Best Writing Contests in 2025

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

The Not Quite Write Prize for Flash Fiction invites writers to break traditional writing rules while crafting compelling stories. Participants have 60 hours to produce a story of up to 500 words in response to prompts. The contest is held quarterly, with cash prizes totaling AU$4,000 each round.

Genres: Fiction, Novel, Poetry, and Short Story

The Big Moose Prize awards an unpublished novel, open to all writers. The winner receives publication, a cash award of $1,000, and ten copies of the book.

Genres: Poetry

The Free Verse Prize is a new poetry prize, which supports the Free Verse Poetry Book and Magazine Fair. The judge is poet and former Poetry Book Fair director, Chrissy Williams. Poems can be on any theme, and should have fewer than 40 lines.

Genres: Fiction

The award is open to unrepresented and unpublished authors for a novel in any adult fiction genre. It includes a submission of the opening chapters and a synopsis. The judges are from WME and include Samuel Burr.

Genres: Fiction and Flash Fiction

The contest invites participants to write a micro-flash story of 39 words, inspired by John Buchan’s 'The Thirty-Nine Steps.' Submissions must fit the theme and will be featured in an anthology. Winners will also be showcased in a public online event.

Genres: Fiction and Novel

This competition invites submissions of the first chapter of a novel along with a synopsis. The focus is on originality and engaging storytelling. The winner will receive feedback from a literary agent and a substantial cash prize.

Genres: Poetry

The Diode Editions Chapbook Contest is an annual competition open to English-language poets. Multiple publications may be selected during this contest.

Genres: Children's and Fiction

This contest invites participants aged 8-14 to submit a short story based on autumn themes with prompts including family dinners, campfire stories, and mysteries.

Genres: Poetry

Every year, the University of Arkansas Press accepts submissions for the Miller Williams Poetry Series and from the books selected awards the $5,000 Miller Williams Poetry Prize in the following summer. For almost a quarter century the press has made this series the cornerstone of its work as a publisher of some of the country’s best new poetry. The series and prize are named for and operated to honor the cofounder and longtime director of the press, Miller Williams.

Genres: Christian

The Selah Awards celebrate published works from January 1 to December 31, 2024. Participants must submit a physical entry form alongside their works. The contest is part of the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference.

Genres: Children's and Essay

An international competition open to K–12 students, focusing on personal connections to world history. Essays must address specific topics and demonstrate critical thinking and effective communication.

Genres: Fiction

The contest invites young writers across Canada to explore the theme 'Community of Stories,' encouraging submissions that reflect connections through family, friendship, and culture.

Genres: Flash Fiction

The competition invites writers to submit original 100-word stories that include one of the specified words: PLACE, PLACED, or PLACES. The competition aims to celebrate concise storytelling.

Genres: Fiction, Novel, and Young Adult

The Bath Novel Award is a £5,000 international prize for adult and YA manuscripts across various genres, aimed at unagented writers who are unpublished, self-published, or independently published.

Genres: Poetry

The TCK Publishing Poetry Awards Contest is an international poetry contest established in 2021. The contest invites writers from all backgrounds to submit poems. The winner receives a $1,000 honorarium and publication on the TCK Publishing website.

Genres: LGBTQ and Non-fiction

The Jeanne Córdova Prize honors lesbian/queer-identified women and trans/gender non-conforming nonfiction authors. It seeks to recognize writers who capture the depth and complexity of lesbian/queer life, culture, and history.

Genres: Short Story and Fiction

The Letter Review Prize for Short Fiction is a competition for short fiction (up to 5000 words) with no genre or theme restrictions. It is open to writers worldwide, with 2-4 winners published and sharing in the prize money. Entries are also considered for publication and submission to the Pushcart Prize.

Genres: Poetry

The Lascaux Prize in Poetry accepts previously published or unpublished poems, with no length restrictions. The winner receives $1,000, a bronze medallion, and publication in The Lascaux Review. The entry fee is $15, and poets may submit up to five poems per entry. The contest will reopen on 1 October 2025, and submissions close on 31 March 2026.

