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There are prizes for novels, poetry, short stories, essays, works of nonfiction, translations and more. Some of these contests have age and regional restrictions, so be sure to check submission guidelines before submitting.
Many contests are offered annually, so if you miss your ideal contest this year, you can always enter next year. For a month-by-month list of free contests see: Writing Contests. (You can also get a jump on next month's contests by checking that page periodically.)
Many contests are offered annually, so if you miss your ideal contest this year, you can always enter next year. For a month-by-month list of free contests see: Writing Contests. (You can also get a jump on next month's contests by checking that page periodically.)
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Wergle Flomp Humor Poetry Contest. Now in its 17th year, this contest seeks today's best humor poems, published and unpublished. Please enter one poem only, 250 lines max. Prize: $2,250 in prizes, including a top prize of $1,000, and publication on Winning Writers. Deadline: April 1, 2018. See submission form HERE.
Fall Lines: Saluda River Prize for Poetry / Broad River Prize for Prose. Genres: Poetry, flash fiction, essays, short fiction. Prizes: Two $250 cash prizes, and publication. Deadline: April 1, 2018.
Descant. Each year, descant offers four awards:
Wax Poetry and Art Poetry Contest. Genre: Poem. (Enter 1 poem for free. There is a charge for additional poems.) Prize: $120. Deadline: April 1, 2018.
The Great American Think-Off. Genre: Essay on the theme: “Which plays a larger role in shaping one’s life: success or failure?” Entrants should take a strong stand agreeing or disagreeing with this topic, basing their arguments on personal experience and observations rather than philosophical abstraction. Essay should be no more than 750 words. Prize: One of four $500 cash prizes. Deadline: April 1, 2018.
Wick Poetry Center High School Poetry Competition. Restrictions: Open to Ohio high school seniors. Genre: Poetry. Prize: One-time $1,500 scholarship to Kent State University. Second and third prize winners receive $1,000 and $500 one-time scholarships. Deadline: April 1, 2018.
The Marguerite and Lamar Smith Fellowship for Writers. Carson McCullers Center for Writers and Musicians awards fellowships for writers to spend time in McCullers' childhood home in Columbus, Georgia. The fellowships are intended to afford the writers in residence uninterrupted time to dedicate to their work, free from the distractions of daily life and other professional responsibilities. Award: Stipend of $5000 to cover costs of transportation, food and other incidentals. Fellowship recipients will be required to introduce or advance their work through reading or workshop/forum presentations. The Fellow will work with the McCullers Center Director to plan a presentation near the end of the residency. Deadline: April 1, 2018.
Edna Staebler Award for Creative Non-Fiction. Restrictions: The writer must be Canadian, and an entry must be the writer's first or second published book of any type or genre and must have a Canadian locale and/or significance. Genre: Print books and ebooks of creative non-fiction published in the previous calendar year. Prize: C$10,000.00. Deadline: April 1, 2018.
Betsy Colquitt Award for Poetry/Frank O'Connor Award for Short Fiction. Genres: Short stories and poetry. Prize: $500 Frank O’Connor Award for fiction. $500 Betsy Colquitt Award for poetry. Deadline: April 1, 2018.
Small But Mighty. Restrictions: Children ages 7-11 and 12-15. Genre: Fiction and poetry. Prize: Writing supplies, certificate, and publication on website. Deadline: April 1, 2018.
The Waterston Desert Writing Prize. Genre: Literary nonfiction, desert theme. Prize: $1,500. Deadline: April 1, 2018.
Fairytalez Gender Swap Contest. "Write a new version of a classic fairy tale or folk tale and change the gender roles within, plus add other elements if you like." Genre: Fairy tales with role reversals. Prize: $200 Amazon gift certificate. Deadline: April 6, 2018.
Limnisa Short Story Competition. Genre: Short story under 3,000 words on theme of Plastic. Prize: One-week, all-inclusive writers' retreat or workshop in 2017 or 2018 in Limnisa, Greece and online publication, or five online personal tutoring sessions instead. Deadline: April 15, 2018.
