Best 60 Memoir Writing Contests in 2023

Genre

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Showing 60 contests

Aurora Polaris Creative Nonfiction Award

Trio House Press

We seek un-agented full-length creative nonfiction manuscripts including memoir, essay collections, etc. 50,000 - 80,000 words.

Top prize

$1,000

Additional prizes

Publication

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $25

Deadline: August 31, 2023 (Expired)

Genres

Essay, Memoir, Non-fiction

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Flash Memoir

Writer Advice

WriterAdvice seeks flash memoir, a personal life story running 750 words or less.

Top prize

$150

Additional prizes

Publication in our e-zine

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $5

Deadline: March 02, 2023 (Expired)

Genres

Memoir

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Writing MAGIC

Sadie Tells Stories

Write a short story, under 500 words that is all about magic. It can be for any age group. It can be fiction or non-fiction. Get creative. Have fun. And share your magic with the world!

Top prize

$500

Additional prizes

$150 USD for second prize

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $10

Deadline: April 01, 2023 (Expired)

Genres

Fantasy, Fiction, Short Story, Flash Fiction, Memoir, Non-fiction, Romance, Science Fiction, Young Adult

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The 2023 Bloom Writing Contest

The European Society of Literature

The 2023 Bloom Writing Contest is a writing competition that seeks to find hidden talent in the literary scene. The contest will place heavy emphasis on works of deep meaning, aesthetic beauty and literary quality—just as Harold Bloom did. The 2023 Bloom Writing Contest accepts submissions of all types, whether it be an essay, a poem, a short story.

Top prize

$500

Additional prizes

Publication

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $3

Deadline: May 01, 2023 (Expired)

Genres

Essay, Fiction, Memoir, Novel, Poetry

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Brink Literary Journal Award for Hybrid Writing

Brink

The Brink Literary Journal Award for Hybrid Writing will be administered to the winner of a literary contest designed to champion innovative hybrid and cross-genre work.

Top prize

$1,000

Additional prizes

Publication

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $22

Deadline: February 15, 2023 (Expired)

Genres

Essay, Fantasy, Fiction, Humor, Memoir, Non-fiction, Poetry, Science Writing, Short Story

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Medical Student Essay Contest

Hektoen International Journal of the Medical Humanities

Students currently enrolled in a medical school or program are encouraged to submit to our Medical Student Essay Contest. Essays can be on any topic as it relates to medicine. Art, history, and literature topics are preferred.

Top prize

$3,500

Additional prizes

Runner-ups: $2,500

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: FREE

Deadline: March 15, 2023 (Expired)

Genres

Essay, Memoir

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The Nervous Ghost Press Book Prize

Nervous Ghost Press

The 2021 Nervous Ghost Press Book Prizes are open to outstanding works of poetry and prose by anyone living in the United States of America. All work and all writers, from any point in their careers, are welcome to submit their work and get a chance of publication. Please submit a completed a manuscript (50,000-100,000 words for prose, 48-128 pages for poetry).

Top prize

$1,000

Additional prizes

Publication and a Californian reading tour

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: FREE

Deadline: March 31, 2023 (Expired)

Genres

Essay, Fiction, Memoir, Non-fiction, Novel, Poetry, Humor, Young Adult

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Climate Change Writing Competition

Write the World

This month, dear writers, ahead of COP27, help us raise the voices of young people in this urgent fight. In a piece of personal narrative, tell the world’s leaders gathering in how climate change impacts you. How has this crisis changed your environment, your community, your sense of the future? Storytelling, after all, plays a critical role in helping us grasp the emergency through which we are all living, igniting empathy in readers and listeners—itself a precursor to action.

Top prize

$100

Additional prizes

Runner-up: $50

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: FREE

Deadline: October 18, 2022 (Expired)

Genres

Essay, Memoir, Non-fiction

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Leiby Chapbook Contest

The Florida Review

A prize of $1,000 and publication by Florida Review is given annually for a chapbook of short fiction, short nonfiction, or graphic narrative. Submit a manuscript of up to 45 pages with a $25 entry fee by December 31. All entries are considered for publication. All entrants receive a 1-year subscription. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Top prize

$1,000

Additional prizes

Publication

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $25

Deadline: December 31, 2022 (Expired)

Genres

Essay, Fiction, Flash Fiction, Humor, Memoir, Non-fiction, Novella, Short Story

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Annual Contest Submissions

So to Speak Journal

So to Speak seeks work by writers who want to challenge and change the identity of the “canonical” writer. Our mission is to amplify voices of BIPOC, people with disabilities, LGBTQ+ people, women, neurodivergent people, people of different religions or none, migrants, refugees & immigrants (regardless of citizenship), and incarcerated writers. Free submissions for Black and Indigenous Writers.

