information about creative writing contests, poetry contests, literary magazine theme issues, writing residencies, grants, fellowships etc. Now accepting creative writing contests news and announcements!
Deadline: April 30, 2024 Results: Announced September 9, 2024 Prizes: Win $2,100 in prizes! Guest Judges: Wole Talabi, Sherrie Flick, C. S. E. Cooney, and Marin Sardy
Categories Accepted
Short stories: 1,001 – 7,500 words
Flash fiction: up to 1,000 words per piece
Poetry: up to three pages per poem
Creative Nonfiction: up to 6,500 words
Please visit our guidelines page to properly format your work for submission. We won’t reject a submission flat out for not following guidelines, but we will frown the whole time we’re reading.
What We Look For in Submissions
Our editors have drafted up this fantastic page on our website to share what we look for in our creative submissions. We strongly recommend you read this and check out the examples before submitting to get an idea of our general publishing aesthetic.
We also highly recommend checking out a past issue of F(r)iction. We have several pieces available online, but there’s nothing like holding a glossy, full-color issue in your hands. You can check out all of our issues in our shop.
Our Submission Guidelines
The winner will be announced publicly on September 9, 2024. All participants will be notified about the contest results through their Submittable account so please do not contact us before this date asking about the results. Judges’ decisions are final.
We accept work, written in English, from anywhere in the world—regardless of genre, style, or origin—and welcome speculative writing and experimental literature. Strange is good. Strange with a strong character arc is even better. Keep it weird, folks.
Writers over the age of thirteen are welcome to submit. Please note that if you are aged 13 – 16 and your work is selected for publication, we will require a signature from a parent or a guardian.
We are unable to offer refunds for contest submissions, so please read these guidelines and choose your submission category carefully.
Staff members are not eligible for participation.
We read all submissions anonymously. Please include your name and contact information in your cover letter only and remove any identifying information from both the submitted manuscript and the file name as well.
Any work previously submitted to F(r)iction for publication is not eligible.
Please also be aware that as we receive hundreds of submissions for each of our contest we are unable to offer personalized feedback. It’s not that we don’t want to, but there’s only so many volunteer staffers on our team.
We accept, and encourage, simultaneous submissions and only ask that you withdraw your piece(s) using Submittable upon acceptance elsewhere.
We do not accept work previously published elsewhere.
We edit every piece accepted for publication, including all our contest winners, whether you work is selected for publication through our online blog or in our print magazine. For this collaborative process we will pair you with one of our Senior Editors. All our editors have been trained to help guide the development of each piece to reach its fullest potential in keeping with the author’s vision. This does not mean we will take on a wild jumble of words and half-formed musings. But it does mean that we value your work and want to help each piece to be as unforgettable as possible.
No AI Submissions
We currently do not accept work from artificial intelligence (“AI”) generators or similar. By submitting your entry here, you are attesting that your work was not created, in whole or in part, with an AI generator or similar. Should any portion of your work be discovered to be the product of an AI generator or similar, by submitting here, you agree to indemnify Brink Literacy Project for all losses, fees, and damages it suffers relating to your submission and/or misrepresentation, including but not limited to, direct and indirect damages, loss of sale, reputational damages, attorney fees, and other expenses. You further agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Brink Literacy Project against any third-party claims relating to the work you submit.
NOTES:
F(r)iction (and its parent nonprofit organization, Brink Literacy Project) reserves the right to discuss contest entries, finalists, and winners in podcasts and marketing materials.
F(r)iction reserves the right to NOT award a winner in any categories if the submissions do not reach a publishable standard. In this case, reading fees will NOT be refunded and a winner will not be announced. Although this has rarely come to pass in our six-year publishing history, our top priority must remain with the quality of work we publish.
The 2024 Emerging Writer’s Contest will run from March 1 at noon EST to May 15, 2024, at noon EST.
The Emerging Writer’s Contest is open to writers of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry who have yet to publish or self-publish a book. Read past winners of the contest here.
We award publication, $2,000, review from Aevitas Creative Management, and a 1-year subscription for one winner in each of the three genres. Submit to the Emerging Writer’s Contest through our submission manager. You must be logged in to access our submission manager.
The 2024 contest judges are Dantiel W. Moniz (Fiction), Porsha Olayiwola (Poetry), and Augusten Burroughs (Nonfiction).
Publication
The winning story, essay, and poems from the 2024 contest will be published in the Winter 2024-25 issue ofPloughshares.
Eligibility
You are eligible if you:
Have yet to publish a book (including eBooks, translations, books in other languages/countries, self-published works, and poetry chapbooks with a print run of more than 300).
Have no book forthcoming before April 15, 2025.
Are not affiliated with Emerson College or with Ploughshares as a volunteer screener, intern, student, staff member, or faculty member.
