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DIRECTORY

Best Writing Contests in 2025

Showing 425 contests that match your search.

Genres: Flash Fiction

The New Writers Poetry Competition offers a £1,200 top prize (with £1,800 total) and publication for the top six poems in its next New Writers Anthology. It is open globally to any English-language poet aged 18+. 10% of proceeds will be donated to charity. The head judge is prize-winning poet, Katrina Moinet.

Top Prize:

£1,200

Additional prizes:

2nd: £300 | 3rd: £150 | 4th to 6th: £50 each

💰 Entry fee: $14

📅 Deadline: July 17, 2025

First 5 Pages Prize

Stockholm Writers Festival

Genres: Crime, Fantasy, Fiction, Horror, Mystery, Novel, Novella, Science Fiction, Thriller, and Young Adult

The First 5 Pages Prize encourages writers to submit the first five pages of their unpublished work. The contest aims to inspire writers to polish their starting pages, crucial for capturing the attention of agents and editors. It welcomes entries from writers aged 16 and above, focusing on various genres. The prize promotes beautiful writing and offers support to aspiring authors.

Top Prize:

$1,000

Additional prizes:

2nd and 3rd Prize winners receive event tickets and meetings with agents

💰 Entry fee: $20

📅 Deadline: March 01, 2025 (Expired)

Solas Awards

Travelers' Tales, a division of Solas House, Inc.

Genres: Essay, Non-fiction, and Travel

The Solas Awards honor excellence in travel writing, with cash prizes and publication opportunities. Entries must be original, true stories with specific word count guidelines. The contest runs annually, with winners announced on March 1 each year.

Top Prize:

$1,000

Additional prizes:

Silver: $750 Bronze: $500 Certificates of merit for Gold, Silver, and Bronze winners in other categories; $100 honorarium for publication in books.

💰 Entry fee: $35

📅 Deadline: September 21, 2024 (Expired)

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Subnivean Awards

Soma Mei Sheng Frazier (Fiction) and Albert Abonado (Poetry)

Genres: Fiction and Poetry

The Subnivean Awards is an international literary competition that seeks outstanding fiction and poetry. The contest aims to highlight innovative works that break conventional molds.

Top Prize:

$150

Additional prizes:

Winner also receives a blurb by the appropriate final judge and publication in the May 2025 issue. Five finalists' works will be published and featured in a virtual event.

📅 Deadline: February 21, 2025 (Expired)

Genres: Fiction and Short Story

The Atom Learning Young Author Award encourages children aged 7-11 to express their creativity through writing. The contest invites submissions of up to 500 words based on a specific theme, fostering young authors' storytelling skills.

Top Prize:

$250

Additional prizes:

A trip to Disneyland Paris, a Chromebook, and a subscription to Atom Home. £50 book voucher or one month subscription to Atom Home for 10 runners-up.

💰 Entry fee: $0

📅 Deadline: June 17, 2024 (Expired)

Romance Through The Ages Contest — Published

Hearts Through History Romance Writers

Genres: Fiction and Romance

This contest focuses on historical romance, aiming to promote both published and unpublished authors. It accepts entries that are historical in nature and emphasizes the romance element central to the narrative. The contest has several categories based on historical time periods.

Top Prize:

$50

Additional prizes:

1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners in each category receive a social media badge. All winners will be announced in RWA’s digital Romance Writers Report.

💰 Entry fee: $25

📅 Deadline: May 31, 2025 (Expired)

Genres: Short Story and Fiction

The Hastings Book Festival Short Story Competition invites entries of original short stories. The competition is open to all writers aged 18 and over, with submissions accepted in English. The judging process is anonymous, and entries must follow specific formatting guidelines.

Top Prize:

£250

Additional prizes:

2nd: £100 | 3rd: £50 | Winners may also be eligible for additional prizes like the Sussex Prize and Founder's Prize.

💰 Entry fee: $10

📅 Deadline: June 30, 2025 (Expired)

Genres: Christian, Fantasy, Novel, Novella, Romance, Science Fiction, Short Story, and Young Adult

The Christy Award, established in 1999, celebrates novels that explore themes of faith and their influence on modern culture. Over the years, these awards have become a cornerstone event that brings together writers and publishers within the Christian literary community.

Top Prize:

The Christy Book of the Year Award.

