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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The Sillerman First Book Prize for African Poetry. Restrictions: Open to African poets who have not yet published a collection of poetry. Genre: Poetry. Prize: $1,000 and book publication through the University of Nebraska Press and Amalion Press in Senegal. Deadline: December 1, 2025.
Medieval Fantasy Contest. Genre: Medieval Fantasy, full-length. Prize: $5000. Deadline: December 1, 2025.
Neville Dawes First Book Prize for Emerging Caribbean Poets. Restrictions: Open to Caribbean writers who have not published a book-length poetry collection. Genre: Poetry collection. Prize: $1000. Deadline: December 1, 2025.
After the End Poetry Competition. Genre: Poetry. “This poetry competition invites creative responses from poets that critically engage with ideas of time and temporality and the question of who gets to say that something has ended. Work from poets at every stage of their writing careers is welcome." Prize: First prize is £200, second and third place winners will be offered £100 each. Deadline: December 1, 2025.
The Pushcart Prize honors the best "poetry, short fiction, essays or literary whatnot" published in small presses and literary magazines. Magazine and small press editors may nominate up to six works. Pushcart Press publishes yearly anthologies of the winning submissions. Prize: Publication and enormous prestige. Deadline: December 1, 2025.
The Schneider Family Book Award is sponsored by the American Library Association. The award honors an author or illustrator for a book that embodies an artistic expression of the disability experience for child and adolescent audiences. Prize: Three annual awards each consisting of $5000 and a framed plaque, will be given annually in each of the following categories: birth through grade school (age 0-10), middle school (age 11-13) and teens (age 13-18). (Age groupings are approximations). Genre: May be fiction, biography, or other form of nonfiction. Deadline: December 1, 2025.
Thomas and Lillie D. Chaffin Award for Appalachian Writing. Restrictions: Open to published writers who are writing from the region. Genres: All. Prize: $500. Deadline: December 1, 2025.
Ezra Jack Keats Children's Book Award. Genre: Published or self-published picture books that portray the universal qualities of childhood, a strong and supportive family, and the multicultural nature of our world. Prize: $5,000. Deadline: December 1, 2025.
McGovern Center Writing Awards in Fiction. Restrictions: Open to anyone in the 50 U.S. states and affiliated territories. Genre: Unpublished fiction that is medical or healthcare-related in theme or focus. Prize: $500. Deadline: December 1, 2025.
Tony Quagliano Poetry Fund, International Poetry Award. Restrictions: Open to poets who have a published body of work over a period of years. Poems must be in English. Genre: Poetry. Prize: $1,000. Deadline: December 1, 2025. (Biennial award)
One Teen Story. Restrictions: Open to writers age 13 -19. Genre: Short story between 2,000 to 4,500 words. Prize: $500 upon publication and 25 copies of the magazine. Deadline: December 1, 2025.
Poetry Center at Smith College Prize. Restrictions: Open to sophomore or junior high school girls in New England. Genre: Poetry. Prize: $500. Deadline: December 1, 2025.
Charlotte and Wilbur Award For Compassion for Animals. Genre: Picture book, chapter book, middle-grade book (or graphic novel), or young adult book traditionally or self- published in 2025. Books in translation are welcome. The Charlotte and Wilbur Award for Compassion for Animals will award one winning book and one honor book for their dedication to promoting compassion and respect for animals in their readers. Prize: The winning book will receive a prize of $2,500 and the honor book will receive $1,000. If the winning or honor book is a picture book, the prize will be split between the author and illustrator. Deadline: December 1, 2025.
Jane Martin Poetry Prize (UK). Restrictions: Open to UK residents between 18 and 30 years of age. Genre: Poetry. Prize: First prize £1000, second prize, £500. Deadline: December 1, 2025.
The Association of Jewish Libraries Jewish Fiction Award. Genre: All works of fiction with significant Jewish thematic content written in English–novels, short story and flash fiction collections–by a single author published and available for purchase in the United States during 2022 are eligible for the award. Jewish thematic content means an extended grappling with Jewish themes throughout the book, including Judaism, Jewish history and culture, Jewish identity, etc. Prize: The award will include a $1,000 cash prize as well as support to attend the AJL conference to receive the award. Deadline: December 1, 2025.
RBC Bronwen Wallace Award for Emerging Writers. Restrictions: Candidates must be: A Canadian citizen or permanent resident; Under the age of 35; Unpublished in book form and without a book contract. Genre: Poetry and fiction. Prizes: Up to C$10,000. Deadline: December 2, 2025.
