Best Writing Contests in 2024

Genres: Poetry

The Montreal International Poetry Prize promotes original poetry, encouraging a global readership and exploring diverse English forms. The contest rewards a single poem, up to 40 lines, with the aim of building an anthology showcasing shortlisted works.

Genres: Children's and Poetry

The Rattle Poetry Prize is an annual contest that awards $15,000 for an outstanding poem published in the magazine's winter issue. Ten finalists receive $500 each and a chance to win a $5,000 Readers’ Choice Award. The contest is open to all writers worldwide, with an emphasis on ethical judging and editorial standards.

Genres: Poetry

A sonnet is a poem with a specific structure. It has 14 lines and a specific rhyme scheme. The topic is open! Write about anything for this poetry contest. Just follow the rules on how to write a sonnet. To read the rules and for an example view the contest announcement. Cash prize for the winner of this contest.

Genres: Essay, Memoir, and Non-fiction

We seek un-agented full-length creative nonfiction manuscripts including memoir, essay collections, etc. 50,000 - 80,000 words.

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

This contest invites young writers aged 13-19 to explore the realms of science fiction and fantasy through creative writing. Participants can share their unique stories and ideas, receiving valuable feedback from peers and experts.

Genres: Poetry

This poem has three stanzas. Each stanza has three lines that follows the 3-6-9 syllable count. The first line has 3 syllables, the second line has 6 syllables and the last line 9 syllables. The subject can be anything.

Genres: Fiction and Flash Fiction

The editors of Third Wednesday wish to honor the memory of George Dila, friend of Third Wednesday and the editor who originally brought fiction to 3W. To this end, we proudly announce the opening of The George Dila Memorial Flash Fiction Contest. We accept entries of previously unpublished stories of under 1000 words in length (including title).

Genres: Fiction

Open to writers across Canada. Short prose in English, 2,500-5,000 words in any fiction genre. We actively encourage submissions from all writers who are 18 years of age or older.

Genres:

Write a free verse poem. This is a method of writing poetry, which does not essentially follow any structure or style. There is no fixed meter and no structure regarding rhyme and lines in each stanza.

Genres: Poetry

Offered since 1954, the James Laughlin Award is given to recognize and support a second book of poetry forthcoming in the next calendar year. Along with $5,000, the winner receives an all-expenses-paid weeklong residency in Miami Beach, Florida, and distribution of the winning book to approximately one thousand Academy of American Poets members. Submissions are accepted January 1 through May 15 each year.

Genres: Non-fiction

The Memo'd AI Writing Contest invites participants to create popular Memos using their AI content creator. Participants can enter by generating Memes through the Memo'd app and publishing them. The contest encourages creativity, allowing users to leverage AI and their own insights to produce Memos.

Genres: Fiction, Novel, and Young Adult

The Bath Novel Award is a £5,000 international prize for emerging writers of adult fiction. Submit the first 5,000 words plus a one-page synopsis of your novel for adults or young adults. Shortlisted entrants will receive feedback on their full manuscript and all listees will receive editorial director feedback on their extract and synopsis.

Genres: Non-fiction

The J. Anthony Lukas Book Prize, in the amount of $10,000, is given annually to a book­-length work of narrative nonfiction on a topic of American political or social concern that exemplifies the literary grace, commitment to serious research and original reporting that characterized the distinguished work of the award’s namesake.

Genres: Christian

The mission of the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference is to inspire writers to connect with God, other writers, and industry professionals as they embrace their calling with excellence. The entrant must be registered for the entire conference in order to compete.

Genres: Fiction and Poetry

The Hudson Prize is awarded annually for an unpublished collection of poems or prose. Open to all writers, winners receive a cash prize of $1,000, book publication, and ten copies of their book. The contest entries are read by a panel of editors without identifying information and must be between specified lengths depending on the genre.

Genres: Essay, Fiction, Flash Fiction, LGBTQ, Non-fiction, and Poetry

So to Speak is a feminist literary journal seeking diverse voices, focusing on intersectional feminism. They publish twice a year, accepting submissions of fiction, poetry, nonfiction, and visual art, with a particular emphasis on marginalized perspectives.

