102 Calls for Submissions in September 2025 - Paying Markets

This September 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!

Note: I update this list continually throughout the month, so check back frequently for new submission calls.

(Image: Pickpik)

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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: Opens September 1, 2025.

Certain Age is looking for gorgeous essays, fiction, poetry, art, photography and video work from creative people "of a certain age" and a lot of attitude. Payment: $75. Deadline: Opens September 1, 2025.

IHRAM Publishes. Genre: Poetry, fiction, esssays, art. Theme: Enduring Voices: Life with Disabilities and Chronic Illnesses. Payment: $50 for writing, $25 for art. Deadline: September 1, 2025.

Bog Matter. Genre: Fiction, poetry, and graphic shorts that could be described as science fiction, horror, fantasy, magical realism, slipstream, New Weird, utopian, dystopian, satirical, cross-genre, experimental, or exuding a general air of oddness. Payment: 2 cents/word. Deadline: September 1, 2025.

Affirm Press. Restrictions: Open to Australians only. Genre: All literary and genre fiction. For non-fiction, they are interested in most subjects that have a connection to Australia. authors or authors based in Australia, and only manuscripts that haven’t been previously published. They only accept submissions on the first Monday of each month. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: September 1, 2025.

The Forge Literary Magazine. Genre: Prose. They prefer stories under 3,000 words but will consider up to 5,000 words. Payment: $100. Deadline: Opens September 1, 2025. Free submissions open on the 1st of each month and close when cap is reached.

Solstitia. Genre: All genres and forms. Payment: $50. Deadline: September 1, 2025.

Philadelphia Stories. Restrictions: Open to authors living in, or originally from, Pennsylvania, Delaware, or New Jersey. Genre: fiction, poetry, nonfiction, and art. Payment: $50. Deadline: September 1, 2025.

Fourteen Poems Genre: Poems. "We want to represent all that's thrilling about the new wave of LGBT+ poets. If you’re a poet, even if you’ve never been published before, we want to read your work. Every issue we publish 14 of the best queer poems we’ve found, and we want to include you! We publish 4 times a year, but take submissions all year round. To be considered, email up to 5 poems, preferably in a pdf format, with a small paragraph about yourself." Payment: £30 for each poem published. Deadline: September 1, 2025.

Teach. Write. Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, flash fiction, poetry, CNF. "I prefer writing that is either written by composition teachers and writing students or about teaching and learning." Payment: $15. Deadline: September 1, 2025.

Ricochet Editions. Genre: Hybrid/Experimental work between 40 and 200 pages. "We are looking for purposeful experimentation with language and form that challenges or plays with convention." Payment: $500 and 50 copies of the perfect-bound book. Deadline: September 1, 2025. No submission fee for POC and Indigenous writers and writers facing financial hardship.

The Other Stories (Audio). Genre: Horror on themes. Payment: 15 GBT. Deadline: September 1, 2025. See themes.

Red Wolf Editions. Genre: Poems on theme: “Recovering Greenness.” Payment: Royalties? Deadline: September 1, 2025. (?)

Toronto Journal. Genre: Short stories from anywhere in the world. No word limit. "We will also consider non-fiction pieces that are either set locally or explore some local history (Toronto, GTA, and surrounding)." Payment: $50 CAD per piece. All published writers will also receive two printed copies of the issue in which they appear. Deadline: September 1, 2025.

Phi Kappa Phi Forum. Genre: Poetry. See theme. Payment: $4/ line. Deadline: September 2, 2025.

Cosmic Roots and Eldritch Shores. Genre: Speculative stories. Payment: 8 cents/word for original work. 2 cents/word for reprints. Deadline: September 2, 2025. Opens September 1.

Sunlight Press. Genre: Poetry, CNF. Payment: $50. Deadline: Opens September 2, 2025.

Tyche Books. Genre: Speculative fiction. See theme. Payment: $20 CAD for poems, $50 CAD for short stories. Deadline: September 3, 2025.

Stone's Throw. Genre: Noir, dark fiction, crime short stories. Length: between 1,000 and 2,000 words. See theme. Payment: $25. Deadline: September 4, 2025. Note: This is a monthly call.

University of Queensland Press. Restrictions: Open to Australian citizens or permanent residents. Genre: Nonfiction manuscripts. UQP is currently seeking adult non-fiction submissions that address environmental sustainability and the climate crisis. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: September 7, 2025.

Raconteur Press. Genre: Stories about monsters with a retro feel. Tales in the vein of Roger Corman, Harry Harryhausen, Christopher Lee, Bob Wilkins, and so on. Giant killer kaijus! Genetic experiments! A creature feature of tentacles, gill-men, and were-beasts! Are those skeletons walking around? Payment: Royalties. Deadline: September 7, 2025.

Black Inc. Restrictions: Open to Australians. Genre: Full-length general, literary and commercial non-fiction – including history, current affairs, memoir and biography. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: September 7, 2025. This is a monthly call.

Trans Survivors Zine. Genre: Trans and nonbinary art. See theme. Payment: $25. Deadline: September 8, 2025.

Runher. Genre: Nonfiction narrative, longform storytelling around female, trans, and nonbinary athletes. Payment: $0.50 to $1 per word. Deadline: September 8, 2025.

Uncanny Magazine. Genre: Speculative fiction. Payment: 10 cents/word. Deadline: September 8, 2025.

Samjoko Magazine. Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, play, screenplay. Payment: $20. Deadline: September 10, 2025.

Vellum Mortis. Genre: Horror. Length: 1000 words max. See theme. Payment: $5. Deadline: September 10, 2025.

Shenandoah. Genre: Fiction. Payment: $80 per 1000 words of prose up to $400. Deadline: Opens September 10, 2025, and closes when they reach capacity.

Book Worms. Genre: Horror: fiction, poetry, and essays. See theme. Length: Up to 1,500 words. Payment: 8 cents/word. Deadline: September 10, 2025.

Quarter Press: Quarter(ly). Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, art. See themes. Payment: $5. Deadline: September 14, 2025. Closes when cap is reached.

Cast of Wonders. Genre: YA Speculative fiction. Podcast. See themes. 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: September 14, 2025.

Tin House. Genre: Debut Short Story Collections. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: September14, 2025. Opens September 13.

Plott Hound. Genre: Speculative fiction starring animals. Payment: 8 cents/word. Deadline: September 15, 2025.