💰 Entry fee: $175

📅 Deadline: March 31, 2025 (Expired)

Genres:

This prize recognizes 12 emerging writers annually for their debut short story published in a literary magazine, journal, or cultural website. It supports new fiction writers and provides a cash award and publication in an anthology.

Top Prize:

$2,000

Additional prizes:

Publication in the anthology 'Best Debut Short Stories: The PEN America Dau Prize'

💰 Entry fee: $0

📅 Deadline: November 01, 2024 (Expired)

Genres: Fiction and Short Story

The Short Story Competition is organized by Exeter Writers, aiming to encourage and showcase emerging writing talent. This competition invites entries from writers of various backgrounds.

Top Prize:

£700

💰 Entry fee: $9

📅 Deadline: February 28, 2025 (Expired)

Genres: Fantasy and Fiction

PocketVerse: The Fantasy Quest invites writers to create original English-language audio series in various fantasy subgenres. Entries must have a minimum of 100k words completed by the contest deadline to be eligible for prizes.

Top Prize:

$5,000

Additional prizes:

2nd: $2500 | 3rd: $1250 | 4th: $750 | 5th: $500 | All winners receive a certificate and social media promotion.

📅 Deadline: June 15, 2025 (Expired)

Travel Writing Award

Ottawa Tourism

Genres: Travel

The Travel Writing Award invites writers to explore and share their experiences in Ottawa and its surroundings. It emphasizes capturing the essence of travel through a narrative lens.

Top Prize:

$1000 CAD

Additional prizes:

Winning entries will also be featured in Ottawa Tourism publications

📅 Deadline: June 30, 2024 (Expired)

Genres: Fiction and Science Fiction

The Global Thriller Awards seek the best books featuring suspense and thrilling stories that can change the balance of world power. It includes the Lab Lit genre, focusing on stories based on real science.

Top Prize:

$1,000

Additional prizes:

Grand Prize winners receive exclusive Chanticleer Book Review Packages and author interviews, valued at $795, along with additional prizes.

💰 Entry fee: $99

📅 Deadline: July 31, 2025

Genres: Script Writing

The Scriptation Showcase offers a competitive platform for screenwriters, featuring their scripts to industry professionals. The competition includes two main categories: Screenplay and Short Script, with professional readers analyzing submissions.

Top Prize:

$1,000

Additional prizes:

1 Year Scriptation Showcase, 1 year industry pro access

💰 Entry fee: $64

📅 Deadline: July 20, 2025

Genres: Poetry

This contest celebrates independent and self-published poets, allowing them to showcase their poetry books and pamphlets.

Top Prize:

£400

Additional prizes:

2nd: £200 | 3rd: £100 | Publication

💰 Entry fee: $44

📅 Deadline: June 30, 2025 (Expired)

A Book Led Me There

Intrepid Times

Genres: Non-fiction and Travel

Intrepid Times' 10th writing competition invites readers and wanderers to explore the books that have guided our lives and impelled our adventures. Write a non-fiction travel story of up to 2,000 words that describes following in the footsteps of your literary heroes.

Top Prize:

$300

Additional prizes:

Publication in Intrepid Times. Up to four runners-up will be published at standard rates.

💰 Entry fee: $0

📅 Deadline: August 31, 2025

Genres: Poetry

The 42 Miles Press Poetry Award aims to highlight urgent and original voices in poetry. Open to all poets writing in English, it accepts collections of poetry that showcase contemporary American poetic voices. The contest is judged by David Dodd Lee, and past winners include several notable poets.

Top Prize:

$1,000

Additional prizes:

Publication of the winning book and 50 author copies, plus an invitation for a reading at Indiana University South Bend.

💰 Entry fee: $25

📅 Deadline: June 15, 2024 (Expired)

Gulf Coast Writers Association Writing Contest

Gulf Coast Writers Association

Genres: Flash Fiction, Non-fiction, and Poetry

The Gulf Coast Writers Association (GCWA) organizes an annual writing contest to celebrate and recognize talented writers across various genres. Participants can submit original works in Fiction, Non-Fiction, and Poetry. The contest promotes writers' creativity and provides valuable feedback from experienced judges.

Top Prize:

$200

Additional prizes:

Second place: $75 Third place: $50 For each category

💰 Entry fee: $20

📅 Deadline: June 30, 2025 (Expired)

Genres: Fiction, Flash Fiction, and Short Story

The contest encourages participants to submit one fictional story (max 350 words) for a chance to win a prize. The contest requires a minimum of 10 shortlisted submissions to award a prize, which is a $25 Amazon Gift Card.