William Saroyan Writing Contest. Restrictions: Open to students in 1st grade through college. Genre: Short story, 2 pages. Prize: $50 - $100. Deadline: April 15, 2018.
Harold U. Ribalow Prize. Genre: Fiction on a Jewish theme, published books only. Prize: $3,000. Deadline: April 15, 2018.
Monash Undergraduate Prize for Creative Writing. "The Prize is a significant literary award for new and emerging writers. The prize is open to both Australian and New Zealand university students, enrolled in either an undergraduate or honours degree. All types of creative writing will be accepted, including short stories, non-fiction narrative and narrative verse." Prize: $4000. Deadline: April 15, 2018.
Scotiabank Giller Prize. Restrictions: Open to books published in Canada in English. Books must be published in Canada in English between March 1, 2018 and April 30, 2018 to be eligible for the 2018 Prize. Must be nominated by publisher. Genre: Fiction. Full-length novel or collection of short stories published in English, either originally, or in translation. Prize: $100,000 to the winner and $10,000 to each of the finalists. Deadline: April 15, 2018.
McLaughlin-Esstman-Stearns First Novel Prize is awarded to the author of the best first novel published in the previous calendar year. Restrictions: Only American authors publishing in English are eligible. Non-eligible books include short story collections, flash fiction, memoirs, biographies and books published solely in electronic format. Prize: $500. Deadline: April 15, 2018.
Go Ape Children's Writing Competition. Restrictions: Open to UK children aged 4-7 and 8-12. Parents/guardians are encouraged to enter on behalf of their child. Genre: Adventure stories. Stories must be between 100 and 500 words. Prize: Various prizes: gift vouchers, family holidays. Deadline: April 15, 2018.
The Lucien Stryk Asian Translation Prize. Genre: Book-length translation of Asian poetry into English. Both translators and publishers are invited to submit titles. Book must have been published in previous year. Prize: $5,000. Deadline: April 16, 2018.
American Literary Translators Association Italian Prose in Translation Award. Genre: Translation of a recent work of Italian prose (fiction or literary non-fiction). Both translators and publishers are invited to submit titles. Book must have been published in previous year. Prize: $5,000. Deadline: April 16, 2018.
Hiett Prize in the Humanities. The Hiett Prize in the Humanities is an annual award aimed at identifying candidates who are in the early stages of careers devoted to the humanities and whose work shows extraordinary promise and has a significant public component related to contemporary culture. Restrictions: All applicants must reside in the United States. Prize: $50,000. Deadline: April 20, 2018.
Tell a Tale Gothic Writing Competition. Restrictions: Open to UK residents only. Genre: 500-word tale of terror using the following quotation as inspiration. “It might be possible, of course, that far from being one, we may possess two selves.” Prize: £300 and many other goodies including signed Jekyll and Hyde posters. Deadline: April 21, 2018.
James White Award. Restrictions: Non-professional authors from anywhere in the world. Genre: Previously unpublished science fiction stories of 6000 words or less, but the stories must be written in English. Prize: £200 plus publication in Interzone. Deadline: April 27, 2018.
Lune Spark Young Writers' Short Story Contest. Restrictions: Open to writers 10-13 years old, and 13-16 years old. (Two categories.) Genre: Short story. Prize: $500 for first place; $250, 2nd place; $100, 3rd place. Deadline: April 28, 2018.
A Voice for Animals Teen Essay Contest. Restrictions: Open to students between the ages of 14-18. Genre: Essays on an animal rights topic. In the 16-18 year olds category, essays must be 800-1,000 words long and be accompanied by a photograph; in the 14-15 year olds category, essays should be between 1,400-1,500 words. One climate change prize (both age categories compete) will be awarded for an essay on how climate change affects a particular animal species. Prize: $500. Deadline: April 30, 2018.
SA Writer’s College Short Story Award. Restrictions: Open to unpublished writers in South Africa. Genre: Short stories. Prizes: 1st – R 10 000; 2nd – R 5 000; 3rd – R 2 000. Deadline: April 30, 2018.
