12 New Literary Agents Seeking Fantasy, Thrillers, YA, MG, Kidlit, Nonfiction and more

Here are twelve new literary agents actively seeking clients. New agents are a boon to writers. They are actively building their lists, and will go the extra mile for their clients.

All of these agents work for established agencies with good track records. They are looking for all genres.

Always check the agency website and agent bio before submitting. Agents can switch agencies or close their lists, and submission requirements can change. 

NOTE: Don't submit to several agents at the same agency simultaneously. If one rejects you, you may then submit to another. (Some small agencies share. Be alert to a notice that "a no from one is a no from all.")

You can find a full list of agents actively seeking new clients here: Agents Seeking Clients.

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Gabrielle Demblon of Watson, Little Ltd (UK)

I head up the foreign rights department with the assistance of Annie Ku, and will also be curating my own list of authors.

What she is seeking: I’m looking for literary and upmarket fiction, particularly with queer themes or from unusual/underrepresented perspectives, as well as select thrillers and nonfiction. I’m open to debut authors at all life stages.

In fiction, I’m drawn to bold hooks and flawed characters, books that start conversations and challenge assumptions, like DETRANSITION, BABY by Torrey Peters, ALL FOURS by Miranda July, BIG SWISS by Jen Beagin, and YELLOWFACE by RF Kuang.

I love atmospheric, character-led stories about overlooked or uncomfortable aspects of history and popular culture, like THE SAFEKEEP by Yael van der Wouden, ORDINARY HUMAN FAILINGS by Megan Nolan, BOX HILL by Adam Mars Jones, FIRE RUSH by Jacqueline Crooks, SCATTERLINGS by Rešoketšwe Manenzhe, and THE MANNINGTREE WITCHES by AK Blakemore.

I’m looking for literary speculative/high concept fiction from queer/female/transnational perspectives, in the vein of STATION ELEVEN by Emily St John Mandel, TOWARD ETERNITY by Anton Hur, MINISTRY OF TIME by Kaliane Bradley, and TRIANGULUM by Masande Ntshanga. I’d also like to find horror reminiscent of works by Carmen Maria Machado, Eliza Clark or Julia Armfield.

In crime, I’m looking for a fun, pulpy thriller with a high concept twist or standout setting, in the vein of nineties thrillers like Speed, Die Hard and Point Break. I’m also keen on psychological suspense/thrillers set in glamorous, escapist worlds, like SO THRILLED FOR YOU by Holly Bourne, THE HEATWAVE by Kate Riordan, or NIGHTSHADE by Annalena McAfee.

In nonfiction, I’m drawn to popular science, politics, and true crime. I’m also looking to work with experts and influencers specializing in personal style, nutrition, psychology, relationships, personal finance, career guidance, parenting and alternative family formation.

I’m not the right agent for crime procedurals, hard sci-fi, high fantasy, children’s, or history.

How to submit: Follow submission guidelines HERE.

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Ms. Catherine Jones of Union Literary

Catherine Jones graduated from Kenyon College with a degree in Film and English and a concentration in creative writing. She read for The Kenyon Review and Sweet Literary magazine and continues to work as an international literary scout for Edmison/Harper. She loves character-driven books with heart and humor. 

What she is seeking: She is looking for cinematic speculative fiction like Kaliane Bradley's The Ministry of Time or Silvia Moreno-Garcia's Mexican Gothic; literary horror and imaginative fairytale retellings like Christina Henry's Lost Boys or The Chronicles of Alice; gut-wrenching coming-of-age books like Milkman by Anna Burns or Maurice by E.M. Forster; and well-researched, inspiring nonfiction like Why We Swim by Bonnie Tsui.

How to submit: Use her form HERE.

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Renee Runge of Spencerhill Associates

Renee joined the Spencerhill team in 2025. A South Florida native, she earned her B.A. in English from the University of Florida in 2021 before moving to Boston, where she completed both an M.A. in Children’s Literature and an M.F.A. in Writing for Children from Simmons University in 2024. During grad school, she interned at Red Fox Literary and served as Graduate Fellow for The Horn Book during its centennial year, then spent a year as an assistant at Spencerhill. Her academic research background uniquely equips her to advocate for books that not only resonate with readers but also contribute meaningfully to the broader conversation about the evolution of the children’s literature field. 

What she is seeking: She is actively building her list in all genres of middle grade and young adult fiction. Her taste can be summed up as "eclectic," and she is drawn to high-concept commercial projects with a literary aura, unexpected hooks, strong A/B plots, and distinct voices. She’s especially passionate about supporting diverse and underrepresented creators from all backgrounds, with the hope that every child can one day see themselves in the pages of a book. A lover of anthropomorphic characters, she dreams of repping the next blockbuster animal novel or series. Her favorite feeling is being moved to tears by a book’s last chapter.

How to submit: Use her form HERE.

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Ms. Sophie Sheumaker of BookEnds, LLC

Sophie Sheumaker is the Global Rights assistant and literary assistant to Naomi Davis. She studied writing, literature, and publishing at Emerson College, graduating in the spring of 2023 and has recently begun building her list of authors and illustrators. She can be found at the library checking out more books than she could ever possibly read, crocheting like it's a full-time job, or taking her anxiety-ridden dog for a walk through the streets of Boston. She is a firm believer that everyone should read children's books, walnuts should never be in banana bread, and the 2005 Pride and Prejudice is better than the BBC version.

What she is seeking: Sophie is seeking fiction for middle grade through adult. Across the board, she is seeking works by historically underrepresented voices and stories with the sort of casual diversity that is representative of the world in which we live.

• In middle grade, she is seeking adventure filled or cozy fantasy. Fantasy that feels like a fairy tale but isn’t necessarily a Disney-esque retelling (think The Girl Who Drank the Moon/The Phantom Tollbooth/The Princess Bride). She loves a third person narrator that feels like a character and stories driven by the wild, ever-changing, ever-learning emotions of early adolescence. Quiet magic that’s woven subtly throughout the story and big families/communities that rely on each other (Encanto/Ponyo/MG Gilmore Girls). MG that can be reread as an adult and doesn’t treat the reader like they’re a child.
• If any of the above can be translated into a YA/Adult setting, she’d love to see it. Here, she’s looking for fantasy, romance, LIGHT grounded sci-fi, and anything speculative/genre-bending. Fantasy can run the gamut from cozy with a soft magic system (Maiga Doocy’s Sorcery and Small Magics) to high-fantasy with an intricately woven magic system (think Godkiller, The Jasmine Throne).
• For romance, she’s particularly interested in queer stories, especially sapphic romances. She loves witty dialogue and banter (Emily Henry/Talia Hibbert) or a hooky beach read with the melodrama of a K-drama (True Beauty, Business Proposal, To the Beautiful You). Contemporary/fantasy/romantasy, tried and true tropes in your typical straight romance done through a queer lens. Especially on the look out for a surprising magical/speculative twist (One Last Stop).
• In general, loves quirky-off beat storytelling that can deliver serious messaging without taking itself too seriously, characters with richly developed relationships that are central to the story, and stories that center female friendship/sisterhood.