J. Anthony Lukas Work-in-Progress Award. Genre: Nonfiction book. Applicants for the award must already have a contract with a U.S.-based publisher to write a nonfiction book. Award: $25,000. Deadline: December 4, 2025.
RSL Christopher Bland Prize. Restrictions: Writers must be a citizen of, or resident in, the United Kingdom or Republic of Ireland. Books must have been published for the first time in the UK or RoI within the 2023 calendar year. Books must be entered by trade publishers or agents based in the UK or RoI; each publisher, imprint of a publisher, or agent may enter two books only. Genre: Debut novel or non-fiction book first published by a writer aged 50 or over. Prize: £10,000. Deadline: December 5, 2025.
The Republic of Letters. Genre: Tell us the story of a wrong turning, a mistake you can’t undo, a decision you can’t have back that led to whatever searing regret you have at this moment in time. Prize: $25 - $75. Deadline: December 6, 2025.
Kim Wall Memorial Fund. Restrictions: Open to "journalists whose work embodies the spirit of Kim’s reporting. The grant will fund women or non-binary reporters covering subculture, broadly defined, and what Kim liked to call “the undercurrents of rebellion.” Kim wanted more women to be out in the world, brushing up against life, and the Kim Wall Memorial Fund honors this legacy.” Genre: Journalism. Prize: $5,000 grants. Deadline: December 7, 2025.
Intrepid Times Travel Writing Contest. Genre: Factual, first-person travel story. Theme: A Human Moment. Prize: $300. Deadline: December 10, 2025.
Friends of American Writers. Restrictions: The author must be a resident (or previously have been a resident for approximately five years) of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, Nebraska, Ohio, South Dakota or Wisconsin; or the locale of the book must be in a region identified above. The author must not have published more than three books under his/her own pen name. Genres: Books can be fiction or creative non-fiction and published in 2025. Self-published and e-Books are not eligible. Prize: $500 - $2000. Deadline: December 13, 2025.
Minotaur Books/Mystery Writers of America Best First Crime Novel Competition. Restrictions: The Competition is open to any writer, regardless of nationality, aged 18 or older, who has never been the author of any published novel (except that authors of self-published works only may enter, as long as the manuscript submitted is not the self-published work) and is not under contract with a publisher for publication of a novel. Genre: Murder or another serious crime or crimes is at the heart of the story. Prize: $10,000. Deadline: December 14, 2025.
THE GEORGE ELIOT FELLOWSHIP ESSAY PRIZE. Genre: Paper on George Eliot's life or work. Prize: £500. Deadline: December 15, 2025. (Deadline is "middle of December")
Goldsmith Book Prize. Genre: Trade or academic book published in the United States in the last 24 months that best fulfills the objective of improving democratic governance through an examination of the intersection between the media, politics and public policy. Prize: $5000. Deadline: December 15, 2025.
Sine Qua Non. Genre: Poetry and Creative Prose (fiction, creative nonfiction, flash fiction). See theme. Prize: $500 prizes in poetry and creative prose, with two runner-up awards of $250 in both categories. All works selected for publication will receive a $30 honorarium and a free physical copy of the journal. Deadline: December 15, 2025.
Unleash WIP Prize. Genre: Book-length work in progress of fiction, nonfiction, or poetry. Prize: $500. Deadline: December 15, 2025.
RP Writing Prize. Genre: Essay on any aspect of contemporary portrait painting. Prize: £500 First Prize; £250 Two Special Mentions. Deadline: December 15, 2025.
King's English. Genre: Poetry. See theme. Prize: £𝟓𝟎-£𝟏𝟎𝟎. Deadline: December 15, 2025.
Folk Tales/Faux Tales/Fox Tales. Genre: Three faux-tales: one science fiction, one fantasy, one horror. These folk-tails might emerge from any culture, any history, any landscape, but they should inform South Asian experiences. Prize: CAD150 each. Deadline: December 15, 2025.
Leave Your Mark: Teen Contest. Restrictions: open to writers ages 13-18 years old. Genre: Write about a scar. Physical or invisible. This could be a scar you have, or one for a character you make up. You can do this in any form you like: story, song, script, or poem, as long as it's 250 words or fewer. Prize: 400 Gotham credit, a $50 gift certificate to Bookshop, and publication. Deadline: December 15, 2025.
Smokelong Fellowship for Emerging Writers. Restrictions: All writers previously unpublished in SmokeLong Quarterly and who do not have a published chapbook or book-length work in any genre (or are not under contract for such) are eligible to apply. Genre: Flash fiction (1000 words max). Prize: $500. Deadline: December 15, 2025.