Will not have a relationship with Emerson College before April 15, 2025 (example: if there is a chance you will attend the Emerson MFA program in the coming year or if your work has been accepted for publication for an upcoming issue).
Submitting
The contest is now open. We will announce the winners in mid-September of 2024.
Fiction and Nonfiction: Under 6,000 words Poetry: 3-5 pages
Submit one entry per year via our online submission manager.
Submit one entry per year via our online submission manager.
No entries via email or mail will be considered for the contest.
Submitted work must be original and previously unpublished in any form.
For poetry, we will be reading both for the strongest individual poem and the general level of work, and may choose to publish one, some, or all of the winner’s submitted poems.
International submissions are welcome, but we ask that you please be in touch via email for more information about this process.
We cannot accommodate revisions once a manuscript has been submitted.
If submitting work with images, please acquire permission beforehand and, if possible, ensure any images are high resolution (300 dpi).
We strongly encourage typed, double-spaced (poetry may be single-spaced), and numbered pages.
Cover letters are not necessary. Please remove all identifying information from your submission as they will be read anonymously.
Simultaneous vs. Multiple Submissions We only consider one submission per author for the duration of the contest, regardless of genre. Simultaneous submissions to other journals are fine as long as we are notified immediately upon acceptance elsewhere via email (pshares@pshares.org) or our online contact form.
Entry Fee
If you are a current subscriber through our Winter 2024-2025 issue, your contest entry is free of charge. You will still be prompted to “checkout” but you will not be required to enter payment information and will not be charged. If you’re not sure when your subscription expires, feel free to email us at pshares@pshares.org.
If you are not a subscriber, or your subscription expires before our Winter 2024-2025 issue, the submission manager will prompt you to pay the $30 fee at checkout. The fee includes a 1-year subscription to Ploughshares (beginning with the Spring 2024 issue and ending with the Winter 2024-2025 issue) and free submissions to the 2024 regular reading period.
If you are an international submitter, please be in touch via email for more information about this process.
The Dream Quest One Poetry & Writing Contest is open to anyone who enjoys expressing their innermost thoughts and feelings in the beautiful literary art of poetry or writing a story worth telling everyone! Welcome to all, having the ability to dream… Write a poem or short story to win cash prizes totaling $1275.00! All works must be original.
Write a poem, 30 lines or fewer on any subject, style, or form, typed or neatly hand-printed.
And/or write a short story, 5 pages maximum length, on any subject or theme, fiction, non-fiction, and creative nonfiction (including essay compositions, diary, journal entries, short screenplays, stageplays, and screenwriting). Also, all entries must be either typed or legibly hand-printed.
Multiple and simultaneous poetry and short story entries are accepted.
Deadline: March 31, 2024
All contest winners will be published on May 26, 2024
Prizes(USD):
Writing First Prize is $500. Second: $250. Third: $100.
Poetry First Prize is $250. Second: $125. Third: $50.
Entry fees(USD): $5 per poem, $10 per story
To send entries: Include title(s) with your story (ies) or poem(s), along with your name, mailing address, phone#, email, and brief biographical info. (Tell us a little about yourself), on the coversheet. Add a self-addressed stamped envelope for entry confirmation. Fees payable to: “DREAMQUESTONE.COM”
No one who achieves success does so without acknowledging the help of others. The wise and confident acknowledge this help with gratitude. “And remember, in whatever you do, it’s okay to dream, for dreams do come true.” –Dream Quest One
An independent panel of judges will select the winners and each category winner will be invited to read their work at a public event as part of the festival.
Prizes The winner of each category will receive a cash prize of €500 and a free weekend pass to Write By The Sea festival 2024. All four winning pieces will be published on the Write By The Sea website.
The runners-up in each category will receive €300 and third place will receive €200.
