A prize of $1,500 is given annually for a short story by a writer who has not published a book of fiction. The winner also receives domestic airfare of up to $500, private...
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.
Tennessee Williams & New Orleans Literary Festival
Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 10/15/25
Genre: Fiction
TulipTree Publishing
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 10/17/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication in the Fall/Winter issue of TulipTree Review is given annually for a humorous poem, story, or essay. Submit a poem of up to five...
read moreAlice James Books
Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $30
Application Deadline: 10/17/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $2,000 and publication by Alice James Books is given annually for a poetry collection. Submit a manuscript of 48 to 100 pages with a $30 entry fee by October 17. All...
read moreCloudbank Books
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 10/31/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Cross-Genre
A prize of $1,000, publication by Cloudbank Books, and 50 author copies is given annually for a collection of poetry, flash fiction, or a combination of the two. Submit a...
read moreCarlow University
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 10/31/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Voices From the Attic is given annually to a woman poet over 40 who has not published a full-length poetry collection. The winner...
read moreRiver Teeth
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $27
Application Deadline: 10/31/25
Genre: Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication by University of New Mexico Press is given annually for a book of creative nonfiction. Ander Monson will judge. Using only the online...
read moreNorthwestern University Press
Cash Prize: $500
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 10/31/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $500 and publication by Northwestern University Press will be given annually for a poetry chapbook by a writer of color. Writers who have not previously published a...
read moreRed Hen Press
Cash Prize: $3,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 10/31/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $3,000 and publication by Red Hen Press is given annually for a poetry collection. Brenda Cardenas will judge. Using only the online submission system, submit a...
read moreTucson Festival of Books
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 10/31/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Three prizes of $1,000 each are given annually for works of poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction. The winners will also receive scholarships to attend a workshop at the...
read moreUniversity of North Texas Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 10/31/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 and publication by University of North Texas Press is given annually for a poetry collection. Karen An-hwei Lee will judge. Using only the online submission...
read moreComstock Review
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $30
Application Deadline: 10/31/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000, publication by Comstock Review, and 50 author copies will be given biennially for a poetry chapbook. Georgia A. Popoff will judge. Submit a...
read moreBedford Competition
Cash Prize: $2,680
Entry Fee: $11
Application Deadline: 10/31/25
Two prizes of £2,000 (approximately $2,680) each and publication in the Bedford Competition anthology are given annually for a poem and a short story. Fran Lock will judge in...
read moreTupelo Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $30
Application Deadline: 10/31/25
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 morePersea Books
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $30
Application Deadline: 10/31/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Persea Books is given annually for a debut poetry collection by a writer who identifies as a woman. The winner also receives an optional...
read moreJohn Updike Society
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 11/1/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $1,000 and a two-week residency at the Mission Hill Casitas that John Updike owned and worked out of in Tucson is given annually for a group of poems or a work of...
read moreMoment Magazine
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 11/1/25
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,000 is given annually for a story that relates to Judaism or Jewish culture or history. The winning story will be considered for publication in Moment...
read moreNorth American Review
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $23
Application Deadline: 11/1/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 and publication in North American Review is given annually for a single poem. Danez Smith will judge. Submit up to five poems of any length with a $...
read moreSaturnalia Books
Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $30
Application Deadline: 11/1/25
Genre: Poetry, Translation
A prize of $2,000 and publication by Saturnalia Books is given annually for a poetry collection in translation. Translators who identify as female (including those who are...
read moreFiction Collective Two
Cash Prize: $15,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 11/1/25
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $15,000 and publication by Fiction Collective Two, an imprint of University of Alabama Press, is given annually for a novel, a story collection, a novella, or a...
read moreAfrican Poetry Book Fund
Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 11/1/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,500 is given annually for a group of poems by an African poet who has not published a full-length collection. Writers who were born in Africa, who are nationals...
read moreMalahat Review
Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $22
Application Deadline: 11/1/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Three prizes of $2,000 Canadian (approximately $1,455) each and publication in Malahat Review are given annually for a poem, a short story, and an essay. Using only...
read moreStanford University
Cash Prize: $75,000
Entry Fee: $55
Application Deadline: 11/1/25
Ten fellowships, five in poetry and five in fiction, of $75,000 each per year to attend Stanford University’s two-year creative writing program are given annually for...
read moreAmerican Academy in Rome
Cash Prize: $30,000
Entry Fee: $50
Application Deadline: 11/1/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Half-term and full-term fellowships of $16,000 and $30,000 respectively are given annually to artists, academics, and creative writers, including poets, fiction writers, and...
read moreNorth American Review
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $23
Application Deadline: 11/1/25
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication in North American Review is given annually for a work of speculative fiction. Rachel Yoder will judge. Submit up to two works of...
read moreEpiphany
Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 11/1/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $2,000 and publication in Epiphany is given annually for a poem or a group of poems, a work of fiction, or a work of creative nonfiction. The winner will...
read more