Genres: Essay, Non-fiction, Science Fiction, Science Writing, and Short Story

There is no topic relating to technology that brings more discussion than artificial intelligence. Some people think it does wonders. Others see it as trouble. Let us know your opinion about AI in this competition. Include experiences you have had with AI. 300-word limit. Winners will be selected January 1, 2024. Open to anyone, anywhere.

Genres: Fiction and Novel

Simon & Schuster UK are launching an opportunity that’s exclusively open to un-agented, currently not under contract fiction writers of colour. The winner will receive a two-book UK publishing contract with S&S UK with a six-figure advance.

Genres: Fiction and Non-fiction

The Tom Grass Prize celebrates the spirit of adventure through short pieces of prose, inviting writers from all backgrounds to reflect on the theme of adventure. The prize honors Tom Grass, a multifaceted writer and traveler.

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

The contest is part of the annual Word on the Lake Writers Festival, encouraging submissions in short fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. Entries must be unpublished and original, with a maximum of 2,000 words for fiction/nonfiction and three one-page poems. Winners are published in the anthology.

Genres: Mystery and Short Story

An annual international competition for unpublished short mystery stories up to 3,500 words. The competition seeks to find the best story that aligns with Margery Allingham's definition of a mystery.

Genres: Poetry

The Oxford Poetry Prize is an annual competition for a single poem in English. The guest judge this year is Rebecca Tamás.

Genres: Fiction, Poetry, Short Story, and Novel

The Nimrod Literary Awards are hosted by the Nimrod International Journal to honor outstanding writing in fiction and poetry. Each year, the awards feature a first prize of $2,000 and a second prize of $1,000, along with publication opportunities for winners.

Genres: Fiction, Memoir, Non-fiction, and Novel

The First 100 Days Contest seeks innovative book ideas from authors committed to promoting good work amidst challenging times. Participants submit a one-page book overview and a sample manuscript of up to 5,000 words. Winning authors receive feedback and an editorial consultation.

Genres: Fiction and Poetry

The Subnivean Awards is an international literary competition that seeks outstanding fiction and poetry. The contest aims to highlight innovative works that break conventional molds.

Genres: Essay

The contest invites high school students to write an essay reflecting on the role of the U.S. Foreign Service during the Vietnam War and its impacts on contemporary U.S. diplomacy.

Genres: Fiction and Short Story

Write a great short story in ten words or fewer. The contest is inspired by the story of Hemingway’s six-word story. Entries must be original and unpublished. Judging is based on originality and quality. The winner will be notified by mid-June.

Genres: Poetry

One Page Poetry is dedicated to the art of expressing a poetic theme on a single page, whether your poem is four lines or forty, whether yours is a love poem, inspirational poem, philosophical poem, or just one that is fun or whimsical. We welcome any and all poetic forms, as long as they fit on a single page.

Genres: Fiction and Flash Fiction

Green Stories is running a flash fiction competition for stories under 500 words on the theme of ‘epiphanies’. The writing competition invites writers to submit a story about transformation, when a moment of epiphany causes one or more characters to change for the greener. The transformative realisation could relate to any attitude or behaviour with environmental implications (e.g. food, travel, consumption, gardening, cleaning, etc.), or the story could focus on the benefits of any greener alternative (e.g. environment, health, status, spirit, soul). We call it fiction, but you can write about any personal epiphanies too, using storytelling techniques to give it drama and emotion.

Genres: Fiction, Science Fiction, and Young Adult

The Cygnus Awards recognize the best Science Fiction books across various subgenres. It includes prizes, recognition, and promotional opportunities for winning entries.

Genres: Fiction and Short Story

The Short Story Competition is organized by Exeter Writers, aiming to encourage and showcase emerging writing talent. This competition invites entries from writers of various backgrounds.

Genres: Fiction and Novel

The James Jones First Novel Fellowship, established in 1992, honors the spirit of honesty and insight in modern culture exemplified by James Jones. The fellowship awards a prize for a novel-in-progress by a U.S. writer who has not published a novel.

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

The competition invites short story submissions of up to 8,000 words from writers of all genres. It aims to encourage creativity and provide feedback opportunities. Participants retain ownership of their work, with the winner receiving a cash prize along with chances to win in a bonus draw.