I ran across this the other day:

http://www.arts.gov/grants/apply/Lit/GrantProgDescription.html

Apparently, every two years, the NEA awards a $25,000 grant for creative writing in prose and poetry categories. Unfortunately, I am too late to apply for the 2010 grant but I can still start work for the 2012 grant.

In order to qualify I must either write and publish:

• 5 short stories published in at least two different publications
• A collection of short stories
• A novel or novella

I can’t self-publish anything, I can’t collaborate with anyone, and I can’t be employed at the publisher that publishes my work.

Sounds like quite the challenge, but I’m up to it. This could well be the incentive I need to write enough stories to either get this grant or get hired at Blizzard or Cryptic as a quest/content designer. I’ve started my first story this week and if it progresses at the speed it’s going right now I should be done with it by the end of April.