Limp Wrist: Glitter Bomb Award.
Restrictions: Open to LGBTQ/non-binary poets and their allies.
Genre: Poem by a poet of any stage of her/his/their career.
Prize: $600 and publication in Limp Wrist.
Deadline: May 11, 2023.
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 ‘How It Started.’ Prize: Publication, unspecified monetary award (?) Deadline: May 14, 2023.
Apparition Lit.
Genre: Speculative flash fiction inspired by the monthly photograph prompt. (See site for photo.) Length: 1000 words max.
Prize: $30.
Deadline: May 14, 2023.
Bacopa Literary Review.
Genres: Fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry.
Prizes: First ($200) and Runner-Up ($160) prizes in each genre. All published will receive $20 and a copy of the print journal. After publication, Bacopa will be promoted online.
Deadline: May 14, 2023.
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, 2023.
53-Word Story Contest.
Genre: Flash fiction of exactly 53 words about sweat.
Prize: Publication and a free book.
Deadline: May 15, 2023.
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 15, 2023.
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 15, 2023.
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, 2023.
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, 2023.
Singapore Poetry Contest.
Genre: Poetry. "We are looking for poems that use the word “snail” in imaginative ways."
Prize: USD300, 200, and 100 will go to the top three winners
. Deadline: May 15, 2023.
Northern Territory Literary Awards.
Restrictions: Open to all writers from across the Northern Territory, Australia. Several awards for adults. Youth Award is for ages 12 - 18.
Genre: Theatre, Creative Non-Fiction, Essay, Short Story, Flash Fiction, Poetry.
Prizes: $500 - $1000, depending on category.
Deadline: May 15, 2023.
Write the World Competition.
Restrictions: Young writers ages 13-19.5.
Genre: Nonfiction essay about food.
Prize: Best Entry: $100; Runner up: $50.
Deadline: May 16, 2023. (Note: This is a monthly contest)
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 17, 2023.
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 19, 2023.
Whole Life Soaps Haiku Contest.
Genre: Haiku.
Prize: $100 and publication of your haiku on packages of Whole Life Soaps, a natural soap brand based in California. 2023 theme is Aging and the Cycle of Life.
Deadline: May 20, 2023.
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. One climate change prize (both age categories compete) will be awarded for an essay on how climate change affects a particular animal species.
Prize: $500.
Deadline: May 21, 2023.
MAY 2020
Nick Darke Award.
Restrictions: Open to UK and European scriptwriters.
Genre: Full-length play.
Prize: £6,000.
Deadline: May 4, 2020.
MAY 2019
St. Francis College Literary Prize.
Genre: Novel. Third, fourth, or fifth published book of fiction. Self-published books and English translations are eligible.
Prize: $50,000 is given biennially.
Deadline: May 15, 2019.
Postponed due to pandemic.
JUNE 2023
Stone Canoe: Poetry in Flight.
Restrictions: Participants must be residents of any of the 12-county region served by the Syracuse Hancock International Airport: Onondaga, Oswego, Cayuga, Tompkins, Jefferson, Tioga, Oneida, Lewis, Madison, Cortland, Chemung, Broome. Poems by people who are not current residents of one of these counties will not be considered.
Genre: Poem on the theme of Aviation and Travel.
Prize: One winning poem will receive a pair of round-trip plane tickets good for travel in the 48 contiguous states or Canada, courtesy of Delta Air Lines, up to a $1200 value.
Youth Prize: Gift basket from Barnes and Noble with a value of $500, as well as one-year of enrollment to the Young Authors Academy at the YMCA's Downtown Writers Center in Syracuse.
Deadline: June 1, 2023.
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: June 1, 2023.
Abrams Amplify Award.
Restrictions: Entrants must be un-agented writers who are at least 18 years. old at the time of entry, are legal residents of the fifty (50) United States or the District of Columbia, and have not previously had any children’s fiction or children’s nonfiction published. "We encourage the work of creators who self-identify as Black, Asian/Pacific Islander, Latinx, Middle Eastern, or Native American/Indigenous."
Genre: Picture book.
Prizes: One (1) winner will receive $5,000, editorial notes, and a one-on-one video conference meeting with an ABRAMS editor to discuss the Submission. Two (2) winners will receive $2,500 and editorial notes on the Submission from an ABRAMS editor. Two (2) winners will receive $1,000 and editorial notes on the Submission from an ABRAMS editor. All winners will have an opportunity for their full Submission to be reviewed by the ABRAMS Books editorial team for a possible offer of publication.
Deadline: June 1, 2023.
Forum Prize.
Genre: Essay on the subject of: ‘Courageous Art(s)’ "We are looking for bold, visionary and persuasive essays that use academic research to pursue innovative questions. The topic may be addressed from the perspective of any of the literatures (including literary linguistics, translation and comparative literature approaches) normally covered by the journal: Arabic, English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish."
Prize: £500 and publication.
Deadline: June 1, 2023.
The OFIC Press Prize.
Genre: Novels and novellas that don't really fit in a traditional publishing category.
Prize: The prize for a novel is $1000 and a novella $250. Novels will be published as standalone books and novellas will be compiled into an anthology.
Deadline: June 1, 2023.
Cromwell Article Prize.
Restrictions: Open to early career scholars.
Genre: Articles published in the field of American legal history. Prize: $2,500.
Deadline: June 1, 2023.
The PEN/Heim Translation Fund.
Genre: Book-length works of fiction, poetry, creative nonfiction, and drama in translation.
Prize: $2000 - $4000.
Deadline: June 1, 2023.
PEN/Phyllis Naylor Grant for Children’s and Young Adult Novelists.
Restrictions: Candidates must have published one or more novels for children or young adults that have been warmly received by literary critics, but have not generated sufficient income to support the author.
Genre: Book-length children's or young-adult fiction.
Prize: $5000.
Deadline: June 1, 2023.
Fraser Institute Student Essay Contest.
Restrictions: Canadian high school, college, and graduate students.
Genre: Short essay on "What would our Essential Scholars say about the world today?"
Prize: CAD$1,500 in each age category.
Deadline: June 1, 2023.
Furious Fiction.
Genre: Flash fiction based on their prompt. Length: 500 words max.
Prize: $500AUD.
Deadline: June 4, 2022.
Icelandic Festival of Manitoba Poetry & Short Stories Contest.
Genre: Poetry and short stories. Length; 1200 words max.
Prize: $50 - $125. "You do not need to be of Icelandic descent to submit an entry however material reflecting Icelandic culture and interests will be given preference."
Deadline: June 5, 2023.
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: June 5, 2023. For writers who cannot afford an application fee, there is a free submission option in Submittable.)
Channel 4 Writing for Television Awards.
Restrictions: Open to writers from Northern England who would like to work in television.
Genre: TV writing.
Prize: Mentoring support and a bursary worth £3000.
Deadline: June 5, 2023.
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: June 7, 2023.
Spectator Comp No. 3303: sex education.
Genre: "You are invited to submit an explanation of the facts of life by a person from the field of fact or fiction who might be deemed a surprising choice. Please email entries of up to 150 words/16 lines to lucyATspectator.co.uk"
Prize: £30.
Deadline: June 7, 2023.
Wyoming Creative Writing Fellowship. Restrictions: Open to Wyoming writers who are U.S. citizens or have legal resident status. Genre: Fiction, Poetry, CNF. Prize: $3,000 and an honorarium/travel stipend. One fellowship will be awarded in each category of Poetry, Creative Nonfiction, and Fiction, for a total of three fellowships. Applications are juried by noted authors, literary agents, or writing professionals from outside the state. Jurors may award honorable mentions. Recipients of the Creative Writing fellowships will share their work at one of Wyoming's literary conferences
. Deadline: June 9, 2023.
Institute for Youth in Policy International Essay Writing Contest. Restrictions: Any student, in any country, who is enrolled in an accredited high school or college/university at the time of submitting their essay is eligible to participate. Genre: Essay. "Countless countries around the world suffer from a plethora of issues – economic hardship, social turmoil, political polarization, pandemic recovery, unreliable leadership, corrupt governance, warfare and conflict, the list goes on. If you were elected the leader of your country, what would you do to address the issues your country faces in order to build a more prosperous society?" Prize: $250 and publication. Deadline: June 9, 2023.
Ocean Awareness Youth Contest.
Restrictions: Open to students in grades 6 - 12.
Genre: Art, poetry, prose, film. "Use humor, positivity, irony, or other unconventional approaches that are not typically used in environmental communication to address the climate crisis. Think outside the tackle-box, beyond clichés, to create something that makes the topic of climate change and our oceans more approachable and accessible."
Prizes: $100 - $1,500.
Deadline: June 13, 2023.
Grist: Imagine 2200.
Genre: Short stories. "What we’re seeking: short stories that envision the next 180 years of equitable climate progress. Our mission is to make the story of a better world so irresistible, you want it right now."
Prize: First, second, and third-prize winners will be awarded $3,000, $2,000, and $1,000 respectively, and nine additional finalists will each receive a $300 honorarium.
Deadline: June 13, 2023.
Apparition Lit. Genre: Flash fiction. See themes. Prize: $30. Deadline: June 14, 2023.
QTBIPOC 2021 Poetry Manuscript Contest.
Restrictions: Open to QTBIPOC-identified feminist innovative writers/poets.
Genre: Poetry collection.
Prize: The prize winner will receive publication along with a $1,000.00 cash award to help aid in book promotion, travel, event attendance, etc.
Deadline: June 15, 2023.
International Wizard of Oz Club Annual Contests.
Genre: Short Fiction, Art & Academic Nonfiction Research Papers. All work must be related to the world of Oz.
Prize: $100 in each genre. 2nd Prize $50 in each genre.
Deadline: June 15, 2023.
Sapiens Plurum.
Genre: Short stories that personalize the consequences of climate change. Theme: “Inventing Beautiful Futures.”
Prize: 1ST PRIZE: $1000; 2ND PRIZE: $500; 3RD PRIZE: $300.
Deadline: June 15, 2023.
Little, Brown Emerging Artist Award.
Genre: High-quality picture books that resonate with readers of diverse backgrounds and experience. Diversity includes literal or metaphorical inclusion of characters of underrepresented ethnicity, religious background, gender identity, class, mental or physical disability, or any other nondominant populations.
Prize: American Express® gift cards totaling $1,500, round trip travel to New York City, and the honor of a one-day mentorship with a Little, Brown Books for Young Readers’ professional children’s book design and editorial team. Submission will be reviewed for publication.
Deadline: June 15, 2023.
Norton Writer's Prize. Sponsored by W.W. Norton & Company. "The Norton Writer’s Prize will be awarded annually for an outstanding essay written by an undergraduate. Literacy narratives, literary and other textual analyses, reports, profiles, evaluations, arguments, memoirs, proposals, mixed-genre pieces, and more: any excellent writing done for an undergraduate writing class will be considered."
