Best Writing Contests in 2025

Genres: Short Story

The competition is open for entries, accepting submissions on any theme or genre. All entries are judged anonymously.

Genres: Flash Fiction and Short Story

A competition celebrating the art of concise storytelling. Participants must write a story in 100 words or less. Eligible for young writers aged 13-19.

Genres: Short Story

The Lorian Hemingway Short Story Competition is dedicated to supporting new voices in short fiction. It has a history of over 43 years and emphasizes original, unpublished stories. Winners are highlighted on the competition's website.

Genres: Romance, Fiction, Novel, and Novella

The contest is open to authors who published a romance book in 2024. It focuses on various criteria for judging, including plot creativity, grammar, romantic conflict, and character believability.

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

The Writers of the Future Contest, initiated by L. Ron Hubbard in 1983, supports new writers in science fiction and fantasy, judged by leading authors. Winners receive cash prizes and recognition. The contest encourages original works and offers a platform for upcoming writers.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, and Romance

Pocket FM: Paranormal Romance invites writers to create original paranormal romance audio series. Entries must have a minimum of 100k words completed by the contest deadline to be eligible for prizes.

Genres: Fiction

The TWFest Fiction Contest aims to promote new work from emerging writers. It is open to previously unpublished short stories up to 7,000 words.

Genres: Fiction and Flash Fiction

The Scribes Prize is an annual writing contest open for submissions from July 1 to October 1. It invites stories between 90-110 words, with a focus on various genres of fiction and creative nonfiction. Winners will be published in ScribesMICRO and receive digital award seals.

Genres: Poetry

The Winchester Poetry Prize is a prestigious international poetry competition open to all poets aged 16 and over. It aims to celebrate diverse poetic voices and fosters community engagement, offering significant cash prizes and publication opportunities.

Genres: Poetry, Fiction, and Non-fiction

The Heartland Review invites submissions for fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry during open calls. Works accepted are published in the spring issue of the journal. The contest emphasizes original, unpublished works, and submissions must adhere to specific formatting guidelines.

Genres: Fiction and Crime

The Clue Awards recognize outstanding works in Suspense and Thriller genres, emphasizing detective work, police procedural, and crime-solving narratives. The contest aims to discover and promote new talent while rewarding excellence in these literary categories.

Genres: Fiction, Flash Fiction, and Short Story

In this contest, participants must write a story about a niche hobby or special interest in 101 words or fewer. Entries should be original and unpublished, and AI-generated entries are not allowed. Judging will focus on originality, quality, spelling, and grammar.

Genres: Fiction

Upload 10 chapters of any story (each chapter length at least 1800 words) to enter.

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.

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: Poetry

The Fiction Factory Poetry Competition invites poets to submit original works on any topic, with a maximum length of 40 lines. The competition aims to celebrate creativity and diversity in poetry.

Genres: Fiction

The bookworm contest want to see fantastic opening lines with a twist: mention the word "bookworm". May the best three crawl to the top!

Genres: Fiction and Science Fiction

The Global Thriller Awards seek the best books featuring suspense and thrilling stories that can change the balance of world power. It includes the Lab Lit genre, focusing on stories based on real science.