Top Prize:

$25 USD Amazon Gift Card

Additional prizes:

Publication

📅 Deadline: August 01, 2024 (Expired)

Genres: Fiction, Humor, Non-fiction, and Short Story

The To Hull and Back Humorous Short Story Competition is a biennial contest focused on humorous writing. It celebrates imaginative short stories from writers globally. The current competition is open until June 30, 2025, with multiple cash prizes and publication opportunities in an anthology.

Top Prize:

£1,000

Additional prizes:

2nd Prize: £200 | 3rd Prize: £100

💰 Entry fee: $16

📅 Deadline: June 30, 2025 (Expired)

Poetry International Prize 2024

Poetry International

Genres: Poetry

The Poetry International Prize is an annual contest to award a cash prize of $1000 and publication for a single poem of any length. Submissions are accepted via Submittable and all entries are considered for publication.

Top Prize:

$1,000

Additional prizes:

Publication in Poetry International

💰 Entry fee: $15

📅 Deadline: April 30, 2024 (Expired)

Kate Tufts Discovery Award

Claremont Graduate University

Genres: Poetry

The Kate Tufts Discovery Award is presented to a first book of poetry by a poet of genuine promise. It is part of the Tufts Poetry Awards, which also includes the Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award. The award aims to support poets in their craft and provide recognition and visibility.

Top Prize:

$10,000

📅 Deadline: July 01, 2024 (Expired)

Genres: Short Story

The theme for this year's competition is 'risking all', commemorating the centenary of the 1924 British Mount Everest expedition. Participants can submit poetry or prose inspired by this theme.

Top Prize:

$200

Additional prizes:

Second Place: £100 Third Place: £50

💰 Entry fee: $5

📅 Deadline: August 31, 2024 (Expired)

BBC National Short Story Award

BBC Radio 4 and Cambridge University

Genres: Fiction and Short Story

The BBC National Short Story Award aims to celebrate and promote the short story form, providing a prestigious platform for both established and emerging writers. The award includes a significant monetary prize and recognition through BBC broadcasts.

Top Prize:

£15,000

Additional prizes:

4x shortlisted stories: £600

💰 Entry fee: $0

📅 Deadline: March 18, 2024 (Expired)

GWG Literary Prize 2025

Geneva Writers Group

Genres: Fiction, Non-fiction, and Poetry

The GWG Literary Prize 2025 invites writers to explore hope and resilience through candid writing. Categories include fiction, creative non-fiction, and poetry, all reflecting the theme of hope.

Top Prize:

$100

Additional prizes:

1st: 100CHF, 2nd: 50CHF, 3rd: 25CHF. Each winner and runner-up also receives 1 free workshop each.

💰 Entry fee: $20

📅 Deadline: March 03, 2025 (Expired)

Miller Williams Poetry Prize

University of Arkansas Press

Genres: Poetry

Every year, the University of Arkansas Press accepts submissions for the Miller Williams Poetry Series and from the books selected awards the $5,000 Miller Williams Poetry Prize in the following summer. For almost a quarter century the press has made this series the cornerstone of its work as a publisher of some of the country’s best new poetry. The series and prize are named for and operated to honor the cofounder and longtime director of the press, Miller Williams.

Top Prize:

$5,000

Additional prizes:

Publication through the University of Arkansas Press

💰 Entry fee: $28

📅 Deadline: September 30, 2024 (Expired)

Romance Through The Ages Contest — Un-Published

Hearts Through History Romance Writers

Genres: Fiction and Romance

This contest is aimed at unpublished authors focusing on historical romance narratives. It promotes creativity by allowing submissions that adhere to specific genre standards, such as historical accuracy and romantic plots.

Top Prize:

$50

Additional prizes:

1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners in each category receive a social media badge. All winners will be announced in RWA’s digital Romance Writers Report.

💰 Entry fee: $25

📅 Deadline: June 30, 2025 (Expired)

Genres: LGBTQ and Non-fiction

The Jeanne Córdova Prize honors lesbian/queer-identified women and trans/gender non-conforming nonfiction authors. It seeks to recognize writers who capture the depth and complexity of lesbian/queer life, culture, and history.

Top Prize:

$2,500

📅 Deadline: February 16, 2024 (Expired)

High School Academic Research Competition

Crimson Consulting Limited

Genres: Essay and Non-fiction

The High School Academic Research Competition (SARC) is an online contest for high school students aged 13-18 to conduct research on any topic. Participants develop their research proposals and skills through exclusive bootcamps and compete by submitting proposals and video pitches.