Genres: Creative Nonfiction, Scholarly Essay.
Prize: $1,500. Two runner-up prizes of $1,000.
Deadline: June 15, 2023.
53-Word Story Contest.
Genre: Flash fiction of exactly 53 words based on monthly theme.
Prize: Publication and a free book.
Deadline: June 15, 2023. (Note: This is a monthly contest)
Towson University Prize for Literature.
Restrictions: Open to Maryland writers.
Genre: Book-length manuscript of fiction, poetry, drama or imaginative non-fiction. The work must have been published within the three years prior to the year of nomination or must be scheduled for publication within the year in which nominated. Self-published works will not be considered.
Prize: $1,000.
Deadline: June 15, 2023.
See nomination form HERE.
Baltimore Science Fiction Society Amateur Writing Contest. Restrictions: Open to Maryland residents or students at a MD 2- or 4-year college, and not a member of the Science Fiction Writers of America or published in a professional science fiction/fantasy magazine Genre: Science fiction short stories. Prize: 1st place is $250; 2nd place is $100;
3rd place is $50. Deadline: June 15, 2023.
Scotiabank Giller Prize.
Restrictions: Open to books published in Canada in English. Must be nominated by publisher.
Genre: Fiction. Full-length novel or collection of short stories published in English, either originally, or in translation.
Prize: $100,000 to the winner and $10,000 to each of the finalists.
Deadline: Books published between May 1, 2023, and June 30, 2023 must be received on or before June 16, 2023.
Carol Shields Prize for Fiction.
Restrictions: Books must be first edition English-language books written by a Canadian or American citizen or permanent resident of either country. Works written by women or non-binary authors are eligible for submission. The Prize welcomes and encourages submissions by transgender woman authors.
Genre: Published novel, short story collection or graphic novel.
Prize: $150,000 Canadian dollars.
Deadline: Entries for books published between January 1, 2023 – July 31, 2023, must be received on or before June 16, 2023.
Reedsy.
Genre: Story on theme: Friends.
Prize: $250.
Deadline: June 16, 2023.
Renard Press Poetry Contest.
Genre: Poetry on theme: Kinship. "Kinship is a poetry anthology that seeks to provide a platform for marginalised voices, and to celebrate the great diversity and rich variation in the identities of people from around the world and from a huge cross-section of walks of life."
Prize: 1st prize: £200.
Deadline: June 17, 2023.
Dream Foundry Emerging Writers Contest. Restrictions: You have published a total of less than 4,000 words of paid or income-earning speculative fiction in English. You have earned a total of less than USD 320 from those words. You have never been nominated for any award listed here as a major award in speculative fiction. Genre: Short speculative fiction, up to 10,000 words. Prize: $200 - $1,000. Deadline: June 18, 2023.
Solid Essay Contest.
Restrictions: Open to high school students.
Genre: Essay (See site for topics.) Minimum number of words is 600 and maximum is 800.
Prize: Scholarship of $1000.
Deadline: June 19, 2023.
Eugene C. Pulliam Fellowship for Editorial Writing. Genre: Editorial writing. The Eugene C. Pulliam Fellowship was established to enable a mid-career editorial writer or columnist to have time away from daily responsibilities for study and research. Freelancers may also apply. Fellowship: $75,000.
Deadline: June 19, 2023.
WWPH Writes Pride Contest.
Restrictions: Open to LGBT writers living in Washington DC, Maryland, and Virginia.
Genre: Poetry, micro-prose.
Prize: $100.
Deadline: June 19, 2023.
Write the World Competitions.
Restrictions: Young writers ages 13-19.5.
Genre: Songwriting.
Prize: Best Entry: $100; Runner up: $50.
Deadline: June 20, 2023. (Note: This is a monthly contest)
Young Scots Writer of the Year Award.
Restrictions: You must be aged 11–18 to enter as an individual.
Genre: Stories, poems, spoken word pieces, comics, videos or other pieces of writing. "We want to see it all, as long as it's in Scots and under 2500 words or up to ten minutes."
Prize: £100 book token.
Deadline: June 21, 2023.
A Midsummer Tale Narrative Writing Contest.
Genre: Non-genre fiction and creative nonfiction. Theme: Best Friends Forever…?
Length: 1,000 words minimum; 5,000 words maximum.
Prize: $35 - $50 Amazon gift card.
Deadline: June 21, 2023.
Roxane Gay Books/Grove Atlantic Fellowship. “We are currently seeking an editorial fellow interested in gaining a comprehensive understanding of the inner workings of an independent publishing house and developing a solid foundation for a career in publishing. The fellow will have exposure to the editorial, marketing, publicity, and rights departments of Grove Atlantic, and will directly support Roxane Gay Books, a new imprint at Grove Atlantic, in building an exciting list of fiction and nonfiction. This is a one-year fellowship that will allow the fellow to gain experience in publishing with an emphasis on creating access for candidates from backgrounds underrepresented in publishing….Fellows will receive a $25,000 stipend, for 24 hours a week of work, paid biweekly. The fellow is also eligible for health and dental benefits and paid time off. Candidates can be based anywhere in the United States.”
Deadline: June 22, 2023.
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: June 25, 2023.
Green Stories Novel Prize.
Genre: "Our mission is to create a cultural body of work that entertains and informs about green solutions, inspires green behaviour and raises awareness of the necessary transformations towards a sustainable economy. Currently most green communications preach to the converted i.e. only those who already care choose to watch climate change documentaries or read books with a green theme. Thus a particular aim is to use fiction as a way to reach a wider audience, and support winning authors to translate their stories into published books."
Prize: £1000 for the winner and £500 for runner up. Entrants must show they have read at least one of the books from the Green Stories project, one of which is free.
Deadline: June 26, 2023.
Hilary Weston Writers' Trust Prize for Nonfiction.
Restrictions: Books must be English-language, first-edition trade books published by a Canadian press, written by Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada. Titles must be published between May 3, 2023 and September 30, 2023.
Genre: Literary nonfiction including, among other forms, works of personal or journalistic essays, memoirs, commentary, criticism both social and political, history, and biography.
Prize: Winner: $60,000; Finalists: $5,000.
Deadline: June 28, 2023.
Atwood Gibson Writers' Trust Fiction Prize.
Restrictions: Titles must be published in Canada and written by Canadians. No self-published works.
Genre: Novel or short story collection.
Prize: $60,000 will be awarded to the novel or short story collection published between May 3, 2023 and September 30, 2023.
Deadline: June 28, 2023.
Storyhouse.
Genre: Nonfiction. Stories must be true, not semi-fictional accounts. 1000 - 10,000 words in length. Stories must be suitable for children.
Prize: $200.
Deadline: June 30, 2023.
OutWrite 2023 Chapbook Competition.
Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, and poetry chapbooks. OutWrite is a celebration of LGBTQ literature; entries that explore aspects of LGBTQ culture or identity are encouraged.
Prize: Offer of print publication from Neon Hemlock Press, and an opportunity to read at OutWrite 2024.
Deadline: June 30, 2023.
My Writing Journey.
Genre: Essay on the theme: The best writing tip I’ve ever received. Length: 600 words.
Prize: $200 (R2 000 or £100).
Deadline: June 30, 2023.
2023 BCSA Writing Competition.
Genre: Fiction, nonfiction. Theme: Marriage and Divorce. The 30th anniversary of the split between Czechia and Slovakia is the suggested (but not compulsory) theme of this year’s BCSA writing competition. If you choose to write on that theme it can be related to the Velvet Divorce but it needn’t be – it could be something on a much more individual or local level. Entries must deal with either (1) the links between Britain and the Czech and/or Slovak Republics, at any time in their history, or (2) society in those Republics since 1989. Entries should be in English and not more than 2,000 words long.
Prize: First prize £400, second prize £150.
Deadline: June 30, 2023.
Washington State Book Awards.
Restrictions: Open to Washington State writers.
Genre: Published book, fiction, nonfiction, poetry: adults or children.
Prize: Recognition (?)
Deadline: June 30, 2023 (for books published Jan. 1-May 31, 2023).
Faber Children’s: Faber and Andlyn BAME (FAB) Prize.
Restrictions: Open to undiscovered BAME writers and illustrators; entrants must be of black, Asian or minority ethnic background, and UK- or Ireland-based.
Genre: Text or artwork for children.
Prize: £1,500 and £500 each for a writer and an illustrator.
Deadline: June 30, 2023.
Love Books Competition.
Restrictions: Open to everyone but you need a UK bank account to receive your prize money if you win.
Genre: Nonfiction, poetry, CNF. "We want you to tell us why you love your favourite book, poem or play. Your response should be in the form of a piece of text of up to 750 words. Entrants should explain what they love about their chosen read, highlighting key areas of interest, and why they think others should try it."
Prize: Winner for each age group receives £300; the runner-up in each age group receives £100. Age groups: 13-15 years, 16-19 years, 20+ years.
Deadline: June 30, 2023.
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: June 30, 2023.
The Drabble Harvest Contest.
Genre: Drabble on theme of "Space Station Duty-Free." A "drabble" is defined as a short story containing exactly precisely no more and no fewer than 100 words. It has a title, which can be from 1 to 15 words-- but no more than 15.
Prize: $5.
Deadline: June 30, 2023.
Last Stanza Poetry Journal.
Genre: Poetry.
Prize: A single $100 award will be given for an outstanding poem.
Deadline: June 30, 2023.
See theme.
SA Writer’s College Short Story Award.
Restrictions: Open to unpublished writers in South Africa.
Genre: Short stories. Theme: Words Have Consequences.
Prizes: 1st – R 10 000; 2nd – R 5 000; 3rd – R 2 000.
Deadline: June 30, 2023.
Storyhouse: Preservation Foundation Essay Contest for Unpublished Writers.
Restrictions: The contest is open to writers whose creative writing has never produced revenues of over $500 in any single year. First prize winners of previous contests, while ineligible for prizes in regular contests, can compete in this one.
Genre: Nonfiction.
Prize: First prize is $100. Runners-up will receive $50.
Deadline: June 30, 2023.
Kit Sora Flash Fiction Photography Contest. Restrictions: Open to residents in the Atlantic Provinces. Genre: Flash fiction inspired by a Kit Sora photo, 250 words max. (See site for photo) Prize: 10 cents/word. Deadline: June 30, 2023. (
This is a monthly contest)
McLaughlin-Esstman-Stearns First Novel Prize is awarded to the author of the best first novel published in the previous calendar year.
Restrictions: Only American authors publishing in English are eligible. Non-eligible books include short story collections, flash fiction, memoirs, biographies and books published solely in electronic format.
Prize: $1000.
Deadline: June 30, 2023.
Digital Privacy 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 digital privacy.
Prize: $1000 scholarship.
Deadline: June 30, 2023.
