A prize of $1,500 and publication by Finishing Line Press is given annually for a poetry chapbook. Leah Huete de Maines will judge. Submit a manuscript of 16 to 34 pages, a...
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.
Gay & Lesbian Review
Cash Prize: $5,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 2/15/26
Up to three grants of up to $5,000 each and publication in the Gay & Lesbian Review will be given annually for a project “with LGBTQ+ identity,...
read moreAcademy of American Poets
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 2/15/26
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 is given annually for a poetry collection translated from any language into English and published in the United States during the previous year....
read moreWest Chester University
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 2/20/26
Genre: Poetry
Five prizes of $1,000 to $1,500 each are given annually for a single poem “composed in the traditional modes of meter, rhyme, and received forms” (Iris N. Spencer Poetry Award...
read moreCaine Prize for African Writing
Cash Prize: $13,323
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 2/27/26
Genre: Fiction
A prize of £10,000 (approximately $13,323) is given annually for a previously published short story by a writer of African descent. Shortlisted writers will...
read moreAutumn House Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $35
Application Deadline: 2/28/26
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Autumn House Press is given annually for a book of fiction. The winner also receives a $1,500 travel and publicity grant. Amber Sparks will...
read moreTupelo Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 2/28/26
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000, publication by Tupelo Press, and 25 author copies is given annually for a poetry chapbook. Richie Hoffman will judge. Submit a manuscript of 20 to 36 pages...
read moreHayden’s Ferry Review
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $15
Application Deadline: 2/28/26
Two prizes of $1,000 each and publication in Hayden’s Ferry Review are given for a poem or a group of poems and a work of fiction. Sarah Ghazal Ali will judge in...
read moreWesleyan University Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 2/28/26
Genre: Poetry
An award of $1,000 and publication by Wesleyan University Press will be given biennially for a poetry collection by a writer 40 years or older. The award will be given for a...
read moreFish Publishing
Cash Prize: $1,155
Entry Fee: $18
Application Deadline: 2/28/26
Genre: Fiction
A prize of €1,000 (approximately $1,155) and publication in the annual Fish Publishing anthology is given annually for a work of flash fiction. The winner is also invited to...
read moreLittle Tokyo Historical Society
Cash Prize: $500
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 2/28/26
Genre: Fiction
Two prizes of $500 each and publication in Rafu Shimpo and on the Discover Nikkei and Little Tokyo Historical Society websites are given annually for short stories...
read morePinch
Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $28
Application Deadline: 2/28/26
Genre: Fiction
An award of $2,000, publication in Pinch, and two contributor copies will be given annually for a short story. Using only the online submission system, submit a story...
read moreBlack Caucus of the American Library Association
Cash Prize: $2,500
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 2/28/26
Two prizes of $2,500 each are given annually for a poetry e-book and a fiction e-book self-published by an African American writer during the previous year. The awards honor...
read moreAssociation of Writers & Writing Programs
Cash Prize: $5,500
Entry Fee: $30
Application Deadline: 2/28/26
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Three prizes of $5,500 each and publication by a participating press are given annually for a poetry collection, a short story collection, and a novel. A prize of $2,500 and...
read moreBiographers International Organization
Cash Prize: $5,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 3/1/26
Genre: Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $5,000 is given annually for a work-in-progress by a debut biographer. The winner also receives a review of their manuscript proposal by an agent, publicity through...
read moreMississippi Arts Commission
Cash Prize: $5,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 3/1/26
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Fellowships of up to $5,000 each are given in alternating years to Mississippi poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers. This year the fellowships will be...
read morePoets & Writers, Inc.
Cash Prize: $750
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 3/1/26
Two prizes of $750 each are given annually to a poet and a fiction writer residing in the United States. Both winners also receive a monthlong residency at Jentel Artist...
read moreAlabama State Council on the Arts
Cash Prize: $5,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 3/2/26
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
At least two fellowships of $5,000 each are given annually to poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers who are legal residents of Alabama and have lived in the...
read morePoetry Foundation
Cash Prize: $27,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 3/2/26
Genre: Poetry
Five fellowships of $27,000 each are given annually to U.S. poets between the ages of 21 and 31. Using only the online submission system, submit 10 pages of poetry and an...
read moreDayton Literary Peace Prize Foundation
Cash Prize: $10,000
Entry Fee: $100
Application Deadline: 3/4/26
Genre: Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Two prizes of $10,000 each are given annually for a book of fiction and a book of nonfiction (including creative nonfiction) published in the previous year that “foster peace,...
read moreSelected Shorts
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 3/6/26
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,000 and tuition for a 10-week writing class through New York City’s Gotham Writers Workshop is given annually for a short story. The winning work is published on...
read moreTulipTree Publishing
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 3/8/26
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication in TulipTree Review is given annually for a single poem, a short story, or an essay “whose main characters embody the Wild Woman...
read moreRobinson Jeffers Tor House Foundation
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $10
Application Deadline: 3/14/26
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 is given annually for a single poem. Andrew Schelling will judge. Submit up to three poems of no more than three pages each with a $10 entry fee by March 14....
read moreJames Jones Literary Society
Cash Prize: $12,000
Entry Fee: $33
Application Deadline: 3/15/26
Genre: Fiction
A fellowship of $12,000 is given annually for a novel-in-progress that honors “the spirit of unblinking honesty, determination, and insight into modern culture as exemplified...
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