A prize of $1,000 is given annually for a poem, a short story, or an essay that “tells a story.” The winning work will also be published in the contest anthology, Stories...
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.
TulipTree Publishing
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 8/26/18
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Utica College
Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 8/31/18
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $2,000 is given annually for a poetry collection published in the previous year by a resident of upstate New York. The winner will also give a reading and teach a...
read moreSustainable Arts Foundation
Cash Prize: $5,000
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 8/31/18
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Up to twenty awards of $5,000 each are given annually to poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers with children. Writers with at least one child under the age of...
read moreGlimmer Train Press
Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $16
Application Deadline: 8/31/18
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $2,000 and publication in Glimmer Train Stories is given twice yearly for a short short story. Using the online submission system, submit a story of 300 to...
read moreEx Ophidia Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 8/31/18
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000, publication by Ex Ophidia Press, and 15 author copies is given annually for a poetry collection. Richard-Gabriel Rummonds will judge. Submit a manuscript of...
read moreGulf Coast
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $18
Application Deadline: 8/31/18
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Gulf Coast is given annually for a work of short prose. Submit a prose poem, a piece of flash fiction, or a micro-essay of up to...
read moreGulf Coast
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $18
Application Deadline: 8/31/18
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Gulf Coast is given in alternating years for a group of poems or a prose excerpt translated from any language into English. The...
read moreBlack Lawrence Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 8/31/18
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Black Lawrence Press is given annually for a debut collection of poems or short stories. The editors will judge. Using the online...
read moreGrid Books
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 8/31/18
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Grid Books is given annually for a poetry collection by a writer over the age of 60. Using the online submission system, submit a...
read moreGlimmer Train Press
Cash Prize: $3,000
Entry Fee: $21
Application Deadline: 8/31/18
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $3,000 and publication in Glimmer Train Stories is given twice yearly for a short story. A second-place prize of $1,000 is also given. Using the online...
read moreRed Hen Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $10
Application Deadline: 8/31/18
Genre: Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Red Hen Press is given annually for a short story collection, a novel, or an essay collection by a queer writer. David Francis will judge....
read moreAesthetica
Cash Prize: $1,290
Entry Fee: $15
Application Deadline: 8/31/18
Two prizes of £1,000 (approximately $1,290) each and publication in the Aesthetica Creative Writing Annual are given annually for a poem and a short story. The...
read moreGemini Magazine
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $5
Application Deadline: 8/31/18
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Gemini Magazine is given annually for a short short story. The editors will judge. Submit a story of up to 1,000 words with a $5...
read moreRadar Poetry
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $15
Application Deadline: 9/1/18
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Radar Poetry is given annually for a group of poems by a woman. Using the online submission system, submit three to six poems with...
read moreBeyond Baroque Literary Arts Center
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 9/1/18
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 is given annually for a poem. Winners and finalists will be invited to read at Beyond Baroque in Venice, California, in April 2019. Submit up to four poems of...
read moreBlack Warrior Review
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 9/1/18
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Three prizes of $1,000 each and publication in Black Warrior Review are given annually for a poem, a short story, and an essay. Vanessa Angélica Villarreal will judge...
read morephren-Z
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $15
Application Deadline: 9/1/18
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 and publication in phren-Z is given annually for a poem. The winner is also invited to give a reading at the annual Morton Marcus Poetry Reading at...
read moreDogwood
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $10
Application Deadline: 9/5/18
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Three prizes of $1,000 each and publication in Dogwood are given annually for a poem, a short story, and an essay. Submit up to three poems totaling no more than 10...
read moreAsian American Writers Workshop
Cash Prize: $5,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 9/12/18
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Fellowships of $5,000 and residency time at the Millay Colony for the Arts in Austerlitz, New York, will be given annually to Asian American, Arab, and Muslim...
read moreHarvard University
Cash Prize: $77,500
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 9/13/18
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Fellowships of $77,500 each, office space at the Radcliffe Institute, and access to the libraries at Harvard University are given annually to poets, fiction writers, and...
read moreManchester Metropolitan University
Cash Prize: $13,200
Entry Fee: $23
Application Deadline: 9/14/18
Two prizes of £10,000 (approximately $13,200) each are given annually for a group of poems and a short story. The winners will be invited to attend an award ceremony in...
read moreRed Mountain Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $29
Application Deadline: 9/15/18
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Red Mountain Press is given annually for a poetry collection. Denise Low will judge. Submit a manuscript of 48 to 72 pages with a $29 entry...
read moreUniversity of Wisconsin Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $28
Application Deadline: 9/15/18
Genre: Poetry
Two prizes of $1,000 each and publication by University of Wisconsin Press are given annually for poetry collections. Submit a manuscript of 50 to 90 pages with a $28 entry fee...
read moreJohn Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Cash Prize: $50,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 9/17/18
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Fellowships of approximately $50,000 each are awarded annually to poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers on the basis of achievement and exceptional promise....
read moreTravelers' Tales
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 9/21/18
Genre: Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication in the biannual anthology The Best Travel Writing and on the Travelers’ Tales website is given annually for a travel essay. Writers...
read more