Entries must be submitted via the Online Entry Form on the Competition Page of the WBTS website, writebythesea.ie where entrants will upload their names and contact details. All entries must be in English. Entrants can submit as many entries as they wish at €10 per entry, or enter 3 pieces, in the same or different genres, for €25. Should your entry win a prize or be published elsewhere, please let us know so that we can remove it from the WBTS 2023 Writing Competition. The decision of the judges is final and no correspondence/contact will be entered into and no feedback will be given to individual entrants. Entrants should retain copies of their work as entries will NOT be returned. Committee members and relatives of committee members of the Write By The Sea festival, its agents, contributors or sponsors are not eligible to enter the competition. All non-winning entries will be deleted from our records after three months from the date of the announcement of the competition results. Note A: It breaks our hearts when we have to disqualify entrants who break the rules. Sadly, each year we have to disqualify a significant number of the entries for disregarding simple rules such as not submitting text in double-spacing or including their names and addresses in the text of their submissions. Please remember to spell-check and proofread your work. We look forward to receiving your entries and we wish you every success in the 2024 competition. Timeline Saturday 6th March 2024 – submissions open through writebythesea.ie Deadline: Friday 21st June 2024, competition closes at 11.59pm Friday 2nd August 2024– shortlist of the winning entry titles will be posted on the WBTS website, writebythesea.ie Sunday 1st September 2024 – winners will be notified by WBTS Each category winner will be invited to read their work at a public event as part of the festival. October 2024 – the winning pieces will be published on the WBTS website
The Letter Review Prize is now open in five categories: Short Fiction (up to 5000 words), Nonfiction (up to 5000 words), Poetry (up to 70 lines), Unpublished Books (including fiction, nonfiction, and poetry), and Reprints (previously published works which are not avail. online). The total yearly Prize pool is $30,000 USD. Entry fee: $20 USD (Poetry $15). Winners are published online and in our printed Winners Anthology. 10-20 per category are shortlisted. All entries are considered for publication, and submission to prestigious anthologies such as The Pushcart Prize. Judges’ feedback is available for all entries. See our Previous Winners Page here, and our Comments / Testimonials Page here.
ANNUAL MEMOIRS COMPETITION Deadline: Postmarked or emailed by Dec. 30, 2023
Guidelines: Submit a memoir of 5,000 words or less. Pages should be paper-clipped, with your name, address, email, phone, and title of work on the first page. Double-space, and use 12-point font. The entry fee is $30/$25 Members per memoir. Multiple entries are accepted. Emailed submissions may be sent in Word Doc to writersw@gmail.com, with “Memoirs Contest” in the subject. Entry fee is payable at our Registration Page. Please make check or money order payable to The Writers’ Workshop, and mail to: Memoirs Contest, 807 W. Lynn St., #220, Austin TX 78703. The entry fee is also payable at Paypal or our Venmo account: @writers-workshop.
ANNUAL POETRY COMPETITION Deadline: Postmarked or emailed by March 30, 2024
Guidelines: Submit up to 3 poems of two pages or less, emailed or regular post. Pages should be paper-clipped, with your name, address, email, phone, and title of work on the first page. Double-space, and use 12-point font. The entry fee is $25 for every three poems. Multiple entries are accepted. Please make check or money order payable to The Writers’ Workshop, and mail to: Memoirs Contest, 187 W. Lynn St, #220, Austin TX 78703. The entry fee is also payable at our Registration Page. Emailed submissions may be sent in Word Doc to writersw@gmail.com, with “Poetry Contest” in the subject. The entry fee is also payable at our Venmo account: @writers-workshop
Guidelines: Write about a difficult experience in your life, how you overcame this obstacle, and how you were changed by it. Winning stories will be chosen for originality and creative writing style. Stories should not exceed 5,000 words (double-spaced, 12-point font). Your name, address, email, phone, and title of work should appear on the first page. Enclose the reading fee of $25/$20 Workshop members per entry. Multiple entries are accepted. Please make check or money order payable to Writers’ Workshop, and send to: Hard Times Contest, 187 W. Lynn St., #220, Austin TX 78703. Emailed submissions in MS Word Documents may be sent to writersw@gmail.com, with “Hard Times Contest” in the subject. Entry fee is payable online via Paypal, or to our Venmo address: @www.twwoa.org
Email a Microsoft Word document of your entry to writersw@gmail.com with “Name of contest” in the subject line.
Pay entry fee online at your Venmo account: @writers-workshop, or your Paypal account. Include your name, title of work, address, email, and name of contest. The judges’ comments will be emailed to you.
By mail:
Enclose your submission, and a SASE (self-sealing self-addressed stamped envelope) for judges’ critique.
Make check or money order payable to The Writers’ Workshop, and mail to: [Name of contest], The Writers’ Workshop, 807 W. Lynn St., #220, Austin TX 78703.
You can also pay the entry fee online at your Paypal or our Venmo account: @writers-workshop.
Length limit: 250 lines maximum per poem. No restriction on age of author. Authors from all countries eligible except Syria, Iran, North Korea, Crimea, Russia, and Belarus (due to US government restrictions). Final judge: Michal ‘MJ’ Jones, assisted by Briana Grogan and Dare Williams.
First time entering? We prepared this brief video to guide you. See also our short entry checklist, then click the button below to submit. Read the winning entries from the 20th contest. The results of the 21st contest will be announced on April 15, 2024. Fee: $22 per submission (one submission may contain up to 3 poems). Enter as many submissions as you wish.
The Dream Quest One Poetry & Writing Contest is open to anyone who enjoys expressing their innermost thoughts and feelings in the beautiful literary art of poetry or writing a story that’s worth telling everyone! Welcome to all, having the ability to dream… Write a poem or short story to win cash prizes totaling $1275.00! All works must be original. https://www.dreamquestone.com
Guidelines:
Write a poem, 30 lines or fewer on any subject, style, or form, typed or neatly hand-printed.