Words Without Borders. Genre: Original translations into English of contemporary fiction, nonfiction, poetry, drama, and interviews, and related multimedia, as well as critical essays, book reviews, and interviews written in English. They do not publish fiction, poetry, or drama originally written in English, and they do not consider work that has already been published in English translation. Average word count is 2,000–2,500 words; they do not accept work that exceeds 4,000 words. Payment: Poetry: $50–75 for a single poem, depending on length; rates for multiple poems are negotiated based on length; Fiction: $150/1,000 words, capped at $300; Nonfiction: $150/1000 words, capped at $300; Selection and compilation of features: $250; Interviews: $150; Book reviews: $150. Deadline: Opens September 15, 2025.

Metphrastics: Arms & Armor. Genre: Poetry focusing on the Met’s extensive Arms & Armor collection. "Send us your poems about battle, armor, shields, masks, war (or fear of war), and anything else inspired by these extraordinary pieces. The poems should be based on works on display only, that a visitor could go and encounter in person.” Payment: $10 per poem. Deadline: September 15, 2025.

Tales and Feathers. Genre: Cozy SFF fiction up to 2500 words. Payment: 14 cents CAD/word. Deadline: Deadline: September 15, 2025 extended deadline for trans, disabled, and/or BIPOC creators.

Augur Magazine. Genre: Speculative fiction. Payment: $0.14 cents (CAD) per word for short fiction (1000+ words), and a flat fee of $112.00 per flash fiction piece (1000 words and under); $100 per poem. Deadline: September 15, 2025 extended deadline for  trans, disabled, and/or BIPOC creators and creators residing in Canada/Turtle Island.

Quest: Thresholds. Genre: Fiction, including serialized fiction, nonfiction, poetry, comics, art, and music on the theme: Thresholds. Payment: $12-100 for written work and $25-100 per installation of story. Deadline: September 15, 2025.

No Gods No Masters. Genre: Short stories. See theme. Payment: €200. Deadline: September 15, 2025.

Sublimation. Genre: Speculative poetry and art. See theme. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: September 15, 2025.

Rat Bag. Genre: Fiction that crosses genres and blurs the lines between literary and genre. Payment: $1 - $10. Deadline: September 15, 2025. Closes when cap is reached.

Eye to the Telescope: Cyberpunk. Genre: Speculative poetry. Theme: Cyberpunk. Payment: $0.05/word (up to $25). Deadline: September 15, 2025.

Novellum. Genre: Short stories, poetry, novellas, art. Payment: "Competitive rates." Deadline: September 15, 2025.

Lonely Cryptid: Trans/Port: Trans Speculative Fiction for a Queer Future. Genre: Speculative fiction. "The title of this anthology is intentionally open to interpretation. Give us trans like transporting, transforming, translating, transmitting, transcendental, transistor (radio? Sure!), and of course transgender! Give us port like any port in a storm, jacking in, porting software, and like we’ve opened a portal to another (better?) world!" Payment: 1 cent/word. Deadline: September 15, 2025.

Kopi Break. Restrictions: Open to those affiliated with Singapore and the Singaporean diaspora. Genre: Poetry. Payment: $10. Deadline: September 15, 2025.

Philly Poetry Chapbook Review. Genre: Reviews of chapbooks coming soon or published in the past three years, essays on the crafts of poetry and chapbook making or publishing, and features about authors or publishers of chapbooks. Payment: $10. Deadline: September 15, 2025.

Penumbric. Genre: Speculative fiction, poetry, art, animation, and music. Payment: $10. Deadline: September 15, 2025.

Three-Lobed Burning Eye. Genre: Horror, fantasy, and science fiction. Payment: $0.08/word. Deadline: September 16, 2025.

Westerly. Genre: Short stories, poetry, memoir and creative non-fiction, essays and literary criticism. Payment: Poems: $250 for one poem or $300 for two or more poems; Prose: $500; Visual art/Intro essay: $620; Online Publication: $250. Deadline: September 17, 2025.

Fantasy Magazine: Transition, Migration, and Borders: Movement in, and of the Body. Genre: fantastical stories and poetry that invoke an exploration of what is possible through transition and movement in, and of the body. Payment: 10¢/word for original fiction and $50 for original poetry. Deadline: September 17, 2025.

Havok. Genre: Flash fiction. See themes. Payment: $50 via PayPal for each story selected for an Anthology. No payment for online publication. Deadline: September 19, 2025.

Raconteur Press. Genre: Stories about mercenaries and their adventures. Think Black Company, Hammer’s Slammers, Strange Company, Jon Sable, Phule’s Company, some cranially-iffy guy named Roland, and so on. Mercenaries aren’t obligated to maintain the same moral/ethical standards a soldier is expected to. They may also be the only ones able to pull off a mission when the uniformed military is unable to do so. Not limited to a specific timeframe or setting. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: September 21, 2025.

Translunar Travelers Lounge. Restrictions: September 15 - 21 is reserved for writers of color. Genre: Speculative fiction. Payment: $0.03 per word with a minimum of $20. Deadline: September 21, 2025.

Strange Pilgrims. Genre: Fiction, nonfiction. "The work we’re drawn to is surreal, philosophical, sincere, and unforgettable — stories and essays that get under your skin and reach the heart of the human condition." Payment: $200 per short story/essay, $50 per flash piece. Deadline: Opens September 21, 2025.

Electric Lit: The Commuter. Genre: Poetry, flash, graphic, and experimental narratives. Payment: $100. Deadline: September 21, 2025.

Reckoning. Genre: Art, poetry, short fiction, and creative nonfiction up to 15,000 words in length. See theme. Payment: 10 cents per word (US) for prose, $50 per page for poetry and art. Deadline: September 22, 2025.

Tiny Ghost Press is looking for young adult novels written from a queer perspective. That is, stories featuring a queer protagonist or from a queer author. "We're interested in everything from contemporary romance, to dystopian adventures, and if your story dabbles in the spooky, the supernatural, or the paranormal, or has a speculative element even better! We're especially looking for stories featuring trans, BIPOC, and neurodivergent characters in lead roles written by authors from these communities." Read submission guidelines HERE. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: September 23, 2025.

The Ex-Puritan. Genres: Fiction, nonfiction, poetry. Payment: $100 per nonfiction piece, $50 fiction, $15 per poem. Deadline: September 25, 2025.

Stygian Lepus Magazine. Genre: Dark speculative fiction. Payment: $5. Deadline: September 25, 2025. This is a monthly call.

The Pretentious Literarian. Genre: Micro/short/flash fiction or CNF. All genres. Word count: 500-5000. Payment: $5. Deadline: September 25, 2025. This is a monthly call.

