100 Calls for Submissions in April 2024 - Paying markets

This April there are more than eight dozen calls for submissions. All of these are paying markets, and none charge submission fees. As always, every genre, style, and form is wanted, from short stories to poetry to essays.

I post upcoming calls for submissions shortly before the first day of every month. But as I am collecting them, I post them on my page, Calls for Submissions. You can get a jump on next month's calls for submissions by checking that page periodically throughout the month. (I only post paying markets.)

Also see Paying Markets for hundreds of paying markets arranged by form and genre.

Happy submitting!

(Image: Wikimedia)

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Affirm Press. Restrictions: They only accept Australian authors or authors based in Australia, and only manuscripts that haven’t been previously published. Genre: Affirm Press accepts all literary and genre fiction. For non-fiction, they are interested in most subjects that have a market as long as the manuscript is entertaining, engaging and likely to leave readers better off. Read their submission guidelines here. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

Totally Entwined: Family Business. Genre: Novellas, 30,000 - 50,000 words. Theme: Mafia romance. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

The Paris Review. Genres: Poetry. Payment: Not specified. Deadline: Opens April 1, 2024, and closes when they reach capacity.

Canthius. Restrictions: Open to women, trans men, nonbinary, Two-Spirit, genderqueer, and gender non-conforming writers. Genres: Unpublished poetry and prose (both fiction and creative non-fiction – "we welcome experimental works and play excerpts). Please limit prose submissions to 3500 words and poetry submissions to five poems." Theme: Trash. Payment: $50 for one page, $75 for two pages, $100 for three, $125 for four pages, and $150 for five pages or more, regardless of genre. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

The Beast Hunt. Genre: Speculative fiction. "Theme: Monsters have feelings too, even if it’s used to rage against the machine." Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

Creature Feature Classics #1: Lycanthropy. Genre: Stories on theme: Werewolves. Length: 3,000-8,000 words. Payment: £20 and 3 author copies. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

Write or Die. Genre: Short fiction. Length: Up to 4000 words. Payment: $200. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

The Ex-Puritan. Genre: Poetry, fiction, reviews, interviews, essays, and experimental work. "The Ex-Puritan now seeks to publish the best in all forms of writing." Payment: $100 - $200 (CAD). Deadline: April 1, 2024.

Gordon Square Review. Genre: Poetry, short stories, personal essays, and hybrid prose works.  Payment: $25 per prose piece and $10 per poem. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

Toronto Journal. Genre: Short stories from anywhere in the world. "We will also consider non-fiction pieces about local history (Toronto, GTA, and surrounding)." No word limit. Payment: $50 CAD per piece. All published writers will also receive two printed copies of the issue in which they appear. Deadline: April 1, 2024. 

Kangas Kahn. Genre: Horror short stories on theme: Clowns Payment: 8 cents/word. Deadline: April 1, 2024..

Salamander. Genre: Poetry, fiction, and nonfiction. Payment: Not specified. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

West Branch. Genre: Poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and translation. Payment: $50 per submission of poetry, and $.05/word for prose with a maximum payment of $100. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

Shenandoah. Genre: Poetry. Payment: $100. Deadline: Opens April 1, 2024, and closes when they reach capacity. 

Zero Street Restrictions: Open to LGBTQ+ writers. Genre: Full-length literary fiction. "Zero Street will be committed to LGBTQ+ literary fiction with commercial potential, providing marginalized authors opportunities for a wide readership in the trade fiction market. The series editors are Timothy Schaffert, bestselling author of The Perfume Thief, and SJ Sindu, author of Blue-Skinned Gods. The series seeks LGBTQ+ literary fiction of all kinds, from stories of modern life to innovations on traditions of genre and are particularly interested in BIPOC authors, trans authors, and queer authors over 50." Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

Cosmic Roots and Eldritch Shores. Genre: Speculative stories. Payment: 8 cents/word for original work. 2 cents/word for reprints. Deadline: April 2, 2024. Opens April 1.

Island Online. Restrictions: Open to Australian and New Zealand citizens and residents only. Genre: Fiction, Nonfiction. Payment: $500. Deadline: April 3, 2024.

Stone's Throw. Genre: Noir stories about sports. Length: between 1,000 and 2,000 words. See theme. Payment: $25. Deadline: August 4, 2024. 

Havok. Genre: Flash fiction. See themes. Payment: $50 via PayPal for each story selected for an Anthology. No payment for online publication. Deadline: April 5, 2024.

Only Poems. Genre: Poetry. "We love prose poems, traditional forms (ghazals, villanelles, sestinas), love poems, sex poems, and experimental questionnaires, but we are not married to a style or genre. We are welcoming of anything you think is your most exciting work. Ultimately, we want poems that move us or make us go: “God, I wish I had written this!” Payment: $55. Deadline: April 7, 2024.

Daikaijuzine. Genre: Speculative fiction, poetry, art. Payment: $10.00 for each short story, and $5.00 for each poem and flash fiction piece. Deadline: April 7, 2024.

Solidarity Forever Zine. Genre: Fiction, poetry, and nonfiction on theme of standing together. Payment: 10 cents/word. Deadline: April 7, 2024.

Flame Tree: Sun Rising Short Stories. Genre: Speculative fiction on them: The Sun. "This will be a feast of modern fiction, folklore and mythology, and ancient tales of the looming, life-giving, eye-burning solar entity that dominates our sky." Payment: 8 cents/6 pence per word for original stories, 6 cents/4 pence for reprints. Deadline: April 7, 2024. Accepts reprints. 

Flame Tree: Moon Falling Short Stories. Genre: Speculative fiction on theme: The Moon. "This collection will bring a potent mix of superstition and belief that reaches back to the gods of Babylon, Ancient Egypt and Greece. Khonsu, Innana, Artemis and Thoth are just a few of the deities who brought a mix of love, sensuality and war to the ancient perceptions of the world." Payment: 8 cents/6 pence per word for original stories, 6 cents/4 pence for reprints. Deadline: April 7, 2024. Accepts reprints. 

Laughs in Space. Genre: Humorous science fiction. Length: 2000 words to 9000 words. Payment: £10 per 500 words, up to £55. Deadline: April 7, 2024. 

Terrain.org. Genre: "The Climate Stories in Action series will expand our vision of climate activism and help people imagine meaningful ways to be involved. We are inviting storytellers to submit poetry, nonfiction, fiction, art and multimedia pieces that showcase climate activism in professional, civic and community life. We are interested in stories that help shift our cultural mindset from despair to creative possibility and from isolation to collective purpose." Payment: $200. Deadline: April 8, 2024. 

Mslexia. Restrictions: Open to women. Genre: Fiction poetry, nonfiction. Payment: £25. Deadline: April 8, 2024. See themes.

berlin lit. Genre: Poetry. Payment: 20 euros per poem. Deadline: April 10, 2024.

Seaside Gothic. Genre: Seaside gothic fiction, poetry, nonfiction, or a collection of photographs or illustrations. Payment: £0.01 per word. Deadline: April 14, 2024.

Electric Literature. Genre: Short stories, personal narratives, cultural criticism, poetry, flash prose, and graphic narratives. Payment: $100 - $300. Deadline: April 14, 2024, or until cap is reached. 

Solarpunk Magazine. Genre: Solarpunk. Payment: $0.08/word for fiction, $40/poem, and $75/essay.  Deadline: April 14, 2024.

Griffith Review. Genre: Fiction and nonfiction on theme: Status Anxiety. Payment: AUD$0.75 per word. Deadline: April 14, 2024.