Toronto Book Awards. Genres: All genres accepted. Restrictions: Submission "must evoke the city itself, that is, contain some clear Toronto content (this may be reflected in the themes, settings, subjects, etc.). Authors do not necessarily have to reside in Toronto. Ebooks, textbooks and self-published works are not eligible. Prize: A total of $15,000 CD will be awarded. Each shortlisted author (usually 4-6) receives C$1,000 and the winning author is awarded the remainder. Deadline: April 30, 2018.
Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships. Restrictions: Applicants must reside in the U.S. or be U.S. citizens. Applicants must be at least 21 years of age and no older than 31 years of age as of April 30, 2016. Genre: Poetry. Prize: $25,800. Deadline: April 30, 2018.
Bill Hallberg Award in Creative Writing. Restrictions: Open to undergraduate students at colleges and universities in North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and Tennessee. Genre: Creative nonfiction. Submissions should include one double-spaced essay, no longer than 10 pages and in 12 pt font. Prize: $150. Deadline: April 30, 2018. Submit essay to Christy Hallberg at hallbergc@ecu.edu
FunFiction. Genre: Novellas, novel excerpts, short stories and collections, or any prose work with a minimum of 50,000 words. Themes: Romance, Suspense. Prize: $10,000. Deadline: April 30, 2018. Note: "Contestants own all of their entries' copyrights and retain the right to publish their entries outside of FicFun. But by accepting the awards, winners shall authorize their works’ digital copyright to FicFun for three years free of charge, have obligation to complete their works in the future and cannot delete the entries, starting from the payment received date. Meanwhile FicFun owns the right to have digital copies of all winning stories."
Irene Adler Prize for Women Writers. Restrictions: Open to Canadian women. Genre: Creative nonfiction. Prize: $1,000 scholarship. Deadline: April 30, 2018.
Friends of Falun Gong, Poetry Contest. Genre: Poem Submit one or two poems of no more than 50 lines each. Poems must encompass at least one of the following themes: Advocate for Falun Gong practitioner’s fundamental human rights. Expose the crimes against Falun Gong perpetrated by the Chinese Communist Party. Share in the beauty, peacefulness and good nature of Falun Gong. Prizes: $500, $250, $100. Deadline: April 30, 2018.
Wergle Flomp Humor Poetry Contest. Now in its 17th year, this contest seeks today's best humor poems, published and unpublished. Please enter one poem only, 250 lines max. Prize: $2,250 in prizes, including a top prize of $1,000, and publication on Winning Writers. Deadline: April 1, 2018. See submission form HERE.
Fall Lines: Saluda River Prize for Poetry / Broad River Prize for Prose. Genres: Poetry, flash fiction, essays, short fiction. Prizes: Two $250 cash prizes, and publication. Deadline: April 1, 2018.
Descant. Each year, descant offers four awards:
- the $500 Frank O’Connor Award for fiction (for the best short story in a issue)
- the $250 Gary Wilson Award (for an outstanding story in an issue)
- the $500 Betsy Colquitt Award for poetry (for the best poem or series of poems by a single author in an issue)
- the $250 Baskerville Publishers Award (for an outstanding poem or poems by a single author in an issue
Wax Poetry and Art Poetry Contest. Genre: Poem. (Enter 1 poem for free. There is a charge for additional poems.) Prize: $120. Deadline: April 1, 2018.
The Great American Think-Off. Genre: Essay on the theme: “Which plays a larger role in shaping one’s life: success or failure?” Entrants should take a strong stand agreeing or disagreeing with this topic, basing their arguments on personal experience and observations rather than philosophical abstraction. Essay should be no more than 750 words. Prize: One of four $500 cash prizes. Deadline: April 1, 2018.
Wick Poetry Center High School Poetry Competition. Restrictions: Open to Ohio high school seniors. Genre: Poetry. Prize: One-time $1,500 scholarship to Kent State University. Second and third prize winners receive $1,000 and $500 one-time scholarships. Deadline: April 1, 2018.
