Discover writing and book contests from literary magazines, independent publishers, university presses, creative writing programs, and more.
Have nothing better to do and want to build up your submissions calendar? Don’t forget to check out our Big List of Writing & Book Contests. We have a whole year’s worth of contests that we work hard to keep updated for you all. April is literally around the corner . . . so why not start there?
Driftwood Press has plenty on the horizon for both readers and writers.
Writers looking to hone their craft can benefit from the two seminars Driftwood Press offers—Editors & Writers: The Path to Publication, and a seminar for Erasure Poetry. These are both conducted online and have plenty of information to help guide writers and editors better their work. The deadline to apply for each of these is April 30.
Readers can now order copies of Helli Fang’s new chapbook Village of Knives from the press. Chen Chen says of the collection, “The poems here listen to immigrant life and dream, to gendered expectation and subversion, to desire, to the body’s surging, briny rhythms.”
If you’re interested in having your own poetry read by the editors, consider submitting your full-length manuscript. Submissions are currently open for the rest of the month, so act fast! If you do end up missing this submission period, there are still two contests currently open until July.
Whether you’re looking to learn, read, or submit, Driftwood Press has you covered!
There have been plenty of great resources shared around the web recently for keeping your kids occupied while schools are currently closed, and we’ve got another one to throw your way.
Our Young Writers Guide to Publications and our Young Writers Guide to Contests are great ways to get the creativity flowing and imaginations stimulated, and they may even secure a little bit of quiet time for your own working or writing.
There are a handful of contests deadlines left this month, which is a good place to start. Plus, you can find plenty of publications by young writers to read in between writing and submitting.
Deadline: April 30, 2020
The Sandeen Prize in Poetry is open to any author, with the exception of ND graduates, who has published at least one collection of poetry. We pay special attention to second volumes. A $15 administrative fee should accompany submissions. Make checks payable to University of Notre Dame. The volumes of the Sandeen Prize will be published in trade paperback format. The author will be offered a standard contract with the University of Notre Dame Press. There will be a $1,000 prize, a $500 award, and a $500 advance against royalties from the Notre Dame Press. Submission information on program website: english.nd.edu/creative-writing/.
december magazine seeks submissions for our 2020 Curt Johnson Prose Awards in fiction and creative nonfiction. Judges: Dorothy Allison (fiction) & Brittney Cooper (nonfiction). Prizes each genre: $1,500 & publication (winner); $500 & publication (honorable mention). All finalists will be listed in the 2020 Fall/Winter awards issue. $20 entry fee includes a copy of the awards issue. Submit 1 story or essay up to 8,000 words from March 1 to May 1. For complete guidelines visit our website decembermag.org/2020-curt-johnson-prose-awards/.
Deadline: June 1, 2020
Lynx House Press seeks submissions of full-length poetry manuscripts for the annual Blue Lynx Prize for Poetry. The winner will receive $2,000 and publication. Entries must be at least 48 pages in length. The fee for submitting is $28, and includes a copy of a book from our catalog. Previous judges include James Tate, Yusef Komunyakaa, Dorianne Laux, Dara Wier, Melissa Kwasny, and Robert Wrigley. lynxhousepress.submittable.com/submit
Deadline: April 30, 2020
28th year, sponsored by Winning Writers and Duotrope. $8,000 in cash prizes, including two top awards of $3,000 each. Seeks short stories and essays up to 6,000 words each. Both published and unpublished work accepted. Fee per entry is $20. Final judge: Dennis Norris II, assisted by Lauren Singer Ledoux. Winning Writers is one of the “101 Best Websites for Writers” (Writer’s Digest). See guidelines, past winners, and enter online at winningwriters.com/tomstory.
Deadline: March 31, 2020
First prize: $1,000. Second: $100. Three honorable mentions: $25 each. Entry fee: $8. We are open to any subject, style, genre, or length. What do we want? We don’t know until we see it! Simply send your best, most powerful, unpublished work by email or snail mail. All five finalists will be published online in the June/July 2020 issue of Gemini. Both new and experienced writers have won our contests. Over four dozen winners/finalists may be read online. All entries are read blind so everyone gets an equal chance. We look forward to reading your work! Enter at www.gemini-magazine.com/shortstorycomp.html.
Deadline: April 1, 2020
19th year. Free contest sponsored by Winning Writers and Duotrope. $2,250 in cash prizes, including a top prize of $1,000. Both published and unpublished work welcome. All entries that win cash prizes will be published on WinningWriters.com. Final judge: Jendi Reiter, assisted by Lauren Singer Ledoux. Winning Writers is one of “101 Best Websites for Writers” (Writer’s Digest). See guidelines, past winners, and submit one humor poem online at winningwriters.com/wergle.
