The Finch Manuscript Lab is a 2.5 month residency to support writers completing book-length manuscripts. Hosted at the Finch Country House in Serramezzana, Italy, the residency is carefully designed as the "final sprint" in the marathon of writing a book. It offers living and work space, writing time in a tranquil setting, creative community, and professional development (including manuscript consultations, craft discussions, and publishing seminars). 

Residency Dates: October 1 – December 15, 2026

Open Call for Applications:  June 15 – July 10, 2026

Residents will be selected by July 30, 2026.

Funding: Thanks to the support of the Goethe Institute and Culture Moves Europe, all selected residents will receive a stipend of 2,280€ for the residency period (30€/day that they are in residence, paid weekly) and a travel allowance of 400€ for travel of distances under 5000 km from Serramezzana, Italy, or 800€ for travel of distances over 5000 km, with additonal bonus of 400€ funds for green travel (eg. taking trains instead of planes), and and additonal support for parents of childen under 18-years-old of 200€.

A: Applicants must be over 18 years of age and a legal resident of one of the 39 eligible countries for Culture Moves Europe, excluding Italy. This include all EU member states other than Italy (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden) and 13 participating non-EU countries (Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Iceland, Kosovo, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Norway, Serbia, and Tunisia). 

Application material: The application materials include (in order of importance): 

1) A short sample of past work -- whatever you feel represents your best work! (This sample can be of any length, though note that due to time restrictions, only the first 30 pages may be read).  

2) A brief note explaining the manuscript/book project that will be worked on while in residency, where you are at in the creation process, and why you are interested in the residency (up to 1 page max.)

3) An excerpt of the book project that will be worked on in residency (prose, poetry, mixed media, photography, or any other form of artist's book is acceptable; this sample should not exceed 30 pages).

 3) Your CV (in English)