The Marguerite and Lamar Smith Fellowship for Writers. Carson McCullers Center for Writers and Musicians awards fellowships for writers to spend time in McCullers' childhood home in Columbus, Georgia. The fellowships are intended to afford the writers in residence uninterrupted time to dedicate to their work, free from the distractions of daily life and other professional responsibilities. Award: Stipend of $5000 to cover costs of transportation, food and other incidentals. Fellowship recipients will be required to introduce or advance their work through reading or workshop/forum presentations. The Fellow will work with the McCullers Center Director to plan a presentation near the end of the residency. Deadline: April 1, 2018.
Edna Staebler Award for Creative Non-Fiction. Restrictions: The writer must be Canadian, and an entry must be the writer's first or second published book of any type or genre and must have a Canadian locale and/or significance. Genre: Print books and ebooks of creative non-fiction published in the previous calendar year. Prize: C$10,000.00. Deadline: April 1, 2018.
Betsy Colquitt Award for Poetry/Frank O'Connor Award for Short Fiction. Genres: Short stories and poetry. Prize: $500 Frank O’Connor Award for fiction. $500 Betsy Colquitt Award for poetry. Deadline: April 1, 2018.
Small But Mighty. Restrictions: Children ages 7-11 and 12-15. Genre: Fiction and poetry. Prize: Writing supplies, certificate, and publication on website. Deadline: April 1, 2018.
The Waterston Desert Writing Prize. Genre: Literary nonfiction, desert theme. Prize: $1,500. Deadline: April 1, 2018.
Fairytalez Gender Swap Contest. "Write a new version of a classic fairy tale or folk tale and change the gender roles within, plus add other elements if you like." Genre: Fairy tales with role reversals. Prize: $200 Amazon gift certificate. Deadline: April 6, 2018.
Limnisa Short Story Competition. Genre: Short story under 3,000 words on theme of Plastic. Prize: One-week, all-inclusive writers' retreat or workshop in 2017 or 2018 in Limnisa, Greece and online publication, or five online personal tutoring sessions instead. Deadline: April 15, 2018.
William Saroyan Writing Contest. Restrictions: Open to students in 1st grade through college. Genre: Short story, 2 pages. Prize: $50 - $100. Deadline: April 15, 2018.
Harold U. Ribalow Prize. Genre: Fiction on a Jewish theme, published books only. Prize: $3,000. Deadline: April 15, 2018.
Monash Undergraduate Prize for Creative Writing. "The Prize is a significant literary award for new and emerging writers. The prize is open to both Australian and New Zealand university students, enrolled in either an undergraduate or honours degree. All types of creative writing will be accepted, including short stories, non-fiction narrative and narrative verse." Prize: $4000. Deadline: April 15, 2018.
Scotiabank Giller Prize. Restrictions: Open to books published in Canada in English. Books must be published in Canada in English between March 1, 2018 and April 30, 2018 to be eligible for the 2018 Prize. Must be nominated by publisher. Genre: Fiction. Full-length novel or collection of short stories published in English, either originally, or in translation. Prize: $100,000 to the winner and $10,000 to each of the finalists. Deadline: April 15, 2018.
McLaughlin-Esstman-Stearns First Novel Prize is awarded to the author of the best first novel published in the previous calendar year. Restrictions: Only American authors publishing in English are eligible. Non-eligible books include short story collections, flash fiction, memoirs, biographies and books published solely in electronic format. Prize: $500. Deadline: April 15, 2018.
Go Ape Children's Writing Competition. Restrictions: Open to UK children aged 4-7 and 8-12. Parents/guardians are encouraged to enter on behalf of their child. Genre: Adventure stories. Stories must be between 100 and 500 words. Prize: Various prizes: gift vouchers, family holidays. Deadline: April 15, 2018.
The Lucien Stryk Asian Translation Prize. Genre: Book-length translation of Asian poetry into English. Both translators and publishers are invited to submit titles. Book must have been published in previous year. Prize: $5,000. Deadline: April 16, 2018.
American Literary Translators Association Italian Prose in Translation Award. Genre: Translation of a recent work of Italian prose (fiction or literary non-fiction). Both translators and publishers are invited to submit titles. Book must have been published in previous year. Prize: $5,000. Deadline: April 16, 2018.
