A prize of $1,000 is given annually for a short story by a college student. The winner also receives a full scholarship to attend the Southampton Writers Conference in July...
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.
Stony Brook Southampton
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 6/1/20
Genre: Fiction
McGill University
Cash Prize: $15,000
Entry Fee: $19
Application Deadline: 6/1/20
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $20,000 CAD (approximately $14,500) and publication in the 2020 Global Poetry Anthology is given biennially for a poem. Yusef Komunyakaa will judge, and Jordan Abel...
read moreSalamander
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $15
Application Deadline: 6/1/20
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Salamander is given annually for a short story. Elliot Ackerman will judge. Submit a story of up to 30 pages with a $15 entry fee...
read moreAmerican Short Fiction
Cash Prize: $2,500
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 6/1/20
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $2,500 and publication in American Short Fiction is given annually for a short story. Using only the online submission system, submit a story of 2,000 to 6,...
read moreBoulevard
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $16
Application Deadline: 6/1/20
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Boulevard is given annually for a group of poems by a poet who has not published a poetry collection with a nationally distributed...
read morePEN America
Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 6/1/20
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Grants of $2,000 to $4,000 each are given annually to support the translation of book-length works of poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction that have not previously appeared...
read moreCrook’s Corner Book Prize Foundation
Cash Prize: $5,000
Entry Fee: $35
Application Deadline: 6/1/20
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $5,000 is given annually for a debut novel set in the American South. The winner will also be entitled to a complimentary glass of wine every day for a year at Crook...
read moreWriter’s Digest
Cash Prize: $5,000
Entry Fee: $35
Application Deadline: 6/5/20
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $5,000, publication on the Writer’s Digest website, and an all-expenses paid trip to the Writer’s Digest Conference in New York City is given annually for a...
read moreWestern Connecticut State University
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 6/14/20
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Three prizes of $1,000 each are given annually for books of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction published in the previous year. The winners also receive $500 in travel expenses to...
read moreUniversity of Akron Press
Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 6/15/20
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,500 and publication by University of Akron Press is given annually for a poetry collection. Philip Metres will judge. Using only the online submission system,...
read moreOmnidawn Publishing
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $18
Application Deadline: 6/15/20
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000, publication by Omnidawn Publishing, and 100 author copies is given annually for a poetry chapbook. Victoria Chang will judge. Submit a manuscript of 20 to 40...
read moreBitter Oleander Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $28
Application Deadline: 6/15/20
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Bitter Oleander Press is given annually for a poetry collection. Submit a manuscript of 48 to 80 pages with a $28 entry fee between May 1...
read moreWillow Springs Books
Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $28
Application Deadline: 6/15/20
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $2,000 and publication by Willow Springs Books is given annually for a short story collection. Submit a manuscript of three or more stories totaling at least 98...
read moreBard College
Cash Prize: $30,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 6/15/20
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $30,000 and a one-semester appointment as writer-in-residence at Bard College is given annually to a U.S. fiction writer under the age of 40. The recipient must give...
read moreNew American Press
Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 6/15/20
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,500 and publication by New American Press is given annually for a book of fiction. Nick White will judge. Using only the online submission system, submit a...
read moreTowson University
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 6/15/20
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $1,000 is given annually for a book of poetry, fiction, or creative nonfiction by a current resident of Maryland who has lived in the state for at least three years...
read morePulitzer Prizes
Cash Prize: $15,000
Entry Fee: $75
Application Deadline: 6/15/20
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Four prizes of $15,000 each are given annually to U.S. writers for books of poetry, fiction, general nonfiction, and biography or autobiography (including memoir) published in...
read moreAmerican-Scandinavian Foundation
Cash Prize: $2,500
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 6/15/20
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $2,500 and publication of an excerpt in Scandinavian Review is given annually for an English translation of a work of poetry, fiction, or creative...
read moreMaine Arts Commission
Cash Prize: $5,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 6/18/20
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A fellowship of up to $5,000 is given annually to a poet, a fiction writer, or a creative nonfiction writer who has lived in the state of Maine for at least one year. The...
read moreMexico
Cash Prize: $150,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 6/22/20
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $150,000 is given annually to honor the lifetime achievement of a poet, fiction writer, or creative nonfiction writer who writes in Catalan, French, Galician,...
read moreGreat Lakes Colleges Association
Cash Prize: $500
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 6/25/20
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Three prizes are given annually to a poet, a fiction writer, and a creative nonfiction writer to honor their first books. The winners each receive an all-expenses paid trip to...
read moreArtist Trust
Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 6/29/20
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Grants of $1,500 each are given annually to poets, fiction writers, and nonfiction writers who are residents of Washington State. Students enrolled in a degree-granting program...
read moreThe Moth
Cash Prize: $3,270
Entry Fee: $16
Application Deadline: 6/30/20
Genre: Fiction
A prize of €3,000 (approximately $3,270) is given annually for a short story. A prize of a weeklong retreat at Circle of Missé in Missé, France, with a €250 (approximately $272...
read moreCider Press Review
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $26
Application Deadline: 6/30/20
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000, publication by Cider Press Review, and 25 author copies is given annually for a poetry collection. The editors will judge. Submit a manuscript of 48...
read more