Midnight Meadow Publishing's goal is to publish engaging and unique LGBTQ+ stories while elevating marginalized voices. They are interested in a wide variety of genres. Read submission guidelines HERE. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Bull City Press: Inch. Genre: Small collections—a minimum of three stories or essays, or a constellation of poems, between 10-16 pages in length. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Radon. Genre: Short stories and poetry containing elements of anarchism, transhumanism, dystopia, and/or science fiction. Payment: 1 cent per word for original work, half a cent per word for reprints. $20 per original poem and $10 for reprints. $100 for issue cover art, $30 for back cover art, and $20 for art used on their website. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Mythulu Magazine. Genre: Submit AI-assisted short stories, art, nonfiction. See prompts. Payment: $0.08/word. Comics pay $45/page. A.I. Art pays $10/page. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Bourbon Penn. Genre: "We are looking for highly imaginative stories with a healthy dose of the odd. Odd characters, odd experiences, odd realities. We’re looking for genre / speculative stories and are quite partial to slipstream, cross-genre, magic realism, absurdist, and the surreal." Length: 2000 - 7500 words. Payment: 4 cents/word. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Vault of Shadows. Genre: Short horror, weird, dark fiction between 3000 and 7500 words (not really a firm limit - the final product will be the comics script, not the short story), that can be adapted into a comic book script of 12 pages or less. Payment: $35 per page of the adapted script, up to 12 pages, paid via PayPal, and a print copy of the issue. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Electric Spec. Genre: Speculative fiction. Payment: $20 per piece. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Epoch. Genre: Poetry, prose, art and comics. Payment: $100 - $500 for poetry, prose, and comics, depending on length, and $350 for cover art. Deadline: April 15, 2024. No fee for snail mail submissions.

The Threepenny Review. Genre: Poetry, fiction, nonfiction. Payment: $400 per story or article, $200 per poem or Table Talk piece. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Consequence Magazine: The Culture of War. Restrictions: Open to BIPOC writers. Genre: Short fiction, poetry, nonfiction, interviews, reviews, and visual art mainly focused on the culture of war. Payment: $20 - $60 for prose and poetry, $150 for art. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Bikes in Space. Genre: Queer Halloween short fiction (in written or comics form) about bicycling from a feminist perspective. Payment: $50 minimum. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Rattle: Tribute to Musicians. Genre: Poetry. "We want to explore how music in the air in forms poems on the page. The poems may be any style or subject, but must be written who have been professional musicians at some point in their lives." Payment: $100. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Grimm Retold. Genre: Horror and dark fantasy of Dark Grimm Fairy Tales, retold in new and horrific ways. Length: 2000 – 8000 words, Poems 1 - 4 pages. Payment: $25 for stories 2000 - 5000 words (after edits), $35 for stories 5000 - 8000 words (after edits), $15 for poems, $10 for reprints. Deadline: April 19, 2024. Accepts reprints.

This Magazine. Restrictions: Open to Canadians. Genre: Nonfiction. "We’re now accepting pitches for our Community Issue! We’d like to cover mutual aid efforts, communal housing and housing initiatives, and all of the ways in which we can work together to get through. We’re seeking news, arts and ideas stories, and features." Queries only. Payment: Up to $300 CAD per piece. Deadline: April 19, 2024.

Astrolabe. Genre: Fiction, creative nonfiction, and photography & art. Payment: $50. Deadline: April 20, 2024.

Super Canucks: An anthology of small-town Canadian superheroes. Genre: Superhero stories. " We want stories set in and around the nation’s more often overlooked locales—isolated small towns, remote reservations, bedroom communities, and other underrepresented areas of Canada." Payment: $200. Deadline: April 21, 2024.

Flash Fiction Online. Genre: Weird Horror flash fiction. Payment: $100. Deadline: April 21, 2024.

Third Flatiron. Genre: SF, fantasy, space opera, hopepunk. See theme. Payment: 8 cents per word. Deadline: April 21, 2024.

Mudroom. Genre: Poetry, fiction, essays, and essays in translation. Payment: $15. Deadline: April 25, 2024.

Off Topic Publishing: Poetry Box. Genre: Poetry. Payment $30 CAD.  Deadline: April 25, 2024. This is a monthly call.

 

Dragon Soul Press: Fairy Rites. Genre: "All Fae stories are welcome. All genres are accepted." Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

JMS Books. Genre: LGBTQ romance stories, 12,000 words minimum. See theme. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Quarter Press: Quarter(ly). Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, art. See themes. Payment: $5. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

American Poets Continuum Series. Restrictions: Open to poets who have previously published a full-length book of poetry with a traditional publisher. Genre: Book-length poetry collection. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Impressions. Genre: Dark speculative fiction. Payment: 8 cents/word. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Dusty Attic. Genre: Stories and poems that are spooky or fantastical or both. See theme. Payment: $10. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Yellow Arrow Vignette. Restrictions: Open to women-identifying writers/authors who currently live, grew up in, or recently lived in the Baltimore area. Genre: Poetry, CNF, art. See theme. Payment: $10. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Pulp Literature. Genre: Any genre or between-genre work of literature, or visual art (black and white for interiors, colour for covers) up to 50 pages in length. Payment: $0.05 – $0.08 per word for short stories (to 5000 words),  $0.03 – $0.06 per word between 5000 and 10000 words,  and $0.02 – $0.04 per word for works over 10000 words. Poetry and interior illustrations pay between $25 – $50. Sequential art (graphic novels and cartoons) and illustrations are at a rate of $25 to $75 per page. Reprints accepted at 1/2 rate. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Memezine. Genre: Memes. "We want to see stuff that blurs the lines between art, literature, and content. Send any work (traditional or hybrid format) that engages with memes, viral content, apps, trends, social media, pop/internet culture, and technology. If you’re not sure your work fits, send it anyway!" Payment: $4.20. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Eat the Rich Anthology. Genre: Speculative fiction about billionaires being eaten. Payment: $.05 per word and a paperback. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Texas Review Press: The Sabine Series in Literature. Genre: Poetry and fiction. The Sabine Series in Literature highlights work by authors born in or working in Eastern Texas and/or Louisiana. There are no thematic restrictions. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 30, 2024. Submissions are capped at 300.

Brick. Genre: Literary nonfiction. Payment: $55–685, depending on the length of accepted work, plus two copies of the issue the work appears in and a one-year subscription to the magazine. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Verve Poetry Press. Genre: Full-length poetry manuscripts. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

The Rabbit Hole. Genre: Weird stories and poems. Theme: “Not From Here”. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Plenitude Magazine Restrictions: Open to Canadians. "Plenitude Magazine aims to promote the growth and development of LGBTTQI literature through an online publication of literary fiction, nonfiction, poetry, graphic narrative, book reviews and short film by both emerging and established LGBTTQI writers. We define queer literature and arts as works created by LGBTTQI people, rather than works which feature queer content alone." Genre: Poetry. Payment: $50 - $100. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

The Temz Review. Genre: Prose (fiction and creative non-fiction) up to 10,000 words long. Payment: $20. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

After Happy Hour. Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, art, comics. Payment: $10. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Don’t Ask, Ghosts Tell. Genre: LGBTQ+ horror anthology loosely related to military life/service. Payment: $0.03/word (USD) for short stories with potential for increase based on Kickstarter success. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Boulevard. Genre: Poems up to 200 lines. Send up to five poems. Also fiction and nonfiction. Payment: $50-$250 for poetry, and $100-300 for prose. Deadline: April 30, 2024. No submission fee for mailed submissions.

Agbowo. Restrictions: Open to African origin writers only. Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, plays, book reviews and art/photography. Payment: Single Poems - $25; Suites of poems (2-4) - $50; One act plays -$50; Essays/Nonfiction - $60; Fiction - $60; Visual Art - $35. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Massachusetts Review. Genre: Fiction, poetry, hybrid, translations. Payment: $100. Deadline: April 30, 2023. Fee for online submissions. No fee for USPS.

