[What:]

X-TRA is launching a new initiative in the fall of 2022: the X-TRA Editorial Fellowship. The purpose of the X-TRA Editorial Fellowship program is to invite writers and critics to contribute their intellect, energy, and insights to our collective editorial process. 

This fall, the first Editorial Fellow will be invited to serve on the journal’s Editorial Board for a full year. The Fellow will begin in January of 2023. The Fellowship is a paid position, with a stipend of $12,000.

We will prioritize Los Angeles-based critical writers and editors from the BIPOC and LGBTQIA communities, which are increasingly visible in the international visual art world but less present in the critical communities that respond to, advance, and advocate for the arts.

[When:] 

The application deadline is November 21, 2022.
The Editorial Fellow begins in January 2023.

[Who:]

The X-TRA Editorial Fellow will be a critical thinker engaged with the visual arts who hopes to develop their own practice as a professional editor and critic. They will be at a crucial moment in their editing and writing practice, where they need space, time, and a community of editors to support the development of their discursive writing and editorial skills. 

Fellows will be based in the Greater Los Angeles area and have a clear interest in participating in X-TRA’s rigorous writing and editing process. They will be interested in our Editorial Board’s unique process of debate and non-hierarchical decision making. Through this fellowship, they will find material and professional support to explore their voice as an editor and writer. They will invest in the negotiation and debate involved in developing thoughtful, high-quality writing. 

The Fellowship is intended for an individual who has already had some experience editing and writing. While we look carefully at all applications, current students with significant workloads are not suited for this Fellowship. We will prioritize writers and editors (of all ages) who are just starting out over mid-career and established individuals. 

[Compensation and Time:]

X-TRA provides a $12,000 stipend for the Editorial Fellow. The time commitment is, on average, twenty hours per month. The Editorial Fellow will attend monthly Editorial Board meetings (approximately three hours long) and participate in the lively process of choosing and developing the issue contents. In between meetings, the Fellow will engage in conversations with our Editorial Board and the wider X-TRA community. With guidance from Editorial Mentors, they will participate in the rigorous editing process of several pieces published in X-TRA. This work averages 20 hours per month. The Editorial Fellow will also be strongly encouraged to pitch and write a piece of their own, which will then undergo X-TRA’s editorial process toward publication.

 [Why:] 

The Editorial Fellowship marks one step for X-TRA towards actively dismantling just a few of the many unseen barriers to entering the field of publishing and criticism. As a critical community of writers and editors, we hope to shift the dynamics that make a sustainable career in editing and writing so challenging. Developing a practice as an editor and writer takes significant time and targeted support. With support from X-TRA’s Editorial Board, the Editorial Fellow will be given space to nurture a practice and develop their editorial style. Through this process, we hope to model editorial work done in close community. 

X-TRA is based in Los Angeles—one of the world’s most diverse cities—yet our editorial board does not yet reflect the rich demographics of our home city. While we cover BIPOC and LGBTQIA artists and work with writers from diverse backgrounds, we recognize that the editorial process of choosing, editing, and crafting the journal’s contents will only benefit from a richer editorial collective.

[Who are We?] 

X-TRA is Los Angeles’ longest running critical art journal. The X-TRA Editorial Board is comprised of Los Angeles-based artists, critics, historians, and art educators. The Board selects writing to be published in print and online, as themed columns, expansive features, historical essays, commissioned artist’s projects, interviews, and substantive reviews. We understand rigorous, measured criticism as a bridge and as a way for critics and artists to share their understanding of the practice of art. The fields of arts writing and arts criticism—and artists’ writing—provide unparalleled space for experimentation. 

Over the years, X-TRA’s rich community has brought together educators, teachers, curators, artists, and philosophers. We posit criticism as a form of access and engagement with artistic practice and a literary form that encourages the development of both writers’ and artists’ thinking and skills. We also stress community and mentorship. After twenty-five years of developing X-TRA’s editorial process, we recognize that access to mentorship in arts writing and criticism can often be ad-hoc, and editorial mentors are hard-found. Close, meaningful mentorship is a vital component of the Editorial Fellowship. 

[How:]

The Editorial Fellow will attend the Editorial Board meetings for the period of a year. They will work with different Editors on the editing of different texts for publication. During the year, the Editorial Fellow will be strongly encouraged to pitch and write pieces of their own, which will then undergo X-TRA’s rigorous editorial process toward publication.

The entire Board accepts and reviews all open submissions from writers and artists. It is a consistent goal of the Editorial Board to cultivate young and diverse writers. Each accepted submission is edited by a minimum of two editors; this collaborative process ensures that X-TRA always presents a surprising array of perspectives and ideas.

[Apply:]

Our open call runs from October 21 to November 21, 2022.

Applicants are asked to provide a letter of interest explaining their background and commitment to the discourse around the arts, along with a resume and writing samples. Demonstrating an interest in X-TRA and the thinking they find in its pages will be a plus. We are particularly interested in hearing about what the Editorial Fellowship would mean for them creating a sustainable, long-term practice as a writer, critic, and editor at this point in their career.

Please send these materials to kate@x-traonline.org with the subject line “Application to Editorial Fellowship.”