How to submit: To query Sophie, please submit here: https://QueryTracker.net/query/3848

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Sasha Landauer of Writers House

Prior to joining Writers House, I co-founded a venture-backed outdoor gear company, worked as a small-town journalist, exhumed bones on an archeological dig in Mauritius, and interned on the foreign exchange team at Bridgewater. I grew up between New York City and Northern California, and attended Stanford University, where I studied Comparative Literature and Philosophy.

What she is seeking: General fiction, Mystery, Romance, Suspense/thriller, Computers/technology, Business/investing/finance, History, Travel.

How to submit: Please email your query letter and your work's first ten pages in the body of the email to slandauer@writershouse.com. The subject line should contain "query."

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Krista Van Dolzer of The Unter Agency

Krista Van Dolzer is the newest literary agent at The Unter Agency, though she’s worked in and around the publishing industry for more than a decade. Her middle grade fiction has been published by Penguin Random House, Sourcebooks, Capstone, and Bloomsbury USA, and she’s hosted many query contests and pitch events for aspiring authors over the years. She currently lives in central Iowa with her husband and four kids and holds degrees in Mathematics Education and Economics from Brigham Young University.

What she is seeking: Krista is looking for all things MG and YA as well as several flavors of adult nonfiction: narrative, sports, applied but accessible science (especially in mathematics, economics, or psychology), and journalistic narrative (think Susan Cain, Malcolm Gladwell, or David Brooks).

How to submit: Query link for the “Submissions” page: https://QueryTracker.net/query/3838.

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Ms. Shelly Romero of Jennifer Azantian Literary Agency

Shelly Romero began her publishing career in 2017 at Scholastic where she rose up the ranks from editorial assistant to associate editor, where she acquired her own titles and assisted on series publishing for The Bad Guys and Goosebumps. She later joined Cake Creative as Lead Editor and she was most recently a freelance editor. She graduated from Stephens College with a bachelor’s degree in English and attended the 2017 NYU Summer Publishing Institute. Shelly was selected as a 2020 Publishers Weekly Star Watch Honoree and is a member of Latinx in Publishing & People of Color in Publishing. Born and raised in Miami by Honduran parents, she now resides in New York City where she might be found at a movie theatre viewing the latest release from her Letterboxd watchlist.

What she is seeking: I am seeking MG, YA, and adult novels, especially those by BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ authors. Her MSWL is by-no means exhaustive. If your manuscript does not quite fit in with what’s listed below but is still in the vein of, please submit it.

How to submit: To query Shelly Romero, please fill out her submission form.

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Ms. Claire Elliot of FinePrint Literary Management

Claire Elliot is a Junior Agent at FinePrint and an assistant to Lauren Bieker and Peter Rubie. Before coming to FinePrint in 2024, she interned at Folio Literary Management. 

Claire is also working towards her Ph.D. in Religious Studies at the University of Pennsylvania, studying modern Theravada Buddhist practice in Thailand and Sri Lanka. While growing up, Claire lived in the U.S., France, and Thailand, and now speaks five languages and reads a sixth.  

Claire is a habitual rereader and never falls asleep without an audiobook on. Her favorite books growing up were Tamora Pierce's Trickster's Choice series. She still enjoys books about girls who are generally up to no good. 

What she is seeking: In fiction, Claire reads YA, NA, and Adult, and is interested in fantasy, historical, thriller, and mystery. She loves a romantic or political subplot (even if the subplot is very small) and an immersive and messed-up setting. Claire is interested in characters who were not born heroes but chose to be and in stories with symbolic resonance.  Claire is also interested in fantasy set in non-western inspired worlds (especially Southeast Asia!) and historical fiction set in these areas about real or made-up figures. She dreams of seeing a novel about Anagarika Dharmapala, Mary Foster, and Maria Banta, "The Countess." 

In nonfiction, Claire is interested in pop-science books that use data to tell clear stories (if you can compare your book to Emily Negoski, she wants to see it!) Claire is also interested in narrative nonfiction that walks the line between long-form journalism and ethnography; she's looking for the next Still Life With Bones, Friday Night Lights, or The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. Finally, Claire is looking for new and unexpected histories that are timeless but touch on present issues (e.g., a global history of student protest movements and activism, a medical and social history of STIs (STDs), or a book on religious pluralism and inter-religious cooperation.) She's also keen to discuss dissertation-to-book projects. 

How to submit: Use her querytracker form HERE.

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Keshava Guha of Aevitas (UK)

Keshava Guha joined Aevitas UK in 2025. He was previously a senior editor at Juggernaut Books in New Delhi, where he published literary fiction as well as history and current affairs. He is also a novelist and essayist: his most recent novel is The Tiger's Share (John Murray, 2025). Born in Delhi and raised in Bangalore, he is a graduate of Harvard College and the Columbia Publishing Course, and has a master's in creative writing from Goldsmiths, University of London.

What he is seeking. He is building an international list, primarily non-fiction but with select fiction projects. His tastes in non-fiction are eclectic: interests include history, biography, social science, mental health, spirituality, music and sport. He is particularly interested in projects with global or transnational themes. Books he loves include: The House of Government by Yuri Slezkine, Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo, The World is What it Is by Patrick French, These Truths by Jill Lepore, Barca by Simon Kuper and anything by Ruth Scurr, Graham Robb, Frances Wilson or Michael Lewis.

What he is seeking: Read submission guidelines HERE.

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Gracie Freeman Lifschutz of Dystel, Goderich & Bourret

Gracie Freeman Lifschutz was raised in the bustle of New York City, surrounded by all kinds of stories — from story time at her local library to musicals on Broadway. She now can’t imagine her life without either. Gracie graduated from Oberlin College with a B.A. in English and a minor in French. Her work in the time since has always revolved around storytelling and human connection. 

What she is seeking: Gracie is interested in grounded genre fiction, upmarket romance, psychological thrillers, folk horror, book club fiction, and narrative nonfiction examining culture and social issues. Across young adult and adult categories, she’s interested in underrepresented voices, inventive storytelling, and delicious prose.  

How to submit: To query Gracie, please visit her Query Manager.

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Elizabeth Guthrie of Lucinda Literary

Elizabeth brings a unique perspective to agenting, with a background as both an author and editor in the complementary medicine space. Her own journey through the querying and submission process — culminating in a book deal for Earth’s Embrace, which explores post-traumatic growth through the lens of plant medicine — sparked her passion for guiding other authors through the publishing landscape.

As Talent Director at Lucinda Literary, Elizabeth is dedicated to connecting aspiring authors with the right resources and guiding them on their next steps that will help shape their manuscripts into books with lasting impact. In addition to her work with Lucinda Literary, she maintains an active editorial and ghostwriting practice and writes fantasy romance under the pen name Ellie Fowler.

