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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
The Writer’s Center Emerging Writer Fellowships Three fellowships are given annually to poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers. Fellows who live within a 250-mile radius of the center receive a $250 honorarium each, and others receive...	$0	Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction	$250	Reading	4/12/13
Baton Rouge Area Foundation Ernest J. Gaines Award A prize of $10,000 is given annually to an African American author for a book of fiction published during the previous year. Thomas Beller, Anthony Grooms, Phillip Lopate, Francine Prose, and Patricia...	$0	Fiction	$10,000		4/30/13
Fiscal Press Henry Hazlitt Contest for Business Fiction A prize of $500 and a $2,000 advance against royalties for publication by Fiscal Press will be given annually for a novel on the theme of business or entrepreneurship. The editors will judge. Using the...	$0	Fiction	$2,500	Publication	4/30/13
St. Francis College Literary Prize A prize of $50,000 is given biennially for a third, fourth, or fifth published work of fiction. Self-published books and English translations are eligible. Peter Cameron, Kate Christensen, and Jonathan...	$0	Fiction	$50,000		5/1/13
Maine Arts Commission Individual Artist Fellowships A fellowship of $13,000 is given annually to a poet, fiction writer, or creative nonfiction writer who has lived in the state of Maine for at least two years. Using the online submission system, submit...	$0	Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction	$13,000		5/10/13
Academy of American Poets James Laughlin Award A prize of $5,000 is given annually for a second book of poetry by a U.S. poet. Copies of the winning book are purchased and distributed to approximately 5,000 members of the Academy of American Poets....	$0	Poetry	$5,000		5/15/13
Leeway Foundation Transformation Awards Awards of $15,000 each are given annually by the Leeway Foundation to women and transsexual, transgender, genderqueer, and Two-Spirit poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers in the...	$0	Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction	$15,000		5/15/13
Dylan Thomas Centre Dylan Thomas Prize A prize of £30,000 (approximately $45,880) is given annually for a book of poetry or fiction published in the preceding year that “displays creative, imaginative, and innovative use of the English...	$0	Poetry, Fiction	$45,880		5/31/13
Sonia Raiziss-Giop Foundation Bordighera Poetry Prize A prize of $2,000 and bilingual publication by Bordighera Press is given annually for a poetry collection written in English to be translated into Italian. The prize is evenly divided between the poet,...	$0	Poetry	$2,000	Publication	5/31/13
Bridport Arts Centre Bridport Prize Two prizes of £5,000 (approximately $7,760) each and publication in the Bridport Prize anthology are given annually for a poem and a short story. A second-place prize of £1,000 (approximately $1,552) and...	$0	Poetry, Fiction	$7,760	Publication	5/31/13
Writer’s Digest Annual Writing Competition A prize of $3,000 and an all-expenses-paid trip to New York City to meet with editors and agents is given annually for a poem, a short story, or an essay. Prizes of $1,000 each are also given for a work...	$32	Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction	$3,000	Travel	6/3/13
American-Scandinavian Foundation Translation Prizes A prize of $2,000 and publication of an excerpt in Scandinavian Review is given annually for an English translation of a Danish, Finnish, Icelandic, Norwegian, or Swedish work of poetry, fiction...	$0	Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction	$2,000	Publication	6/7/13
Towson University Prize for Literature A prize of $1,000 is given annually for a book of poetry, fiction, or creative nonfiction by a writer who has lived in Maryland for at least three years and is currently a resident. Books published...	$0	Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction	$1,000		6/15/13
Mexico Fil Prize in Romance Languages A prize of $150,000 is given annually to honor a poet, a fiction writer, or a creative nonfiction writer who writes in Catalan, French, Galician, Italian, Portuguese, Roumanian, or Spanish. The prize is...	$0	Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction	$150,000		6/22/13
Literary Arts Oregon Literary Fellowships Fellowships of $2,500 each are given annually to Oregon writers to initiate, develop, or complete literary projects in poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction. In addition, Women Writers Fellowships of...	$0	Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction	$2,500		6/28/13
University of Pittsburgh Press Drue Heinz Literature Prize A prize of $15,000 and publication by University of Pittsburgh Press is given annually for a collection of short fiction. The prize is open to writers who have published a book of fiction or a minimum of...	$0	Fiction	$15,000	Publication	6/30/13
Blue Mountain Center Richard J. Margolis Award A prize of $5,000 and a monthlong residency at the Blue Mountain Center, an artists colony in Blue Mountain Lake, New York, is given annually to a writer of nonfiction (including creative nonfiction with...	$0	Poetry, Creative Nonfiction	$5,000	Residency	7/1/13
Bard College Bard Fiction Prize A prize of $30,000 and a one-semester appointment as writer-in-residence at Bard College is given annually to a U.S. fiction writer under the age of 40. The recipient must give at least one public...	$0	Fiction	$30,000		7/15/13

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