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DIRECTORY

Best Writing Contests in 2024

Showing 428 contests that match your search.

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.

Top Prize:

€500

Additional prizes:

Winning entry published in Anthology magazine

💰 Entry fee: $10

📅 Deadline: September 30, 2024 (Expired)

Genres: Crime, Fantasy, Fiction, Horror, Humor, Memoir, Mystery, Non-fiction, Novel, Poetry, Romance, Science Fiction, Science Writing, Script Writing, Short Story, Thriller, and Young Adult

The Storytrade Book Awards celebrate literary excellence in small and independent publishing, featuring over 70 categories for fiction and nonfiction. The awards spotlight outstanding books and provide industry recognition for authors.

Top Prize:

$1,000

Additional prizes:

$1,000 for each Book of the Year (Fiction & Nonfiction). Medals, book stickers, and digital seals for Winners and Finalists

💰 Entry fee: $75

📅 Deadline: June 30, 2025

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.

Top Prize:

$300

📅 Deadline: July 31, 2024 (Expired)

Inception 2024: $500 for Best Opening

Sunspot Literary Journal

Genres: Fiction and Poetry

The Inception contest invites submissions of openings across all genres. Participants can submit prose (up to 250 words), poetry (up to 25 words), or visual art as the first piece in a series. The contest emphasizes the importance of beginnings in creative works.

Top Prize:

$100

Additional prizes:

Publication for the winner; finalists also receive publication.

💰 Entry fee: $5

📅 Deadline: March 31, 2024 (Expired)

Western Writing Contest

FanStory.com Inc.

Genres: Fiction and Short Story

Share your Western story for this writing contest. Share your story that has a clear western theme. Your old west story can earn you a cash prize.

Top Prize:

$100

Additional prizes:

Winning stories will be features on the FanStory.com welcome page.

💰 Entry fee: $10

📅 Deadline: December 21, 2024

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

For this short story challenge, all participants will be randomly assigned a period in history. As soon as you receive your assignment, you'll have until the closing time to research, write, and submit a short story of no more than 4,000 words, set during this historical period.

Top Prize:

$1,131

💰 Entry fee: $17

📅 Deadline: October 28, 2022 (Expired)

Genres: Fiction, Humor, and Short Story

The Folly Short Story Prize encourages entertaining, comedic, and well-crafted stories, aiming to engage readers with original works. The winner receives a cash prize and publication in Folly Journal.

Top Prize:

$1000 NZD

Additional prizes:

Runner-up: $500 NZD Winner published in Issue 2 of Folly

💰 Entry fee: $6

📅 Deadline: April 30, 2024 (Expired)

Nimrod Literary Awards

Nimrold International Journal of Prose and Poetry

Genres: Fiction, Poetry, Short Story, and Novel

All finalists in fiction and poetry will be published and paid at our standard publication rate. Semi-finalists in poetry will also be published and paid at our standard publication rate.

Top Prize:

$2000 + Publication

Additional prizes:

2nd: $1000 + Publication

💰 Entry fee: $20

📅 Deadline: April 01, 2024 (Expired)

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.

Top Prize:

$500

Additional prizes:

2nd: 200 and print copy | 3rd, 4th, & 5th: $100 and print copy

📅 Deadline: December 18, 2023 (Expired)

Stories of Inspiration

Kinsman Avenue Publishing, Inc

Genres: Essay and Non-fiction

The Stories of Inspiration contest invites nonfiction essays (500-1200 words) that highlight resilience in marginalized communities. Selected entries will be published quarterly in Kinsman Quarterly's magazine, with winners receiving a cash prize and publication.

Top Prize:

$200

Additional prizes:

Publication in Kinsman Quarterly's online magazine

💰 Entry fee: $0

📅 Deadline: December 31, 2024

Kate Tufts Discovery Award

Claremont Graduate University

Genres: Poetry

The Kate Tufts Discovery Award is presented to a first book of poetry by a poet of genuine promise. It is part of the Tufts Poetry Awards, which also includes the Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award. The award aims to support poets in their craft and provide recognition and visibility.

Top Prize:

$10,000

📅 Deadline: July 01, 2024 (Expired)

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.

Top Prize:

$2,000

Additional prizes:

Two-year gift certificate for Duotrope | 2nd: $500

💰 Entry fee: $0

📅 Deadline: April 01, 2024 (Expired)

Genres: Short Story

The competition centered on the theme 'Myth', inviting entries in poetry and prose. The contest closed in August 2022, and it welcomed both national and international submissions.

Top Prize:

$200

Additional prizes:

Second Place: £100 Third Place: £50

💰 Entry fee: $5

📅 Deadline: August 31, 2024 (Expired)

Willow Run Poetry Book Award

Hidden River Press

Genres: Poetry

The Willow Run Poetry Book Award is an annual contest open to poets worldwide. The winner receives a monetary prize of $1,000 and publication by Hidden River Press. Entries should be unpublished collections of poetry, between 75 and 100 pages.