The Book of Cardiff. Genre: Stories set in Cardiff. Payment: "Standard author fees." Deadline: September 26, 2025.

Gap Riot. Genre: Experimental, visual, innovative, and genre-blurring feminist poetry by primarily Canadian poets. Length: Short short chapbooks (absolute max 20 pages). Payment: Royalties, after first 20 copies have sold. Deadline: September 26, 2025.

Flame Tree: Folklore & Horror Short Stories. Genre: Stories rooted in the dark side of the land and nature, of global mythologies and folktales, of ritual and isolation. Payment: 8 cents/6 pence per word for original stories, 6 cents/4 pence for reprints. Deadline: September 26, 2025.

Rough Cut Press. Genre: Short prose from the LGBTQIA community on theme: Silence. Payment: $25. Deadline: September 27, 2025.

Jacaranda Books. Genre: Full-length Romance, Horror, and Fantasy. Please note no short stories or short story collections will be accepted. Non-Fiction categories include: narrative nonfiction, historical nonfiction, travel writing, expository nonfiction and the occasional memoir. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: September 28, 2025.

Flame Tree: Christmas Ghosts Short Stories. Genre: Horror about Christmas ghosts. Payment: 8 cents/6 pence per word for original stories, 6 cents/4 pence for reprints. Deadline: September 28, 2025.

Griffith Review. Genre: Poetry. Theme: On the Money. Payment: $200AUD. Deadline: September 28, 2025.

Story Unlikely. Genre: Fiction and nonfiction up to 10,000 words. Payment: 8 cents a word for stories up to 2,500 words. Stories longer than this are capped at $200 payment. $75 max for reprints. Deadline: September 29, 2025. Accepts reprints.

Split Lip Magazine. Genre: Fiction (flash and short stories), memoirs, and poetry. with a pop-culture twist. Payment: $75 for poems, memoirs, flash, fiction, and art, $50 for interviews/reviews, and $25 for mini-reviews web issues. Deadline: September 30, 2025. Closes when they reach capacity, so submit early.

Short Story, Long. Genre: Short stories, 2k-8k words long (3,000-5,500 range preferred). Payment: $100. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Easton Tales: Stolen. Genre: Horror. See theme. Payment: $10CAD. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Trollbreath Magazine. Genre: Speculative fiction, poetry, and non-fiction. Payment: 4 cents/word. 1/2 cent/word for reprints. Deadline: September 30, 2025. Accepts reprints.

A Band of Trolls. Genre: Fantasy short stories and poetry. Payment: £10. Deadline: September 30, 2025. Reprints accepted.

Open Secrets. Genre: Original, unpublished 1,000-2,500-word personal essays that explore transformative, powerful human experiences, especially those that are often kept secret or hidden. Payment: $50. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Toad Shade Zine. Genre: Horror on theme "We're all going to die." Payment: $20 for stories, $20 for art. Deadline: September 30th, 2025. 

Cutleaf: Collaboratively Written Short Fiction. Genre: Collaboratively Written Short Fiction. Payment: $100 to $300 for published prose. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Kenyon Review. Genre: Prose, drama, poetry, translations, excerpts. See theme. Payment: $0.08 per published word of prose (minimum $80, maximum $450) and $0.16 per published word of poetry (minimum $40, maximum $200). Deadline: September 30th, 2025. 

Bethlehem Writers Roundtable. Genre: Short stories and poetry. See themes. Payment: $50.00 USD for featured authors, or $20.00 USD for stories published on their &More page and $10.00 USD for poems. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Hearth Stories. Genre: Speculative fiction. "We publish fiction and poetry that explore connection, family, relationships, comfort, and the natural world. The stories often fall into a fantasy, science-fiction, or magical realism sort of “slice of life.” No non-vegan stories. Payment: 1¢ per word for accepted stories (with a minimum of $20 regardless of length. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Fifth Wheel Press: effervscent. Genre: Poetry, prose poetry, short prose (<1500 words), and other experimental writing by queer, trans, and gender variant writers. Visual components and hybrid formats are welcome. Payment: $5. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Inkd Publishing: Hidden Villains: Duos. Genre: Speculative Fiction, including Sci-Fi or Fantasy. See theme. Word Limit: 2,000 to 7,000 words. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Black Hare Press. Genre: Dark stories, in any genre. Length: 5,000 - 50,000 words. Payment: $20 - $50, depending on length. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

JMS Books. Genre: LGBTQ romance stories, 12,000 words minimum. See theme. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Harbor Review. Genre: Chapbook. Length: Chapbooks should be between 20-40 pages of poetry or 20-50 pages of prose. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: September 30, 2025. No submission fee for BIPOC writers.

Freefall. Restrictions: Open to Canadians. Genre: Short story and novel excerpts; non-fiction, writing-related or general-audience topics; creative non-fiction; plays; and postcard stories. Payment: $10 per page in the magazine (to a maximum of $100) and one copy of the issue your piece is published in. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Small Harbor Publishing. Genre: Chapbooks. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: September 30, 2025. All fees are waived for BIPOC identifying writers.

Midnight and Indigo. Genre: Personal essays. Payment: $150. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

University of Alberta Press. Genre: Poetry by Canadian citizens and landed immigrants. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Manawaker Studio: 100 Word Project. Genre: Speculative fiction of exactly 100 words. See theme. Payment: $1. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Thalia Press: Cat Anthology. Genre: Stories that feature cats. Payment: $25. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Haven Speculative. Restrictions: Open to submissions by authors of color, members of the LGBTQIA+ community, and other underrepresented groups. Genre: Speculative fiction and poetry. Payment: 8¢ per word for fiction and $20 for poetry. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Chestnut Review. Genre: Poetry, flash fiction, short fiction, creative nonfiction, essays, visual media (art/photography). Payment: $120. Deadline: September 30, 2025. Submit early in the month to avoid submission fee.

Aurealis. Restrictions: Australian and New Zealand writers. Genre: Science fiction, fantasy or horror short stories between 2000 and 8000 words. Payment: A$20 and A$60 per 1000 words. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

The Cincinnati Review. Genre: Literary nonfiction (up to 20 pages), fiction (up to 40 pages), poetry, poetry translations, drama, and art. Payment: $25/page for prose in the journal, $30/page for poetry, $25 for miCRo posts or special features. Deadline: September 30, 2025. Note: Opens on the first day of the month and closes once they hit the submissions cap.

