Exeter City of Literature Ronald Duncan Stipend Announcement

The first recipients of the Ronald Duncan Stipends for South West Writing will bring the unique documents and artefacts held in the university’s Special Collections and Archives to life in new and exciting ways. The stipend is funded by a donation from the Ronald Duncan Literary Foundation to continue his legacy of experimental and cross-disciplinary writing.

Writers from 14 Cities across the UNESCO Cities of Literature network applied to the stipend. The Exeter UNESCO City of Literature partnered stipend which went to Sama Hussein from Baghdad City of Literature.

Sama is an Iraqi writer, editor, and recipient of the UAE Golden Visa for cultural and artistic talents. Sama is the author of two books with a third translated into English and the founder of (Project Dhiid), a youth-led cultural initiative, and has worked as a writer and editor for various local and Arab newspapers. She also serves as Managing Editor of Eilda Magazine for feminist literature.

As part of her ongoing work to uncover cultural voices yet to reach the Arab world Sama will develop a documentary work tracing her journey from Baghdad to Exeter, highlighting the importance of making Duncan’s literature and Exeter’s archives accessible to Arab readers and young audiences.

Caroline Walter, University of Exeter Head of Heritage Collections, said: “We warmly congratulate Sama, and look forward to seeing the exciting directions her work will take with the support of the stipend.”