Cast of Wonders. Genre: YA Speculative fiction. Podcast. See theme. Payment: $.08/word for original fiction up to 6,000 words. For reprints, a $100 flat rate for Short Fiction, and a $20 flat rate for Flash Fiction. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

the other side of hope. Genre: Poetry by refugees, asylum seekers, and immigrants only. They accept submissions in English for this reading period. Payment: £50. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Cursed Cooking: A Horror Community Cookbook and Food Horror Anthology. Genre: Horror on theme: Food. Payment: 5 cents per word for original fiction works and 1 cent per word for reprints. Accepted recipe submissions will receive $5. Deadline: April 30, 2024. Reprints accepted.

Book Worms: Rock n Roll. Genre: Horror: fiction and essays. See theme. Length: Up to 1,500 words. Payment: 8 cents/word. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

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Lanternfish. Restrictions: Open to writers identifying as Black, Indigenous, and people of color. Genre: Fiction and memoir, full-length (60 to 100,000 words) and novella-length (20 to 40,000 words). Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Deadly Yellowstone: A Collection of Mystery Shorts. Genre: Mystery short stories set in Yellowstone National Park. Length: 10,000 words max. 3,000 to 7,000 words preferred. Payment: $25. Deadline: April 30, 2024. 

Small Harbor Publishing. Genre: Poetry, art. See theme. Payment: Honorarium. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

I'm Here. Restrictions: Open to writers living in Canada. Genre: YA short stories connected in some way to the theme of “identity." Payment: $250. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Harbor Review. Genre: Poetry, art. Payment: $10. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Book Slayer Press. Restrictions: OPEN to any and everyone that identifies (now or in the past) as femme in the most inclusive of definitions. Genre: Adult speculative poetry under 50 lines. "HEMORRHAGING FLOWERS: A COLLECTION OF 100% FEMME RAGE is a collection of speculative poetry showcasing the spectrum of femininity and the rage contained within." Payment: $10. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Book Slayer Press Hentai Ectoplasm. Genre: Adult horror, including genre-chimeras. Submissions must be between 3,000 and 6,000 words. "Twelve - fifteen authors will tell a story of survival as their neighborhood is cut off by the destruction, each delivering the perspective of their respective home." Payment: $100. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Best New England Crime Stories 2024. Restrictions: Open to all writers who currently live in the six New England states. Genre: Crime stories, mystery, thriller, suspense, caper, historical, and horror. Payment: $25. Deadline: April 30, 2024.  

Chicken Soup for the Soul: Funny Stories. Genre: True stories and poems. "We are looking for stories about something that happened to you in your life - in your relationship with a partner or spouse, a parent or child, a family member or friend, at work or at home – that made you and the people around you laugh out loud." Payment: $200. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Texas Review Press publishes poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and scholarly works. "Topics we are interested in include 20th/21st Century American Poetry, Environmental Writing, Ecopoetics, Contemporary Poetics, Creative Writing Pedagogy, Southern Literature, Southern Issues, Gulf of Mexico Studies, Texas/Louisiana Literature, Texas/Louisiana History, Folklore, Cajun-Creole Studies, African-American Literature, African-American Studies, Latinx Literature, Latinx Studies, & Texas/Mexico History." Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 30, 2024. Submissions are capped at 300, so submit early.

Haven Speculative. Genre: Speculative fiction and poetry. Payment: 8¢ per word for fiction and $20 for poetry. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Psychopomp. Genre: Speculative fiction or literary novellas between 20,000 to 40,000 words, that fall under the umbrella of goth, death, funerary, grief, loss, alternative, otherworldly themes. Payment: $750 advance and 25% of net net receipts. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Thisledown Press (CANADA). Restrictions: Open to Canadian authors, with a preference for Western Canadian voices. Genre: Full-length literary work, including novels, short story collections, creative non-fiction, and collections of poetry. They will consider YA novels and—occasionally—books for younger children. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Soul Ink: Volume 2. Genre: Poetry. 1,000 word count minimum (not line count) Payment: Royalties (?) Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Drabblecast. Genre: Weird speculative short fiction, drabbles, and twabbles. Payment: The Drabblecast currently pays $.06/word for original fiction, with a cap of $300.00. The Drabblecast accepts reprint submissions at a pay rate of $.03/word, with a cap of $300.00. Drabbles and twabbles are "pro bono." Deadline: April 30, 2024. Reprints accepted.

Charlottesville Fantastic. Genre: All subgenres of fantasy set in Charlottesville. Payment: $20. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Chicken Soup for the Soul: Christmas, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, New Year's. Genre: True stories and poems. "Please submit your true stories and poems about the entire December holiday season, including Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Boxing Day, and New Year’s festivities too." Payment: $200. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Mythaxis. Genre: Speculative fiction. Payment: $20. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Typehouse. Restrictions: In honor of Arab American Heritage Month, no-fee submissions are open for all Arab creators, not limited to those in the US. Genre: Prose, poetry, art. Payment: $25. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

FIYAH. Restrictions: Submissions are restricted to people of the African Diaspora. Genre: Speculative fiction, art, and poetry about African Diaspora. Length: Short fiction 2,000 – 7,000 words and novelettes up to 15,000 words. See theme. Payment: $150 per story. $50 per poem. $300 per novelette. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Nonbinary Review. Genre: Speculative fiction, poetry, art. Theme: Heredity. Length: Up to 3,000 words for prose; up to 3 pages for poetry Payment: $0.01/word for prose, $10 for poetry. $25 flat fee for visual art, or $50 for pieces chosen as cover art. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Anvil Press. Restrictions: Open to writers living in Canada. Genres: Full-length books per year in the following genres:

• literary fiction (short story collections, novels, uncategorizable prose)

• creative nonfiction

• memoir

• essay collections

• poetry

• books about Vancouver history (preferably off-beat or little-known history)

Read submission guidelines here. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Malahat Review. Genre: Fiction. Payment: CAD $70/page. Deadline: April 30, 2024. (Note: Submissions by Canadian writers are accepted for consideration all year.)

AND A FEW MORE...

Cincinnati Review. Genre: Prose, poetry, art. Payment: $25/page for prose in journal. $30/page for poetry in journal. Deadline: Opens on May 1, closes when cap is reached.

Grumpy Old Gods Anthology: Grumpy Old Sherwood Genre: Speculative fiction stories. Theme: Robin Hood. "It’s open season on storytelling.  It means you can take whatever bits you like best of thousands of available tales, and twist and turn them however you like." Length: 3,000-4,000 words. Payment: A percentage of the profits. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

Bright Wall/Dark Room. Genre: Essay on theme: Spike Lee. "For our month of Lee, we’re seeking essays and voices tackling any and all of his films, his performances, his writings, his impact on cinema and culture.” Payment: $100. Deadline: May 1, 2024. 

Everyday Heroes. Genre: Contemporary Fiction. "In Honor of Mark Christopher Wagner the 2nd, we are looking for compelling and heartfelt stories centered around those who serve their communities. Stories of Firefighters, First responders, Law Enforcement, etc. Those Everyday Heroes who make a difference in the lives of their communities." Payment: Royalties. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

LONG DIVISION: Stories of Social Decay, Societal Collapse, and Bad Manners. Genre: Stories of transgression, of the mechanisms behind what’s fraying the bonds that bind us. Payment: 10c/word for original short fiction (up to 5,000 words). Deadline: Opens on May 1, closes when cap is reached.

The Bombay Literary Magazine. Genre: Fiction, poetry, translated fiction/poetry and graphic fiction. Payment: Indian rupees 5,000 (approx. $61) per contribution. Deadline: Opens on May 1.

