The Best Writing Contests of 2020
Writing competitions curated by Reedsy
Browse 45 contests that match your search 🔦
The Jacques Maritain Prize for Nonfiction
Dappled Things honors the best essays published in the journal in a year through the Jacques Maritain Prize for Nonfiction.
Deadline November 30, 2020
Learn moreTop prize
$500
Additional prizes
Genres
Non-fiction,
Entry fee
💰 Entry Fee: $0
8th Ó Bhéal Five Words International Poetry Competition
At around noon each Tuesday (GMT), from April 2020 to the end of January 2021, five words are posted on the Ó Bhéal Five Words competition page. Entrants have one week to compose and submit poems that include all five words given for the week. The competition runs for 41 weeks, until the last week of January and a prize of 750 euro is awarded to one winner.
Deadline January 26, 2021
Learn moreTop prize
$750
Additional prizes
Published in Five Words Vol XIV (poetry anthology)
Genres
Poetry,
Entry fee
💰 Entry Fee: $5
Go Green Prize Short Story Contest
Submit an original Horror and Fantasy Short Story, 2,000 - 10,000 words to us to be published and win cash prize.
Deadline October 31, 2020
Learn moreTop prize
$100
Additional prizes
Publication
Genres
Fiction, Fantasy, Horror, Short Story,
Entry fee
💰 Entry Fee: FREE
Benjamin Saltman Poetry Award
Established in 1998, in honor of the poet Benjamin Saltman (1927–1999), this award is for a previously unpublished original collection of poetry. Top prize is $3000 and 4-week residency at PLAYA arts and sciences program. The winner of the 2019 Benjamin Saltman Award will be announced in 2020.
Deadline October 31, 2020
Learn moreTop prize
$3,000
Additional prizes
Book publication by Red Hen Press
Genres
Poetry,
Entry fee
💰 Entry Fee: $25
IndieReader Discovery Awards 2021
Where talented authors meet publishing professionals with the power to make a difference in the success of their books. Every author who enters a title in the 2021 IR Discovery Awards will receive a verdict, written by an IndieReader reviewer and based on their assessment after reading the complete book.
Deadline February 15, 2021
Learn moreTop prize
First look consideration by a top, NYC-based literary agency
Additional prizes
Genres
Fiction, Non-fiction, Novel,
Entry fee
💰 Entry Fee: $149
Momaya Poetry Competition
Accepting poems on the theme of "Touch" up to 1500 words.
Deadline October 30, 2020
Learn moreTop prize
$100
Additional prizes
Published in the Momaya Short Story Review
Genres
Poetry,
Entry fee
💰 Entry Fee: $9
Walt Whitman Award
The Walt Whitman Award is granted to an unpublished poetry collection. The prizes include $5,000, publication by Graywolf Press, and a six-week residency at the Civitella Ranieri Center in Umbria, Italy. Submissions are accepted from September 1 through November 1 each year. The judge for the 2019 Walt Whitman Award is Li-Young Lee.
Deadline November 01, 2020
Learn moreTop prize
$5,000
Additional prizes
Publication by Graywolf Press
Genres
Poetry,
Entry fee
💰 Entry Fee: $35
Inkitt's Writing Contest
Inkitt’s writing contest runs quarterly and gives authors the chance to win an exclusive GALATEA publishing deal and the chance to showcase their book to the world. Monthly, alongside the quarterly publishing deal prize draw, cash prize contest winners are announced, determined on how many likes the author has received on their book. Monthly these winners will receive $150. Authors can also use Inkitt’s Writing app — found in the app store under ‘Inkitt Writing” — to draft up their novels!
Deadline December 31, 2020
Learn moreTop prize
Publishing contract with GALATEA
Additional prizes
$150
Genres
Fiction,
Entry fee
💰 Entry Fee: FREE
Nowhere Magazine Fall 2019 Travel Writing Contest
We are looking for young, old, novice and veteran writers to send us stories that possess a powerful sense of place. Stories can be fiction, nonfiction, poetry or essay.
Deadline November 20, 2020
Learn moreTop prize
$1,000
Additional prizes
Genres
Essay, Non-fiction, Poetry, Fiction,
Entry fee
💰 Entry Fee: $20
Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards
The Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards recognizes outstanding works that contribute to our understanding of racism and our appreciation of cultural diversity. Awards are given for fiction, poetry and nonfiction.
Deadline December 31, 2020
Learn moreTop prize
$10,000
Additional prizes
Genres
Fiction, Non-fiction, Poetry,
Entry fee
💰 Entry Fee: $0
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