Top Prize:

$1,000

Additional prizes:

1st place: $1000 and free Indigo Research Intensive Program 2nd place: $750 3rd place: $500

💰 Entry fee: $20

📅 Deadline: April 30, 2025 (Expired)

Wonder Fiction Battle

Writing Battle, Inc.

Genres: Fiction, Short Story, Fantasy, and Flash Fiction

The Wonder 2025 Flash fiction Battle is part of the Writing Battle series, where participants write stories based on prompts. Participants receive feedback from professionals.

Top Prize:

$3,400

Additional prizes:

$3400 prize for 4x Genre Winners; $500 prize for 4x Genre Runner-ups. Winners receive online publication, feedback from industry professionals

💰 Entry fee: $39

📅 Deadline: April 13, 2025 (Expired)

Genres: Fiction

The Salamander Fiction Prize offers writers the opportunity to submit their works for consideration. The contest includes a first prize of $1,000 and publication, and a second prize of $500 and publication. Entries will be judged anonymously, and all submissions are also considered for publication in the magazine.

Top Prize:

$1,000

Additional prizes:

2nd: $500 | Publication

💰 Entry fee: $20

📅 Deadline: June 01, 2025 (Expired)

Genres: Fiction, Non-fiction, Poetry, and Short Story

Enter our 91st Annual Writing Competition for the chance to have your work be seen by editors and agents! Almost 500 winners will be chosen. The top winning entries of this writing contest will also be on display in the Annual Writer’s Digest Competition Collection. [$20 for a poetry entry, $30 for a manuscript entry]

Top Prize:

$5,000

Additional prizes:

Grand prize winner receives $5000. In each category: 1st, $1000; 2nd, $500; 3rd, $250; 4th, $100; 5th, $50; 6th through 10th, $25 gift certificate. 1st place winners receive a one year subscription to Writer's Digest magazine + tutorials.

💰 Entry fee: $30

📅 Deadline: May 05, 2025 (Expired)

The Montreal International Poetry Prize

Department of English at McGill University

Genres: Poetry

Founded in 2010, the Montreal International Poetry Prize is a global competition awarding $20,000 CAD to a poet for a single poem of 40 or fewer lines. The prize emphasizes original poetry, international readership, and exploration of diverse Englishes. The contest is juried by esteemed poets and critics, and the shortlisted works are published in an anthology.

Top Prize:

$20,000

Additional prizes:

Publication in the Montreal Poetry Prize Anthology

💰 Entry fee: $20

📅 Deadline: May 15, 2024 (Expired)

Genres: Fiction

The contest awards a $1,500 prize for the best short story, publication in The Tusculum Review’s 21st volume (2025), and a limited edition chapbook with original art. Stories must be 2,000-7,000 words and unpublished.

Top Prize:

$1,500

Additional prizes:

Creation of a limited edition stand-alone chapbook with original art and consideration for Publication in The Tusculum Review.

💰 Entry fee: $20

📅 Deadline: June 15, 2025 (Expired)

$1000 for 1000 Words Contest

The Layla Beban Young Authors

Genres: Children's and Short Story

The contest invites students in grades 6-12 to submit a piece of short fiction exactly 1000 words long. There are no specific themes, but entries should be original and not previously published. The contest aims to encourage young authors to tell significant stories.

Top Prize:

$1,000

Additional prizes:

Seven $100 cash prizes for runners-up

📅 Deadline: February 01, 2025 (Expired)

Discover the finest writing contests of 2025 for fiction and non-fiction authors — including short story competitions, essay writing competitions, poetry contests, and many more. Updated weekly, these contests are vetted by Reedsy to weed out the scammers and time-wasters. If you’re looking to stick to free writing contests, simply use our filters as you browse.

Why you should submit to writing contests

Submitting to poetry competitions and free writing contests in 2025 is absolutely worth your while as an aspiring author: just as your qualifications matter when you apply for a new job, a writing portfolio that boasts published works and award-winning pieces is a great way to give your writing career a boost. And not to mention the bonus of cash prizes!

That being said, we understand that taking part in writing contests can be tough for emerging writers. First, there’s the same affliction all writers face: lack of time or inspiration. Entering writing contests is a time commitment, and many people decide to forego this endeavor in order to work on their larger projects instead — like a full-length book. Second, for many writers, the chance of rejection is enough to steer them clear of writing contests. 

