Discover the finest writing contests of 2018 for fiction and non-fiction authors of short stories, poetry, essays and more. Updated weekly, these contests are vetted by Reedsy to weed out the scammers and time-wasters. Manage a contest? Submit it here
We found 278 contests that match your search 🔦
The Dzanc Books Short Story Collection Prize celebrates imaginative and inventive writing in the short form. The winning submission will be awarded a $2,500 advance and publication in Fall 2019 by Dzanc Books. The winner and a short list of finalists will be announced on November 15.
Deadline: September 30th, 2018 • Entry fee 💰: $25
Genre: Fiction, Short Story,
$2500
Publication by Dzanc Books
The Dzanc Books Prize for Fiction recognizes daring, original, and innovative writing in novel form.
Deadline: September 30th, 2018 • Entry fee 💰: $25
Genre: Fiction, Novel,
$5,000
Publication by Dzanc Books
Can’t get enough science fiction, fantasy, and feminism? F-BOM is hosting a quarterly flash fiction contest! Topics will be released every February, May, August, and November, and submissions will be judged by the featured F-BOM author. Entries must be under 100 words.
Deadline: December 31st, 2018 • Entry fee 💰: FREE
Genre: Fantasy, Fiction, Science Fiction, Short Story,
Publication on F-BOM blog
3 months of F-BOM e-book membership
Here’s how it works — Our editorial staff chooses approximately fifty to sixty finalists. The highest scoring finalists (25 or so) are considered Special Merit poems. Special Merit poems go to the judge. The judge determines the top three prize winners. The entire editorial staff then selects the Honorable Mentions from the remaining Special Merits.
Deadline: July 15th, 2018 (Expired) • Entry fee 💰: $5
Genre: Poetry,
$1,000
Literal Latté currently offers five — count ’em, FIVE — annual writing contests. Three categories are still open: Short Story Contest, Poetry Award, and Essay Award.
Deadline: September 30th, 2018 • Entry fee 💰: $3 - $15
Genre: Essay, Fiction, Poetry, Short Story,
$200 - $1,000
Launched in 2009, the competition is for original, unpublished short stories on any theme. The maximum word length is 3,000 words. Any genre, except children’s is welcome. First prize is £500, second prize is £250 and third prize is £100.
Deadline: February 28th, 2018 (Expired) • Entry fee 💰: £6
Genre: Fiction, Short Story,
£500
With a prize fund of £5500, the Hippocrates Prize is one of the highest value poetry awards in the world for a single poem. The prize comprises a 1st, 2nd and 3rd Prize and 20 commendations. In its first 7 years, the Hippocrates Prize has attracted over 7000 entries from 61 countries, from the Americas to Fiji and Finland to Australasia.
Deadline: February 14th, 2018 (Expired) • Entry fee 💰: £7
Genre: Poetry,
£5500
The 2018 Nelson Algren Literary Awards is sponsored by Chicago Tribune. Stories must be written in English, double-spaced, and no longer than 8,000 words. A total of 10 prizes will be made available during Contest: One Grand Prize: $3,500, Four Finalist Prizes: $1,000, Five Runner-up Prizes: $500.
Deadline: February 7th, 2018 (Expired) • Entry fee 💰: FREE
Genre: Fiction, Short Story,
$3,500
Publication in Printers Row
$1,000 Award for the book of fiction written in English selected by our judges as the strongest novel or collection of fiction published in 2017.
Deadline: February 1st, 2018 (Expired) • Entry fee 💰: FREE
Genre: Fiction, Novel,
$1,000
$1,000 Award for a book of poems written in English, 48 pages or more in length, selected by our judges as the strongest collection of poems published in 2017.
Deadline: February 1st, 2018 (Expired) • Entry fee 💰: FREE
Genre: Poetry,
$1,000
University of Southern Indiana
A prize of $3,000 and publication by SIR Press is awarded annually for a collection of poetry written in English. Michael Waters will judge. Submit up to 80 pages (no more than one poem per page) with a $25 entry fee ($5 for each additional entry) by February 1, 2018.
Deadline: February 1st, 2018 (Expired) • Entry fee 💰: $25
Genre: Poetry,
$3,000
Publication by SIR Press
This unique competition enables authors to create a lasting keepsake of their treasured work. All genres of plays are accepted and it doesn’t matter if your work has been previously published. Up to 5 plays will be accepted and produced in our studio and broadcast across the world to an existing listener base.
Deadline: March 31st, 2018 (Expired) • Entry fee 💰: £2.99
Genre: Script Writing,
Recording Package
This is a contest for children in the age range of 10 years to 16 years, with the aim of helping parents identify writing talent early.
Deadline: April 22nd, 2018 (Expired) • Entry fee 💰: $15
Genre: Short Story,
$2700
Publication by Lune Spark Books
Enter the Dialogue Only Writing Contest. Cash prize! Write a story using only dialogue to enter.
Deadline: November 20th, 2018 • Entry fee 💰: $9.95
Genre: Fiction, Short Story,
$100
Share your story story (of 500 words or less) to enter this writing contest. Can you share a complete story with a limited number of words?
Deadline: November 30th, 2018 • Entry fee 💰: $9.95
Genre: Flash Fiction,
$100
Write a poem of any type. The only catch is your poem must begin with the words "I can not."
Deadline: December 3rd, 2018 • Entry fee 💰: $9.95
Genre: Poetry,
$100
Write a 5 line poem to enter this poetry contest. A 5 line poem has a specific syllable count. That count is 2-2-5-7-5. Cash prize to the winner.
Deadline: December 17th, 2018 • Entry fee 💰: $9.95
Genre: Poetry,
$100
The Black Caucus of ALA (BCALA) honors the best self-published ebooks by an African American author in the U.S. in the following genres: Fiction and Poetry.
Deadline: February 17th, 2018 (Expired) • Entry fee 💰: FREE
Genre: Fiction, Novel, Poetry,
$500
The Center @ Miami Dade College will award one $2,000 prize every other year (in even years) for the publication of a previously unpublished book of poetry originally written in Spanish by an American resident. The prize will recognize book-length manuscripts of poetry written in Spanish. Translations, works of literary criticism and scholarly texts do not qualify. Contest opens in May.
Deadline: June 15th, 2018 (Expired) • Entry fee 💰: $30
Genre: Poetry,
$2,000
The National Poetry Series seeks book-length manuscripts of poetry written by American residents or American citizens living abroad.
Deadline: February 28th, 2018 (Expired) • Entry fee 💰: $30
Genre: Poetry,
$10,000
Publication of full-length manuscript
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