A prize of $5,000 and publication by Dzanc Books is given annually for a novel. Mark Dunn, Alan Grostephan, and Julie Ann Stewart will judge. Using only the online submission...
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.
Hackney Literary Awards
Cash Prize: $5,000
Entry Fee: $30
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
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A prize of $5,000 is given annually for an unpublished novel.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: $75
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
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 moreThe Moth
Cash Prize: $1,092
Entry Fee: $16
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of €1,000 (approximately $1,092) and online publication in Irish Times is given annually for a poem, a story, or an essay that features “an exploration of the...
read moreTexas Review Press: The University Press of SHSU
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $28
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,000, publication by Texas Review Press: The University Press of SHSU, and 20 author copies is given annually for a short story collection or novel. Using only the...
read moreDzanc Books
Cash Prize: $2,500
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $2,500 and publication by Dzanc Books is given annually for a story collection. The editors will judge. Using only the online submission system, submit a manuscript...
read moreUniversity of Iowa Press
Cash Prize: $0
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Fiction
Two prizes of publication by the University of Iowa Press are given annually for first collections of short fiction. Submit a manuscript of at least 150 pages by September 30....
read moreGhost Story
Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,500 and publication on the Ghost Story website is given twice yearly for a short story with a supernatural or magic realist theme. The winning work will...
read moreUniversity of Mississippi
Cash Prize: $12,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $12,000 is given annually for a novel published during the current year that asks readers “to engage with or reflect on the complexities of the American South.” The...
read moreGeorgia Writers
Cash Prize: $500
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 10/1/23
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 moreTennessee Williams & New Orleans Literary Festival
Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 10/1/23
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,500 is given annually for a short story by a writer who has not published a full-length book of fiction. The winner also receives domestic airfare of up to $500,...
read moreAction, Spectacle
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 10/1/23
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Action, Spectacle will be given annually for a poem, a short work of fiction, or a short work of creative nonfiction. English...
read moreMissouri Review
Cash Prize: $5,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 10/1/23
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Three prizes of $5,000 each and publication in Missouri Review are given annually for a group of poems, a short story, and an essay. Submit up to 10 pages of poetry or...
read moreZoetrope: All-Story
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $30
Application Deadline: 10/2/23
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 moreOne Story
Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 10/11/23
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $2,000, access to One Story online classes, and admission to One Story’s weeklong summer writers’ conference, which includes craft lectures, an intensive...
read morePulitzer Prizes
Cash Prize: $15,000
Entry Fee: $75
Application Deadline: 10/13/23
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 or autobiography published in the United...
read moreTulipTree Publishing
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 10/17/23
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 or a work of prose...
read moreSixfold
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $5
Application Deadline: 10/24/23
Two prizes of $1,000 each and publication in Sixfold are given quarterly for a group of poems and a short story. Using only the online submission system, submit up to...
read moreTucson Festival of Books
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 10/31/23
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 moreCloudbank Books
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 10/31/23
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Cross-Genre
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Cloudbank Books is given annually for a collection of poetry, flash fiction, or a combination of the two. Submit a manuscript of 60 to 90...
read moreNovel Slices
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $12
Application Deadline: 10/31/23
Genre: Fiction
Five prizes of $1,000 each will be given twice yearly for a novel excerpt. Winners will also receive letters of support sent on their behalf to agents and publishers. Juliette...
read moreBedford Competition
Cash Prize: $1,914
Entry Fee: $10
Application Deadline: 10/31/23
Two prizes of £1,500 each (approximately $1,914) and publication in the Bedford Competition anthology are given annually for a poem and a short story. MacGillivray will judge...
read moreReed Magazine
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 11/1/23
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Reed Magazine is given annually for a short story. Using only the online submission system, submit a story of up to 5,000 words with...
read moreF(r)iction
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $15
Application Deadline: 11/1/23
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,000 is given twice yearly for a short story. Using only the online submission system, submit a story of 1,001 to 7,500 words with a $15 entry fee by November 1....
read moreWashington Writers’ Publishing House
Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $28
Application Deadline: 11/1/23
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Three prizes of $1,500 each, publication by Washington Writers’ Publishing House, and 25 author copies are given annually for a poetry collection, a story collection or novel,...
read more