The Lindisfarne Crime Prize.
Restrictions: Residents of the North East of England, or whose work celebrates the North East of England.
Genre: Crime short story of up to 10,000 words.
Prize: £2500.
Deadline: June 30, 2023.
Drue Heinz Literature Prize.
Restrictions: The award is open to writers who have published a book-length collection of fiction or a minimum of three short stories or novellas in commercial magazines or literary journals of national distribution. Online and self-publication does not count toward this requirement.
Genre: A manuscript of short stories; two or more novellas (a novella may comprise a maximum of 130 double-spaced typed pages); or a combination of one or more novellas and short stories. Novellas are only accepted as part of a larger collection.
Prize: $15,000 and publication by the University of Pittsburgh Press under its standard contract.
Deadline: June 30, 2023.
Griffin Trust for Excellence in Poetry, Griffin Poetry Prize.
Restrictions: One prize goes to a living Canadian poet or translator, the other to a living poet or translator from any country, which may include Canada.
Genre: Poetry. Books must have been published in English during the calendar year preceding the year of the award.
Prize: Prizes are awarded annually in two categories – International and Canadian. Each prize is worth C$65,000.
Deadline: June 30, 2023.
Shady Grove Literary.
Genre: Any style, genre, tone of flash fiction. Length: 300 words max.
Prize: $100.
Deadline: June 30, 2023.
Sargeson Prize for Secondary Schools.
Restrictions: Open to students enrolled at a New Zealand secondary school and aged between 16 and 18 years.
Genre: Short story, Length: 5,000 words max.
Prize: First Prize: $10000; Second Prize: $1000; Third Prize: $500.
Deadline: June 30, 2023.
Sargeson Prize.
Restrictions: Open to New Zealanders.
Genre: Short stories. Length: 5,000 words max.
Prize: First Prize: $10000; Second Prize: $1000; Third Prize: $500.
Deadline: June 30, 2023.
Eden Mills Teen Poetry Contest.
Restrictions: Open to Canadian teens.
Genre: Poetry.
Prize: Two $50 prizes, 2 $25 prizes.
Deadline: June 30, 2023.
runs a monthly short story competition. Their mission is to "revive the art of the short story, support artists, and produce something wonderful."
: Short story. Length: 6000- 10,000 words.
: $100 plus 50% of subscription revenue to be sent by Paypal, Zelle, or check.
: June 30, 2023.
.
Spectator Comp No. 3254: hard times. "You are invited to tweak a well-known book title to reflect the straitened times we live in (e.g. Lidl Women) and provide an extract of up to 150 words." Please email entries to lucyATspectator.co.uk
Prize: £30.
Deadline: June 15, 2022.
Christopher Hewitt Award. Genre: Poetry, fiction, CNF, drama. "The award showcases outstanding responses to the AIDS pandemic and the realities of individuals living with or affected by HIV/AIDS. Prize: $75 in each category. Deadline: June 15, 2022.
Solarpunk.
Genre: Micro fiction 250 words or less based on the monthly contest theme. (See theme)
Prize: $25 and publication on the Solarpunk Magazine website.
Deadline: June 23, 2022. (Opens June 17)
Christmas Stories: Postcard Poem Competition.
Genre: Poem. "Poems must be no longer than 16 lines, including title and stanza breaks, with no more than 10 words per line. Your poem must be in English. It must also be new, unpublished, and not currently submitted elsewhere."
Prize: £75.
Deadline: June 30, 2022.
BART Short Fiction Contest.
Genre: Short fiction by authors (18+) living across BART’s five counties (San Francisco, Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo, and Santa Clara). "With BART Lines, BART shines a light on the literary voices that make the Bay Area the unique, diverse place that it is. Our riders keep BART moving, and we want to highlight the best writers that the region has to offer and showcase it in our stations on our popular Short Story Dispensers.” Length: 7,500 characters or less (spaces included),” on the theme of “Motion.”
Prize: $200.
Deadline: June 30, 2022, or when they reach 400 entries.
Blue Mountain Poetry Card Contest. Genre: Poetry. "Poems can be rhyming or non-rhyming, although we find that non-rhyming poetry reads better. We suggest that you write about real emotions and feelings and that you have some special person or occasion in mind as you write." Prize: First prize $300. Second prize $150. Third prize $30. Deadline: June 30, 2022.
Rattle Genre: Poetry based on image (See site). Prize: $100 and online publication. Deadline: June 30, 2022.
JUNE 2021
Hiett Prize in the Humanities. The Hiett Prize in the Humanities is an annual award aimed at identifying candidates who are in the early stages of careers devoted to the humanities and whose work shows extraordinary promise and has a significant public component related to contemporary culture.
Restrictions: All applicants must reside in the United States.
Prize: $50,000.
Deadline: June 1, 2021.
The Pandeism Collegiate Writing Competition.
Restrictions: Open to undergraduate and graduate collegiate students of philosophy, theology, religious studies, social sciences, arts, literature, applied sciences, or comparable disciplines.
Genre: Article presenting original thought in exploring implications of the modern theological theory of Pandeism (pantheistic Deism, belief in a Creator wholly becoming our Universe, proposed to be discernible by application of logic and reason). Papers written for course credit are acceptable. Submissions do not need to take a position in favor of or opposed to Pandeism as a theory, but must present original thought about its relative possibility, relation to other areas of theology, or implications for areas such as epistemology, ethics and morality, or science. Submissions must be a minimum of 3,000 words and a maximum of 6,000 words. Only one (1) article may be submitted by each student.
Prize: $250 Amazon gift card and publication.
Deadline: June 10, 2021.
Biennial.
JUNE 2020
Peter K. Hixson Memorial Award.
Genre: Poetry, short stories.
Prize: Each winner will receive $1,800 in Writer’s Relief submission services free of charge.
Deadline: June 18, 2020.
Linda Flowers Literary Award.
Restrictions: Entrants must live in North Carolina. "The North Carolina Humanities Council invites original, unpublished entries of fiction, nonfiction, or poetry for the Linda Flowers Literary Award. Submissions should detail examinations of intimate, provocative, and inspiring portraiture of North Carolina, its people and cultures, bringing to light real men and women having to make their way in the face of change, loss, triumph, and disappointments."
Prize: $1,500.
Deadline: June 25, 2020.
Letheon.
Genre: Poetry related to the perioperative setting. "Are you a medical professional or related to one? Perhaps you have been anesthetized recently, or you are overly acquainted with the waiting room. If you are connected to the world of anesthesia, we encourage you to share your experience with us."
Prize: $500.
Deadline: June 30, 2020.
JUNE 2019
Amy Awards. Poets & Writers presents the Amy Award each year to recognize promising women poets, age 30 and under, living in the New York City metropolitan area or on Long Island. Winners receive a modest honorarium and give a reading in New York City. The award was established in 1995 by Paula Trachtman and Edward Butscher of East Hampton, New York, in memory of Ms. Trachtman's daughter, Amy Rothholz, an actor and poet.
Genre: Poetry.
Deadline: June 1, 2019.
The Vilcek Foundation Awards.
Restrictions: Applicant must have been born outside the United States; Applicant must not be more than 38 years old as of December 31, 2019 (born on or after January 1, 1981); Applicant must: be a naturalized citizen or permanent resident (green card holder) of the United States; be a holder of an H1B or O-1 visa and have been living and working in the United States for at least 5 years; or have been granted Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA); Applicant must not be enrolled as a full-time student; Applicant must have published at least one full-length book (not self-published); Applicant must intend to pursue a professional career in the United States; Applicant must not be a past winner of the Vilcek Prizes for Creative Promise.
Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, and poetry.
Prize: $50,000.
Deadline: June 10, 2019.
JULY 2023
PEN America’s U.S. Writers Aid Initiative.
Restrictions: Applicants must be professional writers based in the United States, and be able to demonstrate that this one-time grant will be meaningful in helping address a short-term emergency situation.
Prize: Grant, amount not specified.
Deadline: July 1, 2023.
The AutoEthnographer Student Scholarships.
Restrictions: Open to creatives anywhere in the world who identify as active students at any age or level. Works must be nominated by an instructor, professor, tutor, or other educator; the author/artist must have been an enrolled student in the 2022-2023 school year.
Genre: Works of literary and artistic autoethnography.
Prize: $250 and publication.
Deadline: July 1, 2023.
Virago 50th Furies Short Story Competition.
Restrictions: Open to people of underrepresented genders and women who are from Black, Asian, Mixed Heritage, and multiple-ethnic groups; part of the LGBTQIA+ community; neurodiverse; have a disability; self-identify as working-class individuals; or are from a working-class background. Entrants must be aged 18 or over, resident in the United Kingdom and must not have an agent at the time of entering the Competition or have had any book or short story previously published by a publisher or self-published in whole or in part in any format.
Genre: Feminist short story inspired by a synonym for ‘virago.’ Prize: £1,500 prize money and the opportunity to be published in the Furies paperback and ebook.
Deadline: July 1, 2023.
Local Word Poetry Prize.
Restrictions: Entries are welcome from living poets anywhere in Australia 16 years or older.
Genre: Poetry.
Prize: $2,000 AUD top prize.
Deadline: July 1, 2023.
Richard J. Margolis Award.
Genre: Journalism. Prize is awarded annually to a promising new journalist or essayist whose work combines warmth, humor, wisdom and concern with social justice.
Prize: $5,000 and one month of residency at Blue Mountain Center.
Deadline: July 1, 2023.
Kate Tufts Discovery Award. Sponsored by Claremont Graduate University. Restrictions: Poets must be citizens or legal resident aliens of the United States.
Genre: Poetry. Book must be author's first full-length book of poetry, published between between July 1, 2022, and June 30, 2023. Self-published books are accepted.
Prize: $10,000.
Deadline: July 1, 2023.
Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award. Sponsored by Claremont Graduate University. Restrictions: Poets must be citizens or legal resident aliens of the United States.
Genre: Poetry. The work submitted must be a first book of poetry published between between July 1, 2022, and June 30, 2023. Manuscripts, CDs, and chapbooks are not accepted.
Prize: $100,000.
Deadline: July 1, 2023.
BCLF Short Fiction Story Contest (BCLF Elizabeth Nunez Caribbean-American Writer’s Prize and BCLF Elizabeth Nunez Award for Writers in the Caribbean)
. Restrictions: All entrants must be of Caribbean heritage/of Caribbean descent or writers who were born/raised and holding nationality in the Caribbean. Genre: Unpublished short fiction (3000 words max). Prize: US$1750 for each contest.
Deadline: July 1, 2023.
Barbara Mandigo Kelly Peace Poetry Awards.
Genre: Poetry. "The awards contest is an annual series of awards to encourage poets to explore and illuminate positive visions of peace and the human spirit."
Prize: $200.
Deadline: July 1, 2023.
Free entry for poets age 12 and under.
Limnisa Short Story Competition.
Genre: Short story under 1,500 words on theme: A room of one's own.
Prize: One-week, all-inclusive writers' retreat in Limnisa, Greece.
Deadline: July 2, 2023.
The Michael O’Pray Prize.
Restrictions: Open to all early-career writers based in the UK.
Genre: Nonfiction writing on innovation and experimentation in the moving image.
Prize: £750 top prize.
Deadline: July 2, 2023.
4thWrite Short Story Prize.
Restrictions: Open to Black, Asian, or Minority Ethnic writers aged 18+ living in the UK or Ireland.
Genre: Short story, 6,000 words maximum.
Prize: £1,000, a one-day publishing workshop at 4th Estate and publication of their story on the Guardian website.
Deadline: July 2, 2023.
The Richell Prize for Emerging Writers.
Restrictions: Open to unpublished Australian residents aged 18 years or older.
Genre: Fiction and narrative non-fiction, the first three chapters plus synopsis (max 20,000 words).
Prize: $10,000 and a year’s mentorship with one of Hachette Australia’s publishers. The Guardian Australia will publish an extract of the first chapter of the winning work on its website.
Deadline: July 7, 2023.
Sine Theta Prize.
Restrictions: Open to members of the Sino diaspora.
Genre: Fiction (prose) and poetry.
See theme.
Prize: All authors published in sinθ receive a $10 USD honorarium. For the two contest winners, there is an additional $200 USD prize, amounting to a total of $210 USD.
Deadline: July 7, 2023.
Wingate Literary Prize.
Genre: Published book that explores Jewish themes. Book must be published between 1 September 2022 and 31 August 2023, must be published, distributed or easily available in the UK and Ireland, and must be published in English, whether originally or in translation.
Prize: £4,000.
Deadline: July 7, 2023.
AAAS/Subaru Book Prize.
Genre: Published science book. Categories include: Children's Science Picture Book (prize to author and illustrator); Middle Grades Science Book (prize to author); Young Adult Science Book (prize to author); Hands-On Science Book (prize to author). Winning authors and illustrators will be recognized at the AAAS Annual Meeting which will be held February 15-17, 2024 in Denver, CO.
Prize: $1500.
Deadline: July 7, 2023.
HG Wells Short Story Competition.
Genre: Short story on theme of "Motion." Length: 1,500 to 5,000 words.
Prize: £1,000 and publication in the annual HG Wells Short Story Competition Anthology.
Deadline: July 10, 2023.
No fee for writers under the age of 21. Those over 21 can enter for a fee.
Stony Brook Short Fiction Prize.
Restrictions: Only undergraduates enrolled full time in United States and Canadian universities and colleges are eligible. "This Prize has traditionally encouraged submissions from students with an Asian background, but we urge all students to enter."
Genre: Fiction of no more than 7,500 words.
Prize: $1,000.
Deadline: July 14, 2023.
Blessing the Boats.
Restrictions: Open to all women poets of color in the U.S., including poets who identify as cis, trans, and non-binary people who are comfortable in a space that centers on women’s experiences, regardless of citizenship and publication history.
Genre: Full-length poetry manuscript.
Prize: $5,000 honorarium and book publication by BOA Editions, Ltd.
Deadline: July 14, 2023.
The Burlington Contemporary Art Writing Prize.
Restrictions: Entrants must have published no more than six pieces of writing in print or online prior to their submission.
Genre: Review of a contemporary art exhibition.
Prize: £1,000.
Deadline: July 17, 2023.
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: £2,000 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: July 19, 2023. (Noon)
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: July 20, 2023.
PEN/Bare Life Review Grants.
Restrictions: Open to immigrant and refugee writers in the US and abroad.
Genre: Unpublished work-in-progress that will not be published prior to April 1, 2025. The project must be a work of a literary nature: fiction, creative nonfiction, or poetry.
Prize: $5000.
Deadline: July 21, 2023.
Black Voices in Children's Literature Writing Contest.
Restrictions: The contest is open to Black authors who at the time of entry are at least 18 years of age and residing anywhere in the United States.
Genre: Original children’s books for ages 0–4 (50–125 words) or for ages 4–8 (300–800 words) featuring authentic, realistic Black characters and culture and focusing on one or more of the following topics: character development, self-esteem, identity, diversity, getting along with others, engaging with family and community, or other topics related to positive childhood development. Religious and fantasy themes will not be considered.
Prize: First Place: $1000. Second Place: $500 cash prize. Third Place: $250 cash prize.
Deadline: July 24, 2023.
Literature Matters.
Restrictions: UK residents.
Genre: "Awards will be given to individual writers or other literary creators, recognising their past achievements and providing them with financial support to undertake a proposed new piece of writing or literary project. Launched as part of the RSL’s new Literature Matters programme, priority will be given to proposals which (a) will help connect with audiences or topics outside the usual reach of literature, and/or (b) will help generate public discussion about why literature matters."
Award: £20,000.
Deadline: July 28, 2023.
Brannan Prize.
Restrictions: Poet must not have published a full-length book at the time the prize is given, although chapbook publication is fine.
Genre: Poetry.
Prize: $1000.
Deadline: July 28, 2023.
The Governor General’s Literary Awards. Restrictions: Books must have been written, translated or illustrated by Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada. Genre: Best English-language and the best French-language book will be chosen in each of the seven categories of Fiction, Literary Non-fiction, Poetry, Drama, Children’s Literature (text), Children’s Literature (illustrated books) and Translation (from French to English). Prize: $25,000. Deadline: July 31, 2023.
Wintermute Lit. Restrictions: Open to emerging writers who have not published a full-length manuscript or chapbook. The work you submit can have been previously published but not awarded large national/international awards. Genre: Speculative fiction, maximum of 4500 words. Prize: Winners receive cash prizes, speculative books of their choice, and publication in Wintermute. Deadline: July 31, 2023. Reprints accepted.
Mustapha Matura Award. Restrictions: The competition is open to any playwright of Caribbean or African descent, resident in the UK. Entrants must be 25 years or under at the time of submission. Genre: Stage play in English. Television, radio plays and film scripts will not be considered.
Prize: £3,000 top prize.
Deadline: July 31, 2023.
The Prescription Prizes in Creative Writing. Genre: Prose (including scripts), poetry and hybrid writing. "In 2023 the RCPSG is launching its new ‘the prescription’ competition for creative writing around its historic collection of medical items representing Glasgow’s health care history. You can access our online collections
here and you should include the name of the item that inspired you and its catalogue number in your competition entry."
Prize: £100 top prize. Deadline: July 31, 2023.
Platt Family Scholarship Prize Essay Contest. Restrictions: Open to students who are FULL TIME, undergraduate students in an AMERICAN COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY during the Spring 2023 semester. Genre: Essay on topic: ““2023 is the 160th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation. Does Abraham Lincoln deserve the title of ‘The Great Emancipator’? Why or why not?” Prize: 1st Prize $1500 | 2nd Prize $750 | 3rd Prize $500. Deadline: July 31, 2023.
SLF Diverse Writers and Diverse Worlds Grants. Restrictions: Open to writers from underrepresented and underprivileged groups, such as writers of color, women, queer writers, disabled writers, working-class writers, etc. -- those whose marginalized identities may present additional obstacles in the writing / publishing process. Genres: Book-length works (novels, collections of short stories) of speculative fiction. Prize: $500. Deadline: July 31, 2023.
Landfall Essay Competition. Restrictions: Open to New Zealand writers. Genre: Essay about New Zealand. Prize: The winner will receive $3000 and a year’s subscription to Landfall. Deadline: July 31, 2023.
Tilted House: 1BR / 3BATH Poetry Chapbook Contest. Genre: Poetry chapbook, 16 - 35 pages of "experimental, puckish, political, funny, playful, polemical, and/or uncomfortable. In a word: anti-poetry. While there is no theme, per se, we are hungry for work that twists the arm of poetry’s status quo. We like meta poetics, satire, work that is aware of itself and what’s in the air. Maybe you “don’t know what you’re doing” or feel like your work is “unpublishable.” Send it to us! Give us your freaky. Give us your fun." Prize: $200. Deadline: July 31, 2023. READING FEE: $0–$20, sliding scale.
Singapore Unbound.
Restrictions: Open to undergraduates.
Genre: Critical essays on topics in Singapore literature.
Prize: $250.
Deadline: July 31, 2023.
The Washburn Chapbook Prize.
Restrictions: Open to women or non-binary writers.
Genre: Chapbook exactly 10 poems long.
Prize: $200 and publication of their micro chapbook online at Harbor Review.
Deadline: July 31, 2023.
Fees are waived for BIPOC identifying writers only.
Biopage.
Genre: "Inspiring, uplifting, and heartwarming stories."
Prizes: Up to $300.
Deadline: July 31, 2023.
Registration required.
Arvon Award. Restrictions: Open to writers living in the North of England at the time of entering and planning to remain here for at least another 12 months.
Genre: Full-length work of fiction, poetry or narrative non-fiction work in progress.
Prize: Arvon course.
Deadline: July 31, 2023.
TLC Free Reads. Restrictions: Open to writers living in the North of England at the time of entering and planning to remain here for at least another 12 months. Genre: Full-length work of fiction or narrative non-fiction work in progress. Prize: In-depth editorial report on their work in progress,
Deadline: July 31, 2023.
NorthBound Book Award. Restrictions: Open to writers living in the North of England at the time of entering and planning to remain here for at least another 12 months. Genre: Completed full-length work of fiction or narrative non-fiction. Prize: advance against royalties of £5000, publication with Saraband and access to the Northern Writers’ Awards Network. Royalties will be paid on Saraband’s standard terms.
Deadline: July 31, 2023.
Surging Tide.
Genre: Poetry, prose.
Prize: The winner of each category will be awarded $100 and each runner-up will also be awarded $25.
Deadline: July 31, 2023.
Pride Award for Emerging LGBTQIA+ Crime Writers.
Genre: An unpublished work of crime fiction, aimed at readers from children’s chapter books through adults. This may be a short story or first chapter(s) of a manuscript in-progress of 2,500 to 5,000 words.
Prize: $2,000.
Deadline: July 31, 2023.
Lune Spark Young Writers' Short Story Contest.
Restrictions: Open to writers 10-13 years old, and 13-16 years old. (Two categories.)
Genre: Short story.
Prize: $500 for first place; $250, 2nd place; $100, 3rd place.
Deadline: July 31, 2023.
#GWstorieseverywhere.
Genre: Micro fiction or essay on theme of Mirage. Your story must be no longer than 25 words, with a max of 280 characters, including spaces and the hashtag.
Prize: Free Gotham class.
Deadline: July 31, 2023.
Resource Center for Women and Ministry in the South Essay Contest.
Restrictions: Open to women (including trans and nonbinary women) age 18+.