The First Line. Genre: Fiction, poetry, nonfiction using the first line provided. (See site.) Payment: $25.00 - $50.00 for fiction, $10.00 for poetry, and $25.00 for nonfiction. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

Seven Story Hotel. Genre: Interviews, essays, stories, poems, and artwork. 7SH explores the weird, esoteric, and outsider fringes of contemporary culture, art, and technology. Payment: $35. Deadline: May 1, 2024. or until filled. 

Vault of Shadows. Genre: Short horror, weird, dark fiction between 3000 and 7500 words (not really a firm limit - the final product will be the comics script, not the short story), that can be adapted into a comic book script of 12 pages or less. Payment: $35 per page of the adapted script, up to 12 pages, paid via PayPal, and a print copy of the issue. Deadline: Extended submission window exclusively for LGBTQIA+, BIPOC, neurodivergent, and other marginalized writers open April 16 - May 1, 2024.

Last Girls Club. Genre: Feminist horror: short stories and poems - see themes. Payment: Fiction, 15 cents/word. Poetry, $10. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

Foglifter. Genre: Foglifter is a biannual compendium of  queer and trans writing. It’s a space where LGBTQ+ writers celebrate, mourn, rage, and embrace. "Foglifter welcomes daring and thoughtful work by queer and trans writers in all forms, and we are especially interested in cross-genre, intersectional, marginal, and transgressive work. We want the pieces that challenged you as a writer, what you poured yourself into and risked the most to make. But we also want your tenderest, gentlest work, what you hold closest to your heart. Whatever you're working on now that's keeping you alive and writing, Foglifter wants to read it." Payment: $25. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

61 Writing Contests in April 2024 - No entry fees

This April there are more than five dozen free writing contests for short fiction, novels, poetry, CNF, nonfiction, and plays. Prizes this month range from $100,000 to publication. None charge entry fees.

Some of these contests have age and geographical restrictions, so read the instructions carefully.

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

Good luck! 

(Image: Pickpik)

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Mike Resnick Memorial Award: Best Unpublished Science Fiction Short Story by a New Author. Restrictions: Open to an author who has not had any work published (including short stories, novelettes, novellas, and novels in paper, digital or audio form) that has been paid a per-word rate of 6 cents a word or more or received a payment for any single work of fiction totaling more than $50. Genre: Science fiction short story, up to 7,499 words. Prize: $250.00 and publication. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

EACWP Flash Fiction Contest. Restrictions: The contest is open to any participant living in Europe (including countries culturally linked to Europe such as Russia, Turkey, and Israel). Eleven different European languages will be leading this year’s competition: English, Spanish, Catalan, Portuguese, French, German, Dutch, Finnish, Swedish, Hebrew and Czech. Genre: Flash fiction. Length: 100 words. The topic is "Incorrect." Prize: €600 top prize. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

The Great American Think-Off. Genre: Essay on the theme: “Is freedom of speech worth the cost?” 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, 2024.

Gwenn A. Nusbaum / WWBA Scholarship. Restrictions: Open to poets at the beginning of their careers, ages 25-35 years. Prize: $1800 scholarship. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

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, 2024.

PEN America’s U.S. Writers Aid Initiative. Restrictions: Applicants must be professional writers based in the United States, and be able to demonstrate that this one-time grant will be meaningful in helping address a short-term emergency situation. Prize: Grant, amount not specified. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

Wergle Flomp Humor Poetry Contest. This contest seeks today's best humor poems, published and unpublished. Please enter one poem only, 250 lines max. Prize: $3,500 in prizes, including a top prize of $2,000, and publication on Winning Writers. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

The Maya Angelou Book Award was founded in 2020 to honor the legacy of Missouri-born author Maya Angelou by celebrating contemporary authors whose work has demonstrated a commitment to social justice in America and/or the world. Restrictions: Entrants must be U.S. Citizens and reside within the United States. Entrants must be at least 18 years of age. Prize: $10,000. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

Hurston/Wright Crossover Award. Restrictions: Open to unpublished, Black writers who are 18 years and older. Genre: Literary nonfiction. Submissions may be stand-alone essays or excerpts from a book in progress. Prize: $2000. Deadline: April 2, 2024.

Fabula Press Short Story Contest. Genre: Short Story. Word Count: Not less than 2500 words, and not more than 7000 words. Prize: First Prize: US$500 Second Prize: US$250 Third Prize: US$100. In addition, all authors selected for publication will be paid an honourarium of US$75. Deadline: April 3, 2024.

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: Visual arts, performing arts, literature, technology, and film. Grant: Up to $50,000. Deadline: April 4, 2024.

Bacopa Literary Review. Genres: Fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry. Prizes: First ($200) and Runner-Up ($160) prizes in each genre. All published will receive $20 and a copy of the print journal. After publication, Bacopa will be promoted online. Deadline: April 4, 2024.

Booker International Prize. The Booker International Prize for fiction translated into English is awarded annually by the Booker Prize Foundation to the author of the best (in the opinion of the judges) eligible novel or collection of short stories. Prize: £50,000 divided equally between the author and the translator. There will be a prize of £2,000 each of the shortlisted titles divided equally between the author and the translator. Deadline: For books published between April 1 and Sept 30, 2024 the entry form is due by April 4, 2024.

Furious Fiction. Genre: Flash fiction. "On the first Friday of every month, a new set of story prompts will be revealed. You will have 55 hours to submit your best 500-word (or fewer) story." Prize: $500AUD. Deadline: April 7, 2024. Opens on April 5.

Chief Minister's Northern Territory History Book Award 2024. Restrictions: You must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident to enter. Genre: The Chief Minister's Northern Territory History Book Award recognises the most significant historical book about the Northern Territory published in the previous 12 months. To apply, your book must be a work on Northern Territory history, written in English or one of the First Nations languages of the Northern Territory, available for general sale, and published between 1 January and 31 December 2023. Prize: Recognition. Deadline: April 8, 2024.  

Betty L. Yu and Jin C. Yu Creative Writing Prizes. Restrictions: Open to writers of Taiwanese heritage (or writers with other significant connections to Taiwan), or have subject matter otherwise relevant to the Taiwanese or Taiwanese American experience. Submissions will be considered in four categories: Middle School (enrolled in 6th-8th grade as of the deadline), High School (enrolled in high school as of the deadline), College (enrolled in community college or as an undergraduate as of the deadline), Adult (in any stage of life beyond college). Genre: Any literary genre including fiction, poetry, personal essays or other creative non-fiction. Prize: Grand Prize Winner: $500 – one selection per age category. Finalist: $200 – three selections per age category. Honorable Mention: $75 – at judge’s discretion per age category. Deadline: April 13, 2024.

Pegasus Award for Poetry Criticism. Genre: This prize seeks to honor the best book-length works of criticism published in the US in the prior calendar year, including biographies, essay collections, and critical editions that consider the subject of poetry or poets. Prize: $10,000. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Dodge Poetry Festival. Genre: Poetry. Approximately 10-15 poets will be selected to participate in readings and conversations, in person in Newark, NJ, over the three-day Festival. Prize: Poets will receive an honorarium of $350 per day, and travel and lodging will be covered. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Dancing Poetry Festival. Genre: Poetry. Prize: $100 top prize. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

53-Word Story Contest. Genre: Flash fiction of exactly 53 words. See prompt. Prize: Publication and a free book. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

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, 2024. Genre: Poetry. Prize: $27,000.  Deadline: April 15, 2024. Please register for the online portal by April 8, 2024 if you intend to apply.

The F. Sean Hodge Prize for Poetry in Medicine. Restrictions: Open to current medical students, residents, or fellows or physicians who have completed post-graduate training. Genre: Poetry. Prize: $250. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

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 15, 2024.

