Two prizes of $12,500 each will be given annually for an excerpt of a poetry, fiction, or creative nonfiction manuscript-in-progress written by a bookseller. Writers who are...
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.
Book Industry Charitable Foundation
Cash Prize: $12,500
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 3/25/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Gemini Magazine
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $10
Application Deadline: 3/31/25
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Gemini Magazine is given annually for a short story. The editors will judge. Submit a story of any length with a $10 entry fee by...
read moreBanipal Trust for Arab Literature
Cash Prize: $3,669
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 3/31/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Translation
A prize of £3,000 (approximately $3,669) is given annually for a book of poetry or fiction translated from Arabic into English and published for the first time in English...
read moreIowa City UNESCO City of Literature
Cash Prize: $25,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 3/31/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $25,000 is given annually to a writer “who, like Paul Engle, represents a pioneering spirit in the world of literature through writing, editing, publishing, or...
read moreNarrative
Cash Prize: $2,500
Entry Fee: $27
Application Deadline: 3/31/25
Genre: Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $2,500 and publication in Narrative is given annually for a short story, a work of flash fiction, an essay, a memoir, or an excerpt from a longer work of...
read morePress 53
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $15
Application Deadline: 3/31/25
Two prizes of $1,000 each and publication in Prime Number Magazine are given annually for a poem and a short story. Using only the online submission system, submit a...
read moreTexas Review Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 3/31/25
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,000, publication by Texas Review Press: The University Press of Sam Houston State University, and 10 author copies will be given annually for a novella. Using...
read moreBlack Lawrence Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $30
Application Deadline: 3/31/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, Cross-Genre
A prize of $1,000, publication by Black Lawrence Press, and 10 author copies is given annually for a collection of poems, short stories, essays, or hybrid work. The editors...
read moreUrsula K. Le Guin Foundation
Cash Prize: $25,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 3/31/25
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $25,000 will be given annually for a book of fiction published in the previous year that “reflects the concepts and ideas that were central to [Ursula K. Le Guin’s]...
read moreOrison Books
Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 4/1/25
Two prizes of $1,500 each and publication by Orison Books are given annually for a poetry collection and a book of fiction. Phillip B. Williams will judge in poetry, and Tessa...
read moreDesperate Literature
Cash Prize: $2,059
Entry Fee: $21
Application Deadline: 4/14/25
Genre: Fiction
A prize of €2,000 (approximately $2,059), publication in the Desperate Literature prize anthology, and a weeklong residency at the Civitella Ranieri Foundation’s castle in the...
read moreJaded Ibis Press
Cash Prize: $2,050
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 4/15/25
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,500, publication by Jaded Ibis Press, and 25 author copies will be given annually for a novel, a novel in stories, or a short story collection by an author who...
read moreFlorida Review
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 4/15/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Three prizes of $1,000 each and publication in Florida Review are given annually for a poem or group of poems, a short story, and an essay. The editors will judge....
read moreNew Ohio Review
Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $22
Application Deadline: 4/15/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Three prizes of $1,500 each and publication in New Ohio Review are given annually for a poem or group of poems, a short story, and an essay. Submit a poem or group of...
read morePen Parentis
Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 4/17/25
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $2,000, a year of mentorship, and publication in Dreamers Creative Writing Magazine is given annually to a fiction writer who is the parent of a child under...
read moreGhost Story
Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 4/30/25
Genre: Fiction
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 moreTadpole Press
Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $15
Application Deadline: 4/30/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $2,000 is given biannually for a work of flash poetry or prose. Submit a work of poetry, fiction, or nonfiction of up to 100 words with a $15 entry fee by April 30....
read moreWinning Writers
Cash Prize: $3,500
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 5/1/25
Genre: Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Two prizes of $3,500 each, two gift certificates for two-year memberships to the literary database Duotrope, and publication on the Winning Writers website are given annually...
read moreMoon City Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $27
Application Deadline: 5/1/25
Two prizes of $1,000 each and publication by Moon City Press are given annually for a poetry collection and a short story collection. The editors will judge. Using only the...
read moreF(r)iction
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $15
Application Deadline: 5/2/25
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,000 is given biannually 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 May 2. All...
read moreWriter’s Digest
Cash Prize: $5,000
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 5/5/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $5,000, an interview in Writer’s Digest, and an all-expenses-paid trip to the Writer’s Digest Annual Conference is given annually for a single poem, a short...
read moreCrook’s Corner Book Prize Foundation
Cash Prize: $5,000
Entry Fee: $35
Application Deadline: 5/15/25
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $5,000 is given annually for a debut novel primarily set in the American South. Authors living anywhere are eligible. Self-published books are accepted, but books...
read morePloughshares
Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $30
Application Deadline: 5/15/25
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Three prizes of $2,000 each and publication in Ploughshares are given annually for a poem or group of poems, a short story, and an essay. Each winner also receives a...
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