Genre: Nonfiction essay, 1200 words max, on repair, release, or renewal. Each of us writes amid torn hearts, fractured communities, and broken systems. When do we repair? What do we release? How do we renew? We invite essays that explore, complicate, and/or write against this theme.
Prize: $300.
Deadline: July 31, 2023.
What’s Your Story? Restrictions: Open to Victorian residents. (Australia) Genre: Poetry, short stories, CNF. Prize: $500. Deadline: July 31, 2023.
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: July 31, 2023.
Reprints are ok so long as you still have the rights to distribute.
JULY 2022
Kit Sora Flash Fiction Photography Contest.
Restrictions: Open to residents in the Atlantic Provinces.
Genre: Flash fiction inspired by a Kit Sora photo, 250 words max.
Prize: 10 cents/word.
Deadline: July 31, 2022.
Jan Garton Prairie Heritage Book Award.
Genre: Book that illuminates the heritage of North America's mid-continental prairies, whether of the tall-grass, mid-grass, or short-grass regions. Authors' first books receive extra consideration. Books may be in any genre, and topics may include but are not limited to social or natural history; prairie culture of the past or in-the-making; and interactions between society and ecology.
Prize: $1,000.
Deadline: July 31, 2022.
1455’s Third Teen Poetry Contest. Restrictions: Writers aged 13-19.
Genre: Poetry. The theme for this year’s contest is “Finding Community During Crisis,” and the work should be a reflection on or reaction to the contemporary sociopolitical and cultural environment (including but not limited to #BLM, #MeToo, COVID, etc.). Prize: $5,000. Deadline: July 1, 2021.
Lewis Carroll Society Ellis S. Hillman Award. Genre: Write a ‘missing’ chapter for either Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland or Through the Looking-Glass. You can create new characters or re-use existing characters; create new scenarios or use an existing scenario and follow on. Prize: Three prizes of £100 each for three separate age groups – up to 16 yrs old, 16-20, over 20 yrs. Entries to be between 500 to 2000 words, depending on age. Deadline: July 3, 2021.
Thirty West: Broadside Contest. Genre: Up to 2 poems or prose (flash fiction or CNF) pieces that fit on an 8.5"x11" paper (A4 size). Prize: $40 and 25 copies, Deadline: July 4, 2021.
Sustainability First Writing Prize 2021.
Restrictions: Open to all living British writers and international writers living, working, or studying in the UK, over the age of 18 years.
Genre: Article, a personal account, an essay, a short story, or a poem. Written entries will need to look at both climate change and fairness in society. This year's theme is: 'Together for a Fair Climate Future.' We want to hear writers’ imaginative visions, creative ideas and practical steps for societal change, with pieces of writing that respond to the question: “How do we achieve meaningful social changes in the UK to tackle the climate crisis and develop a fairer society?“
Prize: £1,000 with £500 for second prize and £300 for third prize.
Deadline: July 10, 2021.
James Berry Poetry Prize. Restrictions: Open to poets of colour, who are UK residents (permanently reside in the UK: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, Isle of Man) who have not yet published a book-length collection, with special consideration given to LGBTQ+/disabled poets and poets from disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds. Genre: Poetry. Prize: 3 equal winners each receive £1,000 prize, expert mentoring & debut collection published with Bloodaxe Books. Deadline: July 31, 2021.
JULY 2019
Vincent Buckley Poetry Prize.
Restrictions: Open to Irish poets.
Genre: Poetry.
Prize: $12,000 for an Irish poet to travel to Australia in 2020.
Deadline: July 8, 2019. Will be open in May 2021.
Submerging Writer Fellowship.
Restrictions: Writers who have never published a book or won any major writing awards, and who are not currently studying in an MFA or PhD program and "you battle daily the barriers of luck, society, fate, a curse, the cosmos, some major setback, or all of the above."
Genre: Everything?
Prize: $1,000 ($500 prize and up to $500 to be used toward expenses associated with attending a conference, workshop, class, or retreat).
Deadline: July 31, 2019.
AUGUST 2023
Source Magazine.
Genre: Book reviews, exhibition reviews or texts introducing sets of pictures. "But we are also interested in others forms of writing so if you want to submit something in a different form then please do. Our interest in photography is not only about the photographs that appear in books and exhibitions, it touches most aspects of life and we like to read about those encounters too." Length: 700 words max.
Prize: £500.
Deadline: August 1, 2023.
Granum Foundation Prize helps U.S.-based writers complete substantive literary works—such as poetry books, essay or short story collections, novels, and memoirs—or to help launch these works. Additionally, a Granum Foundation Translation Prize will be awarded to support the completion of a work translated by a U.S.-based writer.
Prize: One winner will receive $5,000; up to three finalists will be awarded $500 or more; $500 or more will be awarded to one writer working in translation.
Deadline: August 1, 2023.
Leeway Foundation Art and Change Grants. Restrictions: Open to women and trans artists in Greater Philadelphia to fund art for social change projects. People living in Bucks, Camden, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, or Philadelphia counties Delaware who are 18 years of age or older and who are not full-time students in a degree-granting arts program are eligible.
Genres: Art in traditional or nontraditional modes, mediums or disciplines. Prize: $2500. Deadline: August 1, 2023.
Delaware Division of the Arts Individual Artist Fellowships. Restrictions: Delaware poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers who have lived in Delaware for at least one year prior to application and who are not enrolled in a degree-granting program. Genres: Poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction. Prize: Established Professional Fellowships of $6,000 each and Emerging Artist Fellowships of $3,000 each. Deadline: August 1, 2023.
Bennett Nieberg Transpoetic Broadside Prize. Restrictions: Open to trans poets who have yet to publish their first full-length book. Genre: Poem. Prize: $1,000 USD, 25 limited edition letterpress broadsides of the winning poem, and a feature in the upcoming issue of Gasher Journal. Deadline: August 2, 2023.
Spectator Competition No. 3211: Chamber music. Genre: "You are invited to submit a song suitable for inclusion in a parliamentary songbook. Please email entries of up to 16 lines to lucyATspectator.co.uk
Prize: £30.
Deadline: August 2, 2023.
Oregon Literary Fellowships. Two fellowships (one $10,000 grant and one $3,500 grant) are reserved specifically for writers of color. There are also fellowships for women/gender-nonconforming writers as well as special fellowships for fiction writers who have lived in Oregon over the past 5 years. Deadline: August 4, 2023.
Stone Canoe. Restrictions: Open to people who live or have lived in Upstate New York (not New York City). Genres: Poetry. Prize: $500 and publication. Deadline: August 5, 2023. (It is difficult to find this information on their website.)
Furious Fiction. Genre: Flash fiction, 500 words max. "On each competition weekend, we’ll reveal a set of story prompts and you’ll have 55 hours to submit your best story of 500-words (or fewer)." Prize: $500AUD. Deadline: Opens August 4, 2023. Closes August 6, 2023. (Australian time)
Live Theatre's North East Playwriting Award.
Restrictions: Open to playwrights who are either from or based in the North East of England, age 16 and older.
Genre: Full-length play.
Prize: £10,000 top prize. A second award will be exclusively for young people aged 16 to 25. This will be a commission fee of £7,000 (under 70 minutes) and a commitment to develop the play at Live Theatre.
Deadline: August 7, 2023.
Peter Blazey Fellowship.
Restrictions: Applicants must either be an Australian citizen or have Australian residency.
Genre: Non-fiction in the fields of autobiography, biography or life writing.
Prize: $15 000, and a one-month writer-in-residency at The Australia Centre.
Deadline: August 7, 2023.
Spectator Competition No. 3312: Cooking the books.
Genre: "You are invited to supply a contribution to a book of recipes invented by fictional characters. Entries must be for the Carrollean, Dickensian or Shakespearean sections. Please email entries of up to 150 words/16 lines to lucyATspectator.co.uk"
Prize: £30.
Deadline: August 9, 2023.
Scotiabank Giller Prize.
Restrictions: Open to books published in Canada in English between July 1, 2023, and September 30, 2023. Must be nominated by publisher.
Genre: Fiction. Full-length novel or collection of short stories published in English, either originally, or in translation.
Prize: $100,000 to the winner and $10,000 to each of the finalists.
Deadline: August 11, 2023.
Apparition Lit.
Genre: Flash fiction between 1k words max based on the theme Reality Show Madness!
Prize: $30.
Deadline: August 14, 2023.
The Yale Drama Series.
Genre: Original, unpublished full-length plays, with a minimum of 65 pages.
Prize: $10,000.
Deadline: August 15, 2023.
Bruce Piasecki and Andrea Masters Award on Business and Society Writing.
Restrictions: Author must be 18-40 years old and have published at least one work prior to the deadline date.
Genre: Published work on any theme exploring key business and society issues. Possible themes include climate change, racial/gender equality, sustainability, innovation, and new approaches to lessen war and social stresses. Essays, research papers, books, and articles are eligible.
Prize: $5,000.
Deadline: August 15, 2023.
The Gotham “Manuscript-to-Market” Fellowship.
Restrictions: Open to people of color who have completed a book manuscript (or nonfiction book proposal) and are ready to go to market with their book. Three fellowships will be offered every year.
Prize: Admittance to the Gotham Writers Conference—the panels and presentations as well as a seat at a pitching roundtable with two agents in your genre. The Gotham course How to Get Published or Nonfiction Book Proposal. A one-on-one Agent Evaluation session and a Query Letter Coaching session, both with a literary agent.
Deadline: August 15, 2023.
Ligonier Valley Writers.
Genre: Flash fiction on theme of “jack-o’-lanterns”;1000 words max.
Prize: The first prize winner will receive $50, second prize $25, and third prize $15.
Deadline: August 15, 2023.
Neilma Sidney Literary Travel Fund.
Restrictions: Australian citizens or residents. Applicants must be emerging, midcareer or established Australian writers and literary sector workers (not beginners) with a demonstrated publication and/or career history
. Prize: $10,000 for travel expenses.
Deadline: August 17, 2023.
Waterford Poetry Prize.
Restrictions: Open to residents of Ireland.
Genre: Poem.
Prize: First prize is €400 plus attendance at a designated writing course.
Deadline: August 21, 2023.
DC Reid Poets’ Grant.
Restrictions: Open to poets of "modest means." Applicants must be Canadian citizens or permanent residents, living in Canada, who have published at least two books of poetry with a traditional publishing house.
Genre: Poetry.
Prize: $5000.
Deadline: August 21, 2023.
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: August 25, 2023.
Nan Shepherd Prize. Restrictions: Open to unpublished, underrepresented nature writers in the UK or Ireland. Genre: Nature writing. Prize: £10,000 and publishing contract with Canongate. Deadline: August 25, 2023.
Storyhouse.
Genre: Biographical nonfiction. Stories must be true, not semi-fictional accounts. 1000 - 10,000 words in length. Stories must be suitable for children.