Genres: Poetry

Write a poem of any type that has a rhyme scheme.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Short Story, and Thriller

Can’t decide between the headstrong alpha or the hunky omega? Us either. We’re seeking stories featuring steamy werewolf romance, perfect for reading under a full moon. Whether you’re Team Jacob Black or Team Alcide Herveaux…we’re all Team Awoooo. Works up to 3,000 words will be considered.

Genres: Poetry

A Lune is a 5-3-5 contest. That means the first line has five syllables. The second line of your poem will have three. And the final line will have five again. Your poem can rhyme. Write about anything. Cash prize!

Genres: Poetry

The Snowbound Chapbook Award is an annual contest for poetry manuscripts. The winner receives a cash prize, publication, and a book launch. The contest aims to discover and promote emerging poets.

Genres: Fiction, Novel, and Young Adult

The Caledonia Novel Award aims to support unpublished and self-published novelists across all genres for adults and young adults. The 2025 competition encourages diverse submissions, offering significant prizes to help cultivate new talent.

Genres: Poetry

The Letter Review Prize for Poetry is awarded every three months, open to poems of up to 70 lines. The competition is blind-judged and all entries are considered for publication and further anthologies.

Genres: Fiction, Flash Fiction, and Poetry

HFR will accept contest submissions in poetry and fiction between Feb 1-29, 2024. This year’s poetry judge is Diana Khoi Nguyen, author of Ghost Of and Root Fractures. This year’s fiction judge is Venita Blackburn, author of How to Wrestle a Girl and Dead in Long Beach, California. There will be two prizes of $1,500 each and publication in Hayden’s Ferry Review (online in summer 2024 and in the fall/winter 2024 print issue) for a poem or a group of poems and a work of fiction. A runner-up in each category will receive $250 and publication. All entries are considered for publication.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Flash Fiction, Humor, Mystery, Science Fiction, Science Writing, and Short Story

A monthly short story competition for elementary and middle school students, with prompts and a maximum word count of 350. Winners have their work published and receive gift cards.

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

An international contest to find original short stories focused on the human impact of climate change. Emphasis on emotional narratives rather than scientific theories. Open to writers aged 18 and above.

Genres: Poetry

Participants must write a 2-4-2 syllable poem consisting of three lines: the first line has 2 syllables, the second line has 4 syllables, and the last line has 2 syllables. The subject can be anything. All entries will receive feedback.

Genres: Fiction, Novel, and Romance

The Maggie Award for Excellence for Prepublished writers aims to recognize and reward romance writing mastery. Each entry receives two critiques from published authors, and finalists are assessed by industry agents and editors. The highest-scored manuscript in each category wins a Maggie Award medallion.

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: Poetry

The SFPA Poetry Contest promotes speculative poetry, rewarding quality works while raising funds for the organization. The contest includes categories for poems of varying lengths—Dwarf (1-10 lines), Short (11-49 lines), and Long (50+ lines). 2024's judge is Stephanie M. Wytovich.

Genres: Poetry

The Dream Quest One Poetry & Writing Contest aims to inspire and encourage poets and writers worldwide, showcasing their creativity. The contest is open to all, allowing multiple entries in both poetry and writing categories.

Genres: Essay and Non-fiction

This contest invites teenagers to express their thoughts on the climate crisis and how collective action can address environmental challenges. The competition emphasizes the importance of youth voices in the fight against climate change.

Genres: Poetry

The Winchester Poetry Prize is an annual poetry competition launched in 2016, attracting entries from around the world. It opens in April and closes in July, with winners announced during the festival in October. The event is free to attend, and the winning poems are published in an anthology.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, and Romance

The Avenue Writing Contest invites participants to create interactive narratives in four categories: Romance, Fantasy, Progression Fantasy + LitRPG, and D&D. Entries are crafted using the Avenue Creator Studio, where participants develop episodes that allow reader choices to influence the story.

Genres: Flash Fiction, Short Story, and Fiction

This Prize is free to enter. 2-4 Winners are published. We Shortlist 10-20 writers. Seeking stories 0-5000 words. Judges’ feedback available. Open to writers from anywhere in the world, with no theme or genre restrictions. Judged blind. All entries considered for publication + submission to Pushcart.

Genres: Poetry

This prize is offered annually to a poet who has not previously published a full-length collection of poems. The prize awards the winner with $2,500 and publication of their first full-length book of poetry by the Kent State University Press. The winner and the competition's judge will give a reading together on the Kent State campus.