What she is seeking: She is actively acquiring. In nonfiction, she is particularly drawn to true crime and history (especially ancient civilizations or intellectual history). She also likes expert-driven wellness, popular psychology, and other science-related ideas (especially in biology or physics). In fiction, she is interested in fantasy, historical, romance (especially fantasy, historical, or LGBTQ), speculative, and psychological thrillers.

How to submit: Use the agency's form HERE.

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Kristine Epps of Birch Literary

Before Kristine began her career in the literary world, she received her Juris Doctorate from Texas A&M University and took those skills to serve as a personal injury attorney. Please review Kristine's MSWL and be sure to only submit finished work that has gone through a critique process.

What she is seeeking: 

• Mythology, fairy tale, or folk tale retellings or adaptations that give depth to the original while having a unique feature.
• Dynamic literary fiction like The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt or Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr
• Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy with innovative magic systems like The Fifth Season by N. K. Jemisin or Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir
• Adult romance that strays from the beaten path like Alone with you in the Ether by Olivie Blake or Heartless Hunter by Kristen Ciccarelli.
• Stories that blend genres such as women’s fiction and fantasy or literary fiction and sci-fi.
• Kristine is particularly interested in romantasy works that have unique magic systems like One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig or The Road of Bones by Demi Winters.

Kristine is not seeking nonfiction or children’s books at this time.

How to submit: Send your query letter and the completed and polished manuscript as a Word document attachment  to Kristine at kristine@birchliterary.com 

100 Calls for Submissions in May 2025 - Paying markets

This May 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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The First Line Journal. Genre: Fiction, nonfiction and poetry using the line provided. (See theme) Payment: $25-$50 for fiction, $25 for nonfiction, $10 for poetry. Deadline: May 1, 2025.

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

Hellbound Books. Genre: Texas horror. The stories must be written and submitted by Texas authors and must be set (based) in Texas. Payment: 1 cent/word. Deadline: May 1, 2025.

Unnerving Magazine. Genre: Horror. Length: 500 -3500 words. Payment: 1.5 cent/word. Deadline: May 1, 2025.

The Lunch Hour. Genre: Poetry, prose, nonfiction, fiction, & anything else. Payment: Not specified. Deadline: May 1, 2025.

Solar Pons: A Year of Mystery 1919. Genre: Mystery featuring Solar Pons. Payment: $100. Deadline. May 1, 2025.

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: $50. Deadline: May 1, 2025.

Okay Donkey. Genre: One flash fiction OR one poem per author, per submission period. See website for details. Payment: $20. Deadline: Opens May 1, 2025 and closes when cap is reached.

Folly. Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, CNF. "We look for works with blunt, provocative humour, satirical takes on the social scene, and starkly honest accounts of ordinary life. We are particularly seeking content that is provocative, a bit sexy and is starkly honest." Payment: NZD $25-$50. Deadline: May 1, 2025. May close early if cap is reached.

Last Girls Club. Genre: Feminist horror: short stories and poems - see themes. Payment: Fiction, 1.5 cents/word. Poetry, $10. Deadline: May 1, 2025.

Shenandoah. Genre: CNF. Payment: $80 per 1000 words of prose up to $400. Deadline: Opens May 1, 2025, and closes when they reach capacity.

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

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: May 1, 2025.

Spellbinder: Genre: Poetry, fiction, nonfiction, drama, art. Payment: £3. Deadline: May 1, 2025.

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

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

The Suburban Review. Genre: Prose, art, poetry. See theme. Payment: $300 - $500. Deadline: May 4, 2025.

Eggplant Emoji is an annual comedy publication. Genre: Eggplant Emoji Volume 3 will be a print and eBook collection of hilarious short stories that are character-driven and culturally striking. Stories selected for this anthology will define pop culture with unforgettable characters, outrageous situations, and riotous humor. Length: 1,000 – 7,000 words. Payment: $25. Deadline: May 5, 2025.

Affirm Press Restrictions: They only accept Australians. Genre: All literary and genre fiction. For non-fiction, they are interested in most subjects that have an author 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 and twice yearly on their children’s & teen list. Read their submission guidelines here. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: May 5, 2025.

Bright Wall/Dark Room. Genre: Essays on any film or television-related topic. Payment: $100. Deadline: May 6, 2025.

University of Queensland Press has launched the careers of many celebrated Australian writers, such as David Malouf, Peter Carey, Kate Grenville, Doris Pilkington and Nick Earls. Originally founded as a traditional university press, UQP has since branched into publishing books for general readers in the areas of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, Indigenous writing and youth literature. UQP publishes books across the following categories: non-fiction (history, politics, current affairs, biography and memoir, environmental issues), literary fiction, including short stories, children’s and young adult (YA) books (fiction and non-fiction), poetry. They do not publish books in the following categories: Genre fiction (including romance, science fiction, fantasy, and erotica), travel guides, cookbooks, self-help books, plays/scripts/music scores, textbooks, unrevised theses or conference proceedings. Read their submission guidelines here. Deadline: May 7, 2025. Open the first seven days of every month.

Hexagon. Genre: Speculative fiction short stories, flash fiction, poetry, graphic stories, and visual art, in English or French. Payment: $5 for accepted poetry and cartoons, 0.01$ per word for all short stories up to 7,500 words, $40/page for comics and $150 for cover art pieces. (Payment in CAD). Deadline: May 7, 2025. Open to submissions the first week of every second month.

Planet Scumm. Genre: Hard sci-fi, soft sci-fi, speculative fiction, weird fiction, slipstream. Payment: 8 cents/word. Deadline: May 7, 2025.

The Fabulist. Genre: Fantastical flash fiction. Payment: $100. Deadline: May 7, 2025. Opens May 6.

Tin House. Genre: Debut Poetry Collections. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: May 11, 2025. Opens May 10.

Winter Lore Book 3:  Aurora: Tales of Winter Dreams. Genre: Fiction, poetry, articles, etc. See theme. Payment: $20 for original fiction, $10 for poetry, $5 for reprints, $5 for short articles, poems and spells on winter rites, traditions and rituals. Deadline: May 13, 2025. Accepts reprints.

Georgia Review. Genre: Fiction, poetry, non-fiction. Payment: $50 per printed page for prose and $4 per line for poetry. Essay-reviews and standard reviews earn honoraria of $50/printed page. Deadline: May 14, 2025. Fee to submit online; no fee for postal submissions.

Goblins & Galaxies Magazine. Genre: Sword & sorcery, dark fantasy, and science fiction stories under 6,000 words. Payment: 3 cents (USD) per word for original fiction. Deadline: May 14, 2025. Opens May 7.

Diet Milk. Genre: Gothic flash fiction and poetry. See theme. Payment: $3 for micro fiction, $5 for flash fiction. Deadline: May 15, 2025.

