54 Writing Contests in February 2019 - No entry fees

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For a month that is nasty, brutish and short, February packs a punch when it comes to writing contests. This month there are 54 contests, and none charge entry fees. Prizes range from $100,000 to a free writing class. As always, read the restrictions to make sure you qualify.

If you want to get a jump on next month's contests go to Free Contests. Most of these contests are offered annually, so even if the deadline is past, you can prepare for next year.

Good luck!
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Life Writing Prize. Restrictions: Open to UK residents. Genre: Life writing. The Prize defines life writing as ‘intended to be true’, reflects someone’s own life journey or experiences and is not fiction. Prize: Winner will receive £1,500, publication on Spread the Word’s website, an Arvon course, two years’ membership to the Royal Society of Literature and a development meeting with an editor and an agent. Deadline: February 1, 2019.

The John Gardner Fiction Award is sponsored by the Binghamton Center for Writers-State University of New York with support from the Office of the Dean of Binghamton University's Harpur College of the Arts & Sciences. Genre: Novel or collection of fiction published in 2018. Prize: $1,000.    Deadline: February 1, 2019.

Jane Martin Poetry Prize (UK). Restrictions: Open to  UK residents between 18 and 30 years of age. Genre: Poetry. Prize: £700, second prize, £300. Deadline: February 1, 2019.

Fantastica SF Prize. Restrictions: Open to Australian and New Zealand writers. Genre: Science fiction. Length: 30,000 words or more. Payment: $2000. Deadline: February 1, 2019.

Paterson Fiction Prize. Genre: Published novel or collection of short fiction. Prize: $1,000.   Deadline: February 1, 2019.

Allen Ginsberg Poetry Awards. Genre: Poetry, up to five poems per person. Prize: $1,000. Deadline: February 1, 2019. 

Paterson Prize for Books for Young People. Genre: Most outstanding book for young people published in 2016. There is a $500 award in each category: Pre-K - Grade 3;  Grades 4 - 6;  Grades 7 - 12. Prize: $500. Deadline: February 1, 2019.

Paterson Poetry Prize. Genre: Poetry book published in 2018. Prize: $1000. Deadline: February 1, 2019.

Gannon University Poetry Contest. Restrictions: Entrants must be a US high school student or a home-schooled student in grades nine through twelve.Genre: Poetry. Each student may enter 1 or 2 poems; each poem may be no longer than 50 lines. Prize: First Place: $100.00 Second Place: $75.00 Third Place: $50.00. Deadline: February 1, 2019. 

The Jim Baen Memorial Short Story Award. Genre: Short story of no more than 8,000 words that shows the near future (no more than about 50-60 years out) of manned space exploration. Prize: Publication as the featured story on the Baen Books main website paid at the normal paying rates for professional story submissions. Deadline: February 1, 2019.

$1000 for 1000 Words Creative Writing Contest is sponsored by the Leyla Beban Young Authors Foundation. Restrictions: Students enrolled in grades 6-12. Genre: Short fiction of exactly 1000 words. Prize: Two $1,000 scholarship prizes will be awarded, one for grades 6-8 and one for grades 9-12. Seven $100 cash prizes will also be awarded for winning entries, one per grade level.  Deadline: February 1, 2019.

The Levis Reading Prize is sponsored by the Department of English and its MFA in Creative Writing program at Virginia Commonwealth University. Restrictions: The prize is given annually for the best first or second book of poetry published in the previous calendar year. Genre: Poetry.  Prize: $5000.  Deadline: February 1, 2019.

Milt Kessler Poetry Book Award is sponsored by the Binghamton Center for Writers-State University of New York with support from the Office of the Dean of Binghamton University's Harpur College of the Arts & Sciences. Genre: Poetry book in English published in 2017. Prize: $1,000. Deadline: February 1, 2019.

Hart Crane Memorial Poetry Award. Genre: Poetry. Prize: $100. Deadline: February 1, 2019.

The Waterman Fund Essay Contest. Genre: Personal essays between 2000 and 3000 words. The topic is, simply, wilderness and wildness. Prizes: The winning essayist will be awarded $1500 and publication in Appalachia Journal. The Honorable Mention essay will receive $500. Deadline: February 2, 2019.

Charles Crupi Memorial Poetry Contest. Restrictions: Open to high school students in Michigan. Genre: Poetry. Prize: 1st place - $250 and publication in The Albion Review, 2nd place - $150 and publication in The Albion Review; 3rd place - $100 and publication in The Albion Review. Deadline: February 2, 2019.

Student Stowe Prize. Restrictions: Open to US high school and college students. Genre: published writing on a social justice or human rights topic, in the spirit of Harriet Beecher Stowe. Prize: Up to $2,500. Deadline: February 2, 2019.

Zocalo Public Square Poetry Prize. Restrictions: Open to US poets only. Genre: Poetry that evokes a connection to place. Prize: $500. Deadline: February 4, 2019. Note: Winning author gives up all rights.

