Best Writing Contests in 2024

Genres: Flash Fiction

Flash fiction competition for stories up to 200 words with a twist. Competition always open, with a winner announced and published online after 50 entries received (story count on website). Entry fee: £2.50, winner receives £30 plus publication on the website. All shortlisted entries get their entry fee refunded.

Genres: Essay, Fiction, Poetry, Short Story, Flash Fiction, Non-fiction, Novella, and Script Writing

We are not concerned with genre distinctions. Send us the best you have; we want only for it to be thoughtful, intelligent, and beautiful. We want art that grows in complexity upon each visitation; we enjoy ornate, cerebral, and voluptuous phrases executed with thematic intent.

Genres: LGBTQ

Lambda Literary has played a pivotal role in nurturing the development of exceptional new LGBTQ writers through the Writers Retreat for Emerging LGBTQ Voices, internships, and writing and performance opportunities. The Judith A. Markowitz Award for Exceptional New LGBTQ Writers recognizes LGBTQ-identified writers whose work demonstrates their strong potential for promising careers.

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: Poetry

Go out for a walk and take a camera, smartphone or tablet with you. Snap a picture of something interesting and write a poem about it when you get home. Post the photo along with the poem.

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

A quarterly flash fiction competition challenging writers to create an original piece based on two prompts and one anti-prompt. The entries are judged blindly, and winners are announced on the podcast.

Genres: Crime, Flash Fiction, Mystery, and Short Story

The contest invites submissions for cozy mystery stories. Participants must follow cozy mystery guidelines and can submit up to 5 stories, each with a max length of 5,000 words.

Genres: Fiction, Non-fiction, and Short Story

Welcome to the 31st annual Tom Howard/John H. Reid Fiction & Essay Contest. Submit published or unpublished work. $9,000 in prizes.

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: Horror

Twice each year TGS awards $1,500 and both online and print publication to the winner of our short story competition. Two other writers receive Honorable Mention awards that include publication and cash prizes of $300. Online publication dates are June 1, and October 31.

Genres: Fiction, Flash Fiction, and Short Story

Awarded for the best piece of writing on the theme of the Alpine Fellowship 2023 - Flourishing. The winner of the Writing Prize will receive a cash prize, and the runners up will receive travel expense support that must be used to attend our 2023 symposium which will be held from 10th-13th August 2023 in Fjällnäs, Sweden

Genres: LGBTQ and Novel

The Randall Kenan Prize for Black LGBTQ Fiction, in memory of the celebrated author Randall Kenan, honors Black LGBTQ writers of fiction. The award will go to a Black LGBTQ writer whose fiction explores themes of Black LGBTQ life, culture, and/or history. To be eligible, the winner of the prize must have published at least one book and show promise in continuing to produce groundbreaking work.

Genres: Flash Fiction, Short Story, and Fiction

This Prize is free to enter. 2-4 Winners are published. We Shortlist 10-20 writers. Seeking stories 0-5000 words. Judges’ feedback available. Open to writers from anywhere in the world, with no theme or genre restrictions. Judged blind. All entries considered for publication + submission to Pushcart.

Genres: Humor and Poetry

Now in its 22nd year, this contest seeks today's best humor poems. No fee to enter. Submit published or unpublished work. $3,500 in prizes.

Genres: Mystery, Suspense, Romance, and Thriller

The Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery/Suspense is named for Daphne du Maurier, the author of Rebecca, a suspense novel with romantic and gothic overtones and a precursor to today’s romantic suspense. The writing contest is for unpublished authors of mystery, suspense, and thrillers with or without romantic subplots.

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: Short Story

The Creative Writing NZ Short Story Prize 2024 is an international competition open to entrants worldwide. Entries can be on any subject, theme, or genre, with a maximum of 3000 words. Judged anonymously, the winner will receive $1,000, and two runners-up will each receive $200, along with free online courses and publication on the website.

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

Established in 2023, this contest supports writers and poets, offering feedback and publication opportunities. Winners of various categories receive cash prizes and copies of the published anthology.