Prize: $200.
Deadline: August 31, 2023.
Drinking Gourd Chapbook Poetry Prize.
Restrictions: Open to poets of color with US citizenship who have not previously published a book-length volume of poetry.
Genre: Poetry chapbook.
Prize: $500, publication by Northwestern University Press, fifteen copies of the book, and a featured reading at The Poetry Foundation..
Deadline: August 31, 2023.
SEPTEMBER 2023
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 1, 2023.
Women's Prize for Fiction. Genre: Published novel by a woman. Entrants must be writing in English and must be published in the UK. All subject matters and women of any age, from any nationality or country of residence are eligible. Prize: £30,000.00. Deadline: September 1, 2023.
John Glassco Translation Prize. Sponsored by Literary Translators' Association of Canada.
Restrictions: Open to Can
adian citizens or permanent residents only. Genre: The work submitted must be the translator's first published book-length translation into English or French.
Prize: $1000.
Deadline: September 1, 2023.
The Michael Marks Environmental Poet of the Year will be given to a poet whose previously unpublished series of poems brings most powerfully, to a wide readership, the subject of the environment and the place of the human within it.
Prize: The Environmental Poet of the Year will have their short portfolio of poems published in a pamphlet that will be sold by Wordsworth Grasmere and the British Library. They will also receive £1,000, and be invited to read at a winner’s event at Wordsworth Grasmere.
Deadline: September 1, 2023.
On The Premises Short Story Contest. "For this contest, write a creative, compelling, well-crafted story between 1,000 and 5,000 words long based on the photograph below. For instance, specific details about the picture can inspire your story. A second approach is to have this photo represent a location where at least part of your story takes place. A third possibility is, one or more of your characters see a digital display, printout, painting, drawing, or other representation of the contents of this photo, and the image itself is somehow important to your story. Any of these approaches will work fine, as long as the judges can tell how the photo below relates to your story."
Prize: Winners receive between US$75 and US$250, and publication.
Deadline: September 1, 2023.
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, 2023.
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: Sept 1, 2023.
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 3, 2023.
Furious Fiction. Genre: Flash fiction, 500 words max. "On each competition weekend, we’ll reveal a set of story prompts and you’ll have 55 hours to submit your best story of 500-words (or fewer)." Prize: $500AUD. Deadline: September 3, 2023.
Terrain.org Editor’s Prize.
Genre: Nonfiction, fiction, and poetry focusing on place, climate, and justice.
Prize: $500.
Deadline: September 4, 2023.
Debra E. Bernhardt Labor Journalism Prize.
Genre: Article that furthers the understanding of the history of working people. Articles focused on historical events AND articles about current issues (work, housing, organizing, health, education) that include historical context are both welcome. The work must be published in print or online between August 31, 2022 and August 30, 2023.
Prize: $1000.
Deadline: September 5, 2023.
Canning Dock Flash Fiction Competition (UK).
Genre: 500-word stories about the history of the Canning Graving Docks. Age categories: under 11, 11 - 17, 18+
Prize: National Museums Liverpool membership for a year, a book bundle from Writing on the Wall and a voucher to spend at NML shops and cafes.
Deadline: September 5, 2023.
KSP Short Fiction Competition.
Restrictions: Open to Australian residents and citizens.
Genre: Short fiction.
Prize: $100 first place prize for youth.
Deadline: September 6, 2023. (Free entry for youth only)
Spectator Competition No. 3316: Take Five.
Genre: "You are invited to recast Rishi Sunak’s five pledges in verse form. Please email entries of up to 16 lines to lucy@spectator.co.uk"
Prize: £30.
Deadline: September 6, 2023.
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 8, 2023.
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: September 8, 2023.
The Russell Freedman Award for Nonfiction for a Better World.
Genre: Any nonfiction book published for children or young adults, released between January 1 and December 31, 2023, is eligible. If both an author and illustrator are listed on the book cover, the prize will be split between them.
Prize: $2500 plus $1000 to purchase copies of the winning book for distribution to schools and libraries.
Deadline: Opens September 12, 2023.
NorthBound Book Award. Restrictions: Open to writers living in the North of England at the time of entering and planning to remain here for at least another 12 months. Genre: Completed full-length work of fiction or narrative non-fiction. Prize: Advance against royalties of £5000, publication with Saraband and access to the Northern Writers’ Awards Network. Royalties will be paid on Saraband’s standard terms.
Deadline: September 12, 2023.
Apparition Lit.
Genre: Speculative fiction; under 1,000 words based on prompt.
Prize: $30.
Deadline: September 14, 2023.
See theme.
Washington State Book Awards.
Restrictions: Open to Washington State writers.
Genre: Published book, fiction, nonfiction, poetry: adults or children.
Prize: Recognition (?)
Deadline: September 15, 2023. (For books published June 1-Aug.15, 2023.)
53-Word Story Contest.
Genre: Flash fiction of exactly 53 words based on monthly theme.
Prize: Publication and a free book.
Deadline: September 15, 2023.
Starry Eyed Press’ First Drabble Contest.
Genre: Drabble. Theme: The theme of this contest will be science fiction featuring one or more of the following elements: time travel, robots, colonization, military or western elements. Length: Exactly 100 words.
Prize: "Cool prizes."
Deadline: September 21, 2023. (Or when full)
Michael Marks Illustration Award. will recognise outstanding illustration of a poetry pamphlet published between September 18th 2021 and the closing date of September 23rd 2022. The judge will consider illustration in any medium and will be looking for a subtle and sustained relationship between image and text, as well as the overall quality of the images. Prize: £1,000.
Deadline: September 22, 2023.
Dinesh Allirajah Prize for Short Fiction.
Restrictions: Open to residents of UK.
Genre: Short stories between 2000-6000 words on the theme "The Uncanny."
Prize: £500 and 10 shortlisted authors will be published in an ebook anthology.
Deadline: September 22, 2023.
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 24, 2023.
Opens September 22, 2023.
Earth's Final Chapter.
Genre: All fiction genres and cross genres.
Prize: $700.
Deadline: September 24, 2023.
Cullman Center Fellowships.
Fellowship. 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 $70,000, an office, a computer, and full access to the Library's physical and electronic resources.
Deadline: September 29, 2023.
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, 2023.
The César Egido Serrano Foundation: International Flash Fiction Competition.
Genre: Flash fiction.
Prize: 20,000 dollars is awarded for the best story in any of the languages authorized in the contest: Spanish, English, Arabic or Hebrew. Three prizes of $ 2,000 each will be awarded for the best stories in each of the other remaining languages admitted in the contest, that are not winners of the main prize.
Deadline: September 30, 2023.
Shady Grove Literary.
Genre: Any style, genre, tone of flash fiction. Length: 300 words max.
Prize: $100.
Deadline: September 30, 2023.
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, 2023.
Iowa Short Fiction and John Simmons Short Fiction Awards.
Restrictions: Any writer who has not previously published a volume of prose fiction is eligible to enter the competition.
Genre: Short story collection. The manuscript must be a collection of short stories in English of at least 150 word-processed, double-spaced pages.
Prize: Publication by the University of Iowa Press, royalties.
Deadline: September 30, 2023.
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, 2023.
Kit Sora Flash Fiction Photography Contest.
Restrictions: Open to residents in the Atlantic Provinces.
Genre: Flash fiction inspired by a Kit Sora photo, 250 words max.
Prize: 10 cents/word.
Deadline: September 30, 2023.
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, 2023.
Art of Unity Creative Award.
Genre: Poetry; essays and short stories (under 2500 words); video; music; dance; performance or visual work around the theme: “Never again: Remembering to heal and overcome.” "The most important hallmark of Holocaust remembrance and education is the phrase ‘never again.’ Unfortunately, tribal divisions, ethnic cleansing and genocides continue in the 21st Century. We are looking for submissions in any creative media (which can be exhibited online), and which highlight aspects of human unity, and positive cross-pollination between groups, ethnicities, religions and/or nations."
Prize: First ($100), Second ($75) and Third ($50) place awards, as well as three honorable mentions, in four categories: Poetry, Short Story, Essay. and Youth (18 and under) category.
Deadline: September 30, 2023.
PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction is the most prestigious literary award in the US.
Restrictions: Authors must be living American citizens. Self-published works not accepted.
Genres: Novels, novellas, and collections of short stories. Publishers, literary agents, and authors may submit works of fiction (short story collections, novellas, or novels) published between January 1, 2023 and December 31, 2023.
Prize: $15,000.
Deadline: September 30, 2023.
Rattle Ekphrastic Challenge.
Genre: Poem inspired by artwork. (See site for image.)
Prize: $100.
Deadline: September 30, 2023.
This is a monthly contest.
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, 2023.
Reprints are ok so long as you still have the rights to distribute.
SEPTEMBER 2022
Woolgathering. Restrictions: All poets under 22 years old are eligible for this competition. Genre: Poetry. "As students who have lived in the Philippines, the political climate in our country is volatile. From the unending “War on Drugs” to political killings and media censorship, the liberty of Filipinos is continually diminishing. However, this issue is not exclusive to the Philippines, and instances of political injustice are evident everywhere. As young writers we can use words to challenge political injustice and propagate change. This scholarship is dedicated to uphold the voices of the unheard, and to seek the truth in times of repression." Prize: 1st Place: $200.00; 2nd Place: $40.00; 3rd Place: $10.00. All ten finalists will be featured in the Woolgathering Young Voices Anthology. Deadline: September 1, 2022.
The Blackness on Sea Poetry Prize.
Genre: Poem. "The Blackness on Sea Poetry Prize is a quest to find a poem of genuine literary merit to become a lasting legacy for The Lobster Pot Pub and this delightful Village on the Firth of Forth."
Prize: £1000.
Deadline: September 7, 2022.
Secret Life of Data: Short Story Competition.
Genre: Short story. "We are looking for creative stories that bring to life the secret life of data – perhaps imagining this life as a journey, a quest, a romance, or a tragedy; thinking of a computer’s internal architecture as a house, a jungle, a zoo, or a city; and the data as characters facing danger in the form of various digital threats and vulnerabilities."
Prize: 1st prize - £1000, 2nd prize - £500, 3rd prize - £250.
Deadline: September 12, 2022.
US Naval Institute and CIMSEC Fiction Essay Prize. Genre: Essay. Length: 3,000 words max. "Fiction is a powerful tool for testing hypotheticals and imagining other worlds as a means of examining our own. Once again, CIMSEC and the U.S. Naval Institute have partnered to invite authors to ask "What if?" as a means of exploring different visions of the future of maritime security."
Prize: First Prize: $500 and a 1-year membership in the Naval Institute and CIMSEC. Second Prize: $300 and a 1-year membership in the Naval Institute and CIMSEC. Third Prize: $200 and a 1-year membership in the Naval Institute and CIMSEC.
