A prize of $1,500 and publication on the Ghost Story website is given biannually for a short story with a supernatural or magical realist theme. The editors will judge...
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.
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Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 9/30/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $2,000 is given annually for a single poem. A second-place prize of $1,000 is also given. Mark Graham, Monique Jonath, Mridvi Khetan, and Ann Tinkham will judge....
read moreBoulevard
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $18
Application Deadline: 9/30/25
Genre: Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Boulevard is given annually for an essay by a writer who has not published a full-length book in any genre with a nationally...
read moreDzanc Books
Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 9/30/25
Genre: Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $1,500 and publication by Dzanc Books will be given triannually for a book of nonfiction, including essays, memoir, polemical writing, historical writing, and...
read moreHackney Literary Awards
Cash Prize: $5,000
Entry Fee: $30
Application Deadline: 9/30/25
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $5,000 is given annually for an unpublished novel. Submit a manuscript of any length with a $30 entry fee by September 30. Visit the website for complete guidelines...
PEN/Faulkner Foundation
Cash Prize: $15,000
Entry Fee: $95
Application Deadline: 9/30/25
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $15,000 is given annually for a book of fiction published during the current year. Four finalists each receive $5,000. The winner and finalists will also be invited...
read moreUniversity of Massachusetts Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $30
Application Deadline: 9/30/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Five prizes of $1,000 each and publication by University of Massachusetts Press are given annually for a debut poetry collection, a poetry collection by an author who has...
read moreUniversity of Mississippi
Cash Prize: $12,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 9/30/25
Genre: Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $12,000 is given annually for a book of creative nonfiction published during the current year that asks readers “to engage with or reflect on the complexities of the...
read moreWillow Springs Magazine
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $15
Application Deadline: 10/1/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 and publication in the Spring issue of Willow Springs Magazine is given annually for a surrealist poem. Michael McGriff will judge. Submit up to...
read moreZoetrope: All-Story
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $30
Application Deadline: 10/1/25
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication on the Zoetrope: All-Story website is given annually for a short story. The winner and finalists are considered for representation by...
read moreMad Creek Books
Cash Prize: $2,500
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 10/1/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $2,500 and publication by Mad Creek Books, the literary trade imprint of Ohio State University Press, is given annually for a poetry collection. Marcus Jackson will...
read moreAfrican Poetry Book Fund
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 10/1/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 is given annually for a book of poetry by an African poet published in the previous year. Writers who were born in Africa, who are nationals or residents of...
read moreAction, Spectacle
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 10/1/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Action, Spectacle is given annually for a poem, a short work of fiction, or a short work of creative nonfiction. Using only the...
read moreGeorgia Writers
Cash Prize: $500
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 10/1/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Three grants of $500 each are given annually in poetry, fiction, and nonfiction to “elevate, encourage, and inspire the voices of Black writers in Georgia.” Grantees also...
read moreAmerican Poetry Review
Cash Prize: $3,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 10/1/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $3,000 and publication by American Poetry Review is given annually for a debut poetry collection. The winning book is distributed by Copper Canyon Press...
read moreWinning Writers
Cash Prize: $3,500
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 10/1/25
Genre: Poetry
Two prizes of $3,500 each, two-year gift certificates for membership to the literary database Duotrope, and publication on the Winning Writers website are given annually for a...
read moreOne Story
Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 10/8/25
Genre: Fiction
A yearlong fellowship of $2,000, access to One Story online classes, and admission to One Story’s weeklong summer writers’ conference, which includes craft lectures,...
read morePrincipal Foundation
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 10/12/25
Genre: Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication on the Short Édition website and in Principal Foundation’s Short Story Dispensers (located in six cities across the United States) will be...
read morePulitzer Prizes
Cash Prize: $15,000
Entry Fee: $75
Application Deadline: 10/15/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Six prizes of $15,000 each are given annually for books of poetry, fiction, general nonfiction, U.S. history, biography, and memoir first published in the United States during...
read moreFinishing Line Press
Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 10/15/25
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,500 and publication by Finishing Line Press is given annually for a poetry chapbook by a writer who identifies as a woman and has not published a full-length...
read morePermafrost
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 10/15/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication by University of Alaska Press is given in alternating years for a book of poetry, fiction, or creative nonfiction. The 2025 prize will be...
read moreFordham University at Lincoln Center
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $28
Application Deadline: 10/15/25
Genre: Poetry
Two prizes of $1,000 each and publication by Fordham University Press are given annually for poetry collections. The winners also receive a one-on-one publicity consultation...
read moreColumbus State University
Cash Prize: $10,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 10/15/25
Genre: Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $10,000 and publication with DLJ Books, the imprint of Columbus State University Press, will be given annually for a book of fiction or creative nonfiction “that...
read moreUniversity of Louisville
Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 10/15/25
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $2,000 and publication in Miracle Monocle is given annually for a work of fiction written in the fabulist experimental style of Italo Calvino. Jenny Boully...
read moreAmy Lowell Poetry Traveling Scholarship
Cash Prize: $76,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 10/15/25
Genre: Poetry
An award of approximately $76,000 is given annually to a U.S. poet for a year of travel and study outside of North America. Submit two copies of up to 40 pages of published or...
read more