Top Prize:

$1,000

Additional prizes:

Publication in Hidden River Press

💰 Entry fee: $20

📅 Deadline: April 30, 2024 (Expired)

Genres: Fiction and Short Story

Write a short story, 5 pages maximum length, on any subject or theme, fiction, non-fiction, creative nonfiction (including essay compositions, diary, journal entries, short stage plays, screenplays, and screenwriting). All entries must be either typed or legibly hand printed. Multiple and simultaneous poetry and short story entries are accepted.

Top Prize:

$250

Additional prizes:

2nd: $125 | 3rd: $50

💰 Entry fee: $10

📅 Deadline: September 30, 2024 (Expired)

4th Annual Wine Country Writers' Festival Writing Contest

Wine Country Writers' Festival Society

Genres: Fiction, Non-fiction, and Poetry

The contest is open to writers over 18 worldwide and includes categories for fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. Each submission must adhere to specific formatting guidelines and word limits. Winners are selected through blind judging, and results are announced during the festival.

Top Prize:

$200 CAD per category

Additional prizes:

Second place: $100 Third place: $50 Winner also gets anthology publication, entry to next year's festival

💰 Entry fee: $15

📅 Deadline: June 02, 2024 (Expired)

Genres: Memoir

The competition invites participants to submit original, unpublished personal memoirs in English, max 1,500 words. There's no theme constraint, and multiple entries are allowed. The winner receives €500 and publication in Anthology magazine.

Top Prize:

€500

Additional prizes:

Publication in Anthology magazine

💰 Entry fee: $15

📅 Deadline: August 31, 2024 (Expired)

Best First Traditional Mystery Novel Competition

Minotaur Books & Malice Domestic

Genres: Mystery and Novel

Welcome to the Tony Hillerman Prize for Best First Mystery Set in the Southwest Competition! The Competition is open to any writer, regardless of nationality, aged 18 or older, who has never been the author of any Published Mystery Novel (including self-published works and ebooks), as defined by the guidelines below, and is not under contract with a publisher for publication of a mystery novel.

Top Prize:

$10,000 advance

Additional prizes:

Contract with Minotaur Books

📅 Deadline: November 30, 2021 (Expired)

Genres: Poetry

The Heroica Poetry Prize is a competition open to women and non-binary authors and poets. The winning poems will be published in the first Heroica Poetry Anthology.

Top Prize:

£125

Additional prizes:

2nd: £50 | 3rd: £25 | Winning and long-listed poems will be published.

💰 Entry fee: $2

📅 Deadline: March 31, 2024 (Expired)

The Peseroff Prize

Breakwater Review

Genres: Poetry

Submit up to three poems and a $10 entry fee. There are no restrictions on content or form: it 's all poetry. Poems should be previously unpublished. The winner and finalists will be published in Breakwater Review.

Top Prize:

$1,000

Additional prizes:

Publication in spring issue

💰 Entry fee: $10

📅 Deadline: May 01, 2024 (Expired)

Solas Awards

Travelers' Tales, a division of Solas House, Inc.

Genres: Essay, Non-fiction, and Travel

The Solas Awards honor excellence in travel writing, with cash prizes and publication opportunities. Entries must be original, true stories with specific word count guidelines. The contest runs annually, with winners announced on March 1 each year.

Top Prize:

$1,000

Additional prizes:

Silver: $750 Bronze: $500 Certificates of merit for Gold, Silver, and Bronze winners in other categories; $100 honorarium for publication in books.

💰 Entry fee: $35

📅 Deadline: September 21, 2024 (Expired)

Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize

Academy of American Poets

Genres: Poetry

Established in 1975, this $25,000 award recognizes the most outstanding book of poetry published in the United States in the previous calendar year. The prize includes distribution of the winning book to hundreds of Academy of American Poets members.

Top Prize:

$25,000

Additional prizes:

Publication and distribution of book

💰 Entry fee: $75

📅 Deadline: May 15, 2024 (Expired)

Canterbury Festival Poet of the Year

Friends of the Canterbury Festival

Genres: Poetry

This competition is an annual event welcoming poetry submissions globally. Judged anonymously, poets can submit works of any subject and format, capped at 60 lines. The competition features three judges and culminates in an online awards evening.

Top Prize:

£200

Additional prizes:

Second place: £100 Third place: £50 Publication in anthology

💰 Entry fee: $5

📅 Deadline: June 07, 2024 (Expired)

Maggie Award for Published Writers

Georgia Romance Writers

Genres: Novel and Romance

The Maggie Award for Excellence recognizes outstanding works of romantic fiction. Open to both traditional and self-published authors, the contest emphasizes quality storytelling. The award seeks submissions that showcase excellence in the romance genre.

Top Prize:

Trophy

💰 Entry fee: $40

📅 Deadline: April 05, 2024 (Expired)

Genres:

Established in 2001, The Robert Phillips Poetry Chapbook Prize highlights one book a year that excels in the chapbook format. Since 2019 the Prize comes with $500, a standard royalty contract, and 20 copies of the published book.

Top Prize:

$500

Additional prizes:

A Standard Royalty contract, 20 copies of the book published

💰 Entry fee: $20

📅 Deadline: March 31, 2024 (Expired)

FFF Competition Twenty One

Free Flash Fiction

Genres: Flash Fiction

The FFF Competition Twenty-Four invites submissions of flash fiction pieces between 100 and 300 words on any theme. The contest aims to discover and promote new flash fiction writers.