The Anonymous Was A Woman Environmental Art Grants (AWAW EAG). Genre: Environmental art projects led by women-identifying artists in the United States and U.S. Territories. Prize: A total of $300,000 in funding—up to $20,000 per project. Deadline: April 16, 2024.

Casa Africa: Purorrelato. Genre: Micro-stories related to Africa. Length: 1500 characters max. The micro-stories can be submitted in Spanish, English, French or Portuguese. Prize: First award: 750 euros, Second award: 375 euros, Third award: 225 euros. Deadline: April 16, 2024.

Arvon Award. Restrictions: Open to writers living in the North of England at the time of entering and planning to remain here for at least another 12 months. Genre: Full-length work of fiction, poetry or narrative non-fiction work in progress. Prize: Arvon course. Deadline: April 17, 2024.

Northern Promise TLC Awards. Restrictions: Open to people who may have faced barriers to seeing their work progress for financial reasons or issues connected to disability, ethnicity and/or sexuality. living in the North of England at the time of entering and planning to remain here for at least another 12 months. Genre: Full-length work of fiction, poetry, narrative non-fiction, or children's book in progress. Prize: In-depth editorial report on their work in progress. In addition to the Free Read, writers will receive £500 and access to the Northern Writers’ Awards Network. Deadline: April 17, 2024.

Scotiabank Giller Prize. Restrictions: Open to books published in Canada in English. Books must be published in Canada in English between March 1, 2024, and April 30, 2024 to be eligible for the 2024 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 19, 2024.

Write the World Competition. Restrictions: Young writers ages 13-19.5. Genre: Nonfiction essay about the planet we call home. Prize: Best Entry: $100; Runner up: $50. Deadline: April 22, 2024. (Note: This is a monthly contest)

Whiting Foundation Creative Nonfiction Grant. Restrictions: Open to US citizens and residents only. Genre: Creative nonfiction. Whiting welcomes submissions for works of history, cultural or political reportage, biography, memoir, the sciences, philosophy, criticism, food or travel writing, and personal essays, among other categories. Writers must be completing a book of creative nonfiction that is currently under contract with a publisher. Prize: $40,000. Deadline: April 23, 2024.

Harper-Wood Creative Writing & Travel Award for English Poetry and Literature. Restrictions: Open to any student who has graduated from any university in the UK, Ireland, the Commonwealth or the USA. Genre: The Award Holder is expected to engage in a course of study or research, and produce a piece of original fiction, drama or poetry. Prize: £18,600 is provided to cover accommodation and living expenses during the course of the year. Deadline: April 24, 2024.

Proud to Be: Writing by American Warriors. Created by the Missouri Humanities Council, the Warrior Arts Alliance, and Southeast Missouri State University Press, this series of anthologies preserves and shares military service perspectives of our soldiers and veterans of all conflicts and of their families. It is not only an outlet for artistic expression but also a document of the unique aspects of wartime in our nation's history. Genres: Poetry, Short Fiction, Essay, Photography, Interview with a Warrior. Prize: $250 and publication. Deadline: April 26, 2024.

Natan Notable Books Award. Genre: Nonfic­­tion book on Jew­ish themes pub­lished for the first time between September 1, 2023 and August 31, 2024. Prize: $5,000. Deadline: April 26, 2024.

The Sophie Coe Prize. Genre: Informative article or essay on any aspect of food history relating to any period, place, people or culture  Prize: £1,500 top prize. Deadline: April 26, 2024. 

Jane Austen Literacy Foundation Writing Competition. Genre: Original, fictional short story.  "The theme of the competition is ‘The Art of Listening’ and you are invited to write an original, fictional short story.  Your short story can be inspired by our theme in any way." Prize: "The winning stories (the winner and two runners up) will be recorded as an audiobook by multi-award winning and best-selling Austen narrator, Alison Larkin, published WORLDWIDE and promoted for all to hear!" Deadline: April 28, 2024. 

Grouse Grind Lit Prize for V: Short Forms. Restrictions: No fee for black and Indigenous writers. Genre: flash fiction and nonfiction, hybrid forms and experimental work welcome. Prize: $500 top prize. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

#GWstorieseverywhere. Genre: Micro fiction. Your story must be no longer than 25 words, with a max of 280 characters, including spaces and the hashtag. See themes. Prize: Free Gotham class. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

October Project. Genre: Poetry. Prizes: To be announced. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Witcraft Monthly Humour Competition. Genre: Humor with the emphasis on wit, word play, absurdity and inspired nonsense. Prize: First prize A$50, second prize A$20, third prize A$10, payable via Paypal only. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Al Blanchard Short Crime Story Award. Genre: Crime short story. 5,000 words maximum, with a New England setting (Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island) or by a New England writer. Mystery, thriller, suspense, caper, and horror genres all welcome. Prize: $100. Deadline: April 30, 2024. 

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, 2024.

The Letter Review Prize. Genre: Short Fiction (up to 5000 words), Poetry, and Unpublished Books. Prize: The top 2-4 winners share equally in the prize pool of $1000 USD. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Atwood Gibson Writers' Trust Fiction Prize. Restrictions: Titles must be published in Canada and written by Canadians. No self-published works. Genre: Fiction.  Prize: $60,000 will be awarded to a novel or short-story collection published between February 27, 2024 and April 29, 2024. Prizes of $5,000 will be awarded to each of the finalists. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Hilary Weston Writers' Trust Prize for Non-Fiction. Genre: Literary non-fiction. Restrictions: Titles must be published in Canada and written by Canadians. Prize: $60,000 will be awarded to a literary nonfiction book published between February 27, 2024 and April 29, 2024. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Writers' Trust Dayne Ogilvie Prize for LGBTQ2S+ Emerging Writers. Restrictions: Open to Canadian LGBTQ+ writers. Genre: Debut book for books published between February 27, 2024 and April 29, 2024. Prize: $10,000. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Sleeping Bear Press: Own Voices, Own Stories Award. Restrictions: Contest is open to new authors who identify as BIPOC and/or LGBTQ+. Applicants must be United States residents and at least 18 years of age. Genre: Short fiction. Submissions should be for ages four through ten and may be fiction, nonfiction, or poetry. Text must come in at under 1,300 words. Prize: Grand Prize winners will receive a $2,000 cash prize, in addition to a publishing contract with advance and royalties standard for new Sleeping Bear Press authors. Honor Award winners will receive a $500 cash prize as well as one consulting session with a Sleeping Bear Press editor. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Baen Fantasy Adventure Award. Genre: Adventure fantasy, 8K words max. Prize: Winner will be published as the featured story on the Baen Books main website and paid at industry-standard rates for professional story submittals. The author will also receive a handsome engraved award and a prize package containing $500 of free Baen Books. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

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, 2024. (For books published between May 1, 2023, and May 31, 2024) 

Erbacce-prize for Poetry (UK) Genre: Poetry collection. Prize: Winner will be given a publishing contract with erbacce press who will publish a perfect-bound collection of the winner's book. "We will pay all costs including the legal registering of the book and supplying copies to the major libraries. The book will be sold through our sales/shop pages and the poet will be paid 20% royalties." Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Jessamy Stursberg Poetry Contest for Canadian Youth. Restrictions: Open to Canadian citizens or residents attending junior high or high school. Genre: Poetry. Prize: C$400 in each of two age categories: Junior (grades 7-9) and Senior (grades 10-12). Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Author of Tomorrow. Restrictions: Open to children and youth up to age 21. Genre: Adventure writing. Prize: 11 and Under | 500 words | Prize: £100 plus £150 book tokens for your school; 12-15 years | 1,500 - 5,000 words | Prize: £100 plus £150 book tokens for your school; 16-21 years | 1,500 - 5,000 words. Prize: £1,000. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

