Best Writing Contests in 2024

Genres: Novel and Romance

The purpose of the Published Maggie Award for Excellence is to recognize the achievements of published authors of romantic fiction. The Maggie Award is a symbol of achievement given by the Georgia Romance Writers (GRW) to bring special attention to these authors. The Maggie, a silver medallion commissioned by GRW, receives national attention. Books will be ranked by librarians, booksellers, and other professionals in the publishing industry.​​

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

Fiction and Creative Non-Fiction 800 words, Poetry 40 lines, any genre any style. Over 16s only

Genres: Science Fiction

The Valorious Awards, sponsored by international best-selling author, Christopher Hopper, is an annual competition seeking to recognize and encourage emerging artists in two categories: best sci-fi novel, best sci-fi voice actor. The awards seek to recognize emerging independent authors and character actors and discover new and exciting talent within the world of science fiction.

Genres: Christian

The Selah Awards are open to all published authors whose books were published between December 16, 2020 and December 15, 2021 with either traditional or nontraditional publishers.

Genres: Christian

The Christian Author Awards recognizes preeminent new Christian authors who are independently published. Xulon Press, host and sponsor of the Christian Author Awards, is excited to once again extend the opportunity to Christian authors to have their work recognized and given due credit. The Christian Author Awards exists to honor exceptional books written by Christian authors like you that are published independently by nontraditional publishers.

Genres: Poetry

This is a UK based competition but we welcome international entries. Poets are invited to enter poems (maximum 40 lines excluding title) on any theme. Discounts are offered on multiple entries. Besides the cash prize, our judge, poet and author and mentor, Helen Cox, will offer feedback on five of the winner's poems plus an hour-long mentorship zoom call about their poetry.

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

Each year Black Lawrence Press will award The Hudson Prize for an unpublished collection of poems or prose. The prize is open to new, emerging, and established writers.

Genres: Essay and Memoir

Write about an event in your life. Everyone has a memoir. Not an autobiography. Too much concern about fact and convention. A memoir gives us the ability to write about our life with the option to create and fabricate and to make sense of a life, or part of that life.

Genres: Fiction, Novel, Novella, Romance, and Short Story

The 2024 Passionate Plume celebrates the best in erotic fiction, both long and short, and features a special category for emerging authors.

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, Non-fiction, Poetry, Essay, Memoir, and Short Story

Whether you’re an established or emerging writer, the Askew’s Word on the Lake Writing Contest has a place for you. Part of the Word on the Lake Writers’ Festival in Salmon Arm, BC, the contest is open to submissions in short fiction (up to 2,000 words), nonfiction (up to 2,000 words), and poetry (up to three one-page poems).

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

HAVOK is a constant flash fiction contest, with rolling deadlines. Each season is split into monthly competitions with thematically connected prompts in a range of genres.

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

For this short story challenge, all participants will be randomly assigned a genre pairing. As soon as you receive your ‘smashed’ genres you'll have until the closing time to write and submit a short story of any length up to 5,000 words, that perfectly and seamlessly combines both genres into one amazing short story.

Genres: Fiction, Science Fiction, Science Writing, and Short Story

CAPTRS is building a catalog of threats, called the “Universe of Threats,” which will be used to prepare decision makers for future threats. We invite you to submit a 2,500 word or less story describing a threat scenario related to natural disasters, including floods, wildfires, hurricanes or another natural disaster of your choosing.

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: 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: Mystery and Short Story

Every year since 2014, the CWA and the Margery Allingham Society have jointly held an international competition for a short story of up to 3,500 words. Our mission is to find the best unpublished short mystery, and not only that, but one which fits into Golden Age crime writer Margery Allingham’s definition of what makes a great story. Entries are invited from all writers, published or unpublished, writing in English.

Genres: Essay and Non-fiction

The Young Sports Journalist Competition, 2024, seeks well-argued articles from aspiring journalists aged 14-21. Winning entries will be published online and printed in the Summer Issue of Pitch. Critiqued by our panel of accomplished judges, winners will also receive a £50 cash prize and offered work experience here at PITCH HQ. The competition runs from 7 February 2024 to 5 April 2024. And winners will be announced in May.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Flash Fiction, Poetry, and Science Fiction

Kinsman Quarterly seeks fiction and poetry submissions from BIPOC authors for the Iridescence Award by December 31. Themes should include the supernatural, extraterrestrial, paranormal--urban fantasy, magical realism, science fiction, Afro-futurism, etc. Winners receive cash prizes up to $500 USD and publication in our literary magazine and E-book. No fees required.

Genres: Poetry

For this contest you are challenged to write a Tanka poem. Tanka is a form of poetry that often follows a specific syllable count. That count is 5-7-5-7-7. So your first line has five syllables, second has seven, third has five and the last two lines each have seven syllables. Cash prize!

Genres: Children's and Short Story

The annual "Write On!" Short Story Contest for Grades 3-5 accepts story entries each winter. All writers, their friends, and families are invited to a Story Celebration and awards ceremony on Saturday, April 23, 2022, featuring a published children's author and the top three writers in each grade will receive an award.

Genres: Fiction and Novel

A prize of $10,000 is given annually for a novel-in-progress by a U.S. writer who has not published a novel. Runners-up will receive $1000. A selection from the winning work is published in Provincetown Arts.

Genres: Children's and Essay

JASNA conducts an annual student Essay Contest to foster the study and appreciation of Jane Austen's works in new generations of readers. Students world-wide are invited to compete for scholarship awards in three divisions: high school, college, and graduate school.

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.