A prize of $3,000 and publication in Masters Review is given annually for an excerpt of an unpublished novel or novel-in-progress displaying “a strong voice,...
read moreWriting Contests, Grants & Awards
The Writing Contests, Grants & Awards database includes details about the creative writing contests—including poetry contests, short story competitions, essay contests, awards for novels, and more—that we’ve published in Poets & Writers Magazine during the past year. We carefully review the practices and policies of each contest before including it. Ours is the most trusted resource for legitimate writing contests available anywhere.
University of Wisconsin Press
Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $28
Application Deadline: 11/10/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,500 and publication by University of Wisconsin Press is given annually for a poetry collection in translation. Daniel Borzutzky will judge. Using only the online...
read moreCommunity of Literary Magazines & Presses
Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $65
Application Deadline: 11/14/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Three prizes of $2,000 each are given annually for a book of poetry, a book of fiction, and a book of creative nonfiction published by an independent press in the current year...
read moreNightboat Books
Cash Prize: $1,200
Entry Fee: $28
Application Deadline: 11/15/25
Genre: Poetry
Up to four prizes of $1,200 each, publication by Nightboat Books, and 25 author copies are given annually for poetry collections. The editors will judge. Using only the online...
read morePerugia Press
Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $15
Application Deadline: 11/15/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $2,000, publication by Perugia Press, and 20 author copies is given annually for a first or second poetry collection by a writer who identifies as a woman, including...
read moreTupelo Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $30
Application Deadline: 11/15/25
Genre: Poetry, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Tupelo Press is given annually for a full- or chapbook-length poetry collection or a book of creative nonfiction (including memoir, essays...
read moreBrooklyn Film & Arts Festival
Cash Prize: $500
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 11/15/25
Genre: Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $500 and publication on the Brooklyn Film & Arts Festival website is given annually for a work of nonfiction that is set in Brooklyn, New York, and renders the...
read moreFine Arts Work Center
Cash Prize: $1,250
Entry Fee: $40
Application Deadline: 11/15/25
Fellowships for a seven-month residency at the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown, Massachusetts, are given annually to four poets and four fiction writers who have not...
read moreLitMag
Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $18
Application Deadline: 11/15/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,500 and publication in LitMag is given annually for a single poem. The winner will also have their work reviewed by agents Amy Bishop-Wycisk (Trellis...
read moreYale University Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 11/15/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Yale University Press is given annually for a poetry collection by a poet who has not published a full-length book of poetry and who...
read moreLoft Literary Center
Cash Prize: $25,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 11/15/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Four prizes of $25,000 each are given annually to Minnesota poets, prose writers, and spoken word artists. Fellows will also receive an all-expenses-paid, one- or two-week...
read morePushcart Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 11/15/25
Genre: Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $1,000 is given occasionally for a fiction or nonfiction manuscript that has been rejected by a commercial publisher. The award recognizes “worthy manuscripts that...
read moreCutthroat
Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 11/15/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,500 and publication in Cutthroat will be given annually for a single poem. Annie Wenstrup will judge. Using only the online submission system, submit up...
read moreCommonwealth Club of California
Cash Prize: $2,500
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 11/15/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Five prizes of $2,500 each are given annually for a poetry collection, a book of fiction, a first book of fiction, a book of creative nonfiction, and a book dealing with a...
read moreThe Story Prize
Cash Prize: $20,000
Entry Fee: $75
Application Deadline: 11/15/25
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $20,000 is given annually for a story collection written in English and first published in the United States in the current year. Two runners-up will receive $5,000...
read moreAcademy of American Poets
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 11/15/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 and publication on the Academy of American Poets website is given annually for a poem that helps readers recognize “the vulnerable state of our environment.”...
read moreGunpowder Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $15
Application Deadline: 11/17/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000, bilingual publication in English and Spanish by Gunpowder Press, and 10 author copies will be given annually for a poetry chapbook by a Latinx poet who is a...
read moreNarrative
Cash Prize: $2,500
Entry Fee: $27
Application Deadline: 11/21/25
Genre: Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $2,500 is given annually for a short story, a short short story, an essay, a memoir, a photo essay, a short graphic narrative, or an excerpt from a longer work of...
read moreMichigan Quarterly Review
Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 11/30/25
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $2,000 and publication in Michigan Quarterly Review is given annually for a short story. Kevin Wilson will judge. Using only the online submission system,...
read moreLitMag
Cash Prize: $1,250
Entry Fee: $16
Application Deadline: 11/30/25
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,250 and publication in LitMag is given annually for a work of flash fiction. The winner will also have their work reviewed by agents Jenny Bent (Bent...
read moreBOA Editions
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $30
Application Deadline: 11/30/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 and publication by BOA Editions is given annually for a debut book of poetry. Rigoberto González will judge. Submit a manuscript of 65 to 120 pages with a $30...
read moreGreen Linden Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 11/30/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Green Linden Press is given annually for an innovative book of poetry “that questions the boundaries of genre, form, or mode while engaging...
read moreMichigan Quarterly Review
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 11/30/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Michigan Quarterly Review is given annually for a single poem. Hala Alyan will judge. Using only the online submission system,...
read moreTadpole Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $15
Application Deadline: 11/30/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication on the Tadpole Press website and in Tadpole Press Literary Magazine is given biannually for a work of flash poetry or prose. Angeline...
read moreRed Hen Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $10
Application Deadline: 11/30/25
Genre: Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Red Hen Press is given annually for a story or essay collection, a novel, a memoir, or a hybrid work of prose by a queer writer. Andrew Lam...
read more