Top prize

$500

Additional prizes

Publication for winner and runner-up

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $9

Deadline: November 14, 2022 (Expired)

Genres

Essay, Fiction, Flash Fiction, Memoir, Non-fiction, Poetry, Short Story

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Fish Short Memoir Prize

Fish Publishing

Everyone has a memoir in them. Go for it! Write a piece of your life, send it to Fish. Qian Julie Wang, author of her memoir Beautiful Country, will select 10 short memoirs to be published in the Fish Anthology 2022, which will be launched during the West Cork Literary Festival.

Top prize

€1,000

Additional prizes

2nd: Writing Course (online) + €300 | 3rd: €300

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $18

Deadline: January 31, 2023 (Expired)

Genres

Memoir, Non-fiction, Short Story

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Writing Contest 2023

BooksShelf

We look for an original and captivating work of fiction or nonfiction. The genre is not important - the story is. We're looking forward to reading your amazing books!

Top prize

$200 USD Fiction | $100 USD Nonfiction

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $25

Deadline: January 31, 2023 (Expired)

Genres

Crime, Fantasy, Fiction, Flash Fiction, Horror, Humor, Memoir, Mystery, Non-fiction, Novel, Novella, Poetry, Romance, Science Fiction, Science Writing, Thriller, Young Adult

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Editor's Prize - Work Anthology

Unleash Press

Writers are invited to submit creative interpretations on Work for an upcoming anthology and the chance of winning the editors' prize. Essays, fiction, drama, and poetry interpretations of the theme will be accepted. Submissions should have a total word count of no more than 5,000 words. All authors chosen for the anthology will receive a paperback copy of the book. Only one editor’s prize will be selected.

Top prize

150

Additional prizes

Publication in anthology

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $10

Deadline: December 30, 2022 (Expired)

Genres

Crime, Essay, Fantasy, Fiction, Flash Fiction, Horror, Humor, Memoir, Mystery, Poetry, Science Fiction, Science Writing, Short Story, Thriller

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MacQ-15 Ekphrastic Writing Challenge: "The Question of Questions"

MacQueen's Quinterly

For our tenth themed writing challenge, MacQueen’s Quinterly is calling for literary works in multiple genres: flash and micro-fiction, nonfiction, poetry, prose poetry, and poetic hybrids. Each piece entered must include one “q” word and must address the theme described in our contest guidelines and publisher's commentary.

Top prize

$200

Additional prizes

Publication in Issue 15 of MacQueen's Quinterly online

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $4

Deadline: August 21, 2022 (Expired)

Genres

Essay, Flash Fiction, Memoir, Non-fiction, Poetry, Science Writing

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The Fountain Essay Contest

Fountain Magazine

We want to hear your COVID-19 story. What has the virus taught you about life? If you were not infected, what has your experience been like as an “outsider?” We encourage our contestants to explore this issue in a way that is most meaningful to them, and to do so while making sure to avoid speculative narratives and political polarization.

Top prize

$1,000

Additional prizes

$500, $300, $150

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $0

Deadline: April 01, 2022 (Expired)

Genres

Essay, Memoir, Non-fiction

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Six Word Wonder Contest

Six Word Wonder

To win, write a six word story, poem, memoir, or joke. Free to enter, with the chance to get your tiny creation published, and you crowned as the Six Word Wonder - winning $100. Last year's contest had over 3,300 entries, with over 100 short-listed. Every writer gets six free entries to play with.

Top prize

$100

Additional prizes

Publication in next book in the Six Word Wonder series

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $0

Deadline: November 30, 2022 (Expired)

Genres

Fiction, Flash Fiction, Memoir, Short Story

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Red Hen Press Women's Prose Prize

Red Hen Press

Established in 2018, the Women’s Prose Prize is for previously unpublished, original work of prose. Novels, short story collections, memoirs, essay collections, and all other forms of prose writing are eligible for consideration. The awarded manuscript is selected through a biennial competition, held in even-numbered years, that is open to all writers who identify as women.

Top prize

$1,000

Additional prizes

Publication by Red Hen Press

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $25

Deadline: February 28, 2022 (Expired)

Genres

Fiction, Non-fiction, Short Story, Essay, Memoir, Novel

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Share Your Story

FanStory.com Inc.