Deadline: March 29, 2020
The Masters Review opens submissions to produce our annual anthology, a collection of ten stories and essays written by the best emerging authors. Our aim is to showcase ten writers who we believe will continue to produce great work. The ten winners are nationally distributed in a printed book with their stories and essays exposed to top agents, editors, and authors across the country. This year, the anthology contest will be judged by Rick Bass. We’re looking for your best work up to 7000 words. Please note you must not have published a novel-length work at the time of submission. mastersreview.com/anthology/
$2,000 in prizes. From March 1 to May 31, Flying South 2020, a publication of Winston Salem Writers, will be accepting entries for prizes in Fiction, Nonfiction, and Poetry. Best in Category winners will be published and receive $500 each. One of the three winners will receive The WSW President’s Favorite award and win an additional $500. All entries will be considered for publication. For full details, please visit our website: www.wswriters.org.
Every month, Prime Number Magazine (published by Press 53) offers a free contest, inviting writers to respond to a prompt in 53 words.
February’s prompt was: This month, the Kansas City Chiefs return to the Super Bowl after a fifty-year run of coming up short. Vegas will run the numbers and the 49ers will run the ball. Many expect the Chiefs to run the table. In this spirit, let’s run with the word that has the most dictionary definitions.
The winning story by Elizabeth Barton will appear in the next issue of Prime Number Magazine, releasing April 1.
You still have a couple weeks if you’d like to submit to the March 53-Word Contest (deadline March 21). This month’s prompt: On March 17, people everywhere, regardless of ancestry, will wear green on St. Patrick’s Day. Green can also mean someone is envious, sick, or inexperienced. Green fruit is not ripe. The Green Party protects our environment. And putting well on a green can lead to a pro golfer winning a lot of green.
Find full submission details, check out past winners, and see what’s up with the Prime Number Magazine Awards for Poetry & Short Fiction at the journal’s website.
Cloudbank has extended the deadline for its Issue 14 writing contest to March 15. The extension is for poetry submissions only. $15 fee includes a two issue subscription. Learn more…
Jacar Press, A Community Active Press, publishes poetry chapbooks, full-length collections, anthologies, and an award-winning online magazine, One which features Pulitzer Prize winners and new poets from 6 continents. Book sales support progressive organizations, including groups that address racism, gender discrimination, immigration issues, women’s initiatives, violence and abuse, prisoner reintegration programs, and others. Jacar Press offers low-cost workshops featuring writers like Lynn Emanuel, Patricia Spears Jones, Dorianne Laux, Li-Young Lee, Marilyn Nelson, Ilya Kaminsky, etc. Chapbook and full-length contests open through April 30. Past judges have included Chana Bloch, Toi Derricotte, Hélène Cardona, Lola Haskins, Rickey Laurentiis, Dorianne Laux, Jamaal May, and others. jacarpress.com/submissions/#contests
The Nelligan Prize for Short Fiction is accepting submissions through March 14, 2020. Winner receives $2,000 and publication in the Fall issue of literary magazine Colorado Review. $15 fee to submit by mail or $17 via Submittable. Learn more…
June 1 is the deadline to submit essays to literary magazine The Fiddlehead‘s 2020 Creative Nonfiction Contest. The reading fee entitles entrants to a one-year subscription. This also includes the 75th anniversary issue. Winner receives $2,000 CAD and publication in the Autumn 2020 issue. Learn more..
Online literary magazine Brilliant Flash Fiction is accepting entries to its Lost in the Library writing contest. Deadline to submit fiction on this theme is May 30. There is no fee to submit. Learn more…
Literary magazine Bellingham Review is open to fiction, nonfiction, and poetry for its annual awards. Deadline to enter work is March 15. $20-$30 fee; $1,000 first prize per genre. Learn more…
Pittsburg State University and its literary magazine Emerald City are accepting submissions to the Cow Creek Poetry Chapbook Prize. Deadline to submit is May 15. Winner receives $1,000, publication, and 25 author copies. This year’s judge is Marcus Wicker. Learn more…
Gival Press is hosting three contests in 2020: the Gival Press Novel Award, the Gival Press Oscar Wilde Award, and the Gival Press Short Story Award. The Novel Award deadlines is May 30. The prize is $3k and book publication in 2021. The Oscar Wilde Award for the best LGBTQ poem deadline is June 27. The prize is $500 and online publication. The Short Story Award deadline is August 8. The Prize is $1,000 and online publication. For complete details on each contest, visit: www.Givalpress.Submittable.com.