E-waste Scholarship. Restrictions: You must be a high school freshman, sophomore, junior, or senior or a current or entering college or graduate school student of any level. Home schooled students are also eligible. There is no age limit. You must also be a U.S. citizen or legal resident. Genre: 500- to 1,000-word essay about e-waste. Prize: $1000 scholarship. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Miami Book Fair’s Emerging Writer Fellowship. Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, poetry. "EWF supports developing writers who demonstrate exceptional talent and promise by providing them with time, space, and an intellectually and culturally rich artistic community. The program’s goal is to actively support these writers – who are working to complete a book-length project within a year – and help them launch their literary careers. Emerging Writer fellows are granted professional experience in arts administration, teaching creative writing, and other opportunities; a $50,000 stipend; and strong literary community support to allow for 12 glorious months of uninterrupted time to craft their works." Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Preservation Foundation Essay Contest for Unpublished Writers. Restrictions: The contest is open to writers whose creative writing has never produced revenues of over $250 in any single year. Genre: Animal Nonfiction. “Stories should be factual and true accounts of an encounter or encounters by the author with a wild animal or animals. These include, but are not limited to, birds, fish, butterflies, snails, lions, bears, turtles, wombats, etc., as long as it is not a pet.” Prize: First prize is $200. Runners-up will receive $100. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Claudia Ann Seaman Awards For Young Writers. Restrictions: High school students. Genre: Stories and poems. Prize: $200. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

CNO Naval History Essay Contest. Genre: Scholarly essay on naval history.  Prize: First Prize: $5,000. Second Prize:$2,500. Third Prize: $1,500. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

The Ursula K. Le Guin Prize for Fiction. Genre: A book-length work of imaginative fiction written by a single author published in the U.S. in English or in translation to English. (In the case of a translated work winning the Prize, the cash prize will be equally divided between author and translator) Publication date between April 1, 2023 and March 31, 2024. Prize: $25,000. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Rattle's Ekphrastic Challenge. Genre: Poetry responding to visual art. (See site) Prize: $100 and publication. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Furphy Literary Award. Genre: Short stories up to 5000 words, Theme: Australian Life in all its diversity. Prize: First prize of $15,000 in the open category (2nd prize - $ 3,000,  3rd prize - $2,000.  A junior & youth category with a prize pool of $1800 will seek entries for short stories and poetry. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Ralph Angel Poetry Prize. Genre: Poetry. Prize: $250 and publication. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Substack runs a monthly short story competition. Their mission is to "revive the art of the short story, support artists, and produce something wonderful." Genre: Short story. Length: 6000- 10,000 words. Prize: $100 plus 50% of subscription revenue to be sent by Paypal, Zelle, or check. Deadline: April 30, 2024. Reprints are ok so long as you still have the rights to distribute.

52 Awesome Writing Conferences and Workshops in April 2024

This April there are more than four dozen writing conferences and workshops. Some conferences and workshops will be held online, but most will be held in person or use a hybrid format.

These writing events offer everything a writer might want: intensive workshops, pitch sessions with agents, to how to market yourself and your books, discussions - there is something for everyone.

For a full list of conferences held throughout the year see Writing Conferences. If you miss an application deadline, put it on your calendar for next year. Quite a few conferences offer scholarships, so apply early. Plan ahead!

Be sure to check out Highlights list of workshops. They offer many throughout the year. 

(Image: Monterey, Get Archive)

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Rananim online classes Courses run for eight weeks from April through May. "Participants receive personalized feedback on assignments from their instructor, as well as responses from classmates on discussion board forums. All instructors are university professors and/or working professional writers, who have experience teaching at the Taos Summer Writers’ Conference. Classes are limited to 15 students who will engage in conversation with you and your work. Firm deadlines and feedback help keep you writing and improving your work throughout the class." International students accepted. Cost: $400 per class.

Writing About Mental Health for MG and YA Readers: A Two-Night Mini. April 2 - 4, 2024: Online. Join middle grade novelist Crystal Allen and young adult author and pediatric neuropsychologist Katie Keridan to consider what it takes to develop authentic representations of mental health that hold reality and hope throughout your novel.

Beall Poetry Festival. April 3 - 5, 2024, Waco, TX. The festival features readings, panel discussions, and the Virginia Beall Ball Lecture on Contemporary Poetry. Participating poets include Major Jackson, Ruben Quesada, Tracy K. Smith, Allison Benis White, and a Poetry Panel. All events are free and open to the public.

The Monterey Writer Retreat in California. April 3 - 7, 2024: Monterey, CA. Participants in the Monterey Writer Retreat will work one-on-one with two of the best literary "closers" in the business: Paula Munier, Michael Neff, and Jennifer Sander combine 60 years of working with aspiring authors and ushering them to publication. They will be available for multiple private consultations from 9 AM to noon and 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM each day of the retreat. Choice of sessions and focus will be up to each individual writer. 

Stories Your Collection Can Tell: A Larksong Bootcamp for Poets. April 3, 10, 17, 24, 2024: Larksong Writers Place, 1600 N. Cotner Blvd., Lincoln, NE.  "Are you looking to not only consider individual poems, but also look at the sequencing of a collection as a whole? Maybe you’re looking for a workshop for like-minded poets at this stage of their writing who want to be the best they can be, and you want to join them? If any of that is true, a Larksong Bootcamp workshop is for you. The Bootcamps are taught by various teachers and in various genres at various times, so if you can't make one, keep coming back to see if the next one fits your needs."

Tennessee Mountain Writers Annual Conference. April 4 - 6 2024: Oak Ridge, TN. Writing Contests, Workshops, Networking, Manuscript Evaluations, Publishers, Book Signings, Bookstore, Vendors, And more!

Breakout Novel Intensive 2.0. April 4 - 10, 2024: Hood River, OR. Included are new or revised units on story discovery, strong voice, standout characters, the inner journey, compelling story worlds, beautiful writing, creating resonance and finding meaning in both story and process. Breakout fundamentals are also covered: strong characters, inner conflict, personal stakes, plot layers, powerful scenes, micro-tension, practical theme techniques and much more. Instructor: Donald Maass. 

Buffalo Writing Workshop. April 5, 2024: Buffalo, NY. This is a special one-day in-person “How to Get Published” writing workshop at the Embassy Suites by Hilton Buffalo. In other words, it’s one day full of classes and advice designed to give you the best instruction concerning how to get your writing & books published. We’ll discuss your publishing opportunities today, how to write queries & pitches, how to market yourself and your books, what makes an agent/editor stop reading your manuscript, and more. No matter what you’re writing — fiction or nonfiction — the day’s classes will help point you in the right direction. Writers of all genres are welcome.

The 2024 Writing Workshop of San Francisco. April 5 - 6, 2024: Online. A full-day “How to Get Published” event. "This writing event is a wonderful opportunity to get intense instruction over the course of one day, pitch a literary agent or editor (optional), get your questions answered, and more." Online format.

WriteAngles. April 6, 2024: Northampton, Massachusetts. Panels and workshops, keynote speaker Honorée Fanonne Jeffers, a limited number of agent meetings. Continental breakfast, and buffet lunch included. 

The 2024 Minnesota Writing Workshop. April 6, 2024: St. Paul, MN. "This is a special one-day “How to Get Published” writing workshop. In other words, it’s one day full of classes and advice designed to give you the best instruction concerning how to get your writing & books published. We’ll discuss your publishing opportunities today, how to write queries & pitches, how to market yourself and your books, what makes an agent/editor stop reading your manuscript, and more. No matter what you’re writing — fiction or nonfiction — the day’s classes will help point you in the right direction. Writers of all genres are welcome."

