LitNYS Advancement Regrants
The Advancement Regrant Program provides NYSCA Literature grantees with an opportunity to apply for up to $7,500 to support thoughtful development and expanded capacity within their organizations. Advancement Regrants are offered each year, with announcement in January, deadline in late spring and awards made by September.
Eligible organizations may request funds to improve managerial and financial stability; build solid foundations upon which to pursue their artistic vision; improve or institute development/planning initiatives; and extend program impact and reach by developing new audiences & readers. These grants do not support ongoing expenses or supplement existing NYSCA-funded programs. Peer panel review ensures an equitable selection process.
2025 Advancement Regrants
$95,000 Awarded to support New York State literary arts organizations.
LitNYS, an alliance of New York State literary arts organizations, is pleased to announce that it awarded a total of $95,000 in Advancement Regrants to 18 New York literary arts nonprofits at its August panel meeting.
The 2025 Advancement Regrant Awardees
Bellevue Literary Press, New York, NY
($5,000)
To execute needed accessibility improvements for differently abled readers in New York and the U.S. through the upgrading of its e-books.
Brooklyn Book Festival, Brooklyn, NY
($5,000)
To support the development of a strategic plan involving its board of directors, staff, literary council and key stakeholders.
Electric Lit, Kingston, NY
($5,000)
For back-end development to update and integrate its membership and communications platforms, strengthening long-term sustainability and growth.
Futurepoem, New York, NY
($2,500)
To reach new audiences, deepen retail networks and indie bookstore outreach, and generate sales revenue by expanding staff hours.
National Book Foundation , New York, NY
($7,500)
To build sustainable data and relationship management systems that support internal capacity, increase efficiency and productivity, and help build lasting relationships with donors, program partners, and other constituents.
Nightboat Books, Brooklyn, NY
($5,000)
For a 6-month, targeted program of consulting to assess/augment current development efforts and offer guidance on building long-term relationships with donors and foundations.
The Poetry Project, New York, NY
($5,000)
To support the relaunch of its oral history project.
Storyville Center for Spoken Word/The Moth, New York, NY
($7,000)
To hire a consultant for Phase-1 of Project Atlas, an AI learning model that could categorize and tag The Moth’s story library and thereby make searching for stories more accessible.
World Poetry Books, New York, NY
($5,000)
To support the design and circulation of a print catalog.
BOA Editions, Rochester, NY
($5,000)
To create a dynamic video for its 50-year anniversary that will expand national visibility, fundraising capacity, donor engagement, and long-term sustainability.
Cave Canem, New York, NY
($7,000)
To support the creation of a strategic financial management plan.
Fence Magazine, New York, NY
($2,500)
To improve website capacity, accessibility, design and technology integrations.
Girls Write Now, New York, NY
($7,000)
To support the Capacity Building for Building Capacity initiative and the expansion of its communications partnership with LitNYS.
The New New Masses Foundation/The Drift, New York, NY
($2,500)
To rebuild its website for long-term sustainability.
One Story, Inc., Brooklyn, NY
($5,000)
To update its technological infrastructure via acquisition of new desktop and laptop computers, portable SSD drives, and a color printer.
Poetry Society of America, Brooklyn, NY
($7,000)
For fundraising software and website updates to increase donor research capabilities, and, by hiring a p/t, on-call facilities assistant, increase access to its Brooklyn storefront via programs.
Words Without Borders, Brooklyn, NY
($7,000)
To provide seed money for an international translation coalition and convening of literary translation leaders to be held in NYC.
The Writers Room, New York, NY
($5,000)
To create and implement a strategy that improves the form, structure, appearance and SEO of its website, and to create and implement a strategy to integrate organizational messaging across its digital platforms.
This year, 29 applications were received requesting a total of $160,000. To date, LitNYS has awarded 131 capacity building Advancement Regrants of $2,500-$10,000, distributing $695,000—more than half a million dollars—statewide. These regrants afford access to the tools and resources organizations need to flourish by providing writers and communities with opportunities to teach, learn, experiment, create, publish, and thrive through the literary arts. You can read the full press release below.