Deadline: October 15, 2020
EVENT: A home for writers. A destination for readers. Now in its 49th year of publication, EVENT is an award-winning, internationally recognized literary magazine that inspires and nurtures writers, showcasing the best contemporary fiction, poetry, nonfiction, notes on writing, and book reviews three times a year, with stunning cover art and illustration. We are now accepting submissions of 5,000 words or less to the annual EVENT Non-Fiction Contest. $3,000 in prizes, plus publication. Entries must be postmarked or submitted online by October 15, 2020. Visit www.eventmagazine.ca for exclusive online content, and to learn more about our unique Reading Service for Writers.
Deadline: April 15, 2020
Agha Shahid Ali Prize in Poetry: A poetry manuscript contest sponsored by The University of Utah Press and the University of Utah Department of English. $1000 cash prize plus publication for your poetry manuscript. Prize includes an additional $500 payment for travel and a reading in the University of Utah’s Guest Writers Series. See www.UofUpress.com/ali-poetry-prize for more details.
The NewPages Winter 2020 LitPak was mailed to colleges and universities with graduate and undergraduate writing programs and classes last week!
Featured in this LitPak are fliers from
You can view the majority of the fliers included in this LitPak on our website. Feel free to download, print, and share. If you are interested in getting the next LitPak delivered straight to your doorstep, you can purchase a subscription here: npofficespace.com/litpak/subscription/.
The Imagination and Climate Futures Initiative at Arizona State University is hosting its 2020 Everything Change Climate Fiction Contest. There is no fee. Deadline to submit stories is April 15 11:59 PM Mountain Standard Time. Learn more…
For our 22nd annual prizes in fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction, we offer the winner in each category a $1,000 prize and publication in the next year’s Fall or Spring issue. All writers and poets writing in English are eligible to enter, excepting friends, relatives, or current and former students of the current-year judges. All fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction prize submissions will also be considered for publication at regular payment rates. The submission period for our annual prizes is February 1 – March 31. The entry fee is $20. Submit now! artsandletters.gcsu.edu
The Center for Women Writers of Salem College is accepting entries of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry for its 2020 International Literary Awards. Deadline to enter is February 29 now March 15. $15 fee. Prize is $1,000/category. Learn more…
Book publisher Orison Books is accepting entries to its 2020 Orison Prizes in Poetry and Fiction. Deadline to enter is April 1. $30 fee. Prize includes $1,500 and book publication. Learn more…
StoryQuarterly is open to submissions for its 5th annual Nonfiction Prize through March 28, 2020. The winner receives $1,000 and publication in Issue 53. This year’s judge is T Kira Madden. Learn more…
Online literary magazine Fiction Southeast seeks flash stories for its annual Hemingway Flash Fiction Prize. Deadline to submit is March 31. $10 submission fee. Winner receives $200 prize plus publication. Learn more…
Storm Cellar is currently accepting submissions of writing and art for its Summer 2020 issue. Women, BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, poor, neurodivergent, border-straddling, and other under-represented voices especially encouraged to submit.
They accept submissions on a rolling basis with free submissions starting at the beginning of the month. They also offer expedited and tip jar submission options.
Besides looking for submissions for their summer issue, they are also accepting all things flash for their FORCE MAJEURE Flash Contest. Pieces should be under 1,000 words and can contain fiction, nonfiction, marks, images, or any combination thereof.
Deadline to enter is April 30. $5 fee for 1 piece of flash or $12 for 3. Winner receives publication and $300.
StoryQuarterly is accepting submissions to its 8th annual Fiction Contest through March 28, 2020. $15 fee. Winner will be published in Issue 53. This year’s judge is Garth Greenwell, author of What Belongs to You. Learn more…
Literary magazine Puerto del Sol is accepting submissions to its annual writing contests through April 1, 2020. This year’s judges are Rodney Gomez and Vi Khi Nao. Winners receive $500 and publication. $9 fee includes a one-year subscription. Learn more…
Killer Nashville is the premier forum for all literature incorporating mystery, thriller, suspense, or true crime. They are accepting submissions to their annual awards for both published and unpublished works. Winners will be announced at the 2020 writers’ conference on August 22. Learn more…
The Florida Loquat Festival is seeking a page of poetry and prose for its annual writing contests. Work must have loquats as the subject or central theme. There is no fee to submit. Deadline to enter is March 6, 2020. Winner receives $100 and publication. Learn more…
With writing being embraced or rejected based on first paragraphs, the First Pages Prize has been established to encourage emerging writers. Besides the annual prize, there is also an awards event in Paris, France and year-round inspiration available on their website.