The Sundress Academy for the Arts: “And yet … There’s still Joy”: April 10, 2024. Online. Joy as an Act of Resistance in Poetry. Throughout this workshop, participants will learn how other poets over time have experienced and explored joy in their writing. We will read and listen to poems and discuss how joy shows up in poetry, from the small joys in everyday life to healing through trauma. We will specifically explore the work of Toi Derricotte, her usage of “joy as an act of resistance,” and how we can use our writing to explore and experience more deeply the small moments of joy in our daily lives.

Las Vegas Writer’s Conference April 11 – 13, 2024: Las Vegas, Nevada. Join writing professionals, agents publishers and marketing experts for a weekend of workshops and enlightening discussions about the publishing industry. A chance to pitch your manuscript and ideas to agents. 

Write Stuff Writers Conference. April 11 -13, 2024: Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. 20 workshops, Agent./Editor pitch sessions, marketing consults plus lunch and Keynote address, Book Fair, Flash Literature Writing Contest, Door Prizes. Featuring: Jonathan Maberry.

Idaho Writers League Annual Conference. April 11 - 13, 2024: Boise, Idaho. Our theme: The Lifelong Author. Do you want to do this writing thing for life? No matter whether that means self-publishing or traditional publishing, part-time writing or making this your career, doing this for life requires a mindset and strategy that anyone can learn. And we’re bringing experts from everywhere to teach you how: from the writer’s life to marketing your work, from the business of writing to improving your craft. They include J. Thorn, Nick Thacker, our keynote speaker, James A. Owen. 

Kenyon Review Writers Workshops. June 24 - 29, 2024: Gambier, Ohio. Workshops in poetry, fiction, and nonfiction led by an accomplished faculty. Genre workshops (Fiction, Literary Nonfiction, and Poetry) are held for three hours each morning. Online. Applications close April 12, 2024.

Ozarks Writers League Conference. April 12 - 13, 2024: Branson, MO. The Ozarks Writers League is a group of like-minded individuals dedicated to promoting writing, literacy, photography, and art. Since 1983, OWL has welcomed individuals at all stages of their development. 

Writing Through Trauma to Empower Readers: A Working In-Community Retreat for Storytellers. April 11 - April 14, 2024: Boyds Mills, PA. A 3-night/4-day writing retreat for authors who are crafting books for kids and teens that center their lived experiences in areas of trauma, mental health, grief, and beyond.

Breaks, Blank Space, and Gaps: Poetic Gutters in Novels in Verse and Poetry. April 11 - 18, 2024: Online. How you use stanza breaks, blank space, and the gaps between poems affects the way that readers engage with your story. Join author Laura Shovan for an exploration of how we can use poetic gutters with intention to ensure active reading.

Florida Writing Workshop. April 12 (Tampa) and 13 (Orlando), 2024. Two separate full-day “How to Get Published” writing events in Florida — Tampa (April 12, 2024) and Orlando (April 13, 2024). "These writing events are a wonderful opportunity to get intense instruction over the course of one day, pitch a literary agent or editor (optional), get your questions answered, and more. Note that there are limited seats at the events. All questions about the events regarding schedule, details and registration are answered below. Thank you for your interest in the 2024 Florida Writing Workshops! We are very proud of our many success stories where attendees sign with agents following events — see our growing list of success stories here."

Authorpreneur Workshop. April 13, 2024: Red Bank, NJ. During this retreat like full day workshop authors have the opportunity to attend various Presentations, pitch Literary Agents and Editors (Optional), get work critiqued by Agents and Editors (Optional), attend the Critical Mass: First Page Critique Literary Agent and Editor Panel, and Network with authors and industry professionals all day long and during a Networking Mixer following the event on Saturday afternoon.

San Antonio Book Festival. April 13, 2024: San Antonio, TX. The San Antonio Book Festival is a FREE, annual, daylong event that unites readers and writers in a celebration of ideas, books, libraries, and literary culture. Featuring more than 80 nationally and regionally acclaimed authors, the Festival offers programming for all ages.

Rally of Writers Conference. April 13, 2024: Lansing, Michigan. Michigan authors and educators in 15 breakout sessions and workshops on all aspects of writing, including poetry, fiction, nonfiction, screenwriting, the Nuts & Bolts of manuscript submissions, and more. 

Writing in the Pines. April 13, 2024 (in person), Stockton University, Galloway, NJ. Choose from workshops in memoir, poetry and revision. Each workshop will meet for 6 hours and will offer craft discussion, writing prompts, writing time, sharing and inspiration. 

West Chester Pop Up Poetry Spring Festival. April 14 - 15, 2024: West Chester, PA. "Celebrating National Poetry Month, we embrace Renaissance! Our gathering is infused by hope, cast in appreciation for the possibilities inherent in the rigors of creating, the craft of revising, the challenge of teaching, the rewards of learning, and the joy of performing and publishing poetry for both new and established poets.  We hope you join our two-day event in April with Patricia Smith as Keynote Speaker (bio), the Spencer Undergraduate Poetry Awards ceremony, outdoor readings, and much more on the beautiful West Chester University campus."

Working (PLAYING) Retreat: Artistic Play and Exploration. April 14 - 17, 2024: Boyds Mills, PA. Join the creative duo of Denise Fleming and Ashley Wolff for time to create and connect. (They asked us to include "PLAYING" in the title for this special program, because their sessions will center play and exploration, and celebrate your artistic creativity!)

Non-Traditional Picture Book Structure: A Two-Night Mini. April 15 - 17, 2024: Online. Picture book journeys aren’t one size fits all, and that’s a good thing! Join children’s book author Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen and literary agent Rachel Orr to celebrate alternative approaches to picture book structures.

Emotions in Nonfiction Picture Books: A Two-Night Mini. April 16 - 18, 2024: Online. Picture books open the world of information to readers. Join children’s book author Heidi E.Y. Stemple and editor Eileen Robinson to explore the many ways to infuse emotion into your nonfiction picture book, and hook and inspire your readers. 

Before the Book: A Two-Night Mini to Get Organized and Get to the Heart of Your Story. April 16 - 18, 2024: Online. Getting ready to write a novel doesn’t just mean finding a computer or the right pen—you also need to spend time considering the elements that bring emotion and structure to your story. Join author Jennifer Gennari for this short course to learn tangible techniques for getting organized, and getting to the heart of what you need to know about your story—even before you’ve written a word!

Magpie Poems. April 16 - May 14, 2024: Online. As poets, we depend on our five senses to make images and music on the page. What surprising things will happen to our poems if we allow other artistic disciplines to inspire our content and form? We’ll learn from poets like Tyehimba Jess, Frank O’Hara and Eduardo Corral, and explore artists whose work crosses genres, including Renee Gladman and Lenka Clayton. Drawing from creative mediums like traditional ekphrasis, collage, sculpture, song and more, we’ll challenge the boundaries of the poem on the page and imagine it in constant conversation with its aural and visual neighbors. Poets of all levels are invited to create something new or revive existing work each week in this supportive workshop.

The Crash Course in Children’s Book Publishing (Spring). April 16 - June 18, 2024: Online. Join lead faculty Harold Underdown and special guests for a Crash Course in Children’s Publishing. At the end of the course, you will understand how the children’s book publishing industry works, including submitting, publishing, marketing a book for children, teens, or young adults, and beginning ideas about craft and critique.

Just Do It! Your Collaborative Support Group for Finishing Your Draft (Spring/Summer). April 17 - June 5, 2024. This supportive program takes all creatives (nonfiction or fiction, picture books, novels, essays, and more) from goal-stating to finished drafts. Together, we’ll move through live sessions, writing prompts, studio dates, daily inspirations, check-ins, feedback, and more.

