A prize of $1,000 and publication on the Travelers’ Tales website is given annually for a travel essay. Writers from Arizona and Vermont are eligible for publication but not...
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.
Travelers’ Tales
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 9/21/23
Genre: Creative Nonfiction
New York Public Library
Cash Prize: $85,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 9/29/23
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, Translation
Fifteen fellowships are given annually to artists, academics, and creative writers, including poets, fiction writers, creative nonfiction writers, and translators, whose work...
read moreWinning Writers
Cash Prize: $3,000
Entry Fee: $22
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Poetry
Two prizes of $3,000 each, two-year gift certificates for membership to the literary database Duotrope, and publication on the Winning Writers website are given annually for a...
read moreTexas Review Press: The University Press of SHSU
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $28
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,000, publication by Texas Review Press: The University Press of SHSU, and 20 author copies is given annually for a short story collection or novel. Using only the...
read moreUniversity of Mississippi
Cash Prize: $3,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $3,000 is given annually for a single poem that evokes the American South. The winner will also receive an all-expenses-paid trip to Oxford, Mississippi, for the...
read moreBoulevard
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $18
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Boulevard is given annually for an essay by a writer who has not published a full-length book in any genre with a nationally...
read moreOne Page
Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $2,000 will be given annually for a single poem. A second-place prize of $1,000 will also be given. Mark Graham, Monique Jonath, and Ann Tinkham will judge. Using...
read moreConnecticut Poetry Society
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $15
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Connecticut River Review and on the Connecticut Poetry Society website is given annually for a single poem. Antoinette Brim-Bell...
read moreUniversity of Mississippi
Cash Prize: $12,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $12,000 is given annually for a book of nonfiction published during the current year that asks readers “to engage with or reflect on the complexities of the American...
read moreDzanc Books
Cash Prize: $2,500
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $2,500 and publication by Dzanc Books is given annually for a story collection. The editors will judge. Using only the online submission system, submit a manuscript...
read moreDzanc Books
Cash Prize: $5,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $5,000 and publication by Dzanc Books is given annually for a novel. Mark Dunn, Alan Grostephan, and Julie Ann Stewart will judge. Using only the online submission...
read moreGhost Story
Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,500 and publication on the Ghost Story website is given twice yearly for a short story with a supernatural or magic realist theme. The winning work will...
read moreUniversity of Iowa Press
Cash Prize: $0
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Fiction
Two prizes of publication by the University of Iowa Press are given annually for first collections of short fiction. Submit a manuscript of at least 150 pages by September 30....
read morePEN/Faulkner Foundation
Cash Prize: $15,000
Entry Fee: $75
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $15,000 is given annually for a book of fiction published during the current year. Four finalists each receive $5,000. The winner and finalists will also be invited...
read moreLascaux Review
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $15
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $1,000 is given annually for an essay. The winner and finalists will also be published on the Lascaux Review website. Previously published and unpublished...
read moreHackney Literary Awards
Cash Prize: $5,000
Entry Fee: $30
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $5,000 is given annually for an unpublished novel. Submit a manuscript of any length with a $30 entry fee by September 30. Visit the website for complete guidelines...
University of Arkansas Press
Cash Prize: $5,000
Entry Fee: $28
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $5,000 and publication by University of Arkansas Press is given annually for a poetry collection. Patricia Smith will judge. Using only the online submission system...
read moreTexas Review Press: The University Press of SHSU
Cash Prize: $10,000
Entry Fee: $28
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $10,000, publication by Texas Review Press: The University Press of SHSU, and 10 author copies is given annually for a poetry collection. Richard Blanco will judge....
read moreThe Moth
Cash Prize: $1,092
Entry Fee: $16
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of €1,000 (approximately $1,092) and online publication in Irish Times is given annually for a poem, a story, or an essay that features “an exploration of the...
read moreCalifornia State University in Fresno
Cash Prize: $2,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $2,000, publication by Anhinga Press, and 25 author copies is given annually for a poetry collection. The winner will also be invited to give a public reading at...
read moreUniversity of Mississippi
Cash Prize: $12,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 9/30/23
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $12,000 is given annually for a novel published during the current year that asks readers “to engage with or reflect on the complexities of the American South.” The...
read moreAfrican Poetry Book Fund
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 10/1/23
Genre: Poetry
A prize of $1,000 is given annually for a book of poetry by an African poet published in the previous year. Writers who were born in Africa, who are a national or a resident of...
read moreTennessee Williams & New Orleans Literary Festival
Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 10/1/23
Genre: Fiction
A prize of $1,500 is given annually for a short story by a writer who has not published a full-length book of fiction. The winner also receives domestic airfare of up to $500,...
read moreGeorgia Writers
Cash Prize: $500
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 10/1/23
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
Three grants of $500 each are given annually in poetry, fiction, and nonfiction to “elevate, encourage, and inspire the voices of Black writers in Georgia.” Grantees also...
read moreAction, Spectacle
Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 10/1/23
Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Action, Spectacle will be given annually for a poem, a short work of fiction, or a short work of creative nonfiction. English...
read more