The 2020 Prize is open through February 16 (extended deadline). If writers submit by the normal February 2 deadline, the entry fee is $25. After the 2, the fee goes up to $35.
The prize is open to un-agented writers who must submit the first five pages of a fiction or creative nonfiction manuscript. $2,250 in cash awards, partial developmental editing, plus travel and accommodation to be in Paris, France for presentation events June 9-10.
This year’s judge is the award-winning author Sebastian Faulks, whose latest work Paris Echo was released June 2019.
The Stockholm Writers Festival is an annual event that takes place each spring in Stockholm, Sweden. They host the Stockholm Writers Prize to give emerging writers the time, space, and inspiration to focus on social-justice themed writing.
This year’s prize is open through Saturday, February 15 11:59 PM Central European Time. The winner receives a seven-day residency in Stockholm, Sweden from May 21 to 27 and $1,000 to be used towards travel expenses. Also included is a 1-1 meeting with an agent and individual feedback from the guest judge.
Writers must submit a creative writing sample (up to 1500 words) and a 1000-word personal statement on how they foresee their writing creating change, why this social justice issue matters to them, and how they can benefit from the residency.
**Updated 2/12/20: Stockholm Writers Festival cancelled this year’s contest and fees have been refunded.**
Literary magazine The Iowa Review hosts the Jeff Sharlet Memorial Award for Veterans. This writing contest is open to U.S. military veterans and active duty personnel. Writing can be in any genre and on any subject.
This year’s contest opens on May 1 and will be judged by Reginald McKnight, author of He Sleeps. The deadline to enter is May 31. First place receives $1,000 and publication in a forthcoming issue of Iowa Review. Second place receives $750 and three runners-up receive $500 each. Check out their site for full guidelines.
You can see the winners of the 2018 contest here: iowareview.org/blog/winners-fourth-veterans’-writing-contest. The 2018 winners were featured in the Spring 2019 issue.
This contest is made possible by a gift from the family of Jeff Sharlet (1942-69), a Vietnam veteran and antiwar writer and activist.
Literary magazine Nimrod has announced a new deadline for their annual Literary Awards. Instead of submissions being accepted through April 30, contest entries are now being accepted January 1 through April 1.
The Katherine Anne Porter Prize for Fiction and the Pablo Neruda Prize for Poetry award $2,000 and publication to the first prize winners.
Nimrod accepts both snail mail and online entries. The $20 reading fee includes a one-year subscription. Check out their website for full submission information: artsandsciences.utulsa.edu/nimrod/nimrod-literary-awards/.
Don’t forget to update your calendars, writers!
Literary magazine Mudfish has announced it is now accepting submissions for its 15th Mudfish Poetry Prize. This year’s judge is Erica Jong, American novelist, satirist, and poet.
Mudfish is accepting both snail mail and email entries to the contest. You can submit up to 3 poems for $20. $3 fee for each additional poem.
Mail entries to Mudfish, 184 Franklin St, Ground Fl., New York, NY 10013 or email to [email protected]. Deadline to enter is March 15. On March 5, Mudfish announced they are extending the contest deadline to May 15, 2020.
Winners of last year’s contest, judged by John Yau, can be read in Issue 21 which is now available for pre-order.
The Southern Collective Experience, home of quarterly literary magazine The Blue Mountain Review, launched a “women only” poetry chapbook contest this past November.
The Women of Resilience Chapbook Contest’s goal is “to highlight not only the struggle, but a way to the light” as “time and again, women have shown tremendous resilience while overcoming hardship, be it personal, marital, financial, parental, medical, addiction, and personal self worth. In fact, the caverns women navigate to ‘find the light’ are often deep, and brutal.”
The deadline to enter the contest is March 31 with winners announced on April 15. First prize is $200 and chapbook publication. The winner will be interviewed in the Summer 2020 issue of The Blue Mountain Review. There is a $25 fee.
The judge of this year’s contest is Melissa Studdard, author of four books including I Ate the Cosmos for Breakfast and Six Weeks to Yehidah.
The featured fiction piece in the Fall 2019 issue of Colorado Review is the winner of this year’s Nelligan Prize for Short Fiction: Bryna Cofrin-Shaw’s “Loss and Damage.”
Joan Silber selected the winner, and says of her selection: “How many writers could turn a conference on climate change into a very smart tale of sexual intrigue? It has ideas (all too rare in fiction), irony so good it’s unexpected, and great characters.”
Pick up a copy of the latest issue of Colorado Review to take in this story and the rest of the quality work inside the issue, or check out the winning piece online.