But we’re here to tell you that two of the great benefits of entering writing contests happen to be the same as those two reasons to avoid them.

When it comes to the time commitment: yes, you will need to expend time and effort in order to submit a quality piece of writing to competitions. That being said, having a hard deadline to meet is a great motivator for developing a solid writing routine.

Think of entering contests as a training session to become a writer who will need to meet deadlines in order to have a successful career. If there’s a contest you have your eye on, and the deadline is in one month, sit down and realistically plan how many words you’ll need to write per day in order to meet that due date — and don’t forget to also factor in the time you’ll need to edit your story!

For tips on setting up a realistic writing plan, check out this free, ten-day course: How to Build a Rock-Solid Writing Routine.

In regards to the fear of rejection, the truth is that any writer aspiring to become a published author needs to develop relatively thick skin. If one of your goals is to have a book traditionally published, you will absolutely need to learn how to deal with rejection, as traditional book deals are notoriously hard to score. If you’re an indie author, you will need to adopt the hardy determination required to slowly build up a readership.

The good news is that there’s a fairly simple trick for learning to deal with rejection: use it as a chance to explore how you might be able to improve your writing.

In an ideal world, each rejection from a publisher or contest would come with a detailed letter, offering construction feedback and pointing out specific tips for improvement. And while this is sometimes the case, it’s the exception and not the rule.

Still, you can use the writing contests you don’t win as a chance to provide yourself with this feedback. Take a look at the winning and shortlisted stories and highlight their strong suits: do they have fully realized characters, a knack for showing instead of telling, a well-developed but subtly conveyed theme, a particularly satisfying denouement?

The idea isn’t to replicate what makes those stories tick in your own writing. But most examples of excellent writing share a number of basic craft principles. Try and see if there are ways for you to translate those stories’ strong points into your own unique writing.

Finally, there are the more obvious benefits of entering writing contests: prize and publication. Not to mention the potential to build up your readership, connect with editors, and gain exposure.

Resources to help you win writing competitions in 2025

Every writing contest has its own set of submission rules. Whether those rules are dense or sparing, ensure that you follow them to a T. Disregarding the guidelines will not sway the judges’ opinion in your favor — and might disqualify you from the contest altogether. 

Aside from ensuring you follow the rules, here are a few resources that will help you perfect your submissions.

Free online courses

On Writing:

  • "How to Craft a Killer Short Story" (Click here)
  • "The Non-Sexy Business of Writing Non-Fiction" (Click here)
  • "How to Write a Novel" (Click here)
  • "Understanding Point of View" (Click here)
  • "Developing Characters That Your Readers Will Love" (Click here)
  • "Writing Dialogue That Develops Plot and Character" (Click here)
  • "Stop Procrastinating! Build a Solid Writing Routine" (Click here)

On Editing:

  • "Story Editing for Authors" (Click here)
  • "How to Self-Edit Your Manuscript Like a Pro" (Click here)
  • "Novel Revision: Practical Tips for Rewrites" (Click here)

Blog posts

  • "How to Write a Novel: Steps From a Bestselling Writer" (Click here)
  • "How to Write a Short Story in 9 Simple Steps" (Click here)
  • "100 Literary Devices With Examples: The Ultimate List" (Click here)
  • "20 Writing Tips to Improve Your Craft" (Click here)
  • "How to Write Fabulous Dialogue [9 Tips + Examples]" (Click here)
  • "8 Character Development Exercises to Write 3D Characters" (Click here)

Bonus resources

After you submit to a writing competition in 2025

It’s exciting to send a piece of writing off to a contest. However, once the initial excitement wears off, you may be left waiting for a while. Some writing contests will contact all entrants after the judging period — whether or not they’ve won. Other writing competitions will only contact the winners. 

Here are a few things to keep in mind after you submit:

  • Many writing competitions don’t have time to respond to each entrant with feedback on their story. However, it never hurts to ask! Feel free to politely reach out requesting feedback — but wait until after the selection period is over.

  • If you’ve submitted the same work to more than one writing competition or literary magazine, remember to withdraw your submission if it ends up winning elsewhere.

  • After you send a submission, don’t follow it up with a rewritten or revised version. Instead, ensure that your first version is thoroughly proofread and edited. If not, wait until the next edition of the contest or submit the revised version to other writing contests.

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