Top Prize:

£150

Additional prizes:

2 Highly Commended: £60 | 3 shortlisted: £50 | Publication

💰 Entry fee: $4

📅 Deadline: October 23, 2024 (Expired)

Genres: Fiction, Poetry, and Short Story

Launched in 2005, the competition has become international, inviting entries on various themes. It encourages creativity across different age groups, culminating in prize-giving and public readings, although these events have been paused recently due to the pandemic.

Top Prize:

£250

Additional prizes:

Winning entries may be published in chapbooks and housed in prominent libraries.

📅 Deadline: February 23, 2024 (Expired)

Genres: Fiction, Flash Fiction, Poetry, and Short Story

Subscribe to Fanstory for $9.95 a month and enter as many contests as you like from their list of writing and poetry contests, updated daily. All participants receive feedback from a community of writers, and the winner of each contest receives a cash prize of up to $100.

Top Prize:

Cash prizes of up to $100

💰 Entry fee: $10

📅 Deadline: January 31, 2023 (Expired)

Genres: Poetry

The 42 Miles Press Poetry Award aims to highlight urgent and original voices in poetry. Open to all poets writing in English, it accepts collections of poetry that showcase contemporary American poetic voices. The contest is judged by David Dodd Lee, and past winners include several notable poets.

Top Prize:

$1,000

Additional prizes:

Publication of the winning book and 50 author copies, plus an invitation for a reading at Indiana University South Bend.

💰 Entry fee: $25

📅 Deadline: June 15, 2024 (Expired)

100 Word Writing Contest

Tadpole Press

Genres: Essay, Fantasy, Fiction, Flash Fiction, Humor, Memoir, Mystery, Non-fiction, Science Fiction, Science Writing, Thriller, Young Adult, Children's, Poetry, Romance, Short Story, Suspense, and Travel

Can you write a story using 100 words or less? Pieces will be judged on creativity, uniqueness, and how the story captures a new angle, breaks through stereotypes, and expands our beliefs about what's possible or unexpectedly delights us. In addition, we are looking for writing that is clever or unique, inspires us, and crafts a compelling and complete story. The first-place prize has doubled to $2,000 USD.

Top Prize:

$2,000

Additional prizes:

Publishing and marketing package

💰 Entry fee: $15

📅 Deadline: November 30, 2024

The Rubery Prize

Rubery Book Awards

Genres: Crime, Fantasy, Fiction, Horror, Humor, Memoir, Mystery, Non-fiction, Novel, Novella, Science Fiction, Thriller, Young Adult, and Romance

The Rubery Prize is a prestigious international book award seeking the best books by indie writers, self published authors and books published by independent presses, judged by reputable judges. Through our reputation of finding quality and outstanding books we aim to bring recognition to the works that win and heighten an author's profile.

Top Prize:

£2000

Additional prizes:

£200, a write-up

💰 Entry fee: $60

📅 Deadline: March 31, 2024 (Expired)

The Donald Hall Prize for Poetry

Association of Writers & Writing Programs

Genres: Poetry

AWP sponsors the Award Series, an annual competition for the publication of excellent new book-length works. The competition is open to all authors writing in English regardless of nationality or residence, and is available to published and unpublished authors alike.

Top Prize:

$5,500

Additional prizes:

Publication by the University of Pittsburgh Press

💰 Entry fee: $30

📅 Deadline: February 28, 2024 (Expired)

Edinburgh Short Story Award

Scottish Arts Trust

Genres: Crime, Humor, Romance, and Short Story

£3,000 first prize for writers worldwide and stories on any topic up to 2,000 words. We welcome stories in all genres: literary, historic, crime, romance, gritty realism, contemporary, humour and more.

Top Prize:

$3,000

Additional prizes:

2nd: £500 3rd: £250 £750 for Isobel Lodge Award £300 for Write Mango Award Publication in the anthology for top twenty stories.

💰 Entry fee: $12

📅 Deadline: February 28, 2025

Genres: Fiction, Flash Fiction, Poetry, Script Writing, and Short Story

The Minds Shine Bright Confidence Writing Competition explores the theme of confidence in fiction. It includes categories for short stories, poetry, flash fiction, and scripts. The competition aims to support writers and promote creative writing.

Top Prize:

The overall winner receives $1,600 AUD and publication in the anthology.

Additional prizes:

2nd: $400 AUD 3rd: $300 AUD 4th: $200 AUD Each commended entry receives $175 and publication in the anthology. Each category winner receives $800, and there are additional commendations with monetary awards.

💰 Entry fee: $3

📅 Deadline: April 30, 2025

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

The contest invites participants to explore the theme of freedom through crime, speculative, and fantasy fiction. Winning entries will be published in a special bumper issue of Tangled Web Magazine and Mirk Fantasy Magazine.

Top Prize:

£100

Additional prizes:

Winner published in a special issue.

💰 Entry fee: $6

📅 Deadline: July 31, 2024 (Expired)

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