Hiett Prize in the Humanities. The Hiett Prize in the Humanities is an annual award aimed at identifying candidates who are in the early stages of careers devoted to the humanities and whose work shows extraordinary promise and has a significant public component related to contemporary culture. Restrictions: All applicants must reside in the United States. Prize: $50,000. Deadline: April 20, 2018.
Tell a Tale Gothic Writing Competition. Restrictions: Open to UK residents only. Genre: 500-word tale of terror using the following quotation as inspiration. “It might be possible, of course, that far from being one, we may possess two selves.” Prize: £300 and many other goodies including signed Jekyll and Hyde posters. Deadline: April 21, 2018.
James White Award. Restrictions: Non-professional authors from anywhere in the world. Genre: Previously unpublished science fiction stories of 6000 words or less, but the stories must be written in English. Prize: £200 plus publication in Interzone. Deadline: April 27, 2018.
Lune Spark Young Writers' Short Story Contest. Restrictions: Open to writers 10-13 years old, and 13-16 years old. (Two categories.) Genre: Short story. Prize: $500 for first place; $250, 2nd place; $100, 3rd place. Deadline: April 28, 2018.
A Voice for Animals Teen Essay Contest. Restrictions: Open to students between the ages of 14-18. Genre: Essays on an animal rights topic. In the 16-18 year olds category, essays must be 800-1,000 words long and be accompanied by a photograph; in the 14-15 year olds category, essays should be between 1,400-1,500 words. One climate change prize (both age categories compete) will be awarded for an essay on how climate change affects a particular animal species. Prize: $500. Deadline: April 30, 2018.
SA Writer’s College Short Story Award. Restrictions: Open to unpublished writers in South Africa. Genre: Short stories. Prizes: 1st – R 10 000; 2nd – R 5 000; 3rd – R 2 000. Deadline: April 30, 2018.
Toronto Book Awards. Genres: All genres accepted. Restrictions: Submission "must evoke the city itself, that is, contain some clear Toronto content (this may be reflected in the themes, settings, subjects, etc.). Authors do not necessarily have to reside in Toronto. Ebooks, textbooks and self-published works are not eligible. Prize: A total of $15,000 CD will be awarded. Each shortlisted author (usually 4-6) receives C$1,000 and the winning author is awarded the remainder. Deadline: April 30, 2018.
Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships. Restrictions: Applicants must reside in the U.S. or be U.S. citizens. Applicants must be at least 21 years of age and no older than 31 years of age as of April 30, 2016. Genre: Poetry. Prize: $25,800. Deadline: April 30, 2018.
Bill Hallberg Award in Creative Writing. Restrictions: Open to undergraduate students at colleges and universities in North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and Tennessee. Genre: Creative nonfiction. Submissions should include one double-spaced essay, no longer than 10 pages and in 12 pt font. Prize: $150. Deadline: April 30, 2018. Submit essay to Christy Hallberg at hallbergc@ecu.edu
FunFiction. Genre: Novellas, novel excerpts, short stories and collections, or any prose work with a minimum of 50,000 words. Themes: Romance, Suspense. Prize: $10,000. Deadline: April 30, 2018. Note: "Contestants own all of their entries' copyrights and retain the right to publish their entries outside of FicFun. But by accepting the awards, winners shall authorize their works’ digital copyright to FicFun for three years free of charge, have obligation to complete their works in the future and cannot delete the entries, starting from the payment received date. Meanwhile FicFun owns the right to have digital copies of all winning stories."
Irene Adler Prize for Women Writers. Restrictions: Open to Canadian women. Genre: Creative nonfiction. Prize: $1,000 scholarship. Deadline: April 30, 2018.
Friends of Falun Gong, Poetry Contest. Genre: Poem Submit one or two poems of no more than 50 lines each. Poems must encompass at least one of the following themes: Advocate for Falun Gong practitioner’s fundamental human rights. Expose the crimes against Falun Gong perpetrated by the Chinese Communist Party. Share in the beauty, peacefulness and good nature of Falun Gong. Prizes: $500, $250, $100. Deadline: April 30, 2018.
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