Heartlines Spec. Restrictions: "Since Heartlines Spec is primarily a Canadian magazine, we're looking to feature writers identifying as being from Canada/Turtle Island. This includes expats, new immigrants, and people who refuse/resist Canadian Identity. Our goal for each issue is to publish at least 50% Canadian content." Genre: Short fiction and poetry focused on long-term relationships: platonic, romantic, or familial. "We want stories and poetry with strong, confident relationships amid all the sci-fi/fantasy. We are especially interested in stories featuring queer platonic relationships, ace/aro love stories, and polycules." Payment: $0.08 CAD per word for short fiction and $80 CAD flat for poetry. Deadline: September 30, 2025. 

Black Hare Press. Genre: Dark stories, in any genre. Payment: 5,000 to 10,000 words  – $20 USD, 10,000 to 17,000 words– $30 USD. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Home Constellations. Genre: Speculative fiction. Theme: Stories about the future which feature non-traditional families. Payment: Prose and poetry: 5$ + 1c/word over 500 (up to 5k) words + .2c/word over 5k words. Graphic Narrative Fiction: 5$/page. Cover Illustration: $100. Deadline: September 30, 2025. Reprints accepted.

Dragon Soul Press: Holiday Spirit. Genre: All Christmas-themed stories are welcome. All genres accepted.  Payment: Royalties. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

In the Words of a Flower. Genre: Fantasy stories that incorporate an aspect of floriography, the language of flowers. Payment: $50. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

The Bombay Literary Magazine. Genre: Fiction, poetry, translated fiction/poetry and graphic fiction. Payment: Indian rupees 5,000 (approx. $61) per contribution. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

The Big Book of Quantum Fiction. Genre: Short stories, poetry, art within one or more standard genres, but containing one or more “quantum” elements. See theme. Payment: $24. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Undertaker Books: Stories to Take to Your Grave. Genre: Horror. See theme. Payment: $25. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

AND A FEW MORE...

IHRAM Press: Art, Action, Impact: Voices of 21st-century Activism. Genre: "This anthology will explore interventions that have sparked widespread change, highlighting protests and acts of resistance expressed through art, storytelling, and personal activism." Payment: $50. Deadline: October 1, 2025.

Gordon Square Review. Genre: Poetry, short stories, personal essays, and hybrid prose works. Payment: $25 per prose piece and $10 per poem. Deadline: October 1, 2025.

The Last Line. Genre: Fiction that ends with the last line provided. Payment: $20-$40. Deadline: October 1, 2025.

The Paris Review. Genres: Fiction, poetry. Payment: Not specified. Deadline: Opens October 1, 2025, and closes when they reach capacity.

Sundog. Genre: Fiction, poetry, nonfiction, art. Payment: $50. Deadline: Opens October 1, 2025, and closes when they reach capacity.

Humour Me. Genre: Funny short stories with the theme ‘Autumn.’ Payment: £7.50. Deadline: October 1, 2025.

53 Writing Contests in September 2025 - No entry fees

This September there are more than four dozen free writing contests for short fiction, novels, poetry, CNF, nonfiction, and plays. Prizes range from $25,000 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: Pixnio]

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2025 QTBIPOC Book Prize. Restrictions: Open to QTBIPOC-identified, feminist, innovative writers/poets. Genre: Full-length manuscript. Prize: Publication along with $1,000.00. Deadline: September 1, 2025.

Morioka International Haiku Contest. Genre: Haiku. Prize: Not specified. Deadline: September 1, 2025.

The Jacki and Jeff Karsh Journalism Fellowship. Genre: Journalism. The Karsh Fellowship convenes journalists for immersive learning, mentorship, and collaboration, empowering them to produce original work of exceptional depth and authority on Jewish issues. Prize: $4000. Deadline: September 1, 2025. 

The SETI Institute: Cosmic Chronicles Literary Prize. Restrictions: Open to emerging writers. Genre: literature, speculative fiction/sci-fi, experimental poetry, and philosophy that reflects and expands on the SETI Institute’s “Intelligence and Consciousness” research area. Prize: $1000. Deadline: September 1, 2025. 

Coppercoat Brian Black Memorial Award 2025. Genre: Images and stories that answer the questions: How have you witnessed the changing marine environment and weather patterns through your sailing and along the coast? What was driving this change? and How do we respond to it? In the main article competition, we are looking for a story about sailing that you have done and that reveals something about our changing seas. Prize: £2,000. Deadline: September 1, 2025.

Sydney Taylor Manuscript Award. Restrictions: Open to writers who have not previously published any works of fiction for young readers. This includes self-published as well as commercially published work. Genre: Full-length work of fiction in English with universal appeal of Jewish content for readers aged 8-13 years, both Jewish and non-Jewish. It should reveal positive aspects of Jewish life. Prize: $1000. Deadline: September 1, 2025.

AILACT Essay Prize. Genre: Papers related to the teaching or theory of informal logic or critical thinking, and papers on argumentation theory. Prize: $700 top prize. Deadline: September 1, 2025.

RSL Giles St Aubyn Awards for Non-Fiction. Restrictions: The writer must be a resident of the United Kingdom or the Republic of Ireland, or have been a resident in the UK or ROI for the past three years. Genre: Nonfiction book. Prize: Two awards – one of £10,000, one of £5,000 – are offered to support writers to complete their first commissioned works of non-fiction. Deadline: September 1, 2025.

The Hinternet Essay Prize. Genre: Essay on topic: “How might current and emerging technologies best be mobilized to secure perpetual peace?” Essays must be of 2,000-10,000 words, and can be written in English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Polish, or Turkish. Prize: $10,000. Deadline: September 1, 2025.

Hadassah-Brandeis Research Awards. Genre: Research or artistic projects in Jewish women’s and gender studies across a range of disciplines. Awards are made to graduate students, early career, and established researchers. Prize: $2000 - $5000. Deadline: September 2, 2025.

Maine Arts Commission Individual Artist Fellowships. Restrictions: Open to writers who have lived in the state of Maine for at least one year. Genre: Fiction, poetry, creative nonfiction. Prize: $5,000. Deadline: September 3, 2025.

Young Lions Fiction Award. Restrictions: Open to US citizens 35 years of age or younger. Genre: Novel or a collection of short stories. Each year, five young fiction writers are selected as finalists by a reading committee of Young Lions members, writers, editors, and librarians. Submissions by publisher only. Authors may not submit their own work. Prize: $10,000.00. Deadline: September 5, 2025.

Stories Out of School. Genre: Flash fiction. The story’s protagonist, or its narrator, must be a K-12 teacher. Stories must be between 6 and 749 words and previously unpublished. Prize: First-prize winners receive $1000; second-prize winners, $500. Deadline: September 7, 2025.

