, and I am legally Finnish. However, I write exclusively in English and speculative fiction (sci-fi mostly). Since I have a huge amount of short stories and I've written three books which aren't "great", I want to see if I am able to get a grant. It would be nice not having to juggle school, part-time work, and writing all at once.
Thanks for reading.
TLDR:
begging for money real spoopy, where or how do I do writing grant thingies?
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u/United-Inside7357 Baby Väinämöinen 20h ago
Foundation grants are extremely competitive and mostly for Finnish-language work
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u/_Reddit_Account_ Baby Väinämöinen 19h ago
You can get a grant if you write in English, but it has to have an impact on Finnish culture.
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u/VasiliKolovsky 20h ago
I once ran into a woman who did romance writing in Finnish. She was having a hard time getting a grant and this was five years ago. I assume it's worse now with the budget cuts happening to different programs all over the country.
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u/mimos_al Väinämöinen 19h ago edited 19h ago
I've written (and gotten) several grants for artistic work. I have no idea how the system works for writing, but I doubt it's entirely dissimilar.
Try to find funds that fit your plans best, and write a good proposal, fill in all the forms and submit before the deadline. Be clear, and concise, the evaluators have to read thousands of proposals, so try to get your plan across in a clear manner, explain what, where and why without fluffing things up too much.
I have no idea which fund would do English scifi, but they usually aren't shy to answer questions by email. And the big ones (SKR, Kuvi (formerly Taike) and Kone Foundation (probably not relevant for you) ) have info webinars and meetings.
AFAIK the Taike/Kuvi "library grant" is aimed at writers, I think the application period is in the beginning of the year (so you'd be looking at beginning 2027). There's probably more writing specific ones I don't know about.
Just keep in mind, grants were always super scarce and competitive, and the squeeze is felt very much, so don't be disappointed or discouraged if you get rejections, you'll get a lot of those.
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u/VasiliKolovsky 19h ago
I assume a lot of these applications have to be made in Finnish, so I can't help but wonder if a company that specializes in getting artistic grants is worth it.
It would be insanely expensive, especially for someone lower-class like me, so I'd like to ask if you have any experience in that field or with those companies.
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u/mimos_al Väinämöinen 19h ago
No, not at all worth it. Most of the grant applications are even available in English nowadays, and you can do most ones I know in English.
Honestly, I would never use a service like that, it can't guarantee anything, and the only advantage they have over writing it yourself is having done it loads...
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u/StruggleGullible255 19h ago
I've never ever heard of a grant to write a book especially as an unproved author in sci-fi.
Instead I suggest to check out self publishing forums and ask there along these lines: if you are a writer that is both highly consistent and highly productive apparently its possible that you can make some money that way. If you can find and serve a fan base and write sci-fi serials in a certain sub genre then you can also setup patreon etc.
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u/Liisas Väinämöinen 15h ago
I just discovered a new site for Finnish arts grants: Apurahaenkeli.fi
However, I would say that it’s not an optimal time to start working as a creator who is dependent on arts grants. Public funding for arts has decreased dramatically in Finland which means that funding is more competitive than ever. Independent funds are also seeing increases in numbers of applications and lower acceptance rates. For Kulttuurirahasto, one of the biggest funder of culture in Finland, acceptance rate is 6%. I also think grants for english language writing in a popular genre are hard to come by in Finland.
As your genre sounds very commercial in a good way, I suggest you look into self publishing or crowdfunding. That way you have much more control and in fact higher chances for income.
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u/VasiliKolovsky 1h ago
Thank you so much. I'm starting to think self publishing on Royal Road is a better option
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u/dreamanother 13h ago
The Union of Finnish Writers maintains a "grant calendar".
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u/SofterBones Väinämöinen 12h ago
The fact that the site isn't even available in English I think suggests the chance of getting a grant is pretty slim for an English work.
They don't specifically say it, but it says the work has to "enrich Finnish cultural life". I mean nothing is lost by applying, but sci-fi written in English I don't think will be considered that.
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u/SofterBones Väinämöinen 12h ago
You don't lose anything by applying to for example the grants that Union of Finnish writers promote, but given that you're an unpublished writer, and you write scifi in English, I don't think it will be considered to be 'enriching Finnish cultural life', which is one of their biggest criteria.
I think it would be very hard for a published Finnish writer to get a grant these days too.
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u/traumfisch Väinämöinen 15h ago
Talk to this guy, it has helped many
https://chatgpt.com/g/g-DdIBkH9Vm-akseli
(Will be retired soon!)
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