White Oak Kitchen & Cocktails. Restrictions: Open to all poets who currently reside in and have had residency in one of the following states for a minimum of 12 consecutive months: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia. (Residency will be verified before prize winner is announced.). Writers who have published 2 or more full-length collections of poetry or who do not meet the residency requirements are NOT eligible. Genre: Poem on topic of Wisdom. Prize:  $1,500. Deadline: February 7, 2019. Note: Winning author gives up all rights.

Solid Essay Contest. Restrictions: Open to high school students. Genre: Essay (See site for topics.) Minimum number of words is 600 and maximum is 800. Prize: Scholarship of $1000. Deadline: February 8, 2019.

The University of Chester Flash (Youth). Restrictions: Open to Scottish students aged 16-19 who are studying in the UK. Genre: fFash fiction of up to 360 words. Prize: Up to £100. Deadline: February 8, 2019.

Bethesda Literary Festival Essay and Short Story Contest. The Bethesda Urban Partnership & Bethesda Magazine have partnered to honor local writers at the Bethesda Literary Festival. Genres: Essays and poetry. Adult and high school student categories. Restrictions: Residents of Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia are eligible. Prizes: First Place: $500 and published in Bethesda Magazine. Second Place: $250. Third Place: $150. Honorable Mention: $75. Deadline: February 8, 2019.

Luminarts Creative Writing Program. The Creative Writing Competition awards five $5,000 grant awards and Luminarts Fellowships across categories of creative nonfiction, fiction, and poetry. Open to writers between the ages of 18 and 30 years old at the time of application; be enrolled in, or have graduated from, a degree program; and live within 150 miles of the Union League Club of Chicago. Genre: Poetry or prose, fiction and nonfiction. Prize: $5,000 and publication in Luminarts Review, a literary journal. Deadline: February 8, 2019.

Lex Allen Literary Festival Prizes. Restrictions: Open to undergraduate college students. Genres: Poetry and fiction. Prize: $100. Deadline: February 8, 2019.

Writers’ Trust / McClelland & Stewart Journey Prize. Restrictions: Only works from writers who are Canadian citizens, whether living in Canada or abroad, or permanent residents of Canada are eligible. Genre: Short story or excerpt from a fiction work-in-progress first published by a Canadian magazine or annual anthology during the previous calendar year. Prize: $10,000. Deadline: February 8, 2019.

Library of Virginia Literary Awards. Restrictions: Open to writers who were born in or are residents of Virginia or, in the case of nonfiction, books with a Virginia theme, are eligible. Genre: Books of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction published in the previous year. Prize: $2,500. Deadline: February 12, 2019.

Writers' & Artists' Yearbook Short Story Competition. Genre: Short story. All entries must be original unpublished prose of 2,000 words or fewer. Prize: £500 and publication. Deadline: February 13, 2019.

North Carolina Poetry Contest. Restrictions: Open to residents of North Carolina (including students). Genre: Poetry. Prize: $1,000. Deadline: February 14, 2019. Snail mail entries only.

West Coast Eisteddfod Online Poetry and Short Story Competitions. Genre: Poetry, short story. (No limericks.) Prize: Poetry: $200 in each language category (Welsh and English). Short Story: $200.00 (one English-language entry) Deadline: February 15, 2019.

Judith A. Markowitz Award for Emerging LGBTQ Writers. Restrictions: The nominee must self-identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer. The nominee must have written and published at least one but no more than two books of fiction, nonfiction, or poetry. Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, or poetry. Prize: $1000. Deadline: February 15, 2019.

Ballard Spahr Prize for Poetry is an annual regional prize. Restrictions: Open to residents of Minnesota, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, or Michigan. Genre: Poetry. Prize: $10,000 as well as a contract for publication to the author of the winning manuscript. Deadline: February 15, 2019.

Harold Morton Landon Translation Award. Genre: Poetry collection translated from any language into English and published in the previous calendar year. Prize: $1,000. Deadline: February 15, 2019.

Haiku Society of America Merit Book Awards for Excellence in Published Haiku, Translation, and Criticism. Genre: Published book. Books must have been published in 2018 and must clearly contain a printed 2018 copyright. A member, author, or publisher may submit or nominate more than one title. At least 50 percent of the book must be haiku, senryu, or haibun, or prose about these subjects (books mostly of tanka, for example, are not eligible). Prize: $500. Deadline: February 15, 2019.

Scotiabank Giller Prize. Restrictions: Open to books published in Canada in English. Books must be published in Canada in English between October 1, 2018 and February 28, 2019 to be eligible for the 2017 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: February 15, 2019.

Raiziss/de Palchi Translation Award. Genre: Poetry - translation into English of a significant work of modern Italian poetry. Prize: $10,000. Deadline: February 15, 2019.

