Desert Writers Award

Ellen Meloy Fund
Entry Fee: 
$15
Deadline: 
January 15, 2021
A prize of $5,000 is given annually to enable a creative nonfiction writer “whose work reflects the spirit and passions for the desert embodied in Ellen Meloy’s writing” to spend creative time in a desert environment. Using only the online submission system, submit up to 10 pages of creative nonfiction, a project proposal, and a biographical statement of up to one page with a $15 entry fee by January 15, 2021. Visit the website for the required entry form and complete guidelines.

Editors’ Book Award

Pushcart Press
Entry Fee: 
$0
Deadline: 
November 15, 2020

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 have been overlooked by today’s high-pressure, bottom-line publishing conglomerates.” Manuscripts must be submitted with a formal letter of nomination from an editor at a U.S. or Canadian publishing company by November 15. There is no entry fee. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Fall Story Contest

Narrative
Entry Fee: 
$27
Deadline: 
November 30, 2020
A prize of $2,500 and publication in Narrative is given annually for a short story, a short short story, an essay, or an excerpt from a longer work of prose. A second-place prize of $1,000 and publication in Narrative is also awarded. The editors will judge. Using only the online submission system, submit up to 15,000 words of prose with a $27 entry fee by November 30. All entries are considered for publication. Visit the website for complete guidelines.
Tags: 
essays | short stories | short-shorts

Jacobs/Jones African American Literary Prize

North Carolina Writers’ Network
Entry Fee: 
$20
Deadline: 
January 2, 2021

A prize of $1,000 is given annually for a short story or an essay that “conveys the rich and varied existence of Black North Carolinians.” The winning entry will be considered for publication in the Carolina Quarterly. W. Ralph Eubanks will judge. Black writers who live in North Carolina are eligible. Submit two copies of a short story or essay of up to 3,000 words with a $20 entry fee ($10 for NCWN members) by January 2, 2021. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Jeanne Leiby Memorial Chapbook Award

Florida Review
Entry Fee: 
$25
Deadline: 
December 31, 2020
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Florida Review is given annually for a chapbook of short fiction, short nonfiction, or graphic narrative. Submit a manuscript of up to 45 pages with a $25 entry fee by December 31. All entries are considered for publication. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Leon Levy Biography Fellowships

Leon Levy Center for Biography
Entry Fee: 
$0
Deadline: 
January 4, 2021
Four fellowships of $72,000, writing space at the CUNY Graduate Center in New York City, access to research facilities, and research assistance from a graduate student will be given annually to nonfiction writers working on biographies. An additional fellowship, the Sloan Fellowship, will be given annually to a writer working on a biography of a figure in the field of science or technology. Using only the online submission system, submit a writing sample from the biography of up to 2,500 words, a curriculum vitae or résumé, a project description, a narrative career history, and two letters of reference by January 4, 2021. There is no entry fee. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Literary Awards

Black Caucus of the American Library Association
Entry Fee: 
$0
Deadline: 
December 31, 2020
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 African American writers published in the United States in the previous year. The awards honor books that depict the “cultural, historical, and sociopolitical aspects of the Black Diaspora.” Publishers may nominate books published in 2020 by December 31. There is no entry fee. Visit the website for complete guidelines and a list of jurors to whom books should be sent.
Tags: 
novel | African American | book awards | first book awards

Renaissance House Residency Program

November/December 2020

The Renaissance House Residency Program, sponsored by the Helene and Dorothy West Foundation for Artists in Need, offers residencies of one to two weeks during February 2021 in Palm Springs, California, to poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers. The residency includes classes, lectures, and time to write. Each resident is provided with private lodging, access to a pool and hot tub, some meals, and weekly excursions to local destinations such as Joshua Tree National Park. The cost of the residency is $975 per week ($950 for previous attendees).

Type: 
RESIDENCY
Ignore Event Date Field?: 
yes
Event Date: 
March 5, 2021
Rolling Admissions: 
yes
Application Deadline: 
March 5, 2021
Financial Aid?: 
no
Financial Aid Application Deadline: 
March 5, 2021
Free Admission: 
no
Contact Information: 

Renaissance House Residency Program, Helene and Dorothy West Foundation for Artists in Need, 484 West 43rd Street, Suite 37E, New York, NY 10036. (917) 747-0367. Abigail McGrath, Contact.

Abigail McGrath
Contact
Contact City: 
Palm Springs
Contact State: 
CA
Country: 
US
Genre: 
Poetry
Fiction
Creative Nonfiction

Beauty

The Time Is Now
10.1.20

In the title essay of landscape photographer Robert Adams’s collection Beauty in Photography: Essays in Defense of Traditional Values (Aperture, 1981), he goes about the impossible task of defining beauty, a position he acknowledges is “unprovable.” Through a variety of mediums, including fiction and poetry as well as photographs, Adams goes about discussing beauty’s relevance to society, its unavoidability in an artistic practice, and whether it is the goal of art. In his essay, Adams posits that beauty is “a synonym for the coherence and structure underlying life.” Using the catalog of your own experiences and knowledge, write an essay searching to answer what beauty is to you. What life events does the word conjure?

Special Reminder: Deadline for Project Grants

United States of Writing
9.28.20

We interrupt our regularly scheduled United States of Writing Blog content to remind writers in Detroit, Houston, and New Orleans that applications for Project Grants for BIPOC Writers are due this Wednesday, September 30!

Grants range from $250 to $750 and can be used to pay for costs related to coordinating online literary events in the genres of poetry, fiction, or creative nonfiction. In addition, projects must take place between October 16 and December 31.

To be eligible, applicants must:

  • identify as Black, Indigenous, or a person of color;
  • be a resident of Detroit, Houston, or New Orleans, including the surrounding metro areas of each city;
  • be a published writer of poetry, fiction, or creative nonfiction, or have performance credits as a spoken word artist.

So for example, if you were a Black fiction writer living in Houston who wants to coordinate a fiction reading that will be live-streamed to the public, and you want to compensate yourself and other writers who will give readings for the event, you would be a great candidate for a project grant!

Of course, not all projects need to fit the mold above: We are also interested in supporting other literary projects that will engage the communities of these cities, such as workshops, panels, discussions, town halls, or Q&As.

Writers interested in applying can find the guidelines and link to the application form here.

We can’t wait to read your project ideas!

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