| Give a Gift |

Writing 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.

Sponsor and Award	Entry Fee	Genre	Cash Prize	Prize includes	Application Deadline
Black Caucus of the American Library Association Literary Awards Four prizes of $500 each are given annually for a poetry collection, a first novel, a book of fiction, and a book of nonfiction (including creative nonfiction) by an African American writer and published...	$0	Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction	$500		12/14/12
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
Before Columbus Foundation American Book Awards Awards are given annually for books published in the United States during the preceding year that make contributions to American multicultural literature. Submit two copies of a book published in 2012 by...	$0	Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction			12/31/12
Civil War Institute Michael Shaara Book Prize A prize of $5,000 is given annually for a novel about the Civil War published in the current year to “encourage fresh approaches to Civil War fiction.” Publishers, critics, and authors may submit four...	$0	Fiction	$5,000		12/31/12
Cleveland Foundation Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards Two prizes of $10,000 each are given annually for books of poetry, fiction, or nonfiction (including creative nonfiction) published in the previous year that “contribute to society’s understanding of...	$0	Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction	$10,000		12/31/12
Griffin Trust for Excellence in Poetry Griffin Poetry Prize Two prizes of $65,000 Canadian (approximately $66,300) each are given annually for poetry collections by a Canadian writer and by an international poet or translator. Publishers may submit four copies of...	$0	Poetry	$66,300		12/31/12
French-American Foundation Translation Prizes Two prizes of $10,000 each are given annually for translations from French into English of a book of fiction and a book of nonfiction (including creative nonfiction) published in the current year....	$0	Fiction, Creative Nonfiction	$10,000		12/31/12
Micro Award Micro Award A prize of $500 is given annually for a short short story published during the current year. Stories published “in any print or electronic publication designed for public display” are eligible. Jacob...	$0	Fiction	$500		12/31/12
Society of Classical Poets Poetry Competition A prize of $1,000 and publication in the annual anthology of the Society of Classical Poets will be given for a group of poems that incorporate meter and rhyme. All entries are considered for publication...	$0	Poetry	$1,000	Publication	1/1/13
San José State University Steinbeck Fellowship in Creative Writing A one-year residency at San José State University, which includes a stipend of $10,000, is given annually to a fiction writer or a creative nonfiction writer. The resident will give one public reading...	$0	Fiction, Creative Nonfiction	$10,000	Reading, Residency	1/2/13
National Endowment for the Arts Translation Fellowships Grants of $12,500 to $25,000 each are awarded annually to translators of poetry and prose who are working on specific translations of published works from any language into English. Applicants must have...	$0	Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction	$12,500		1/3/13
Virginia Commonwealth University Cabell First Novelist Award A prize of $5,000 is given annually for a first novel published in the previous year. The winner also receives an all-expenses-paid trip to attend the First Novelist Festival at Virginia Commonwealth...	$0	Fiction	$5,000		1/14/13
Ellen Meloy Fund Desert Writers Award A prize of $3,000 is given annually to enable a creative nonfiction writer to spend creative time in a desert environment. Using the online submission system, submit up to 10 pages of creative nonfiction...	$0	Creative Nonfiction	$3,000		1/15/13
Posen Foundation International Fellowship for Scholars and Writers A two-year fellowship of $40,000 ($20,000 per year) will be given annually for a work-in-progress of fiction written in English or Hebrew. Writers who have not yet published a book are eligible. Submit...	$0	Fiction	$40,000	Residency	1/15/13
Virginia Commonwealth University Levis Reading Prize A prize of $2,000 and an all-expenses-paid trip to give a reading in Richmond is given annually for a first or second book of poetry published in the previous year. Submit a book of at least 48 pages...	$0	Poetry	$2,000	Reading	1/15/13
University of Mississippi Summer Poet-in-Residence Award A one-month residency, which includes a $2,000 honorarium, is given annually to a poet who is working on a manuscript to live and work in Oxford, Mississippi, near the University of Mississippi campus....	$0	Poetry	$2,000	Reading, Residency	1/15/13
Bronx Council on the Arts BRIO Awards Grants of $3,000 each are given annually to poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers who reside in the Bronx in New York City. Winners must complete a one-time public service activity....	$0	Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction	$3,000		1/27/13
Tennessee Arts Commission Individual Artist Fellowships Up to three grants of $5,000 each are given annually to poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers who are financially compensated for their work as professional artists. Residents of...	$0	Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction	$5,000		1/28/13
Academy of American Poets Harold Morton Landon Translation Award A prize of $1,000 is given annually to a U.S. citizen for a translation of a book of poetry from any language into English published in the United States during the previous year. Collaborations by two...	$0	Poetry	$1,000		1/31/13
Ohioana Library Association Walter Rumsey Marvin Grant A prize of $1,000 is given annually to an Ohio fiction writer or creative nonfiction writer under 30 who has not published a book. Writers born in Ohio or who have lived in Ohio for a minimum of five...	$0	Fiction, Creative Nonfiction	$1,000		1/31/13
Goethe-Institut Chicago Helen and Kurt Wolff Translator's Prize A prize of $10,000 is given annually for a book translated from German into English published in the United States during the previous year. The winner also receives an all-expenses-paid trip to the...	$0	Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction	$10,000		1/31/13
Academy of American Poets Raiziss/de Palchi Translation Award A fellowship of $25,000 is given biennially to a U.S. translator for a work-in-progress of modern Italian poetry into English. Translators may submit four copies of the work-in-progress by January 31....	$0	Poetry	$25,000		1/31/13
University of East Anglia Charles Pick South Asian Fellowship A six-month fellowship at the University of East Anglia, which includes a stipend of 10,000 euros (approximately $16,000), is given annually to an unpublished fiction writer or creative nonfiction writer...	$0	Fiction, Creative Nonfiction	$16,000	Residency	1/31/13
Japan–U.S. Friendship Commission United States/Japan Creative Artists Residencies Up to five three-month residencies, each of which includes a monthly stipend of $20,000 for living expenses, housing, and professional support, are awarded annually to published U.S. poets, fiction...	$0	Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction	$62,000	Residency	2/1/13
Passaic County Community College Paterson Poetry Prize A prize of $1,000 is given annually for a book of poetry published in the previous year. The winning poet must participate in an awards ceremony and give a reading at the Poetry Center in Paterson, New...	$0	Poetry	$1,000	Reading	2/1/13

Browse by Sponsor Name

A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | All