Best Writing Contests in 2024

Genres: Poetry

The Letter Review Prize for Poetry is awarded every three months, open to poems of up to 70 lines. The competition is blind-judged and all entries are considered for publication and further anthologies.

Genres: Poetry

The Michael Waters Poetry Prize awards a $6,000 prize and publication by SIR Press for a collection of poetry written in English. Entries are considered annually, with the next deadline on February 3, 2025, and judged by Monica Youn. The contest aims to honor Michael Waters’ contributions to American arts and letters.

Genres: Fiction and Short Story

The Moment Magazine-Karma Foundation Short Fiction Contest invites unpublished stories that focus on themes relating to Judaism or Jewish culture. Established in 2000, it has featured renowned judges and offers cash prizes for outstanding works.

Genres: Poetry

Write a poem that has a syllable count of either 5-7-5 or 5-7-7. It does not rhyme. But the poem must address a loved one.

Genres: Children's

Founded by Black women with a vision for change, the mission of the National Youth Foundation is to promote diversity, inclusion and gender equality through innovative literary programs. To honor the vast accomplishments of women in the United States, the National Youth Foundation is pleased to announce the Amazing Women’s Edition (AWE) competition. This writing contest is open to students in grades K to 8 residing in the United States.

Genres: Fiction and Short Story

The ABR Elizabeth Jolley Short Story Prize is an annual competition for short stories. Further details on submission and eligibility are outlined on the main prize page.

Genres: Non-fiction

The Anthology Nature Writing Competition is part of the Anthology Creative Awards, which encourages and promotes emerging writers. The winner will have their entry published in Anthology magazine.

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.

Genres: Essay and Non-fiction

The contest encourages students to reflect on strength and resilience in overcoming challenges. Since 2001, it has engaged over 15,000 students from more than 20 countries, with 900 participants this year. Winners were selected based on their unique voice and thoughtful analysis.

Genres: Poetry

The Loraine Williams Poetry Prize is an award for a single poem, to be published in The Georgia Review. The winner will receive an honorarium of $1,500 and an expenses-paid trip to Athens, Georgia, to give a public reading with the judge. We are pleased to announce that Hanif Abdurraqib will serve as the final judge for the 2023 Loraine Williams Poetry Prize.

Genres: Fiction, Flash Fiction, Short Story, Crime, Fantasy, Horror, Humor, Mystery, Romance, Science Fiction, Thriller, and Young Adult

Register now for our next 7-day story writing challenge. A secret theme, a randomly assigned genre, and just 7 days to write a story of no more than 2,000 words. Our 7-day story writing challenges take place throughout the year. The challenges are free and you can even get feedback on your story. Take part in one challenge or take part in all of them!

Genres: Poetry and LGBTQ

The Hastings Book Festival Poetry contest invites poets to submit their original works. The competition is judged anonymously, with a focus on innovative and courageous writing. Winners will be announced during the festival in September 2024.

Genres: Poetry

Established in 1998, this award honors poet Benjamin Saltman and is for previously unpublished original poetry collections. The competition is open to all poets.

Genres: Fiction and Poetry

Poetry manuscripts should not exceed 10 pages, single or double-spaced (minimum of seven pages). Fiction manuscripts should not exceed 25 pages and must be double-spaced. Fiction manuscripts may include stories and/or excerpts from novels.

Genres: Fiction and Poetry

The Inception contest invites submissions of openings across all genres. Participants can submit prose (up to 250 words), poetry (up to 25 words), or visual art as the first piece in a series. The contest emphasizes the importance of beginnings in creative works.

Genres: Crime, Fantasy, Fiction, Horror, Humor, Mystery, Romance, Science Fiction, Short Story, Thriller, Young Adult, Flash Fiction, and Science Writing

One of the largest awards open to unpublished writers and closed to professionals. We are the first magazine to pay pro rates and only accept submissions from new writers, putting over $150k into the hands of emerging talent around the globe so far. One new writer receives the grand prize. We also choose the best stories, pay the authors professional rates, and publish them in our magazine. June's theme is Secret Societies.

Genres: Fiction, Humor, and Short Story

The Folly Short Story Prize encourages entertaining, comedic, and well-crafted stories, aiming to engage readers with original works. The winner receives a cash prize and publication in Folly Journal.

Genres: Fiction, Short Story, and Flash Fiction

The F(r)iction Short Story Contest is open for submissions. It celebrates unique and boundary-pushing literature. The winning story will be published in F(r)iction's print collection or online blog, and the contest encourages experimental writing.