Mavis Batey Essay Prize. Restrictions: Open to any student, worldwide, registered in a bona-fide university or institute of higher education, or who has recently graduated from such an institution. Genre: Nonfiction. Scholarly essay on gardening history. Prize: £250, free membership of the Gardens Trust for a year and consideration for publication. Deadline: September 7, 2025.

Only Poems Poem of the Month. Genre: Poetry. See theme. Prize: $33. Deadline: September 7, 2025.

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: September 7, 2025. Opens September 5.

Undiscovered Voices. Restrictions: Current members of SCBWI who live in the UK or one of the current countries of the EU or the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) countries. Genre: Opening of an already completed novel for children, aimed at any age from 5 years through to Young Adult. You may submit up to 4,000 words – choosing a suitable place to stop your extract. Prize: Publication. Deadline: September 8, 2025.

Sunday Times Charlotte Aitken Young Writer of the Year Award. Restrictions: Open to authors aged 18-35 as of December 31 of the deadline year. Books must have been first published in the UK and/or the Republic of Ireland, in the English language. Authors must be UK or Irish citizens, or residents for the three years preceding the award. Genre: Published or self-published book of poetry, fiction, or creative nonfiction. Prize: £10,000. Deadline: September 8, 2025.

Shaughnessy Cohen Award for Political Writing. Genre: Book of literary nonfiction that captures a political subject of relevance to Canadian readers and has the potential to shape or influence thinking on contemporary Canadian political life. Book must be published in Canada. Prize: CAN $25,000.  Deadline: September 10, 2025. (For books published between January 1, 2025 and August 31, 2025)

Garden Party: Mental Health Poetry Contest. Restrictions: Open to poets who are currently struggling with or have struggled with any mental condition(s). Genre: Poetry (any topic). Prize: $100. Deadline: September 13, 2025.

Toni Beauchamp Prize in Critical Art Writing. Genre: Scholarly essay. All work submitted must have been written or published within the last year. Prize: $3,000. Deadline: September 14, 2025.

Washington State Book Awards. Restrictions: Open to Washington State writers. Genre: Published book, fiction, nonfiction, poetry: adults or children. Prize: Recognition (?) Deadline: September 15, 2025. (For books published June 1-Aug.15, 2025.)

American-Scandinavian Foundation Translation Prizes. Genre: English translations of poetry, fiction, drama, or literary prose originally written in Danish, Finnish, Icelandic, Norwegian, or Swedish by a Scandinavian author born after 1800. Prize: $2,500. Deadline: September 15, 2025.

53-Word Story Contest. Genre: Flash fiction of exactly 53 words based on monthly theme. Prize: Publication and a free book. Deadline: September 15, 2025. 

Fractured Lit Elsewhere Prize. Restrictions: Free entry for marginalized groups only. Genre: Micro, flash, and sudden fiction stories from 100-1,500 words. "For this contest, we want writers to show us the forgotten, the hidden, the otherworldly. We want your stories to take us on journeys and adventures in the worlds only you can create; whether you make the familiar strange or the strange familiar, we know you will take us elsewhere." Prize: $3,000. Deadline: September 15, 2026. 

Ambroggio Prize. Restrictions: Poet must be a U.S. Citizen; Resident of the United States for the ten-year period prior to the submission deadline, or Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) status, Temporary Protected Status (TPS), Legal Permanent Status (LPS), or any subsequent categories designated by the U.S. authorities as conferring similar enhanced status upon non-citizens living in the United States. Genre: Book-length poetry manuscript originally written in Spanish and with an English translation. Prize: $1000 and publication. Deadline: September 15, 2025.

Collaborature. Restrictions: Submissions must be written by more than one author or include a collaboration of two people (i.e., art and poetry). Genre: Poetry, fiction. Prize: $20. Deadline: September 17, 2025. Note: This is a monthly contest.

Havok. Genre: Flash fiction. See themes. Payment: $50 via PayPal for one story selected for an Anthology. No payment for online publication. Deadline: September 19, 2025.

Savage Science Fiction/Fantasy Writing Contest. Genre: Science fiction or fantasy short story. Prize: Winning stories are published in Toasted Cheese. If 50 or fewer eligible entries are received, first place receives a $35 Amazon gift card & second a $10 Amazon gift card. If 51 or more eligible entries are received, first place receives a $50 Amazon gift card, second a $15 Amazon gift card & third a $10 Amazon gift card. Deadline: September 21, 2025. Opens September 19, 2025.

Scottish Book Trust New Writers Awards. Restrictions: Scottish writers over 18 years of age. Genres: The awards are divided into three different categories.: Fiction and Narrative Non-fiction in English and Scots, Poetry in English and Scots, Children’s and Young Adult Fiction in English and Scots. Prize: £2,500 and personal development opportunities, which can include mentoring from writers and industry professionals. Training in PR, performance and presentation training, and the opportunity to showcase work to publishers and agents. Deadline: September 24, 2025.

International Booker Prize. The International Booker 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. The work must be published by a UK or Ireland publishing house. Authors are not permitted to enter their own works. 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 1 December 2025 and 30 April 2026 the deadline is September 25, 2025.

Cullman Center Fellowships. The Cullman Center’s Selection Committee awards up to 15 fellowships a year to outstanding scholars and writers—academics, independent scholars, journalists, and creative writers. Foreign nationals conversant in English are welcome to apply. Award: A stipend of up to $90,000, an office, a computer, and full access to the Library's physical and electronic resources. Deadline: September 26, 2025.

Writers' Hour. Genre: Flash fiction, 500 words or less in any genre on theme. (See website for theme) Prize: $65. Deadline: September 26, 2025. Note: This is a weekly contest.

Tales to Terrify. Genre: Horror. Length: 250 words max. See theme. Prize: $50. Deadline: September 26, 2025.

Kari Ann Flickinger Biennial Memorial Literary Prize. Genre: Poetry chapbook. Prize: $1500 plus publication with Rare Swan Press; four finalists will receive $250 along with a Literati Magazine Portfolio. Deadline: September 30, 2025. Biennial prize.

Nillumbik Prize for Contemporary Writing 2026. Restrictions: All entrants must be Australian residents as of the closing date. Local entrants must live, work or study in the Shire of Nillumbik. Youth writers must be aged 11–21 years as of the closing date. Youth categories are free to enter. Genre: Poetry and fiction. Prize: Up to $5000. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Rattle Ekphrastic Challenge. Genre: Poem inspired by artwork. (See site for image.) Prize: $100. Deadline: September 30, 2025. This is a monthly contest.