Graveside Press: Monsters Anthology. Genre: Monster stories. Payment: $0.02/word. Deadline: May 15, 2025.

Reader Beware. Genre: Horror. Payment: $0.01/word for fiction, $0.05/line for poetry, $5/page for comics. Deadline: May 15, 2025.

Tableware. Genre: Art, poetry, fiction, essays, photography, reviews. Most anything you can print on paper. Payment: $50. Deadline: May 15, 2025.

Luna Station Quarterly. Restrictions: Open to women writers only. Genre: Speculative fiction. Payment: $10. Deadline: May 15, 2025. 

The Stinging Fly. Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, poetry. Payment: Fiction and nonfiction: €30 per magazine page; Poetry: €50 per poem; Featured Poet: €250. Deadline: May 15, 2025.

Chicken Soup for the Soul: Holiday Celebrations Genre: True stories and poems. "Everyone loves the holidays and making cherished memories. And these titles do make wonderful gifts for everyone on your list. How do you celebrate the holidays? Are your celebrations very traditional or are they very spontaneous and never the same?" Payment: $200. Deadline: May 15, 2025.

The Lorelei Signal. Genre: Fantasy short stories, flash fiction, and poetry with strong female characters. Payment: $15 for short stories, $5 for poems and flash (<1000 wds) fiction pieces, $5 for reprints. Deadline: May 15, 2025. Accepts reprints.

Archive of the Odd. Genre: Speculative fiction, horror preferred. “Archive of the Odd is a zine of uncanny occurrences, told in even stranger ways.” They’d like a variety of time periods. Stories can be in any format, except traditional prose. Some of the suggested formats are: academic papers; technical writing; medication warning sheets; sales papers; newspaper articles; recipes; knitting/crochet/weaving/what-have-you guides; care guides (plant, animal, rock garden, etc); or any other unusual format. Submissions do not have to be entirely in text. Payment: $15-$25 for fiction of 500-5,000+ words. Deadline: May 15, 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: £25 for each poem published. Deadline: May 16, 2025.

Havok. Genre: Flash fiction. See themes. Payment: $50 via PayPal for each story selected for an Anthology. No payment for online publication. Deadline: May 16, 2025.

Three-Lobed Burning Eye. Genre: Horror, fantasy, and science fiction. Payment: $0.08/word. Deadline: May 16, 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: May 16, 2025. Free submissions open on the 1st of each month and close when cap is reached. 

Griffith Review. Genre: Non-fiction and fiction that responds to the theme "Best Dressed." Payment: AUD$0.75 per word. Deadline: May 18, 2025.

Cordite. Genre: Poetry. Payment: Not specified. Payment is available for Australian contributors only. Deadline: May 18, 2025.

Farmer-ish. Genre: Nonfiction, CNF, poetry related to farming (including recipes). Payment: $25 for print journal. Deadline: May 20, 2025. See themes.

The Deadlands. Genre: Fiction. "The Deadlands exists in liminal spaces between life, death, and elsewhere. We are looking for fiction that concerns itself with death—but also everything death may involve." Payment: 10 cents/word for fiction. Deadline: May 21, 2025. Accepts reprints. 

Stygian Lepus Magazine. Genre: Dark speculative fiction. Payment: $5. Deadline: May 25, 2025.

Conquest Publishing: Monstrous Angels – An Anthology of Religious Horror. See theme. Genre: Horror. Payment: $20. Deadline: May 25, 2025.

Flash Fiction Online. Genre: Speculative flash fiction. Reprints only. Payment: $36. Deadline: May 26, 2025. Accepts reprints.

(s)crawl magazine. Genre: Horror fiction and poetry. Payment: $20. Deadline: May 29, 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: May 30, 2025. Opens on the first day of the month and closes once they hit the submissions cap.

Chicken Soup for the Soul: Change your habits & attitudes / change your life Genre: True stories and poems. "Habits. Attitudes. Breaking bad habits and replacing them with good habits play an important role in self-care. Change your attitude and you can change your life. And self-care - including mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual wellbeing - is vital to ensuring that your needs are met. It's probably what we neglect the most." Payment: $200. Deadline: May 30, 2025.

Chicken Soup for the Soul: Stories About Pets. Genre: "From backyard to barnyard; from couch to coop; from aquatic to aerial; from indoor to outdoor; from fins to fur to feathers - we want to hear about all your pets." Payment: $200. Deadline: May 30, 2025.

Samhain Screams. Genre: Dark Halloween tales. Payment: $50 AUD for stories up to 5,000 words. Deadline: May 30, 2025.

Best Weird Fiction of the Year. Genre: Weird fiction published in 2024. Payment: Honorarium. Deadline: May 30, 2025. Reprints only.

Poet Lore. Genre: Poetry. Payment: $50. Deadline: May 30, 2025.

Kweli Journal. "Kweli is the first online journal of its kind to celebrate community and cultural kinships. In this shared space, you will hear the lived experience of people of color. Our many stories. Our shared histories. Our creative play with language. Here our memories are wrapped inside the music of the Muscogee, the blues songs of the South, the clipped patois of the Caribbean." Genre: Self-contained novel excerpt, short story, or creative non-fiction piece, poetry. Length: No more than 7,000 words. Payment: "Upon publication." Deadline: May 30, 2025.

100 Word Project. Genre: Drabbles of exactly 100 words. See theme. Payment: $1. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

New Orleans Review. Genre: Fiction, nonfiction and poetry. Payment: $300 for prose, $100 for poetry. Deadline: May 31, 2025. In celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage month, there are no submission fees for all API writers for the month of May, not limited to those living in/born in the US.

The Offing. Genre: Translation prose. Payment: $25 - $100. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Absynthe Magazine. Genre: Fiction, poetry, art, and nonfiction. Payment: $75 (CAD). Art $50 (CAD). Deadline: May 31, 2025.

The Offing. Genre: Memoir. Payment: $25 - $100. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

The Margins. Genre: Poetry by emerging and established Asian American and diasporic poets. Payment: $50 – $90 for a single poem. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Alocacia is a monthly mini journal of queer at-home nature writing. "We appreciate both traditional work, as well as the weird, erotic, explicit, anti-colonial, and whatever you can come up with. This is a journal about plants, gardening, and indoor horticulture. Please don’t send us work that isn’t about plants, gardening, or indoor horticulture." Payment: $50. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

The Bombay Literary Magazine. Genre: Fiction, poetry, translated fiction/poetry and graphic fiction. Payment: Indian rupees 5,000 (approx. $61) per contribution. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Bona Books: Wrath Month Anthology. Genre: Fantasy, science-fiction, and horror short stories that embrace punk and queer rage. Length: Up to 6,000 words. Payment: $0.08/word. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Exist Otherwise: Soldier Without a Name. Genre: Poetry, prose, essays, fiction, creative nonfiction, scripts, hybrid, experimental writing, whatever. See theme. Payment: $15. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Cast of Wonders. Genre: YA Speculative fiction. Podcast. Theme: Banned Books Week. 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: May 31, 2025.