Genres: Children's and Essay

The World Historian Student Essay Competition is an international competition open to students enrolled in grades K–12 in public, private, and parochial schools, and those in home-study programs. Membership in the World History Association is not a requirement for submission. Past winners may not compete in the same category again.

Genres: Travel

Have you been marked by travel? If so, tell us how. Engaging with the genre of creative nonfiction, seize upon memorable incidents from your travel history — study abroad, domestic travels, even your discovery of Northfield. Entertain us. Make us laugh. Move us. Help us travel with you.

Genres: Crime, Fantasy, Fiction, Horror, Humor, Memoir, Non-fiction, Novel, Novella, Poetry, Romance, Science Fiction, Science Writing, Short Story, Thriller, and Young Adult

The Reader Views Literary Awards program aims to honor independent authors and their self-published works. The awards are recognized industry-wide as a significant platform for independent authors.

Genres: Fiction and Short Story

This contest is open to any short fiction writer of English. Submissions may include a collection of short stories, one or more novellas, or a short novel. Works that have previously appeared in magazines or in anthologies may be included.

Genres: Poetry

The Academy of American Poets Laureate Fellowships are $50,000 awards given to honor poets of literary merit appointed to serve in civic positions and to support them in creating new work, as well as to enable them to undertake meaningful, impactful, and innovative projects that enrich the lives of their neighbors, including youth, through responsive and interactive poetry activities.

Genres: Fiction, Short Story, Horror, Mystery, and Science Fiction

The Fabula Press Short Story Contest encourages exceptional storytelling across genres, with no specific theme. Participants can submit entries for both free and paid categories. Winning stories may be published in an anthology.

Genres: Non-fiction

We are looking for personal essays, memoirs, and works of literary non-fiction on any topic. It doesn't matter if it's spiritual, political, intellectual, emotional, funny, serious, or an essay about your DVD player.

Genres: Non-fiction

The Mark Lynton History Prize, in the amount of $10,000, is awarded to a book­-length work of history on any topic that best combines intellectual distinction with felicity of expression. Books must have been published in the United States between January 1, 2023, and December 31, 2023.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Flash Fiction, Science Fiction, Short Story, Crime, Horror, Mystery, Romance, and Thriller

The Writing Peers Summer Short Story Prize is designed to celebrate and promote the art of storytelling. Details about the contest, including submission guidelines, themes, and criteria, are crucial for participants.

Genres: Humor and Non-fiction

This contest invites submissions of humorous stories centered around workplace experiences. It aims to compile an anthology that reflects the lighter side of work life.

Genres: Poetry

The Passager Poetry Contest is open to writers aged 50 and older, inviting submissions of up to 5 poems (maximum 40 lines each). The contest provides a platform for showcasing poetic talent among mature writers, with the winner featured in the Passager Journal.

Genres: Fiction, Non-fiction, Short Story, Essay, Memoir, and Novel

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.

Genres: Fiction, Mystery, Short Story, Crime, Flash Fiction, Horror, Humor, Science Fiction, Thriller, and Young Adult

Our annual flagship competition, the Stringybark Stories Open Short Story Award 2023, is now bigger than ever! Thanks to Graeme Simpson and Anne Buist, a record prize pool of over $1300 is on offer. The theme is open, the only constraint is that there must be a reference to Australia somewhere in the story. It doesn't matter how small a link there is (it could be a jar of vegemite on the counter), there just needs to be one!

Genres:

Established in 2001, The Robert Phillips Poetry Chapbook Prize highlights one book a year that excels in the chapbook format. Since 2019 the Prize comes with $500, a standard royalty contract, and 20 copies of the published book.

Genres: Poetry

The Willow Run Poetry Book Award is an annual contest open to poets worldwide. The winner receives a monetary prize of $1,000 and publication by Hidden River Press. Entries should be unpublished collections of poetry, between 75 and 100 pages.

Genres: Poetry

Share a Haiku! That's a poem with only three lines that generally follows the 5-7-5 syllable count. So the first line of your poem will have three syllables. Second line seven. Final line five!

Genres: Fiction, Memoir, Non-fiction, Poetry, Children's, Fantasy, Mystery, Romance, Science Fiction, Thriller, and Young Adult

Submit a self-published or hybrid-published book, up to 200,000 words in length. One grand prize winner will receive $10,000, a marketing analysis and one-hour phone consultation with Carolyn Howard-Johnson, a $300 credit at BookBaby, three months of Plus service (a $207 value) and a $500 account credit from Book Award Pro, and 3 free ads in the Winning Writers newsletter (a $525 value)