Deadline: September 15, 2022.
Falconer 150 Essay Competition.
Genre: Essay relating to Hugh Falconer’s life or the museum bearing his name.
Prize: £150.
Deadline: September 15, 2022.
Backchannels.
Genre: Fiction. Length: Up to 3500 words.
Prize: Unspecified.
Deadline: September 30, 2022.
From The Horse’s Mouth.
Genre: Short story.
Prize: Total prize of £150, £100 for the Adult Winner and £50 for the Younger Entrant’s Winner.
Deadline: September 30, 2022.
Solstice Shorts Competition: Hiatus.
Genre: Flash or poem (max 500 words) on the theme of Hiatus. Prize: Royalties.
Deadline: September 30, 2022.
Note: Contest closes after 50 submissions. Submit early!
Patricia Eschen Prize for Poetry.
Genre: Poetry. Poems can be on any subject that kindles your imagination, to a maximum line length of 40 lines for each poem.
Prize: Adults (over 16): 1st prize: £1000. Children (under 16): 1st prize: £150.
Deadline: September 30, 2022.
SEPTEMBER 2021
Lee Smith Novel Prize.
Genre: Novel (no genre fiction).
Prize: $1,000 and publication.
Deadline: September 1, 2021.
Biennial prize.
IWSG.
Genre: Science Fiction. Theme: Dark Matter. Word count: 4500-6000.
Prize: The winning stories will be edited and published by Dancing Lemur Press' imprint Freedom Fox Press next year in the IWSG anthology. Authors will receive royalties on books sold, both print and eBook. The top story will have the honor of giving the anthology its title.
Deadline: September 1, 2021.
Hektoen International Grand Prix Essay Competition.
Genre: Original essay that relates medicine to the humanities. Topics might include art, history, literature, education, etc. as they relate to medicine.1,500 words max.
Prize: $5,000 for the winner and $2,500 for the runner-up.
Deadline: Sept 15, 2021.
Bergen International Essay Competition. Restrictions: Open to everybody under the age of 30.
Genre: Essay on theme of My Generation. Prize: The winner will receive EUR 2 500. Three runners up each receive EUR 500.
Deadline: September 30, 2021.
SEPTEMBER 2019
Salisbury Story Prize.
Genre: Short fiction (500 words) on theme of "Rivers." Open to ages 4 and up.
Prize: £50 for children to be spent at Waterstones. Free online course for adults.
Deadline: September 30, 2019. "
We are not running in 2022 but will be back!"
OCTOBER 2023
PEN America’s U.S. Writers Aid Initiative.
Restrictions: Applicants must be professional writers based in the United States, and be able to demonstrate that this one-time grant will be meaningful in helping address a short-term emergency situation.
Prize: Grant, amount not specified.
Deadline: October 1, 2023.
Footnote x Counterpoints Writing Prize.
Restrictions: Anyone from a refugee or migrant background is eligible to submit an entry for the prize if they are resident in the United Kingdom or Republic of Ireland, whether they have previously been published or not. You do not need to have finished writing your book in order to enter.
Genre: Narrative non-fiction centred around themes of displacement, identity and/or resistance.
Prize: £15,000 award, which includes an advance of £5,000 and a publication agreement with Footnote Press.
Deadline: October 1, 2023.
Quarterly West.
Genre: Poetry and prose.
Prize: $500.
Deadline:
No fee days: October 1 -2, 2023. (May or may not be running in 2023)
The 50 & Up Writer Award.
Restrictions: Open to writers aged 50 and up.
Genre: Poetry, fiction, CNF.
Prize: $50.00 USD, and for any and each year of age past that mark, one additional dollar.
Deadline: October 1, 2023.
T Paulo Urcanse Prize For Literary Excellence.
Genre: Poetry and prose. " Whether you be a lonely writer looking for community and wanting to make your literary debut, or a similarly eggheaded and celebrated writer in the vein of the namesake of this prize, we welcome your submissions with open arms, without fees or prerequisites, without ever having known you or met you at a cocktail party where we discussed the terror of contemporary history and post-structuralist theory or the pitfalls of the first person perspective in a short story or weird childhood stories that involve stray cats and the throwing of tennis balls at moving vehicles from behind bushes at night in the summer on the Main Street of the provincial town where we were raised."
Prize: $50 - $250.
Deadline: October 1, 2023.
Mallorqueta Inaugural Short Story Contest.
Genre: Short story. The narrative must have a connection to Mallorca, either in setting or relevance to Mallorcan culture. Submissions may be in English, Catalan or Spanish. If chosen, stories not in English will be published along with an English translation.
Prize: EUR€300.
Deadline: October 1, 2023.
The Glenna Luschei Prize for African Poetry, sponsored by the African Poetry Book Fund and in partnership with the literary journal,
Prairie Schooner, is the only one of its kind in the world and was established to promote African poetry written in English or in translation and to recognize a significant book published each year by an African poet. A standard edition is 48 pages or more in length.
Genre: Open to any book of original poetry, in English, published during 2015 in a standard edition by a full-length collection of poetry.
Restrictions: African nationals, African residents, or poet of African parentage with roots from any country, living anywhere in the world.
Prize: USD $5,000.
Deadline: October 1, 2023.
Natan Notable Books Award.
Genre: Recently published or soon to be published nonfiction book on Jewish themes.
Prize: $5,000.
Deadline: October 2, 2023.
Writers & Artists Working-Class Writers' Prize.
Restrictions: Open to unagented and uncontracted UK or Republic of Ireland residents age 18+ who self-identify as a writer from a working-class background. Genre: Unpublished workp-in-progress.
Prize: 200 pounds prize, mentoring sessions, networking event opportunities, a complimentary one-year membership to The Society of Authors, and various Bloomsbury books.
Deadline: October 2, 2023.
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: October 4, 2023. (For books published between April 1, 2023 and October 3, 2023)
American Antiquarian Society Fellowships for Creative Writers is calling for applications for visiting fellowships for historical research by creative and performing artists, writers, film makers, journalists, and other persons whose goals are to produce imaginative, non-formulaic works dealing with pre-twentieth-century American history. Successful applicants are those whose work is for the general public rather than for academic or educational audiences. The Society's goal in sponsoring this program is to multiply and improve the ways in which an understanding of history is communicated to the American people.
Prize: A stipend of $1,150 to $1,350 and on-campus housing is provided; fellows residing off-campus receive $1,850.
Deadline: October 5, 2023.
Adina Talve-Goodman Fellowship.
Restrictions: Open to fiction writers aged 21+ who have not yet published a book and have never been enrolled in an MFA program. Writer must not have a book under contract with an agent and/or publisher at time of application, and writer cannot have been published by One Story (or have a forthcoming publication with One Story).
Genre: Short fiction that "speaks to issues and experiences related to inhabiting bodies of difference."
Prize: Free tuition for all of One Story's online classes and programming, a travel stipend of $2,000 and tuition to attend week-long summer writers' conference in Brooklyn, and a full manuscript review/consultation of a story collection or novel in progress with an executive editor.
Deadline: October 11, 2023.
Defenestration Flash Suite Contest.
Genre: Flash suite. "A series of at least three flash fiction works that correlate, and build to something greater. Recurring characters, extended motifs, harmonious subject matters, and/or sustained narrative are such correlations– but we encourage innovation and new ideas.”
Prize: $75.
Deadline: October 11, 2023.
Books Like Us. Genre: First novel. "Atria Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, is pleased to announce the launch of the third annual BOOKS LIKE US First Novel Contest. The aim of the contest is to facilitate access to the publishing process for writers from underrepresented groups, and to celebrate the diversity of readers across the United States. As the nation strives for progress, Atria Books and Simon & Schuster aim to help catalyze that change by amplifying voices that represent us, by publishing books like us. A two-week entry period will begin on Friday, September 29, 2023. At that time, writers are invited and encouraged to submit twenty-five pages of an original adult novel using the online form below. The publisher welcomes inclusive, entertaining, and groundbreaking reads with expert pacing, depth as well as heart, and irresistible characters who leap from the page. At the end of the submission period, the editorial, marketing, and publicity team at Atria Books, will review all submissions for originality, relevance to today’s publishing climate, and writing quality. In March 2024, the author of the selected novel will be awarded the opportunity to enter into a $50,000 book deal with Atria Books.." Prize: The author of the selected novel will be awarded the opportunity to enter into a $50,000 book deal with Atria Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster." Deadline: October 12, 2023.
Mindfood. Restrictions: Open to Australian and New Zealand residents only.
Genre: Short story 2000 words in length and previously unpublished.
Prize: U$1000 for the Australian winner and one (1) prize money of NZ$1000 for the New Zealand winner.
Deadline: October 13, 2023.
Carol Shields Prize for Fiction.
Restrictions: Books must be first edition English-language books written by a Canadian or American citizen or permanent resident of either country. Works written by women or non-binary authors are eligible for submission. The Prize welcomes and encourages submissions by transgender woman authors. Genre: Published novel, short story collection or graphic novel.
Prize: $150,000 Canadian dollars.
Deadline: Entries for books published between August 1, 2023 – December 31, 2023, must be received on or before October 13, 2023.
North Carolina State Fiction Contest.
Restrictions: Open to residents of North Carolina with no published fiction books.
Genre: Short stories.
Prize: $500 for fiction (up to 5,000 words) and $250 for shorter fiction (up to 1,200 words).
Deadline: October 14, 2023.
Apparition Lit.
Genre: Speculative fiction; under 1,000 words.
Prize: $30.
Deadline: October 14, 2023.
Opens October 1.
The Marfield Prize, also known as the National Award for Arts Writing, is given annually by the Arts Club of Washington to nonfiction books about the arts written for a broad audience.
Genre: Non-fiction book. Self-published books not accepted.
Prize: $10,000.
Deadline: October 15, 2023.
Amy Lowell Poetry Traveling Scholarship.
Restrictions: Poet must be born in the United States.
Genre: Poetry. The sample must not exceed either (1) 40 typed pages or (2) one printed volume plus no more than 20 typed pages of your most recent work. There is no minimum page requirement.
Prize: $60,500 for a year of travel and study abroad.
Deadline: October 15, 2023.
Neal Peirce Foundation Journalism Travel Grants.
Genre: Journalism. "Grants are intended to support journalists in covering undertold stories about ways to make cities and their metro regions work better for all their people. Grants will cover travel expenses necessary for on-the-ground reporting. Full-time freelancers as well as journalists currently employed by a news organization are eligible to apply. The grants are for journalists to travel to cities within the U.S. to produce one or more stories for publication."
Prize: Up to $1500.
Deadline: October 16, 2023.
Jewish Renaissance’s Emerging Journalists Programme.