Bag of Bones Press: Patterns. Genre: Dark stories (2-4k words) on the theme of patterns. Length: 2,000-4,000 words. Payment: $0.01/word. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Killer Verse: Nostalgic Halloween. Genre: Horror short stories or other works that can be read and performed live on stage, with a run time of no more than five minutes (2-3 pages), and which fit the theme of Nostalgic Halloween. Length: Up to 1,800 words. Payment: CAD50 for stories, CAD50 for poems. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Contrarian Publishing. Restrictions: Submissions are restricted to Asian American and Pacific Islander authors. Genre: Romance, fantasy, and science fiction novels, in all age categories as well as select mystery, thriller, and horror titles, and memoirs. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Short Story, Long. Genre: Short stories, 2k-8k words long (3,000-5,500 range preferred). Payment: $100. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

A Public Space. Genre: Fiction, essays, poetry, as well as graphic and hybrid work. Payment: Honorarium. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Book Worms. Genre: Horror: fiction, poetry, and essays. See theme. Length: Up to 1,500 words. Payment: 8 cents/word. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Open Secrets Magazine. Genre: First person 1,000-2,000 word personal essays written entirely by the author without use of AI and based on the author’s life experience relating to climate change and/or cliimate issues. Payment: $50. Deadline: May 31, 2025

University Press of Kentucky. Genre: Books of poetry or fiction (novels, short story collections, etc.). Payment: Royalties. Deadline: May 31, 2025. Closes when submission cap is reached, so submit early.

Escape Pod. Genre: Science fiction (Audio and written format). Payment: USD $0.08 per word for original fiction. USD $100 per story for reprint fiction. Deadline: May 31, 2025. Reprints accepted.

Skin. Genre: Speculative stories (2-5k words) on the theme of patterns. "We tend to prefer speculative, surreal, supernatural, dark fiction with creeping, poetic, dread-inducing prose, and endings we can't predict, but we're open to all subgenres of dark fiction." Payment: 1 cent per word. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Black Lawrence Immigrant Writing Series. Restrictions: Open to any individual living in the U.S. who identifies as an immigrant and who either (i) was born in another country, (ii) has at least one parent who was born in another country (iii) is a refugee, or (iv) lives in the United States under Asylum or a Protection Program, such as TPS or DACA. Genre: Books of poetry, prose (fiction or nonfiction), and hybrid texts of poetry and prose. Payment: In addition to publication, marketing, and a standard royalties contract from Black Lawrence Press, authors chosen for the Black Lawrence Immigrant Writing Series will receive a travel stipend of $500, which can be used for book tours or in any manner chosen by the authors. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Olit. Restrictions: Strong preference for Orlando based writers/submissions about Orlando and surrounding areas. Genre: Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, Hybrid, Artwork, Photography. "Send us all kinds of stuff. We love the artfully weird." Payment: $10. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Dragon Soul Press: Beyond the Veil. Genre: All Fae stories are welcome. All genres are accepted. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Agbowo. Restrictions: Open to writers of African origin. Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, plays, and art. Payment: NGN 20,000-50,000. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Dragon Soul Press: The Fear Driver. Genre: Horror drabble. Drabbles are 100 words each. A minimum of 5 and a maximum of 15 drabbles from each author. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Malahat Review. Genre: Fiction. Payment: CAD $70/page. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Broken Sleep Books. Genre: Poetry collections (40+ pages). Payment: Royalties. Deadline: May 31, 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: May 31, 2025.

Plenitude Magazine "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: $60. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Baltimore Review. Genre: Poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, videos (including poetry), and cross-genre work. Payment: $50. Deadline: May 31, 2025. May close early if they reach their cap.

Wrath Month. Genre: Fantasy, science-fiction, and horror short stories that embrace punk and queer rage. Payment: 8 cents.word. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Black Fox Literary Magazine. Genre: Fiction, CNF, poetry, art. Payment: $20. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

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: May 31, 2025.

JMS Books. Genre: LGBTQ romance stories, 12,000 words minimum. See theme. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Princeton Series of Contemporary Poets. Genre: Full-length poetry collections. Payment: Royalties. Read full guidelines HERE. Deadline: May 31, 2025. 

AGNI. Genre: Poetry and prose. Payment: $10 per printed (or printed-out) page for accepted prose, and $20 per page for accepted poetry, up to a maximum of $150. Deadline: May 31, 2025. Fee to submit online. No fee to submit by USPS.

Flash Fiction Online. Genre: Speculative flash fiction. See theme. Payment: $100. Deadline: May 31, 2025. Accepts reprints.

Graveside Press: Illustrated Poetry Anthology. Genre: Illustrated poetry. "Give us your limericks, sonnets, haiku, ballads, and free verse! Have visual poetry? EVEN BETTER. We want grim, gothic, morbidly funny, terrifying works." Payment: $0.02/word. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

JMS Books. Genre: LGBTQ romance stories, 12,000 words minimum. See theme. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Utopia Science Fiction. Genre: Utopian science fiction. See theme. Payment: $0.08/word for fiction, $30 for nonfiction, $25 for poetry. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Far Futures. Genre: Speculative fiction exploring the colonial possibilities of Titan. Payment: $50. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

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: May 31, 2025. Closes when they reach capacity, so submit early.

AND A FEW MORE...

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

IHRAM Publishes. Genre: Poetry, fiction, esssays, art. Theme: Invisible Chains: Contemporary Slavery and Forced Migration. Payment: $50 for writing, $25 for art. Deadline: June 1, 2025.

Wallstrait. Genre: Flash fiction, longer stories, hybrid, and experimental stuff you can't quite define. Length: Up to 5,000 words. Payment: $25. Deadline: June 1, 2025. 

Eerie River. Restrictions: Open to underrepresented Canadian authors. Genre: Novels or novellas in the genres of dark fiction, dark romance, horror romance, or horror, Payment: Royalties. Deadline: June 1, 2025.

Green Writers Press is an independent, Vermont-based publishing company dedicated to spreading environmental awareness and social justice by publishing authors who promulgate messages of hope and renewal through place-based writing and environmental activism. Genre: Adult/juvenile fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: June 1, 2025.

Eternal Haunted Summer. Genre: Poetry, short fiction. Theme: Music. Payment: $5. Deadline: June 1, 2025.

75 Writing Contests in May 2025 - No entry fees

This May there are more than six dozen free writing contests for short fiction, novels, poetry, CNF, nonfiction, and plays. Prizes range from $50,000 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: Flickr)

_____________________

World Historian Student Essay Competition. Restrictions: Open to students enrolled in grades K–12 in public, private, and parochial schools, and those in home-study programs. Genre: Essay that addresses one of the following topics and discuss how it relates to you personally and to World History:  Your view of a family story related to a historical event or your personal family cultural background, or an issue of personal relevance or specific regional history/knowledge, such as "My ancestor walked with Abraham Lincoln from Illinois to fight in the Black Hawk War of 1832." Prize: $500. Deadline: May 1, 2025.

