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The Best Script Writing Writing Contests of 2023

Writing competitions curated by Reedsy

Genre

Manage a competition? Submit it here

Showing 15 contests

2023 John Estey Student Writing Competition

American Writers Museum

"Give me a song of hope and a world where I can sing it.” – Pauli Murray, Dark Testament Pauli Murray (1910-1985) was difficult to define. They were a poet, a lawyer, a priest, a freight hopper, Eleanor Roosevelt’s friend, arrested for refusing to comply with bus segregation laws, a closeted member of the LBGTQ+ community, a professor, and so much more. Their work has influenced Supreme Court decisions, the Civil Rights movement, and countless individual people. This prompt is a quote from Murray’s collection of poems titled Dark Testament. It can be used as a first line, a last line, a jumping-off point, an inspiration for your students’ work. They can use the entire quote or portions of it to write a fiction or nonfiction story, poem, song, scene, short monologue or other form of writing. Submissions should be 1,000 words or less regardless of format.

Top prize

3x Elementary Grade winners: $500 | 3x Middle School winners: $1,000 | 3x High School winners: $2,000

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: FREE

Deadline: June 05, 2023

Genres

Essay, Fiction, Non-fiction, Poetry, Script Writing

Hammond House Scriptwriting Competition

Hammond House

Be creative, be unpredictable, be different; the judges are looking for honesty and emotion. Top prize of £100.

Top prize

£100

Additional prizes

Publication

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $12

Deadline: September 30, 2023

Genres

Script Writing

Evening Standard Stories Competition

Evening Standard

We’re searching for fresh new voices who can take the idea of ‘belonging’ in a surprising direction, or tackle it in a way that stops us in our tracks. This competition is not limited to a ‘short story’. Submissions can be a piece of spoken word or performance, perhaps it’s a monologue, a script or a self-contained episode of a narrative podcast. Entries can be submitted as written, audio, or film.

Top prize

Mentorship with top industry contacts

Additional prizes

Publication in Evening Standard media

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: FREE

Deadline: April 12, 2023

Genres

Crime, Fantasy, Fiction, Horror, Humor, Memoir, Mystery, Poetry, Romance, Science Fiction, Science Writing, Script Writing, Short Story, Thriller, Young Adult

Geminga: $250 for Tiny Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, or Art

Sunspot Lit

Geminga is a neutron star so small it was difficult to detect. It was named, in part, for a transcription of gh’è minga, meaning “it’s not there.” With Geminga: $500 for Tiny Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, or Art, Sunspot Lit honors the power of the small. No restrictions on theme or category. Word limit is 100 for fiction and nonfiction. Micropoetry is limited to 140 characters. Graphic novelsshould be 4 pages or less.

Top prize

$500

Additional prizes

Publication in digital and print

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $10

Deadline: March 31, 2023

Genres

Crime, Essay, Fantasy, Fiction, Flash Fiction, Horror, Humor, Memoir, Mystery, Non-fiction, Poetry, Romance, Science Fiction, Script Writing, Short Story, Thriller, Young Adult

Annual Cultural Heritage Writing Contest

The Trailblazer Review

Founded in November 2022, The Trailblazer Review is an international high school literary magazine dedicated to celebrating and honoring indigenous culture through creative writing. Its Annual Cultural Heritage Contest accepts submissions of fiction, poetry, and nonfiction under 4000 words from middle and high school students (13-18 years old) on the subject of native culture and heritage.

Top prize

Publication

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: FREE

Deadline: February 20, 2023 (Expired)

Genres

Fiction, Non-fiction, Poetry, Script Writing, Short Story, Young Adult

The Goldilocks Zone

Sunspot Lit

Inspired by the search for Goldilocks Zone planets, Sunspot Lit is looking for one short story, CNF, artwork, poem, graphic novel, or script that combines excellence with appeal. Literary and genre works accepted; feedback available.

Top prize

$200

Additional prizes

Publication

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $9

Deadline: December 19, 2022 (Expired)

Genres

Crime, Essay, Fiction, Flash Fiction, Horror, Humor, Memoir, Mystery, Non-fiction, Poetry, Science Fiction, Science Writing, Script Writing, Short Story, Thriller, Young Adult

Minds Shine Bright Writing Competition

Minds Shine Bright

As we adjust to new realities, inflationary pressures, geo-political tensions, environmental challenges and more it’s time to imagine and explore. The Minds Shine Bright writing competition Confidence 2023 is open and calling for entries of short stories, short scripts, flash fiction and poetry which explore the theme of confidence in some way.

