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.
| Sponsor and Award | Entry Fee | Genre |
Cash Prize |
Prize includes | Application Deadline |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Pushcart Press Pushcart Prizes Publication in The Pushcart Prize: Best of the Small Presses is awarded annually for poetry, fiction, and essays published by literary magazines or small presses in the current year. Editors may... |
$0 | Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction | Publication | 12/1/12 | |
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Poets & Writers, Inc. Maureen Egen Writers Exchange Award Two prizes of $500 each are awarded annually to a poet and a fiction writer from a select state. Each winner also receives an all-expenses-paid trip to New York City to give a reading and meet with... |
$0 | Poetry, Fiction | $500 | Reading, Residency | 12/15/12 |
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Poets & Writers, Inc. California Writers Exchange Contest Two prizes of $500 each are awarded every three years to a poet and a fiction writer living in California. Each winner also receives an all-expenses-paid, weeklong trip to New York City to meet with... |
$0 | Poetry, Fiction | $500 | Reading | 8/31/12 |
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Passaic County Community College Paterson Fiction Prize A prize of $1,000 is given annually for a novel or short story collection published in the previous year. Publishers may submit books published in 2012 by April 1. There is no entry fee. Send an SASE,... |
$0 | Fiction | $1,000 | 4/1/13 | |
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Pushcart Press Editors’ Book Award A prize of $1,000 is given occasionally for a fiction or creative nonfiction manuscript that has been submitted to but not accepted by a commercial publisher. The award recognizes “worthy manuscripts... |
$0 | Fiction, Creative Nonfiction | $1,000 | 11/15/12 | |
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PEN American Center PEN/Heim Translation Fund Grants Grants of $2,000 to $4,000 each are given annually to support the translation of book-length works of poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction that have not previously appeared in English or have... |
$0 | Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction | $4,000 | 2/1/13 |