Chicago-North RWA's Spring Fling. April 18 - 20, 2024: Oak Brook, IL. Three day Biennial writer's conference geared towards both aspiring and established writers of any genre but focused on romantic fiction. Bookseller/Blogger/Librarian event, Masterclass in Craft and Marketing, Closing Gala. 

Chanticleer Authors Conference. April 18 - 21, 2024: Bellingham, Wash. Sessions with a special focus on the business of being a working writer on topics such as marketing, publicity, platform, sales tools & strategies, publishing, production, distribution, organization, storycraft, editing, and more. 

Kentucky Writing Workshop, April 19, 2024: Louisville, KY. This is a special one-day “How to Get Published” writing workshop on Friday, April 19, 2024, at the Kentucky International Convention Center. In other words, it’s one day full of classes and advice designed to give you the best instruction concerning how to get your writing & books published. We’ll discuss your publishing opportunities today, how to write queries & pitches, how to market yourself and your books, what makes an agent/editor stop reading your manuscript, and more. No matter what you’re writing — fiction or nonfiction — the day’s classes will help point you in the right direction. Writers of all genres are welcome.

Authors' Salon at Clockwork Alchemy. April 19 - 21, 2024: San Mateo, California. Clockwork Alchemy is the San Francisco area's own steampunk convention. Originally a part of FanimeCon, Clockwork Alchemy is now its own independent event celebrating music, makers, dancing, writing, crafting, fashion, and fun related to steampunk!

Multiple Narrator Novels: A Two Night Mini. April 19 - 21, 2024: Online. Join authors Meera Trehan and Sarah Kapit to explore techniques and innovative choices when bringing multiple narrators to your middle grade or young adult novel.

Monadnock Pastoral Poetry Retreat. April 19 - 21, 2024. Greenfield, NH.  Includes workshops, individual conferences, participant & mentor readings; hiking & kayaking (weather permitting). Each workshop uses dual mentors.

Poetry at Round Top Festival. April 19 - 21, 2024: Round Top, Texas. Featuring: Pádraig Ó Tuama, Kimiko Hahn, Kim Stafford, James Crews, Danusha Laméris, ire’ne lara silva, José Antonio Rodríguez. 

North Carolina Writers’ Network Spring Conference. April 20, 2024: University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, North Carolina. Features intensive workshops in poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction, as well as publisher exhibits, on-site "lunch with an author" readings, and an open mic. 

San Diego Writing Workshop. April 20, 2024: San Diego, CA. This is a special one-day “How to Get Published” writing workshop. In other words, it’s one day full of classes and advice designed to give you the best instruction concerning how to get your writing & books published. We’ll discuss your publishing opportunities today, how to write queries & pitches, how to market yourself and your books, what makes an agent/editor stop reading your manuscript, and more. No matter what you’re writing — fiction or nonfiction — the day’s classes will help point you in the right direction. Writers of all genres are welcome. 

Tennessee Writing Workshop. April 20, 2024: Nashville, TN. This is a special one-day “How to Get Published” writing workshop. In other words, it’s one day full of classes and advice designed to give you the best instruction concerning how to get your writing & books published. We’ll discuss your publishing opportunities today, how to write queries & pitches, how to market yourself and your books, what makes an agent/editor stop reading your manuscript, and more. No matter what you’re writing — fiction or nonfiction — the day’s classes will help point you in the right direction. Writers of all genres are welcome. 

Blurred Lines: Writing Speculative Nonfiction. April 20 - May 18, 2024: Online. Though the golden rule of writing nonfiction is to be truthful, in speculative nonfiction, invention and imagination help a writer capture and hold truth’s slippery nature. In this five-week online workshop, we will read examples of speculative nonfiction by other writers like Margot Jefferson, Elissa Washuta and Jami Nakamura Lin, and learn how to draft scenes where facts are not fighting with what is imagined. Through exercises that employ both fiction and speculative nonfiction techniques, we will generate new material or fine-tune pieces already in progress. This workshop is open to new and more experienced writers looking to set their minds free—to use fact to explore fiction, blur the lines and create your own truth.

Nebraska Writers Guild Annual Conference and Writing Retreat. April 25 - 27, 2024: Omaha, NE. Workshops, pitch sessions with an agent and writing sessions followed by evening keynote speakers.

IBPA Publishing University. April 25 - 27, 2024: Denver, Colorado. The Independent Book Publishers Association offers 30+ educational sessions including experiential learning labs, insightful keynotes, a gala book award ceremony, networking events, and more! 

The Pikes Peak Writers Conference. April 25 -  April 28, 2024: Colorado Springs, Colorado. "The three-day conference is full of topical, in-depth workshops, dynamic keynote speakers, opportunities for one-on-one time with agents and editors, the chance to read your work aloud for constructive critique, plus time to socialize with fellow writers. Will be held in person.

Whole Novel Workshop: A Virtual Course for Middle Grade and Young Adult Writers. April 25 - June 27, 2024: Online. A transformative opportunity to have your entire draft (up to 80,000 words) of a novel read by faculty, with detailed written feedback and a private consultation provided. This online program is for any writer of a middle grade or young adult novel. Apply by March 15.

Writing and Illustrating for Kids (WIK): Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. April 26 - 28, 2024: Homewood, Alabama. "Gather with fellow writers, illustrators, translators, agents, editors, and other children's book publishing professionals for a day of craft, networking, professional development, and community. Make new connections, meet new friends, learn and explore, and refine your creative and business skills to move your kidlit career forward. With optional pre-conference intensives offered on Friday afternoon, April 26, and a free kidlit creators' social and trivia night event that evening, this will be a weekend to remember!"

Malice Domestic. April 26 - 28, 2024, Bethesda, MD. Malice Domestic™ is an annual fan convention in the metropolitan DC area that celebrates the traditional mystery, books best typified by the works of Agatha Christie. The genre is loosely identified as mysteries which contain no explicit sex, or excessive gore, or violence. 

The Creativity Workshop in New York. April 26-29, 2024: New York, New York. "The Creativity Workshops take away the fear of writing and open the way to new ideas. They are especially helpful for writers in fiction, poetry, memoir, theatre and film to get over writing blocks. In our Creativity Workshop Retreats you will generate both new work and ideas for the work you are in the midst of creating. We use many different techniques to help you find your way through the novel, essay, poem, memoir, or script you are writing or hope to write. In The Creativity Workshop you will be doing free writing, writing from guided visualizations, collaborative writing, journaling and memoir work and even some rudimentary drawing, collage and photography." 

Philadelphia Writing Workshop. April 27, 2024: Philadelphia, PA.  This is a special one-day “How to Get Published” writing workshop on Saturday, April 22, 2023, at the Philadelphia Convention Center. In other words, it’s one day full of classes and advice designed to give you the best instruction concerning how to get your writing & books published. We’ll discuss your publishing opportunities today, how to write queries & pitches, how to market yourself and your books, what makes an agent/editor stop reading your manuscript, and more. No matter what you’re writing — fiction or nonfiction — the day’s classes will help point you in the right direction. Writers of all genres are welcome.

Atlanta Self-Publishing Conference. April 27, 2024: Dunwoody, Georgia. The Atlanta Self-Publishing Conference (ASPC) is dedicated to serving self-published authors and the independent publishing market. No matter whether you're curious about the self-publishing market or you want to learn how to grow your independent author business, our conference will help you launch your career forward.

Northeast Texas Writers Organization. April 30, 2024: Mt Pleasant, TX. Speakers: Michael Wigington: World Building vs. Setting. C.I. Chevron: Writing with Bated Breath, Michael Scott Clifton: Journey into the Realm of Magic and Mystery.