Top prize

$1,080

Additional prizes

$540 for each category winner | $118 for commended entries

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $4

Deadline: February 28, 2023 (Expired)

Genres

Fiction, Flash Fiction, Poetry, Script Writing, Short Story

Muse of Fire BIPOC Playwriting Festival

Atlanta Shakespeare Company

The Atlanta Shakespeare Company is launching a new playwriting initiative for historically marginalized artists. The "Muse Of Fire Playwriting Festival'' invites playwrights of the global majority to create a full-length play that reimagines Shakespeare’s themes and plots through the lens of BIPOC America.

Top prize

$5,000

Additional prizes

Stage reading in summer 2023

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: FREE

Deadline: April 15, 2023

Genres

Script Writing

Lazuli Literary Group Writing Contest

Lazuli Literary Group

We are not concerned with genre distinctions. Send us the best you have; we want only for it to be thoughtful, intelligent, and beautiful. We want art that grows in complexity upon each visitation; we enjoy ornate, cerebral, and voluptuous phrases executed with thematic intent.

Top prize

$500

Additional prizes

Publication in "AZURE: A Journal of Literary Thought"

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $15

Deadline: February 22, 2023 (Expired)

Genres

Essay, Fiction, Poetry, Short Story, Flash Fiction, Non-fiction, Novella, Script Writing

Killer Nashville Silver Falchion Award

Killer Nashville

The Killer Nashville Silver Falchion Award is committed to discovering new writers, as well as superlative books by established authors and, upon discovery, sharing those writers and their works with new readers. There are a large number of both fiction and non-fiction categories you can enter.

Top prize

$250

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $79

Deadline: June 15, 2023

Genres

Crime, Essay, Fantasy, Fiction, Humor, Memoir, Mystery, Non-fiction, Novel, Poetry, Science Fiction, Script Writing, Short Story, Thriller

TWFest One-Act Play Contest

Tennessee Williams/New Orleans Literary Festival

Plays should run no more than one hour in length (one act or approx. 60 pages.) This contest is for emerging or previously unpublished playwrights.

Top prize

$1,500

Additional prizes

VIP all-access pass to the next festival, where there will be a professional staged reading of your play.

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $25

Deadline: October 15, 2022 (Expired)

Genres

Script Writing

Screenwriting Battle

Writing Battle

Writing Battle is a screenwriting competition for writers, by writers. Light on battle. Heavy on fun and friendship (but still somewhat battle-like). Receive prompts, write a script, then judge each other's stories. Win cash and get feedback from your peers. Join the battle!

Top prize

$1,500

Additional prizes

Feedback by industry professionals. Guaranteed feedback by at least 5 of your peers.

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $15

Deadline: May 03, 2022 (Expired)

Genres

Fiction, Script Writing

Olive Woolley Burt Awards For Creative Writing

League of Utah Writers

The Olive Woolley Burt Awards are open to the general public for previously unpublished work. Discounts for entry given to members of the League of Utah Writers.

Top prize

$150

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $10

Deadline: May 13, 2022 (Expired)

Genres

Essay, Fantasy, Fiction, Flash Fiction, Horror, Mystery, Non-fiction, Poetry, Science Writing, Script Writing, Short Story, Thriller, Young Adult

Screenplay & Short Script Competition

Showcase

The Scriptation Showcase is the screenwriting contest that circulates winners’ scripts to Hollywood directors, showrunners, and producers. 15 scripts get featured for one year in Scriptation, the Emmy® Award winning app used on film and TV productions. The earlier you apply, the lower the entry fee will be.

Top prize

$1,000

Additional prizes

1 Year Scriptation Showcase, 1 year industry pro access

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $74

Deadline: July 24, 2022 (Expired)

Genres

Script Writing

Dialogue Only

The Write Contest and Community

The Write Contest and Community is now accepting entries to our Dialogue Only Contest. The Dialogue Only Contest is an opportunity to create a clear and compelling story using nothing but dialogue. Your entry can be up to 250 words.

Top prize

$200

Additional prizes

Cash prizes for top three entries.

Entry requirements

💰 Fee: $20

Deadline: June 18, 2021 (Expired)

Genres

Fiction, Flash Fiction, Script Writing, Short Story

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