Write about an event in your life. Everyone has a memoir. Not an autobiography. Too much concern about fact and convention. A memoir gives us the ability to write about our life with the option to create and fabricate and to make sense of a life, or part of that life.

Top prize

$100

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $10

Deadline: September 15, 2022 (Expired)

Genres

Essay, Memoir

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The 2022 First Chapter Book Contest

TheNextBigWriter, LLC

Have a book or a novel idea you've been noodling? Enter your first chapter into the Booksie First Chapter Contest and see how it does. You don't need to have finished the book. You don't even need more than the first chapter. We're looking for a start that will grab our attention, that is original, that is well written, and that makes us want to beg you to see what comes next. And for those we find, we'll provide some awards to inspire you to finish writing the book or, if finished, to help get it published.

Top prize

$500

Additional prizes

Gold contest badge.

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $5

Deadline: May 14, 2022 (Expired)

Genres

Crime, Fantasy, Fiction, Horror, Humor, Memoir, Mystery, Novel, Science Fiction, Thriller, Young Adult

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2022 Short Memoir Competition

Globe Soup

We’re looking for the best Short Memoir of no more than 3,000 words. A short memoir is a piece of creative nonfiction in which the writer explores a single episode of their life or a small selection of vignettes, connected by a common theme. The theme for this year’s competition is 'Places that have made me, changed me, or inspired me'. All participants can get extensive feedback on their entry and take part in our free Monthly Micro Writing Contests.

Top prize

$1,000

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $16

Deadline: May 17, 2022 (Expired)

Genres

Essay, Memoir, Non-fiction

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The Rubery Prize

Rubery Book Awards

The Rubery Prize is a prestigious international book award seeking the best books by indie writers, self published authors and books published by independent presses, judged by reputable judges. Through our reputation of finding quality and outstanding books we aim to bring recognition to the works that win and heighten an author's profile.

Top prize

£2000

Additional prizes

£200, a write-up

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $60

Deadline: March 31, 2022 (Expired)

Genres

Crime, Fantasy, Fiction, Horror, Humor, Memoir, Mystery, Non-fiction, Novel, Novella, Science Fiction, Thriller, Young Adult, Romance

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Vocal Challenges

Creatd

Enter themed storytelling contests to put your creativity to the test and be in with a chance of winning cash prizes and more. To submit, you'll need to sign up for a monthly fee of $9.99, or $4.99/month for 3 months.

Top prize

$1,000 — $5,000

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $15

Deadline: December 31, 2021 (Expired)

Genres

Essay, Fiction, Memoir, Non-fiction, Short Story

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Nowhere Emerging Travel Writers' Prize

Nowhere Magazine

We are looking for never-been-published travel writers from anywhere in the world to send us stories—fiction, nonfiction, essay or poetry—that possess a powerful sense of place, people and time.

Top prize

$500

Additional prizes

Publication in Nowhere Magazine

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $15

Deadline: March 31, 2021 (Expired)

Genres

Essay, Fiction, Flash Fiction, Memoir, Non-fiction, Poetry, Short Story

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Juniper Prizes

University of Massachusetts Press

The Juniper Prizes for Poetry, Fiction, and Creative Nonfiction are awarded annually to original manuscripts: two books of poetry, one work of creative nonfiction, one short story collection, and one novel. The University of Massachusetts Press publishes the winning manuscripts and the authors receive a $1,000 award upon publication. Submissions are accepted between August 1 and September 30.

Top prize

$1,000

Additional prizes

Publication by University of Massachusetts Press

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $30

Deadline: September 30, 2021 (Expired)

Genres

Essay, Fiction, Memoir, Non-fiction, Novel, Poetry, Short Story

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The Lascaux Prize in Creative Nonfiction

The Lascaux Review

The Lascaux Prize in Creative Nonfiction opens 1 April. Creative nonfiction may include memoirs, chronicles, personal essays, humorous perspectives, literary journalism—anything the author has witnessed, experienced, learned, or discovered. Pieces may be previously published or unpublished, and simultaneous submissions are accepted. Winner receives $1,000 and a bronze medallion. Finalists receive $100. Winner and finalists are published in both the online and annual print editions of The Lascaux Review.

Top prize

$1,000

Additional prizes

Publication in the Lascaux Review

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $15

Deadline: September 30, 2021 (Expired)

Genres

Essay, Memoir, Non-fiction

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