Voice.club. Genre: Flash fiction, 350 words max. See theme. Prize: $25 Amazon gift card. Deadline: September 30, 2025. Note: You have to join in order to enter. 

Flash Phantoms: Halloween. Genre: Horror stories on theme "Halloween." Length: up to 1,000 words; they also accept 100-word drabbles. Prize: $25. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

SLF Working Class Writers Grant. Genre: Speculative fiction. "These grants are awarded annually, since 2013, to assist writers of speculative literature to working class, blue-collar, poor, and homeless writers who have been historically underrepresented in speculative fiction, due to the financial barriers which have made it much harder for them to have access to the writing world. Such lack of access might include an inability to attend conventions, to purchase a computer, to buy books, to attend college or high school, to have the time to write (if, for example, you must work two jobs simply to pay rent and feed a family, or if you must spend all your waking hours job-hunting for months on end). " Prize: $1000. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

VersoFrontera. Restrictions: Open to any poet writing in English, or a combination of English and Spanish, who has not yet published a full-length collection of poetry. The author may have published chapbooks or books in other genres. Genre: Debut full-length poetry collection. Prize: Publication. Deadline: September 30, 2025.  

Write Before Midnight: Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. Genre: Short fiction up to 7,000 words about any of the existential threats the Bulletin covers: nuclear weapons, climate change, biological and chemical weapons, artificial intelligence, killer robots, doomsday drone submarines, bioengineered zombies, the gray goo of nanotechnology gone wild, and so, so much more. Prize: $3,000 for first place, with $500 each to four runners-up. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

L. Ron Hubbard’s Writers of the Future Contest is held four times a year. Restrictions: The Contest is open only to those who have not professionally published a novel or short novel, or more than one novelette, or more than three short stories, in any medium. Professional publication is deemed to be payment of at least six cents per word, and at least 5,000 copies, or 5,000 hits. Genre: Short stories or novelettes of science fiction or fantasy. Prizes: $1,000, $750, $500, Annual Grand Prize: $5,000. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Don't Text and Drive 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 texting while driving. Prize: $1000 scholarship. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

SUSPECT Flash Fiction Contest. Genre: Flash fiction. See theme. Prize: USD300, 200, and 100. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

The Willie Morris Awards for Southern Fiction and Nonfiction. Genre: Novels and nonfiction books published in 2022. Book has to be set in one of the original eleven states in the Confederacy. (Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.) Prize: $2,500.00. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Willie Morris Award for Southern Poetry. Genre: Poem that evokes the South. Prize: $2,500 and expenses-paid trip to award ceremony in Oxford, Mississippi. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Michael Round Prize. Genre: Stories up to 1,200 words on the theme ‘Far and Wide.’ Prize: £100 and £50. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Sejong International Sijo Competition. Genre: Sijo poem. Prize: $500. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Jerry Jazz Musician Fiction Contest. Genre: Short fiction. Prize: $150. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Rhonda Gail Williford Award for Poetry. Genre: Poetry that incorporates themes of justice, dignity, and resistance. Prize: First Prize: $150; Second Prize: $100; Third Prize: $50. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

Shoreline of Infinity Flash Fiction Contest. Genre: Science fiction story about Peace. 1000 words max. See theme. Prize: £50. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

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: September 30, 2025. Reprints are ok so long as you still have the rights to distribute.

33 Spectacular Conferences and Workshops in September 2025

This September there are more than two 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, how to market your books, discussions - there is something for everyone.

I have included conferences with deadlines that have already passed on this list to give you advance notice. 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!

For a full list of conferences held throughout the year see Writing Conferences.

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

[Image: Aspen, Colorado: Raw Pixel]

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Star Island Writing Retreat. September 1 - 5, 2025: Star Island, Portsmouth, NH. During our four and one-half days together, we write from prompts designed to awaken creativity you didn’t even know you had. We write by candlelight in a stone chapel. We write in rattan rockers on a wraparound porch. We write with a view of the ocean in all directions. We gather on the porch for magnificent sunsets. We write with the sound of waves and gulls. We pick up writing techniques from other writers, from the collection of articles prepared by the presenter, and from the presenter’s personal experience.

Expressing Your Voice: A Two-Night Workshop for YA & MG Novelists. September 8 - 10, 2025: Online. Join editor Kat Brzozowski and author Anna-Marie McLemore to explore creating distinct and engaging voice and authentic dialogue on the page. While a strong voice in MG & YA novels is a must, getting it right is often elusive. Kat and Anna-Marie will explore where voice comes from—inner conflicts, outside pressures, personal values, experiences, identity—and how to make sure it lands convincingly in dialogue.

Writing and Publishing Books for Young Readers. September 9 - October 7, 2025: Online. We’ll read and discuss excerpts from impactful children’s books, both classic and current, and analyze why they work so well. Weekly generative prompts will inspire you whether you’re just beginning your kidlit adventure, or you’re already working on a piece and want to hone it further. Bring your desire to write for children and/or young adults, an open mind and a childlike sense of adventure!

Middle Grade Writers: A Generative Retreat. September 10 - 13, 2025: Boyds Mills, PA. Immerse yourself in the generative writing process and try new, hands-on techniques to spark creativity, connect, unwind, and generate new pages (or revive old ones). Waitlisted.

Art as Inspiration: An Ekphrasitic Poetry Workshop. September 10 – October 8, 2025: Online. When everyday life doesn’t inspire us, we can turn to other art forms to move us. Learn how to build a friendship between verse and art by using the energy of music, paintings, films and more to create exciting ekphrastic poems. This encouraging workshop will help you collect inspirations and engage with structures, themes and motifs of other artists. You will read published examples of ekphrastic poetry, complete generative exercises and share drafts with fellow writers. Come empty-handed to write something new, or bring some works-in progress to revise. Limited to 12 participants.

Inkubator Writing Conference. September 11 - 13, 2025: Cleveland, OH. Literary Cleveland's Inkubator Writing Conference is one of the largest free writing conferences in the country, providing workshops, craft talks, panel discussions, readings, and more to empower writers, celebrate literary excellence, and amplify diverse voices. 

Futurescapes. September 11 - 14, 2025: Online. Futurescapes is an intensive, exclusive workshop, offering writers an unparalleled chance to work with top authors and agents in speculative fiction (science fiction, horror, fantasy, paranormal). This summer, we’ll be exploring the first 100 pages of your manuscript. The workshop sessions will require work outside of meeting times as there is a generative nature to it. This workshop is smaller and more competitive than our regular workshop. In addition to workshopping a larger portion of your manuscript (25,000 words), we’ll have plenty of unstructured and semi-structured time to network with fellow students and faculty.