Restrictions: Open to people aged 18+ (no upper age bracket) who are interested in journalism, but may have had zero experience so far. Or you may have written for student, local or community publications in print, online or broadcast, but have had fewer than two commissions for national and international outlets.
Genre: Journalism.
Prize: Masterclasses, expert panels, mentoring and publication opportunities, plus a writing competition with cash prizes. This online programme is free of charge. It is open to emerging journalists around the world, but all events will be scheduled in UK time (GMT).
Deadline: October 16, 2023.
Zocalo Book Prize. Genre: US-published nonfiction book that best enhances our understanding of community and the forces that strengthen or undermine human connectedness and social cohesion. Prize: $10,000.
Deadline: October 20, 2023.
Jewish Children’s Book Awards.
Restrictions: Open to Jewish children’s book authors and illustrators living in Europe and the UK.
Genre: Jewish children's book. Submissions are accepted in English, French, German, Italian, Ukrainian, Russian, Spanish and Yiddish.
Prize: £1,000 to the winners of the story and illustration categories. All entries will be considered for publication by Green Bean Books.
Deadline: October 23, 2023.
Storyhouse.
Genre: Travel nonfiction. Stories must be true, not semi-fictional accounts. 1000 - 10,000 words in length. Stories must be suitable for children.
Prize: $200.
Deadline: October 30, 2023.
Storyhouse: Preservation Foundation Essay Contest for Unpublished Writers.
Restrictions: The contest is open to writers whose creative writing has never produced revenues of over $500 in any single year. First prize winners of previous contests, while ineligible for prizes in regular contests, can compete in this one.
Genre: Nonfiction.
Prize: First prize is $100. Runners-up will receive $50.
Deadline: October 31, 2023.
Queer Adventurers LGBTQIA Writing Contest.
Restrictions; Open to any writer 18+ from anywhere in the world who identifies as LGBTQ+.
Genre: 1,000 to 1,500 word personal essays on the theme of Firsts.
Prize: $150.
Deadline: October 31, 2023.
Diann Blakely National Poetry Competition.
Genre: Poetry.
Prize: $500 and 25 broadsides of their poem, which will also be archived on the University of Georgia English Department website.
Deadline: October 31, 2023.
The Barbellion Prize.
Genre: Fiction, memoir, biography, poetry, or critical non-fiction. “The Barbellion Prize is dedicated to the furtherance of ill and disabled voices in writing. The prize is awarded annually to an author whose work has best spoken of the experience of chronic illness and/or disability."
Prize: £600.
Deadline: October 31, 2023.
The Young Walter Scott Prize.
Restrictions: Open to UK authors aged 11-19.
Genre: Historical fiction between 800 and 2000 words.
Prizes: £500 travel and research grant to further explore historical places in the UK, and an invitation to the Borders Book Festival in Melrose, Scotland. Two runners-up in each category receive a £100 book token, and all four winning stories are published in a special YWSP anthology book.
Deadline: October 31, 2023.
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 effective have laws protecting the rights of children been to reduce poverty and support economic development? How could they be improved?
Prize: $500 scholarship.
Deadline: October 31, 2023.
The Solstice Prize.
Restrictions: Open to 7-17 year olds.
Genre: Short stories, blog posts, and poems. Nature writing.
Prize: Publication and cash prizes for winners in three age groups: 7-11, 12-14, and 15-17.
Deadline: October 31, 2023.
McKitterick Prize.
Restrictions: Open to authors over age 40.
Genre: First novel. The work must have been first published in the UK in the year in which the deadline falls (and not first published abroad), or be unpublished.
Prize: £4,000.00.
Deadline: October 31, 2023.
Tom-Gallon Trust Award.
Restrictions: Open to citizens of the United Kingdom, Commonwealth or the Republic of Ireland with at least one short story published or accepted for publication.
Genre: Short story, maximum 5,000 words. May be unpublished.
Prize: £1,000.00.
Deadline: October 31, 2023.
Disabled Poets Prize.
Restrictions: Open to deaf and disabled poets aged 18+ currently living full-time in the UK.
Genre: Poetry. Deaf and disabled poets will be able to submit to three categories – best single poem, best unpublished pamphlet, and best poem performed in British Sign Language.
Prize: In each category, there will be a first place prize (£500), second prize (£250), third place prize (£100), and three highly commended entries, (£50).
Deadline: October 31, 2023.
The Eric Gregory Awards.
Restrictions: Applicants must be under 30 and a British subject by birth and must ordinarily be resident in the United Kingdom or Northern Ireland.
Genre: Poetry collection. Previously published work accepted.
Prize: £4,000.00.
Deadline: October 31, 2023.
Native Voices Award.
Restrictions: Open to Indigenous storytellers, such as from Native American, First Nation Australian, and Polynesian communities.
Genre: Original, unpublished work in English; short story, flash fiction, nonfiction essay, script, poetry, or visual art collection.
Prize: Up to $500 USD.
Deadline: October 31, 2023.
Manchester Cathedral Poetry Competition.
Genre: Poetry. “Our theme this year is ‘A Truth’, inspired by a statement from the sadly deceased poet Lucie Brock-Broido: ‘Though I am wildly capable of certain linguistic fabrications, I am in it for the truth. OK: a truth.’ We are looking for poems which examine the notion of truth and subjectivity, that resist certainties. Our theme is deliberately broad to inspire poems on a variety of topics, while engaging with the notion of what truth means to you. Your poetry could use vivid imagery and use poetic forms in interesting ways to interrogate what you feel is a truth. Be guided by intuition.”
Prize: First prize £200, with £50 for second place, and £25 for third place. There will also be 10 highly commended poems with no financial remuneration. Entrants can be of any or no faith. No previous experience of creative writing or poetry required. All are welcome."
Deadline: October 31, 2023.
Volcano Prize Restrictions: Open to a UK or Irish writer, or a writer currently resident in those countries.
Genre: A novel focusing on the experience of travel away from home. Inspired by Malcolm Lowry’s novel, Under the Volcano and in celebration of its author, the prize aims to inspire literary excellence and encourage writers to travel and to write from the resulting experience. Publishers must enter the work.
Prize: The winner will receive £2,000 and the runner-up £750.
Deadline: October 31, 2023.
ACDI Literary Prize.
Restrictions: Open to authors with a disability and/or chronic illness. Authors must be a British national OR resident in Great Britain and Northern Ireland for three years prior to the date of submission for the award, and writing in English and submissions must have been published or self-published in the UK.
Genre: Novel which includes a disabled or chronically ill character or characters.
Prize: Winner will receive £1,000 and two runners-up £500 each.
Deadline: October 31, 2023.
USNI General Prize Essay Contest.
Genre: Essay may be on any topic."We are living in an era of intense global competition. Renewed great power competition will require the Sea Services to rethink how to address national, strategic, and operational challenges and the way they will have to fight. Authors may address any topic."
Prize: $6,000.
Deadline: October 31, 2023.
Graybeal-Gowen Prize for Virginia Poets.
Restrictions: Poets living in or born in Virginia, as well as those who have lived in Virginia for two or more years in the past, are eligible.
Genre: Poetry.
Prize: $1000.
Deadline: October 31, 2023. (Closes after 500 submissions)
The Nancy Thorp Poetry Contest is sponsored by Hollins University.
Restrictions: Open to young women who are sophomores or juniors in high school or preparatory school.
Genre: Poetry.
Prize: Up to $5,000 renewable annual Creative Talent Scholarship in creative writing if winner enrolls at Hollins. Free tuition and housing for the university’s Hollins summer creative writing program. $200 cash prize. Publication in Cargoes, Hollins’ award-winning student literary magazine. Ten copies of Cargoes.
Deadline: October 31, 2023.
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: October 31, 2023.
Reprints are ok so long as you still have the rights to distribute.
Dear Erica,
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for listing Verbolatry Laugh-a-Riot Contest here! Much appreciated.
Best wishes,
Devyani
http://devyaniborade.blogspot.com
@v3rbolatry
The Eastern Iowa Review is sponsoring a Longform Lyric Essay Contest. No reading fee. 2000 - 10,000 words. $250 grand prize and three copies of the issue. One honorable mention may also be chosen, and the author will receive three copies of the issue along with a $50 honorarium. In the off-chance that none of the submissions fit our unique aesthetic, we'll roll over the prize money to next year's award. Enter as many times as you wish, but only submit new material once you've heard back from us. NOTE: Longforms may be a compilation, but we do want new material included, and be sure to mention where previously published excerpts first appeared. http://www.portyonderpress.com/2017-guidelines.html
ReplyDeleteHello there,
ReplyDeleteI am with Striking 13, we are a new book review site that is now hosting a quarterly, free to enter, writing contest.
We would love it if you could add us to your comprehensive list.
http://www.striking13.com/free-writing-contest/
Thank you
Sure, how to enter & what are guidelines?
DeleteClick on the links.
DeleteHi Erica,
ReplyDeleteI'm hosting a monthly contest Getting "Sexy With Food" and was wondering if I could get the information on your site. $50 prize. 500 word count. Creatively Naughty. www.sexywithfood.com
Thanks!
I've included it!
ReplyDeleteHere's another one to please include:
ReplyDeleteAt Radiating You, we know the power of getting people to be real and share their truths. We recently sat down and started writing letters…to ourselves.
A letter filled with truth. A letter filled with forgiveness, reflection, motivation, and love.
Maybe the most important letter you can write is to yourself.
Radiating You is launching our first contest to help encourage you to take the step of actually writing your letter. Top entries will be published on our blog and in a compilation book in 2018. The top three entries will also receive cash prizes: 1st place $100, 2nd place $75, 3rd place $50.
Tune out the noise of the world for a few minutes and write the letter that could really inspire others, but more importantly, inspire yourself.
Make it as short or as long as you feel it needs to be. Just most importantly, write it.
The contest is open through April 7, 2017.
Submissions accepted at http://radiatingyou.com/dear-me-letter-writing-contest/
Hi Kathy, I've included your contest!
ReplyDeleteHi Erica,
ReplyDeleteI just wondered if this competition may be a good addition to the list?
https://www.inkitt.com/novelcontest
Thanks for such a great resource!
Hi Joel, Inkitt isn't really a contest, it's a publisher. So, I can't include it on this list. Sorry.
DeleteHi Erica, please consider adding the Best New Fairy Tale Competition to your list. The competition is being held by Fairytalez.com, the internet's biggest library of fairy tales, fables and folklore. We have over 2,300 stories and now we're taking our love of stories to a new level by adding a self-publishing feature where you can share your stories, favorite other writers' stories and more.
ReplyDeleteWe’re celebrating the launch our self-publishing platform with our first competition, Best New Fairy Tale. The competition runs from the 13th of June till the 15th of August, and writers from all over are invited to submit their original stories to Fairytalez.com’s library of new stories.
Find more information at the following link: http://fairytalez.com/competitions/best-new-fairy-tale-2017/
Thank you!