The EastOver Prize for a Debut Story Collection. Restrictions: Open to writers who have not published another full-length book. Genre: Debut story collection. Prize: $2000 and publication. Deadline: May 1, 2025.

Occult Detective Anthology. Genre: Occult detective fiction. Prize: "Small payment." Deadline: May 1, 2025.

Neukom Institute Literary Arts Awards. Genre: Play that addresses the question: “What does it mean to be a human in a computerized world?” Prize: $5000. Deadline: May 1, 2025.

CINTAS Creative Writing Fellowship. Restrictions: Open to any Cuban author (including those of direct Cuban lineage; need not reside in Cuba). Genre: Novel excerpts, short stories, plays, or poems of up to 25 pages. Prize: $20,000 fellowship. Deadline: May 1, 2025.

The Waterston Desert Writing Prize. Genre: Literary nonfiction, desert theme. Prize: $3,000. Deadline: May 1, 2025.

ABA Journal/Ross Writing Contest for Legal Short Fiction. Sponsored by the American Bar Association. Restrictions: Entrants must be U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents. Genre: Original works of short fiction that illuminate the role of the law and/or lawyers in modern society. 5000 words max. Prize: $3,000 and publication in ABA Journal. Deadline: May 1, 2025.

The Questions Writing Prize. Restrictions: Open to young Australian writers (18 to 30 years). Genre: Fiction and nonfiction on any topic as long as the piece remains between 1,500 and 2,000 words. Prize: $3,000 AUD top prize. Deadline: May 1, 2025. 

The Pattis Family Foundation Creative Arts Book Award. Genre: Works of fiction or nonfiction. Prize: $25,000. The award-winner will participate in a 2-3 day residency at Interlochen Center for the Arts in April 2025. Deadline: May 1, 2025.

Rabbi Sacks Book Prize. Genre: Published nonfiction book that contributes significantly to the arena of modern Jewish thought. Prize: $50,000. Deadline: May 1, 2025.

Teen Nib Writing Contest. Restrictions: Open to students attending high school (Grades 9-12) in the state of Virginia. Genre: Short story, poetry, nonfiction. Prize: $100 top prize. Deadline: May 1, 2025.

Casa Africa Essay Prize. Genre: Essay on the theme, 'Decolonisation’. 15,000-20,000 words. Prize: €2,000. Deadline: May 2, 2025.

Andy Warhol Foundation Arts Writers Grant. Genre: Articles, books, and short-form writing about contemporary art—the grants support projects addressing both general and specialized art audiences, from short reviews for magazines and newspapers to in-depth scholarly studies. The program also supports art writing that engages criticism through interdisciplinary methods and experiments with literary styles. Grant: $15,000 to $50,000. Deadline: May 7, 2025.

Cave Canem Poetry Prize. Restrictions: Open to Black writers of African descent who have not had a full-length book of poetry published by a professional press. Authors of chapbooks and self-published books with a maximum print run of 500 may apply. Genre: Unpublished, original collections of poems written in English. Prize: $10,000, publication by Graywolf Press in fall 2025, 15 copies of the book, and a feature reading. Deadline: May 8, 2025.

Quay Words Young Writers’ Flash Fiction Competition. Restrictions: Open writers aged 10 to 18-years. Genre: Flash fiction on theme ‘Generation' Prize: £200 top prize. Deadline: May 11, 2025.

Republic of Letters: What’s The Best Thing You Read In The Past Year? Genre: Review. Ideally, it should have been written in the past year and should be a book, but you can venture out if you choose. Prize: $50. Deadline: May 11, 2025.

Pulitzer Center's "Fighting Words—Poetry in Response to Current Events" Contest. Restrictions: Current K-12 students anywhere in the world may enter. Students may write in any language, and are welcome to submit multilingual poems. Judges will have reading fluency in English and Spanish. Genre: Poetry. Theme: How can poetry be an effective response to current events and underreported stories? How can journalism and poetry help us make connections between global issues and our local and personal contexts? Prize: $300 top prize. Deadline: May 11, 2025.

Boroondara Literary Awards. Restrictions: Open to Australians. Genre: Prose and poetry. Prize: More than $5,000 in prize money across various age groups in the Young Writers’ category; more than $3,500 in prize money in the Open Short Story category. Deadline: May 11, 2025.

Brown's Mart Theatre Award. Restrictions: Open to all writers from across the Northern Territory, Australia. Genre: Script. There is no word limit. Scripts must have a performance time of more than 30 minutes. Script treatments are ineligible. Prize: The winner of the Brown’s Mart Theatre Award will receive a $1,000 prize, an NT Writers’ Centre membership and a double pass to select shows in Brown's Mart’s performance program. Deadline: May 12, 2025.

Flash Fiction Award. Restrictions: Open to all writers from across the Northern Territory, Australia. Genre: A blog post, fan fiction, short story, fictional diary entry or fictional letter. Word limit: 500 words. Entries limited to three entries per person. Prize: The winner of the Flash Fiction Award will receive a $600 prize, an NT Writers’ Centre membership and a double pass to Brown's Mart’s performance program. Deadline: May 12, 2025.

Kath Manzie Youth Award. Restrictions: Open to all writers from across the Northern Territory, Australia. Genre: A piece of creative writing, either poetry or short story, by a person aged 12 to 18 years as of 1 January 2023. Limit of three poetry entries with a 300-line limit OR a short story with a 3,000-word limit per person. Prize: The winner of the Kath Manzie Youth Award will receive a $600 prize, an NT Writers’ Centre membership and a double pass to Brown's Mart’s performance program. Deadline: May 12, 2025.

NT Writers' Centre Poetry Award. Restrictions: Open to all writers from across the Northern Territory, Australia. Genre: A single poem up to 300 lines. Entries limited to three separate poetry entries per person. Prize: The winner of the NT Writers’ Centre Poetry Award will receive a $1,000 prize, an NT Writers’ Centre membership and a double pass to Brown's Mart’s performance program. Deadline: May 12, 2025.

Charles Darwin University Creative Non-Fiction Award 2024. Restrictions: Open to all writers from across the Northern Territory, Australia. Genre: A factually accurate work, written with attention to literary style and technique. Can take the form of a biography, autobiography, memoir, diary entry, travel writing, food writing, literary journalism, or criticism. Word limit: 3,000 words. Prize: The winner of the Charles Darwin University Creative Non-Fiction Award will receive a $500 prize, an NT Writers’ Centre membership and a double pass to Brown's Mart’s performance program. Deadline: May 12, 2025.