PNWA Conference. September 11 - 14, 2025: Seattle, Washington. Sponsored by the Pacific Northwest Writers Association. More than 50 seminars, editor/agent forums & appointments, practice pitching, keynote and featured speakers, reception, awards ceremony. Many agents and editors attending. Will be held in person.

A Public Space's 2025 Weekend Writers' Retreat. September 11 - 14: Tivoli, New York. The APS Weekend Writers' Retreat is an opportunity to nurture new work and expand and explore technique. The retreat will include morning workshops with limited participants (5 to 7 per workshop); afternoon literary talks; and an array of evening events, including readings and a Saturday BBQ. There will also be opportunities for informal conversations with authors and editors and independent generative exercises, as well as complimentary tickets to events at Kaatsbaan's Annual Festival. Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis. There is no fee to apply. Applicants must be 21 years of age by September 1, 2025, to apply. Capacity is limited, and applying early is recommended.

The Alabama Writers' Conclave. September 12 - 14, 2025: Orange Beach, Alabama. The Conclave is today one of the oldest continuing writers' organization in the United States. Writers, aspiring writers and supporters of the writing arts may join. Sharing information, developing ideas, honing skills, and receiving practical advice are hallmarks of the annual meeting. 

Picture Book Authors and Illustrators: Working Retreat. September 13 - 16, 2025: Boyds Mills, PA. Picture book writers and illustrators: set aside time to focus on your picture book project! Here is a special retreat just for you. Join fiction and nonfiction author Darcy Pattison, author/illustrator Leslie Helakoski, and their guests including Aram Kim and Matt Phipps to immerse yourself in all things picture books. You’ll enjoy presentations, read alouds, small group discussions of your work, and so much more. In addition to the support from your faculty and fellow creatives, you’ll have ample time to work on your stories. We recommend bringing several stories at various parts of the drafting and revision processes. Waitlisted.

Brooklyn Book Festival. September 14 - 22, 2025: Brooklyn, NY. The mission of the Brooklyn Book Festival (BKBF) is to celebrate published literature and nurture a literary cultural community through programming that cultivates and connects readers of diverse ages and backgrounds with local, national and international authors, publishers and booksellers. To this end the Brooklyn Book Festival develops original programming that is hip, smart, diverse, and inclusive and presents free, literary, cultural events at the Brooklyn Book Festival Day & Literary Marketplace, Virtual Festival Day, and the family friendly Children’s Day. Additionally, BKBF presents Bookend events in venues across NYC and on-line, which are overwhelmingly presented free to the public.

Hold Space Retreat for Artists of Color. September 15 - 23, 2025: Saugatuck, Michigan. Participants who qualify for a Hold Space Retreat can enjoy communal living, making, and opportunities to organize on Ox-Bow’s campus in Saugatuck, Michigan. Lodging, three meals per day, and access to Ox-Bow studios and spaces are provided. People of color across the creative spectrum including artists of any discipline, writers, curators, teachers, and Ox-Bow Alumni are encouraged to apply. The retreat supports individuals or groups of up to twenty for any length from one to seven nights. Application deadline: July 6, 2025.

WRITING THE MORE THAN HUMAN WORLD with Pam Houston - Part 1. September 15 - October 6, 2025: Online. In this workshop, we will focus on writing about animals, domesticated and wild; trees, individuals and entire forests, oceans, mountains, clouds, weather. They will become more than landscape, more than easy emotion. They will become characters, we will let them be, if they want to be, the reason the story exists at all. And if we dare we might even explore an underworld, a future world, or another world all together Workshop is open to writers in all genres. It will be mostly generative in nature, but we will share what we are working on from time to time during class.

Monsters & Mayhem: A Two-Night Mini for Young Adult Horror Writers. September 16 - 18, 2025: Online. Horror novels for young adult readers don’t just scare – they give voice to all the fears and anxieties readers experience and can offer safe spaces to explore complex emotions in a difficult world. Join young adult author Rob Costello for this short course for writers looking to create engaging and compelling horror narratives for young adult readers. This program will draw on current and classic horror examples.

The Algonkian Writer Retreat and Novel Workshop. September 17 - 21, 2025: Algonkian Park, Virginia. "You can show us your manuscript, improve your skills, clear your head, have your work read by our writer mentors, whatever works for you, whatever helps you grow and discover your vision as a writer. You discuss with us ahead of time via the Algonkian Writer Retreat Application the goals you wish to accomplish, and we'll work with you to make it happen. Do you desire a review? A line edit? Do you wish to discuss the reality of the current fiction market, your novel project, plot and characters, or perhaps get feedback on the opening hook or a few sample chapters? Or would you simply like a relaxed and productive dialogue about your goals as a writer?"

Writing On The Door: Washington Island Literary Festival. September 18 - 20, 2025: Washington Island, Wisconsin. "The Washington Island Literary Festival is a moveable feast of writing, reading, discussion, and thought about the written word. Writers’ workshops, author panels and presentations, readings and parties are scheduled at various quaint, historic and beautiful venues around the Island. Participants have a unique opportunity to share time with prominent authors and dedicated readers in the intimate, friendly setting of Washington Island, a half-hour by ferry from the Door County mainland, in September’s color and warmth." 

Creatures, Crimes & Creativity. September 19 - 21, 2025: Columbia, MD. A writer's and fan's conference for genre fiction covering mystery, suspense, thriller, sci-fi, fantasy, steampunk & horror.

Hedgebrook Writers Conference 2025. September 18 - 21, 2025: Seattle, WA. "Hedgebrook is a community of visionary women writers whose stories and ideas have shaped our culture in the past, now, and for generations to come. We have tapped into this community to collectively build Hedgebrook’s Writers Conference – a three-day intensive for writers across the globe. If you aspire to improve your craft, come learn from seasoned writers that are equipped to challenge, engage, and inform.  Our illustrious alumnae instructors craft and guide participants through interconnected lessons over the course of three days, proving “No Writer Is An Island.” 

10th Annual Broadleaf Writers Conference. September 20 - 21, 2025: Decatur, Georgia. "With one of the strongest list of authors you will ever find at a conference, we’ve added even more agents, editors and publisher representatives than ever before! Combined with educational sessions and workshops, the Annual Broadleaf Writers Conference will offer you all that you need to refine and improve your craft." 

