Best Writing Contests in 2025

Genres: Children's, Crime, Fantasy, Romance, Science Fiction, Suspense, Thriller, and Young Adult

The I Am Writing Competition offers multiple categories for writers to showcase their talent, with prizes for various genres including crime, historical, and romance. Each category allows entrants to submit the first 3,500 words of their work along with a synopsis where required.

Genres: Fiction, LGBTQ, and Novel

This prize honors LGBTQ-identified authors who have published multiple novels, built a strong reputation, and show promise for future work. It is dedicated to Jim Duggins and supported by the James Duggins, PhD Fund.

Genres: Fiction, Flash Fiction, Poetry, Script Writing, and Short Story

The Places Writing Competition invites stories and poems about places that inspire or challenge writers. It includes various categories like poetry, short stories, and flash fiction, and aims to highlight the significance of places in literature.

Genres: Crime, Fantasy, Fiction, Flash Fiction, Horror, Humor, LGBTQ, Mystery, Romance, Science Fiction, Short Story, and Travel

The Fiction Factory Short Story Competition invites writers to submit stories of up to 3,000 words. The competition is open to all genres excluding Children's and Young Adult Fiction. Winning stories will be published on the website and potentially in an anthology.

Genres: Non-fiction

AWP sponsors the Award Series, an annual competition for the publication of excellent new book-length works. The competition is open to all authors writing in English regardless of nationality or residence, and is available to published and unpublished authors alike.

Genres: Poetry

The Fish Poetry Prize is an open competition judged by Billy Collins, offering significant monetary prizes and publication opportunities in the Fish Anthology 2025. It has been established since 2006, focusing on poems of any theme, restricted to 60 lines.

Genres: Flash Fiction, Fiction, and Poetry

A creative writing contest inviting participants worldwide to submit entries in response to prompts. The competition consists of three rounds, each with its own theme and deadline.

Genres: Poetry

The Free Verse Prize is a new poetry prize, which supports the Free Verse Poetry Book and Magazine Fair. The judge is poet and former Poetry Book Fair director, Chrissy Williams. Poems can be on any theme, and should have fewer than 40 lines.

Genres: Fiction, Short Story, Crime, Mystery, Science Fiction, and Thriller

This contest invites submissions of short stories exploring the theme of 'Freedom' within the genres of crime, speculative, and fantasy fiction. Winning entries will be published in a special issue combining Tangled Web Magazine and Mirk Fantasy Magazine.

Genres: Crime, Essay, Fantasy, Fiction, Humor, Memoir, Mystery, Non-fiction, Novel, Poetry, Science Fiction, Script Writing, Short Story, and Thriller

The Silver Falchion Award honors the best books published in 2024 across various genres, including mystery, thriller, suspense, and romance. The competition aims to recognize quality storytelling and is open to all published authors.

Genres: Short Story

The Lorian Hemingway Short Story Competition is dedicated to supporting new voices in short fiction. It has a history of over 43 years and emphasizes original, unpublished stories. Winners are highlighted on the competition's website.

Genres: Poetry

An annual prize for unpublished poems written by adults for children aged 7–11. The prize aims to celebrate poetry that appeals to younger audiences.

Genres: Fiction, Non-fiction, Poetry, and Flash Fiction

The competition features an open theme and includes four categories: Fiction, Flash Fiction, Creative Non-Fiction, and Poetry. Each category has a defined maximum word count. Winners will be acknowledged at the festival and have the opportunity to read their entries.

Genres: Children's

The contest is for Grades 3-5 and will be open for submissions from January 6 to February 2, 2025. An awards ceremony will be held on April 19, 2025.

Genres: Flash Fiction

An international flash fiction competition for stories up to 200 words with a twist. The competition is open to anyone 18+ and accepts any theme, with a focus on quality writing.

Genres: Fiction, Flash Fiction, and Short Story

The Alpine Fellowship Writing Prize aims to discover and support new writing talent on an annual basis. The prize includes financial support for the best pieces of writing submitted on an announced theme. The contest is open to all writers aged 18 and above, regardless of nationality.

Genres: LGBTQ

The J. Michael Samuel Prize honors emerging LGBTQ writers over 50. It recognizes unpublished LGBTQ authors working in any genre and aims to encourage those who start writing later in life.

Genres: Poetry

The Agnes Lynch Starrett Poetry Prize, established in 1981, is awarded for a first full-length book of poems. The prize includes a cash award and publication as part of the Pitt Poetry Series.

Genres: Crime, Fantasy, Romance, Short Story, and Suspense

The contest invites new writers to submit stories based on the theme of 'Crossroads and Consequence'. Writers must explore the implications of choices made at critical junctions in life. Submissions are welcomed from all genres, including fantasy, romance, and crime.

Genres: Flash Fiction

The Farnham Flash Fiction International Competition invites writers to submit stories of 500 words or less. The competition has been running since 2018 and includes a special prize for stories featuring Farnham. It offers cash prizes and publication in an anthology.

Genres: Poetry

The Ambroggio Prize is a $1,000 publication prize for a poetry manuscript originally in Spanish with an English translation. It honors American poets whose first language is Spanish and is awarded annually since 2017.

Genres: Essay and Non-fiction

The Young Sports Journalist competition invites entries from students aged 14-21. Participants must submit a piece between 700-800 words responding to a prompt. Winners receive recognition in Pitch Magazine and a chance for work experience.

Genres: Poetry

The Donald Hall Prize for Poetry awards $5,500 and publication by the University of Pittsburgh Press. The prize honors the best unpublished collection of poems and is judged by a prominent poet.

Genres: Memoir

The Anthology Personal Memoir Competition invites entries for personal memoirs, encouraging emerging writers to share their stories. The winner will be published in Anthology magazine.

Genres: Mystery and Novel

The competition is open to writers aged 18 or older who have not published a mystery novel. It aims to discover new talents in traditional mystery writing. All submissions must be original works of at least 60,000 words that follow the guidelines. The winner will be announced after April 2025.

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

The 26th Annual Writing Contest is currently closed. The next contest will open on January 1, 2025. Categories and further details will be announced later.

Genres: Poetry

The TCK Publishing Poetry Awards Contest is an international poetry contest established in 2021. The contest invites writers from all backgrounds to submit poems. The winner receives a $1,000 honorarium and publication on the TCK Publishing website.

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.

Genres: Essay and Non-fiction

The contest recognizes outstanding works of nonfiction, awarding $1,333 for creative nonfiction entries, such as personal essays. Submissions must be stand-alone essays, not previously published, and limited to 5,000 words.