A prize of $1,000, publication by Sow's Ear Press with distribution to Sow's Ear Poetry Review subscribers, and 25 author copies is given annually for a poetry...
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.
Sow's Ear Poetry Review
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $30
Application Deadline: 5/1/18
Genre: Poetry
Moon City Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 5/1/18
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Moon City Press will be given annually for a poetry collection. The editors will judge. Submit a manuscript of at least 48 pages with a $25...
read moreLeapfrog Press
Cash Prize: $1,150
Entry Fee: $33
Application Deadline: 5/1/18
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,150 and publication by Leapfrog Press is given annually for a short story collection, a novel, or a novella. Marie-Helene Bertino and the Leapfrog editors will...
read morePirate's Alley Faulkner Society
Cash Prize: $7,500
Entry Fee: $35
Application Deadline: 5/1/18
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $7,500 is given annually for a novel. A prize of $2,000 is given for a book of nonfiction; three prizes of $1,500 each are given for a short story, a novella, and a...
read moreWhiting Foundation
Cash Prize: $40,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 5/1/18
Genre: Creative Nonfiction
Up to six grants of $40,000 each are given annually for creative nonfiction works-in-progress to enable writers to complete their books. Creative nonfiction writers under...
read moreSouthwest Review
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 5/1/18
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Southwest Review is given annually for a short story by a writer who has not published a full-length book of fiction. Submit a...
read moreCarve Magazine
Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $15
Application Deadline: 5/15/18
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,500 and publication in Carve Magazine is given annually for a short story. Submit a story of up to 10,000 words with a $15 entry fee ($17 for electronic...
read moreLost Horse Press
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $28
Application Deadline: 5/15/18
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000, publication by Lost Horse Press, and 20 author copies is given annually for a poetry collection by a U.S. poet. Piotr Florczyk will judge. Using the online...
read moreLynx House Press
Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $28
Application Deadline: 5/15/18
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $2,000 and publication by Lynx House Press is given annually for a poetry collection. Submit a manuscript of at least 48 pages with a $28 entry fee by May 15. Visit...
read moreHidden River Arts
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $22
Application Deadline: 5/15/18
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Hidden River Publishing will be given annually for a book-length work of speculative fiction. Using the online submission system, submit a...
read moreAcademy of American Poets
Cash Prize: $5,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 5/15/18
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $5,000 is given annually for a second book of poetry by a living poet to be published in the current year. The winner also receives an all-expenses-paid weeklong...
read moreAcademy of American Poets
Cash Prize: $25,000
Entry Fee: $75
Application Deadline: 5/15/18
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $25,000 is given annually for a poetry collection by a living poet published in the United States during the previous year. Copies of the winning book are purchased...
read moreGeorgia Review
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $15
Application Deadline: 5/15/18
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Georgia Review is given annually for a poem. Submit up to three poems totaling no more than ten pages with a $15 entry fee (there...
read moreAmerican Poetry Review
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $15
Application Deadline: 5/15/18
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 and publication in American Poetry Review is given annually for a poem by a poet under the age of 40. The editors will judge. Submit up to three...
read morePloughshares
Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $24
Application Deadline: 5/15/18
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...
read moreLeeway Foundation
Cash Prize: $15,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 5/15/18
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Awards of $15,000 each are given annually to women and transgender, transsexual, genderqueer, or otherwise gender-nonconforming poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction...
read moreCenter for Documentary Studies
Cash Prize: $10,000
Entry Fee: $70
Application Deadline: 5/15/18
A prize of $10,000 and publication in the Center for Documentary Studies digital periodical is given annually for a documentary project that incorporates text and images. The...
read moreRuminate Magazine
Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 5/15/18
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,500 and publication in Ruminate Magazine is given annually for a poem. Ilya Kaminsky will judge. Using the online submission system, submit up to two...
read moreBreakwater Review
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $10
Application Deadline: 5/15/18
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Breakwater Review is given annually for a single poem. Jill McDonough will judge. Submit three poems of any length with a $10...
read moreDel Sol Press
Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $30
Application Deadline: 5/15/18
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,500, publication by Del Sol Press, and 20 author copies is given annually for a first novel. Robert Olen Butler will judge. Using the online submission system,...
read moreCrook's Corner Book Prize Foundation
Cash Prize: $5,000
Entry Fee: $35
Application Deadline: 5/15/18
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $5,000 is given annually for a debut novel set in the American South. The winner is also entitled to receive a free glass of wine every day for a year at Crook's...
read moreNational Book Foundation
Cash Prize: $10,000
Entry Fee: $135
Application Deadline: 5/16/18
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Three prizes of $10,000 each are given annually to honor a book of poetry, a book of fiction, and a book of nonfiction written by U.S. writers and published in the United...
read moreNew Letters
Cash Prize: $2,500
Entry Fee: $24
Application Deadline: 5/18/18
Genre: Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $2,500 and publication in New Letters will be given annually for an essay. Submit up to 8,000 words of prose with a $24 entry fee, which includes a...
read moreNew Letters
Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $24
Application Deadline: 5/18/18
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Two prizes of $1,500 each and publication in New Letters are given annually for a group of poems and a short story. Submit up to six poems or a story of up to 8,000...
read more