Discover the finest writing contests of 2019 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 below as you browse. Manage a contest? Submit it here
The 2019 Stella Kupferberg Memorial Short Story Prize will be judged by Kelly Link. The winning work will be performed and recorded live at a Selected Shorts performance at Symphony Space on June 12, 2019, and published on Electric Literature. The winning writer will receive $1000 and a free 10-week course with Gotham Writers.
📆 Deadline March 01, 2019 (Expired) – 💰 Entry Fee: $25
Genres: Fiction, Short Story,
$1,000
Blue Bus Publishing is excited to announce our 2nd annual Journal from the Heartland Writing Contest. Winning entries will be included in Volume 3 of our publication, which will be published in 2019. Our contest is open to all interested writers with connections to Wisconsin. Entries may be on any subject or theme.
📆 Deadline March 21, 2019 (Expired) – 💰 Entry Fee: $10
Genres: Essay, Fiction, Non-fiction, Short Story,
$125
Publication in Journal from the Heartland Magazine
The New Deal Writing Competition is a short story competition where the writer is asked to use a painting chosen by the staff of GVCA as inspiration for their short story.
Genesee Valley Council on the Arts
📆 Deadline April 05, 2019 (Expired) – 💰 Entry Fee: $5
Genres: Fiction, Short Story,
$200
Publication in Artsphere Magazine
Each month we invite you to post a story on Twitter using #GWstorieseverywhere for a chance to win a free class. Your story must be no longer than 25 words, with a max of 280 characters, including spaces and the hashtag #GWstorieseverywhere.
📆 Deadline December 31, 2019 – 💰 Entry Fee: $0
Genres: Fiction, Flash Fiction,
Gotham Writers Workshop
The Stella Kupferberg Memorial Short Story Prize is a writing competition sponsored by the stage and radio series Selected Shorts. This long-running series at Symphony Space in New York City celebrates the art of the short story by having stars of stage and screen read aloud the works of established and emerging writers. Selected Shorts is recorded for Public Radio and heard nationally.
📆 Deadline March 01, 2019 (Expired) – 💰 Entry Fee: $25
Genres: Memoir,
$1,000
Gotham Writers Workshop
We invite you to look back at 2018 and write about it. Specifically, we want you to tell us a true story from your life in 2018…in only 18 words. Whoever writes the 18-word memoir that most captivates us will win a free Gotham class of his or her choosing.
📆 Deadline February 18, 2019 (Expired) – 💰 Entry Fee: $0
Genres: Memoir,
Gotham Writing Workshop
Entries are now open for 2018/19. We are seeking stories and poems on any theme. Children’s prizes funded by the Rawlet Trust. Best entries could appear in the anthology to follow. Three categories: Ages 16+ (above school age and beyond) – 1,500 words limit – £4 entry; Secondary School (years 7 – 11) – 1,000 words limit - FREE entry; Primary school (up to and including year 6) – 500 words limit - FREE entry.
📆 Deadline April 30, 2019 (Expired) – 💰 Entry Fee: $0
Genres: Fiction, Poetry, Short Story,
$100
We invite you to participate in the Seventh Hektoen Grand Prix Essay Competition. Two prizes will be awarded: $3000 for the winner and $800 for the runner up. Topics might include art, history, literature, education, etc. as they relate to medicine. Essays should be under 1600 words.
📆 Deadline April 15, 2019 (Expired) – 💰 Entry Fee: $0
Genres: Essay, Non-fiction,
$3,000
Publication in Hektoen International Journal
Stories Through The Ages - Generations Plus 2019 is open to adults born 1965 and later. There is no prompt for the contest. Authors may write about any topic. The entry fee is $25 ($20 if submitting more than one story). The word count for this contest is 900 - 4000 words. Cash prizes of $500, $200 and $100 will be awarded.
📆 Deadline April 15, 2019 (Expired) – 💰 Entry Fee: $25
Genres: Short Story,
$500
Stories Through The Ages - Baby Boomers Plus 2019 is open to people born 1964 or earlier. There is no prompt for the contest. Authors may write about any topic. The entry fee is $25 ($20 if submitting more than one story). The word count for this contest is 900 - 4000 words. Cash prizes of $500, $200 and $100 will be awarded.
📆 Deadline April 15, 2019 (Expired) – 💰 Entry Fee: $25
Genres: Short Story,
$500
Publication in anthology.
Each year Altair Australia Pty Ltd will accept all stories that challenge either the way we see ourselves in the future, or how the world is represented in the future. This vision could be a science fiction, fantasy, horror, romance, thriller, crime view, or a contemporary view following the lives of people as they adjust to the new, or who are entrenched in the modern way we have yet to experience.
📆 Deadline July 01, 2019 – 💰 Entry Fee: $5
Genres: Short Story,
$500
Publication in The Blend International Journal
The weather outside is frightful, but stories are delightful. Especially stories that transport us. So, our February contest theme is: Paradise. Contestants may submit either a short story or a travel essay, of no more than 3,000 words. As always, interpret as you will.
📆 Deadline February 24, 2019 (Expired) – 💰 Entry Fee: $1
Genres: Essay, Fiction, Non-fiction, Short Story,
$456
Publication on Join Our Story website
20 short story writers will be awarded for their works. The top 5 writers will be featured on The Short Story Project.
📆 Deadline January 31, 2019 (Expired) – 💰 Entry Fee: $17
Genres: Fiction, Short Story,
$5,000
Our contest theme is “new beginnings." The prize will be awarded to the story that best captures the theme while demonstrating the principles of good storytelling presented in our self-paced course, Better Storytelling - currently available at no cost. The amount of enthusiasm expressed toward the story during the reading period will inform the judgment within.
📆 Deadline January 24, 2018 (Expired) – 💰 Entry Fee: $1
Genres: Fiction, Short Story,
$345
All submissions must be original, previously unpublished work of the author; entered only through procedures detailed above; up to 3,000 words in length and in English. The prize will be awarded to the story that best captures the theme while demonstrating the principles of good storytelling.
📆 Deadline January 24, 2019 (Expired) – 💰 Entry Fee: $1
Genres: Fiction, Short Story,
$345
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