RBC PEN Canada New Voices Award. "The RBC PEN Canada New Voices Award is an annual award that aims to encourage new writing and to provide a space where unpublished Canadian writers can submit short stories, creative nonfiction, journalism, and poetry. The shortlisted submissions are judged by a distinguished jury of Canadian writers." Prize: The winning entry will receive a $3,000 CAD cash prize and mentorship from a distinguished Canadian author. Deadline: May 12, 2025.

Charles Darwin University Essay Award 2024.  Restrictions: Open to all writers from across the Northern Territory, Australia. Genre: A referenced academic essay on a topic relating to the Northern Territory. Word limit: 3,000 words. Prize: The winner of the Charles Darwin University Essay Award will receive a $1,000 prize, an NT Writers’ Centre membership and a double pass to Brown's Mart’s performance program. Deadline: May 12, 2025.

Zip Print Short Story Award 2024. Restrictions: Open to all writers from across the Northern Territory, Australia. Genre: An original work of short fiction. Word limit: up to 3,000 words. Prize: The winner of the Zip Print Short Story Award will receive a $1,000 prize, an NT Writers’ Centre membership and a double pass to Brown's Mart’s performance program. Deadline: May 12, 2025.

The James Laughlin Award is sponsored by the Academy of American Poets. Genre: A second book of poetry forthcoming in the next calendar year. Must be under contract with US publisher. Restrictions: Open to US citizens and residents only. Prize: $5,000, an all-expenses-paid week long residency in Florida, and the Academy will purchase approximately 1,000 copies of the book for distribution to its members. Deadline: May 15, 2025.

Singapore Poetry Contest. Genre: Poetry. "We are looking for poems that use the word "fable” in imaginative ways." Prize: USD300, 200, and 100 will go to the top three winners. Deadline: May 15, 2025.

Governor General's Literary Awards. Restrictions: Books must have been written by Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada. They do not need to be residing in Canada. Genre: The Governor General’s Literary Awards are given annually to the best English-language and French-Language book in each of the seven categories of Fiction, Literary Non-fiction, Poetry, Drama, Young People’s Literature (Text), Young People’s Literature (Illustrated Books). Prize: $25,000. Deadline: May 15, 2025.

The Africa Institute: Global Africa Translation Fellowship. Restrictions: Open to Translators in the Global South. Genre: Translations of works from the African continent and its diaspora, into English or Arabic. This is a non-residential fellowship. Projects may be retranslations of old, classic texts, previously untranslated works, poetry, prose, or critical theory collections. The project may be a work-in-progress, or a new project feasible for completion within the timeframe of the grant. Prize: $1,000-$5,000. Deadline: May 15, 2025. 

Leeway Foundation: Transformation Award. Restrictions: Women and transgender poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers in the Philadelphia area who have been creating art for social change for five or more years. Writers who have lived for at least two years in Bucks, Camden, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, or Philadelphia counties, who are at least 18 years of age, and who are not full-time students in a degree-granting arts program are eligible. Award: $15,000. Deadline: May 15, 2025.

Suspect Poetry Contest. Genre: Poetry. "We are looking for poems that use the word “fable” in imaginative ways." Prize: USD300, 200, and 100 will go to the top three winners. Deadline: May 15, 2025.

Native Art Fellowship. Restrictions: Applicants must be an enrolled/citizen member or lineal descendant of a federally recognized tribe, a state recognized tribe, or be an Alaska Native or Native Hawaiian. Genre: This fellowship supports diverse creative disciplines and artists working in any medium including, but not limited to, visual, performing, literature, multidisciplinary, film and video, or folk and traditional. Prize: $5,000. Deadline: May 15, 2025.

Jeanne Córdova Prize for Lesbian/Queer Nonfiction. Restrictions: Open to a writer committed to nonfiction work that captures the depth and complexity of lesbian/queer life, culture, and/or history. The winner of the prize will have published at least one book and show promise in continuing to produce groundbreaking and challenging work. Prize: $2,500. Deadline: May 16, 2025.

The Denneny Award for Editorial Excellence. Restrictions: The award will go to an editor whose commitment to the publication of LGBTQ+  writers and literature contributes significantly to the advancement of the LGBTQ+  community. Candidates can work in any genre, be at any publication, and be at any stage of their career. For 35 years as an editor at Macmillan, St. Martin’s Press, and Crown Publishing, Michael Denneny championed LGBTQ writers and stories as one of the first openly gay editors working at major publishing houses. The Denneny Award for Editorial Excellence is the only editorial award that not only recognizes the support provided by editors to the literary community, but also the importance of editors in the advancement of a social movement. Prize: The winner will receive a cash prize of $2,500. Deadline: May 16, 2025.

The Pat Holt Prize for Critical Arts Writing. Restrictions: The award will go an LGBTQ arts critic or literary reviewer committed to examining queer works of art and culture, as Holt ground-breakingly did for 16 years. This award is made possible by Lesbians for Good, a fund of the Horizons Foundation. Prize: $4,000. Deadline: May 16, 2025.

Dr. Jim Duggins Outstanding LGBTQ Mid-Career Novelist Prize. Restrictions: Open to LGBTQ mid-career novelists who have published at least three novels. or two novels and substantial additional literary work (including poems, stories, or essays). Genre: Published book. Prize: $5000. Deadline: May 16, 2025.

Randall Kenan Prize for Black LGBTQ Fiction. Restrictions: Open to a Black LGBTQ writer whose fiction explores themes of Black LGBTQ life, culture, and/or history. To be eligible, the winner of the prize must have published at least one book and show promise in continuing to produce groundbreaking work. Prize: $3,000. Deadline: May 16, 2025.

Judith A. Markowitz Award for Emerging LGBTQ Writers. Restrictions: The nominee must self-identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer. The nominee must have written and published at least one but no more than two books of fiction, nonfiction, or poetry. Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, or poetry. Prize: $1000. Deadline: May 16, 2025.

J. Michael Samuel Prize for Emerging Writers Over 50. Restrictions: Open to unpublished LGBTQ writers over 50 working in any genre. Genre: All genres. Prize: $5000. Deadline: May 16, 2025.

The Karla Jay Prize for Emerging Writers in Gender and Sexuality Studies. Restrictions: Open to individuals with an emerging career in Gender and Sexuality Studies research, writing, and publication. Genre: Gender and Sexuality Studies. Prize: $1,500. Deadline: May 16, 2025.

Creative Future Writers’ Award. Restrictions: Open to underrepresented writers in the UK only, who are over 18 years old. Genre: Poetry, fiction. This year’s theme is ‘Wild.’  Prize: Publication, GBP £75.  Deadline: May 18, 2025.

Republic of Letters: 1800-1825:Romanticism::1900-1925:Modernism::2000-2025:? Genre: Nonfiction. Is there a dominant literary style at the moment? Is there a particular literary approach that our era will be remembered for? Prize: $50. Deadline: May 18, 2025.