Travel & Words: Northwest Travel Writers Conference. September 21 - 23, 2025: Medford, Oregon. TRAVEL & WORDS offers a multi-faceted conference for travel journalists interested in exploring Northwest destinations. The primary focus of the conference is to connect journalists with destinations throughout the Northwest. Attendees will have one-on-one meetings with destination marketers to learn about their destination and lay a foundation for productive working relationships. In addition, attendees will enjoy expert presentations about current topics in travel content publishing and have plenty of opportunities for networking and exploring the host destination. In more than a decade of conferences, Travel & Words has become an important force in the Northwest travel industry. Travel & Words is by invitation only. There is no registration fee for journalists. 

Haiku North America Conference. September 24 - 28, 2025: San Francisco, CA. "Haiku North America is designed for, and open to, everyone—beginners and seasoned specialists alike. Haiku North America (HNA) is a biennial conference in celebration of haiku poetry. Every two years we offer five stimulating days of papers, panels, workshops, readings, performances, book sales, cultural outings, and much socialization with fellow poets, translators, scholars, editors, and publishers. Our first conference was in 1991 and subsequent conferences have taken place in the United States and Canada, focusing on North American poets, their haiku, and related arts. Everyone is welcome to attend HNA, the largest and oldest gathering of haiku poets outside Japan." Biennial.

Georgia Romance Writers: Moonlight and Magnolias. September 25 - 27, 2025: Atlanta, Georgia. Includes keynote speakers, workshops, editor/agent appointments, autographing & bookfair, awards banquet.

Algonkian Writer Conference–New York City Write to Pitch. September 25 - 28, 2025: Ripley-Grier Studios in New York City. The New York Pitch Conference and writers workshop is held four times a year and features publishing house editors from major houses such as Penguin, Random House, St. Martins, Harper Collins, Tor and Del Rey, Kensington Books and many more who are looking for new novels in a variety of genres, as well as narrative non-fiction. The event focuses on the art of the novel pitch as the best method not only for communicating your work, but for having you and your work taken seriously by industry professionals.

Central Coast Writers' Conference. September 26 - 27, 2025: San Luis Obispo, CA. "Unlike other Writers' conferences, this year's conference has been expanded to encompass the wider 'Content Creator Community.' Our goal is to amplify the connection of content creators on the Central Coast and beyond including bloggers, podcasters, YouTubers, influencers, authors, narrators, journalists, artists, screenwriters, musicians, and of course - writers of all genres! As the medium for literary work has expanded beyond the book, content creators from all walks of life are encouraged to attend. There will be 16+ expert panels, featuring 50+ experts & thought leaders." 

Colorado Gold Writers Conference. September 26 - 28, 2025: Aurora, CO. An intensive three days of workshops, presenters, agents, master classes, intensives, and more!

The 2025 Aspen Literary Festival. September 26 - 28, 2025: Aspen, Colorado. The Aspen Literary Festival is a three-day celebration of books and ideas taking place September 26-September 28, 2025, in the beautiful mountain town of Aspen, Colorado. The festival features author talks and panel discussions, book signings, food trucks, parties and other attractions for book lovers. Most events are free with registration. Marquee events at the Wheeler Opera House are ticketed and require advance purchase.  

49 Writers Tutka Bay Retreat. September 26 - 29, 2025: Tutka Bay, Alaska. Join us for a one-of-a-kind writing retreat set against the stunning backdrop of remote coastal Alaska. The Tutka Bay Writers Retreat allows writers of all genres, backgrounds, and experience levels to take a break from their day-to-day lives, reconnect with their creative selves, and dive deeper into their writing practice. At this generative writers retreat, you and a small group of other writers will enjoy craft talks, in-class writing exercises, readings, and discussions led by Ramona Ausubel, acclaimed author and teacher. In between instructional sessions, you and other retreat participants will have plenty of unstructured time to write, rest, dream, and socialize. The retreat is limited to 12 participants.

Write on the Sound Writers' Conference and Pre-Conference. Preconference, September 27, 2025. Conference: Oct 3 - 5, 2025: Edmonds, WA. Founded in 1985, Write on the Sound writers’ conference (WOTS) is a small, affordable conference focused on the craft of writing. A variety of sessions, workshops and panel discussions are available for all levels and interests, including valuable information regarding today’s writing and publishing industry. 

Okoboji Writers' Retreat. September 28 - October 1, 2025: West Lake, IA. The annual Okoboji Writers’ Retreat, founded in 2021, is open to all skill levels. Columnist Julie Gammack is the producer. Over 30 faculty resources will be on hand to work with participants in small-group settings. Whether you come to find out how to get started or land a book deal, this retreat is a welcoming event for all.

Six Bridges Book Festival. September 28 - October 5, 2025: Little Rock, Arkansas. "Prestigious award-winners, screenwriters, comedians, an expert witness, artists, and a Pulitzer Prize-winning poet are among the diverse roster of presenters who will be providing sessions." Free. 

The Wild We Speak: Lyrical Essays from Our Shared Ground. An Invitation to Craft Lyrical Nature Essays with CMarie Fuhrman. September 29 -30, 2025: Online. This three-hour generative workshop invites you into a focused examination of the lyrical nature essay, where the elements of the natural world become guides for crafting prose. We'll discover how your unique ways of seeing and knowing can give craft to your experiences within our shared environment. This class is for all writers who feel a genuine connection to the natural world and wish to translate that connection into prose that resonates with truth and artistry. If you're drawn to the various gifts of poetry, or if music, image, and nonlinearity already inform your expression, this workshop offers you the opportunity to bring those techniques to prose.

From Idea & Sketch to Dummy & Submission: An Author/Illustrator Online Course. September 30 - November 4, 2025: Online. If you are illustrating AND writing your own book, and wondering how to prepare your submission, this is the course for you. You will focus on the craft of writing and illustrating a picture book with an intense level of feedback from faculty Courtney Pippin-Mathur and special guests, Natasha Khan Kazi and Aram Kim. Participants who complete all assignments should be able to finish or revise a working dummy (mocked up book) in its entirety during the course, preparing for submission to editors, agents, or art directors. 24 participants max. 

Events with application deadlines in September:

Ossabaw Weekend Writer’s Retreat. October 17 - 20, 2025: Ossabaw Island, GA. Ossabaw Writers’ Retreat offers a variety of programs to address the needs of writers hoping to expand their craft and improve their work-in-progress. We hope you will join us in this great literary tradition by taking part in one or more of the various programs offered by the Ossabaw Writers’ Retreat. Where loggerhead sea turtles and endangered wood storks nest, and photographers, writers, painters, and musicians listen, watch, reflect, and create. Application deadline: September 15.