Massachusetts Book Awards. Restrictions: Open to Massachusetts residents. Genre: (1) fiction, (2) nonfiction, (3) poetry, (4) children’s picture books/early readers, (5) middle-grade/young adult literature, (6) translated literature, and (7) graphic novel/memoir published in 2025. Additionally, the Notable Contribution to Publishing award recognizes the exceptional output of the Massachusetts publishing community. Prize: Prestige. Deadline: December 15, 2025.
The Four Quartets Prize. Genre: Unified and complete sequence of poems published in America in a print or online journal, chapbook. Poems in the sequence may have been published in different journals provided that they were brought together and they form a complete sequence. Prize: Three finalists will receive $1,000 each. The winner will receive an additional $20,000. Deadline: December 15, 2025.
Eggtooth Editions Chapbook Contest. Restrictions: Open to writers who have not previously published a full-length book. Genre: Chapbook in any genre. Prize: $250 and 20 copies of the chapbook. Deadline: December 15, 2025. Closes when cap is reached.
Griffin Poetry Prize. Genre: Poetry. To be eligible for the prize, a book of poetry must be a published first-edition collection (i.e. not previously published in any country), written in English, or translated into English, by a poet/translator from any part of the world, including Canada. Entries must come from publishers only. Inquiries about entries must also come from publishers only. Prize: The winner will receive C$130,000 and the other shortlisted poets will each receive C$10,000. Deadline: December 19, 2025, for books published between July 1, 2025 and December 31, 2025.
VCU Cabell First Novelist Award. Genre: First novel published in 2025. No self-published books. Prize: $5,000. Deadline: December 30, 2025.
Black Caucus of the American Library Association. BCALA presents four awards to an African American writer published in the United States during the previous year: one for adult fiction, one for nonfiction, one for a first novelist and one for poetry. These awards acknowledge outstanding achievement in the presentation of the cultural, historical and sociopolitical aspects of the Black Diaspora. Prize: Four $1,000 awards. Deadline: December 31, 2025.
Ludington Writers: Making Waves. Genre: "We invite poets, fiction, and non-fiction authors, and visual artists to submit works uplifting voices and experiences from the LGBTQ+ community and about it." Prize: Four (4) $50 awards. Deadline: December 31, 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: December 31, 2025.
HILARY MANTEL PRIZE FOR FICTION. Restrictions: Open to residents in Britain (including the Channel Islands and Isle of Man) and Ireland (Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland). Genre: Adult longform fiction. Prize: £7,500 and an offer of representation from AM Heath. Deadline: December 31, 2025.
Lilith Magazine Fiction Competition. Genre: Fiction. Short story of interest to Jewish women. Prize: $300. Deadline: December 31, 2025.
Elizabeth Alexander Creative Writing Award. Genre: Poetry, fiction, nonfiction. Prize: $500 and publication in Meridians Journal: feminism, race, transnationalism. Deadline: December 31, 2025.
William Carlos Williams Poetry Competition. Restrictions: Open to students enrolled in M.D. and D.O. programs in the US, Puerto Rico, or Canada, and a physician category, open to any rank of physician (M.D. or D.O.) at any career stage, from residency to retirement, in the U.S., Puerto Rico, or Canada. Genre: Poetry. Prize: $300. Deadline: December 31, 2025.
The Lyric College Poetry Contest. Restrictions: Open to undergraduates enrolled full time in an American or Canadian college or university. Genre: Poetry. Prize: $500. Deadline: December 31, 2025.
Hooks Institute National Book Award. Genre: Nonfiction book that best furthers understanding of the American Civil Rights Movement and its legacy. Prize: $1000. Deadline: December 31, 2025.
The W.Y. Boyd Literary Award for Excellence in Military Fiction honors the best fiction set in a period when the United States was at war. It recognizes the service of American veterans and military personnel and encourages the writing and publishing of outstanding war-related fiction. Genre: Military fiction. Prize: $5000. Deadline: December 31, 2025.
Maureen Seaton Poetry Prize. Restrictions: Open to persons who reside, either full or part-time, in South Florida. Genre: Poetry. Prize: $500. Deadline: December 31, 2025. Closes when cap is reached.
Lex:lead Essay Competition. Restrictions: Candidates must show citizenship in an eligible country and be enrolled in studies with at least one law class in an eligible country at the time of the award. Genre: Essay: How can laws regulating climate change and the environment support economic development?Prize: $500 scholarship. Deadline: December 31, 2025. (Registration deadline October 31)
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: December 31, 2025. Reprints are ok so long as you still have the rights to distribute.
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