New York City Emerging Writers Fellowship. Restrictions: "Applicants must be current residents of one of the five boroughs, and must remain in New York City for the entire year of the fellowship. Students in degree-granting programs are not eligible to apply, even if the focus of study is not directly related to writing. This program supports emerging writers whose work shows promise of excellence. Applicants can be of any age, but must be in the early stages of their careers as fiction writers and will not have had the support needed to achieve major recognition for their work. We define “emerging writer” as someone who has not yet had a novel or short story collection published by either a major or independent publisher and who is also not currently under contract to a publisher for a work of fiction. Eligible applicants may have had stories or novel excerpts published in magazines, literary journals or online, but this is not a requirement." Genre: Fiction. Grant: $5,000. Deadline: February 15, 2019.

The Sunday Times Audible Story Award. Restrictions: Open to any author who has been published in the UK or Ireland. Genre: Short stories of 6000 words or less. Prize: £30,000. Deadline: February 15, 2019.

The Tomorrow Prize. Restrictions: Open to high school students in Los Angeles. Genre: Science fiction, 1500 words max. Prize: $250. Deadline: February 18, 2019.

Past-Year Memoir Contest. Genre: True story about your past year in 18 words. Prize: Free Gotham class of your choosing. Deadline: February 19, 2019.

RBC Bronwen Wallace Award for Emerging Writers. Restrictions: Candidates must be: A Canadian citizen or permanent resident; Under the age of 35; Unpublished in book form and without a book contract. Genre: Poetry. Prizes: Winner: $5,000; Finalists: $1,000. Deadline: February 18, 2019.

Western Australian Premier's Book Awards.Restrictions: Open to authors who either are citizens or permanent residents of Western Australia. Genre: Book published during the preceding calendar year in a variety of genres. Prize: A$15,000. Deadline: February 18, 2019.

The Matthew Power Literary Reporting Award supports the work of a promising early-career nonfiction writer on a story that uncovers truths about the human condition. Genres: Nonfiction journalism works in progress with “strong, character-driven narratives with detailed scene writing and lyrical description.” Restrictions: The award will not fund proposals to report on armed conflicts where journalists are already imperiled, nor projects that are mainly investigatory. Prize: $12,500 grant and use of the NYU library. Deadline: February 19, 2019.

Gaithersburg Book Festival Poetry Contest. Restrictions: Open to high school students (grades 9-12) from across the Washington Metropolitan Area (Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, DC). Genre: Poetry. Prize: First, 2nd and 3rd place winners will receive $250, $100 and $50 gift certificates.  Deadline: February 21, 2019.

The Spotlight Books Competition (UK) Restrictions: Open to marginalized or under-represented authors in the UK. Genre: Short fiction or poetry of 8000-10,000 words/40-45 pages respectively, by Open to marginalized or under-represented authors in the UK. Prize: Publication and 10% royalties. Deadline: February 24, 2019.

Black Caucus of the American Library Association Self-Published E-Book Literary Award.  Restrictions: Open to African-Americans. Genre: Self-Published E-Book in fiction and poetry. Prize: $500. Deadline: February 28, 2019.

The Gabo Prize for Literature in Translation & Multi-Lingual Texts. Genre: Literary translations and multi-lingual texts. Prize: $200. Deadline: February 28, 2019.

Diana Woods Memorial Award in Creative Nonfiction. Genre: Essay, maximum 5,000 words. Prize: $250 top prize. Deadline: February 28, 2019.

Poetry Matters Literary Prizes. Restrictions: Several categories, from middle-school to senior citizens. Genre: Poetry. Prize: 1st prize- $75; 2nd prize- $50; 3rd prize-$35; Honorable Mention- $25. Deadline: February 28, 2019.

Solution Loans Short Story Contest. Restrictions: Open to UK residents 18 years and up. Genre: Short fiction on theme of "A New Home." Prize: £200 and publication on the Solution Loans website. Deadline: February 28, 2019.

The Kelpies Prize (Scotland). Restrictions: Open to Scottish authors. Genre: Children’s fiction of both novel and short length. Prize: £1,000, a publishing contract, a writing retreat, and a year of mentoring by an editorial team. Deadline: February 28, 2019.

SLF Working Class Writers Grant is sponsored by the Speculative Literature Foundation. Genres: Speculative fiction, magical realism. Restrictions: Applicants must be working class (see guidelines page for definition) and demonstrate financial hardship. Available to international writers. Prize: $750. Deadline: February 28, 2019.

Spirit First Meditation Poetry Contest. Genre: Poem on the theme of mindfulness or meditation.   Prize: $200.  Deadline: February 28, 2019.

The Premises. Write a creative, compelling, well-crafted story in which someone or something of importance to the story is hidden in some way from at least one important character. It is entirely up to you whether the person/place/thing that is hidden is ever found/revealed/unhidden. Genre: Short story. Length: Between 1,000 and 5,000 words. Prize: Between US$60 and US$220, and publication. Deadline: February 28, 2019.

Creative Capital Award. Restrictions: Entrants must be US citizens or permanent residents, aged 25+, with 5+ years' professional writing experience, and not be full-time students. Genre: Poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and graphic novels. Grant: Up to $50,000. Deadline: February 28, 2019.