The Kentucky State Poetry Society Student Contest. Restrictions: Open to public, private, and homeschool students in grades 3-12. Genre: Poetry. Prize: 1st prize - $75, 2nd prize - $50, 3rd prize - $25. Winners are invited to read their poems at the annual meeting. Deadline: May 18, 2025.

Molly Keane Creative Writing Award. Restrictions: Open to Irish residents. Genre: Unpublished short story, maximum 2,000 words. Prize: €250 plus a course at the Molly Keane Writers Retreat. Deadline: May 19, 2025.

RTÉ Radio Short Story Competition. Restrictions: Open to Irish writers and residents of Ireland. Genre: Short story. Prize: Up to 5,000 euros. Deadline: May 23, 2025.

The Queen’s Commonwealth Essay Contest. Restrictions: The competition is open to all citizens and residents of the Commonwealth aged 18 and under. Genre: Essay. The theme of the contest is "Community in the Commonwealth." Prize: Past prizes have included certificates, resources for winner's school, visits to Cambridge University, a trip to London and a week of activities, work experience at international organisations, and having your entry featured in worldwide media. Deadline: May 23, 2025.

Great Lakes Colleges (GLCA) New Writers Award. Restrictions: Open to Americans and Canadians.  Genre: Poetry, fiction, and creative non-fiction. In each category, the submitted work must be an author’s first published volume. Prize: $500. Deadline: May 25, 2025.

Rattlecast Prompt Poem of the Month. Genre: Poetry based on prompts. (See website) Prize: $100. Deadline: May 25, 2025.

Defenestration. Genre: Short story including an incident of defenestration – the art or –ism of throwing people out of windows. It need not be literal. "This can be a sudden, immediate, even violent shift, change, or seismical event between the beginning and the end.” Prize: $75, two runner-up prizes of $30 each. Deadline: May 25, 2025.

Republic of Letters: Tell The Story Of A Job You Had And What You Learned From It. Genre: Nonfiction. "Just pretend this is The Moth." Prize: $50. Deadline: May 25, 2025.

Roscommon New Writing Award. Restrictions: All entrants must have a connection with the county of Roscommon (born in, living in, currently working in, went to school in, etc). Genre: Short story. Prize: €600.00. Deadline: May 26, 2025.

Write the World Competition: Your Home. Restrictions: Young writers ages 13-19. Genre: Reflection about your own environment, close to home. Length: 400-1000 words. Prize: Best Entry: $100; Runner-Up and Best Peer Review will each receive $50. Deadline: May 26, 2025.  (Note: This is a monthly contest.)

Changing Light Prize for a Novel-in-Verse. Genre: Novel-in-Verse. Prize: $500 and publication for a novel-in-verse, 90-160 pages. Deadline: May 30, 2025.

Reedsy. Genre: Story on theme. See website. Prize: $250. Deadline: May 30, 2025.

A Very Short Story Award. Genre: Short story of ten words or fewer. Prize: Free Gotham class. Deadline: May 30, 2025.

The Future Bookshelf: Mo Siewcharran Prize. Restrictions: The contest is open to BAME writers in the UK. Genre: Picture book. Prize: £2,500, £1,500 and possible publication. Deadline: May 30, 2025.

Irene Adler Prize for Women Writers. Restrictions: Open to Canadian women. Genre: Creative nonfiction. Prize: $1,000 scholarship to a woman pursuing a degree in journalism, creative writing, or literature at a recognized post-secondary institution in the U.S. or Canada. Deadline: May 30, 2025.

Restless Books Prize for New Immigrant Writing. Restrictions: Open to first-generation residents of the United States. “First-generation” can refer either to people born in another country who relocated to the U.S., or to American-born residents whose parents were born elsewhere. Genre: Unpublished nonfiction books. Prize: $10,000 and publication. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Rattle Ekphrastic Challenge. Genre: Poem inspired by artwork. (See site for image.) Prize: $100. Deadline: May 31, 2025. This is a monthly contest.

Read Magazine. Genre: Short story. Prize: $50. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Rattlecast Prompt Poem of the Month. Genre: Poetry based on prompts. (See website) Prize: $100. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

The Wolfe Pack Black Orchid Award. Genre: Mystery novellas in the style of Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe novellas. Manuscript length: 15K-20K words. Prize: $1,000, plus recognition and publication in a forthcoming issue of AAMM. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Indie Author Project. Genre: Indie-published fiction. (See site for list of genres.) Prize: $2,500 to the 1st place winner and $500 each to two runner-ups in each genre.  Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Furphy Literary Award: Junior and Youth Competition. Restrictions: Open to  juniors & youth age writers who live in the Goulburn Valley, Australia. Genre: Short stories and poetry. Prize: First prize of $300. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

A Voice for Animals Teen Essay Contest. Restrictions: Open to students between the ages of 14-18. Genre: Essays on an animal rights topic. In the 16-18 year olds category, essays must be 800-1,000 words long and be accompanied by a photograph; in the 14-15 year olds category, essays should be between 1,400-1,500 words. Prize: $200 - $500. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Speculative Literature Foundation Older Writers Grant. Restrictions: Open to writers who are fifty years of age or older at the time of grant application. Genre: Speculative fiction. Prize: $500. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

bpNichol Poetry Chapbook Award. Restrictions: Canadian publishers only. Genre: Published poetry chapbook. Prize: The author receives $4,000 and the publisher receives $500. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

James Bartleman Aboriginal Youth Creative Writing Awards. Restrictions: Open to aboriginal youth, 18 years or younger, residing in Ontario, Canada. Genre: Creative writing. Prize: $2,500. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Harlequin: Romance Includes You Mentorship. Restrictions: Open to debut writers in Canada and the US. Genre: Romance novel. Prize: A contract advance plus grant with a value of $5,000 U.S. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Vancouver Writers Fest's Youth Writing Contest. Restrictions: Open to students in British Columbia. Genre: Short stories and personal essays: 1,000 word limit (for elementary school student submissions) and 1,500 (for high-school student submissions). Prize: $100 top prize. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

The Center for Fiction / Susan Kamil Emerging Writer Fellowships offer grants, editorial mentorship, and other opportunities to early-career New York City-based practitioners who are at a critical moment in their development as fiction writers. Genre: Fiction. Grant: $5,000. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Jerry Jazz Musician Fiction Contest. Genre: Unpublished fiction approximately 1,000 - 5,000 words. Story should pertain to music, social history, literature, politics, art, film and theater, particularly that of the counter-culture of mid-twentieth century America. Prize: $150 and publication in Jerry Jazz Musician. Deadline: May 31, 2025.

Apex Flash Fiction Contest. Genre: Speculative fiction, 1000 words max. Prize: 8 cents/word or $10, which ever is greater. Deadline: May 31, 2025. Note: Apex Magazine’s Flash Fiction Contest is open from the 7th until the final day of each month. The contest is themed.

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: May 31, 2025. Reprints are ok so long as you still have the rights to distribute.