Commissions

What is Fresh Ink?

Fresh Ink: Hull Playwriting Festival is an annual theatre festival designed to support the creation and development of new plays in Hull. Its focus is on performing early versions of new ideas to audiences and gathering their feedback to support the next stage of their development.

What do we look for?

Middle Child is looking to commission writers with a variety of experiences, who have a meaningful connection to the city of Hull and can demonstrate why their work makes sense appearing in a festival that develops grassroots work in the city.

There are a range of different-sized commissions available, from five-minute monologues, all the way up to a complete 70-minute play.

What you write about is up to you, but we’re looking for stories that speak to contemporary Hull. They don’t need to be set here, or about here, but they do need to say something to the people that live here.

They do not need to be in the “gig theatre” style that is often associated with Middle Child. Anything goes, except for musicals, and the application stage does not require you to send the script with which you would like to apply.

Who can apply?

These opportunities are only open to applicants aged 18 and above, with a demonstrable connection to Hull. We recognise that some people might have strong links to Hull but no longer live here and therefore we are not limiting applications by postcode.

However it is important to Middle Child that this is a Hull festival, and we’d encourage anyone who is applying who doesn’t live in this area to make clear in their application why they still qualify.

Each commission, outlined below, does have its own criteria with regards to experience, so make sure you read these before applying. 

What is a commission?

Put simply, a commission is when a writer is paid to write something.

As part of the 2026 festival, we offered seven commissions of varying sizes to writers with a meaningful relationship to Hull. The selected writers have developed their work with the support of our team, ready to be performed script-in-hand at Fresh Ink 2026.

Our intention with Fresh Ink is that whatever your level of writing experience, there will be an option that is right for you. Below is a breakdown of the different commissions and how many are available of each type for 2026.

Key Dates

Applications open

Tuesday 29 July 2025

Applications close

12pm, Friday 12 September 2025

Commissions offered

November 2025

Writers announced

January 2026

Fresh Ink Festival

July 2026

FAQ

70 Minutes

Two commissions available

  • Write a 70-minute script, which is approximately 50-70 pages, for a maximum cast of four people.

    You will work with the Middle Child team to develop a new script, ready for an early-stage sharing at the festival in July 2026.

    This process will be designed with you as the writer but will involve writing a draft of the script with rewrites, following support and feedback from the Middle Child team.

  • £5,155.

    This figure represents 75% of the Independent Theatre Council (ITC) rate for a new 70-minute commission, taking you up to the point of a formal decision to produce the work. This will be paid in two instalments: £3,437 upon contract signing and another £1,718 on delivery of rewrites.

  • This commission is for more experienced playwrights, so you will need to have had a play professionally produced before.

    We’re aware that “professionally produced” can mean a variety of things. In this case, we mean a complete play of at least 30-minutes in length, that has been rehearsed and performed for a live audience, and for which everyone involved was paid.

    If you’re not sure if you qualify, please get in touch with literary manager, Matt.

  • We will meet with you to help you plan the next steps for your play and, ideally, find a way to bring it to life in a full production – either with Middle Child or another partner.

    If Middle Child choose to commit to producing your script, you will receive the additional 25% of the commission (£1,718) in line with a new 70-minute commission according to ITC guidelines.

30 Minutes

Two commissions available

  • Write a 30-minute script, which is approximately 25-35 pages. This can be a full piece or the start of a bigger idea, for a maximum cast of four people.

    You will work with the Middle Child team to develop a new script ready for an early-stage sharing in July 2026.

    This process will be designed with you as the writer, but will involve writing a draft of the script with support and feedback from the Middle Child team.

  • £2,578.

    This figure represents 75% of the Independent Theatre Council (ITC) rate for a new 30-minute commission, taking you up to the point of a formal decision to produce the work. This will be paid in two instalments: £1,719 upon signing a contract and £859 upon delivery of first rewrites.

  • This commission is for people who are just starting to write, or maybe haven’t even started yet, but would like to try out an idea. Applicants for this commission should not have had a play professionally produced at the time of applying or currently be under commission.

    We’re aware that “professionally produced” can mean a variety of things. In this case, we mean you should not have had a complete play of over 30-minutes in length produced, that has been rehearsed and performed for a live audience, and for which everyone involved was paid.

    If you’re not sure if you qualify, please get in touch with literary manager, Matt.

  • We will meet with you to help you plan the next steps for your play and, ideally, find a way to bring it to life in a full production – either with Middle Child or another partner.

    If Middle Child were to commit to a decision to produce, you’d receive the additional 25% of the commission (£860) in line with a new 30-minute commission according to ITC guidelines. Should we wish to commission the piece and expand its length, we would look to upgrade the commission and fee in-line with ITC guidance.

Monologue

Three commissions available

  • Write a five-minute monologue, which is approximately 3-5 pages and can be performed by one actor. This can be a standalone piece or the beginning of a bigger story.  

    You will work with the Middle Child team to develop a new script ready for an early-stage sharing in July 2026.

    This process will be designed with you as the writer, but will involve writing a draft of the script with support and feedback from the Middle Child team.

  • £750

  • This commission is for people who are just starting to write, or maybe haven’t even started yet, but would like to try out an idea. Applicants for this commission should not have had a play professionally produced at the time of applying or currently be under commission.

    We’re aware that “professionally produced” can mean a variety of things. In this case, we mean you should not have had a complete play of over 30-minutes in length produced, that has been rehearsed and performed for a live audience, and for which everyone involved was paid.

    If you’re not sure if you qualify, please get in touch with literary manager, Matt.

How to apply

Applications are now closed.

Below are the questions that we asked applicants to answer via an online form:

  1. Please demonstrate your connection to Hull, and why it makes sense for your work to be featured in a grassroots new writing festival in Hull (no more than 500 words) 

  2. Describe your idea in a couple of sentences (no more than 50 words) 

  3. What is the story you want to tell, what happens, who are the characters, what is it about? (No more than 500 words) 

  4. Why does this story matter to you, and why are you best placed to tell it? (no more than 500 words)  

We also asked applicants to share an example of their creative writing, up to 10 pages for a 70-minute commissions.

Extracts could have been from a pre-existing script or something written just for the application.

How are writers chosen?

Eligible applications were read by Middle Child’s literary team, who created a shortlist.

Shortlisted applications were then presented to our steering panel, which consists of a mix of writers, artists and funding partners. They then made a final decision on which applications were chosen.

Read more in a blog post by Grace Waga Glevey, who was commissioned in 2024 and on the selection panel for Fresh Ink 2025.

Middle Child Writers’ Group

Another way to get involved with Fresh Ink is through Middle Child’s annual introduction to playwriting course, led by Tom Wells.

This group has proven to be a brilliant pathway into professional writing, with many who have taken part going on to receive paid commissions.

This group is free to access and is the perfect first step into playwriting, with all participants seeing their work shared, script-in-hand, at Fresh Ink.

The 2026 group runs in January and February and applications were open throughout November 2025.