Genres: Non-fiction

Two J. Anthony Lukas Work-in-Progress Awards, in the amount of $25,000, are given annually to aid in the completion of significant works of nonfiction on topics of American political or social concern. Recognizing that a nonfiction book based on extensive research often overtaxes the resources available to its author, the project envisions the Awards as a way of closing the gap between the time and money an author has and the time and money that finishing a book requires.

Genres: Short Story

Hastings Book Festival writing competition is open to writers from anywhere in the world writing in English on any theme. We invite short stories up to 2,500 words. We have additional prizes for LGBT+ writers and writers resident in Sussex.

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: 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: Fiction, Short Story, and Flash Fiction

Biopage is hosting a writing contest to remind people the benefits of writing. Each story (or once chapter of your stories) is limited to 5,000 characters or roughly 1,000 words. You can write about good life experience, or bad, embarrassing, frightening ones. You can win $300, and five runners-up can win $100 each.

Genres: Poetry

The Gregory O’Donoghue International Poetry Competition is an annual prize open to original, unpublished poems in English of up to 40 lines. It celebrates poetry and offers substantial prizes while encouraging international participation.

Genres: Fiction and Short Story

Our quarterly short story competition is open for entries all year round. The competition is open to any theme or genre, but your story must be a maximum of 1,500 words (not including the title). You can enter up to three stories in each quarterly competition.

Genres: Fiction and Flash Fiction

It may be the sprint of creative writing but that doesn’t mean you can rush the creative process. Take us somewhere fast then let your story marinade in the reader's mind. Make every one of your 250 words count. There is no minimum number of words, just like there is no limit to your imagination. They say lightning doesn't strike twice but we want to feel the electricity in your story right from the beginning through to the very end.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Mystery, Non-fiction, Science Fiction, and Young Adult

Launched in 2014, Book Pipeline connects writers worldwide with publishers, editors, agents, and the film industry. Through two submission platforms—Unpublished and Adaptation—the company seeks both new and established authors. For over 22 years, Pipeline has bridged the gap between up-and-coming writers and the industry through a unique, long-term, hands-on facilitation process. The result thus far has been $8 million in scripts sold to studios and networks since 1999.

Genres: Fiction, Flash Fiction, Horror, Humor, Mystery, Short Story, and Thriller

The contest invites participants to craft a chilling first line for a scary story, with a maximum of 31 words. The winner receives a free Gotham class of their choice.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Horror, Humor, Mystery, Novel, Romance, Science Fiction, and Young Adult

Have you completed the first draft of your novel? Are you ready to pass it on to a fresh pair of eyes, to see if you are on the right track? Is your all-important first chapter ready for submission to an agent? Whatever your plans, your first chapter must shine – it must grab your readers or quickly lose their interest.

Genres: Poetry

The Troubadour International Poetry Prize is an annual competition open to poets worldwide, judged by notable figures in the literary community. The 2024 prize includes cash awards for the top three poems, as well as opportunities for commended entries.

Genres: Poetry

The Stephen Spender Prize is an annual award recognizing excellence in poetry translation, encouraging participants to translate poems from any language into English. It is open to various age groups including adults and students in the UK and Ireland. The contest aims to celebrate linguistic diversity and foster creative translation.

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: Script Writing

The Scriptwriting Scholarship is open to people of color interested in scriptwriting for movies, TV shows, or plays. It provides three scholarships, each including two 10-week script courses, three intensives, and a 12-hour mentorship. Acceptance is for ages 18+, with a focus on supporting Black applicants.

Genres: Children's and Short Story

The $1000 for 1000 Words fiction writing contest is open to all students enrolled in grades 6-12. Each entrant may submit a fiction piece consisting of exactly 1,000 words (not including title or author’s name). The fiction piece can be on any topic, as long as it is not vulgar or offensive, does not use inappropriate profanity, and is the original work of the entrant not previously published.

Genres: Fiction and Short Story

The Anthology Short Story Competition aims to recognize and encourage creative writing by providing a platform for publication. It is open to original and previously unpublished short stories in English, with no restrictions on theme or style. Stories should not exceed 1,500 words.