And/or 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.
Postmark deadline: September 30, 2023
All contest winners will be published on November 30, 2023
Prizes(USD):
Writing First Prize is $500. Second: $250. Third: $100.
Poetry First Prize is $250. Second: $125. Third: $50.
Entry fees(USD): $5 per poem, $10 per story
To send entries: Include title(s) with your story (ies) and/or poem(s), along with your name, mailing address, phone#, email, and brief biographical info. (Tell us a little about yourself), on the coversheet. You may a self-addressed stamped envelope for entry confirmation. Fees payable to: “DREAMQUESTONE.COM”
No one who achieves success does so without acknowledging the help of others. The wise and confident acknowledge this help with gratitude. “And remember, in whatever you do, it’s okay to dream, for dreams do come true.” –Dream Quest One
Prizes: $1000 USD total prize pool. $600 first place plus publication. $ 250-second place plus publication. $150 third place plus publication. Twenty writers are Longlisted. All entries are considered for publication and for submission to the Pushcart Prize.
Entry Fee: $20 USD.
Dates: Open now until the 30th of June, 2023 at 11:59 pm ET.
Word Length: 999 – 3000 words.
Details: Open to anyone in the world. There are no genre or theme restrictions.
Prizes: Winning entries are published at Letter Review. $400 USD for First Place, $250 for Second, and $150 for Third. 20 entries are Longlisted. All entries are considered for publication and for submission to anthologies such as the Pushcart Prize.
Entry Fee: $15.
Dates: Open now, closing 30th June 2023 at 11:59 pm ET.
Words: Up to 999.
Details: Open to anyone in the world. There are no genre or theme restrictions.
Prizes: Winning entries published at Letter Review. $400 USD for First Place, $250 for Second, and $150 for Third. 20 entries are Longlisted. All entries are considered for publication and for submission to anthologies such as the Pushcart Prize.
Entry Fee: $15.
Dates: Open now, closing 30th June 2023 at 11:59 pm ET.
Lines: 70 lines max per poem.
Details: Open to anyone in the world. There are no style or subject restrictions.
The Dream Quest One Poetry & Writing Contest is open to anyone who enjoys expressing their innermost thoughts and feelings in the beautiful literary art of poetry or writing a story that’s worth telling everyone! Welcome to all, having the ability to dream… Write a poem or short story for a chance to win cash prizes totaling $1275.00! All works must be original. https://www.dreamquestone.com
Guidelines:
Write a poem, 30 lines or fewer on any subject, style, or form, typed or neatly hand-printed.
And/or 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.
Postmark deadline: May 28, 2023
All contest winners will be published on June 30, 2023
Prizes(USD):
Writing First Prize is $500. Second: $250. Third: $100.
Poetry First Prize is $250. Second: $125. Third: $50.
Entry fees(USD): $5 per poem, $10 per story
To send entries: Include title(s) with your story (ies) and/or poem(s), along with your name, mailing address, phone#, email, brief biographical info. (Tell us a little about yourself), on the coversheet. Add a self-addressed stamped envelope for entry confirmation. Fees payable to: “DREAMQUESTONE.COM”
No one who achieves success does so without acknowledging the help of others. The wise and confident acknowledge this help with gratitude. “And remember, in whatever you do, it’s okay to dream, for dreams do come true.” –Dream Quest One
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 a ten-day residency at Glen Hollow in Naples, New York, and distribution of the winning book to hundreds of Academy of American Poets members.
The Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize honors the memory of Lenore Marshall (1897-1971), a poet, novelist, essayist, and political activist. She was the author of three novels, three books of poetry, a collection of short stories, and selections from her notebooks. Her work appeared in such distinguished literary magazines as The New Yorker, The Saturday Review, and Partisan Review. In 1956 she helped found the National Committee for a Sane Nuclear Policy, the citizens’ organization that lobbied successfully for passage of the 1963 partial nuclear test ban treaty. In 1994, the Academy was selected by the New Hope Foundation to administer the award.
Any poet who meets one of the below criteria on the date of the application deadline, in any given year, is eligible:
U.S. Citizen; or,
resident of the United States for the ten-year period prior to the submission deadline; or,
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) status, Temporary Protected Status (TPS), Legal Permanent Status (LPS), or any subsequent categories designated by the U.S. authorities as conferring similar enhanced status upon non-citizens living in the United States.
Please note: By law the Academy of American Poets must report cash prizes awarded to individuals to the Internal Revenue Service. If individuals have a Social Security Number (SSN) or an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), the individual will receive a 1099. If the individual does not have an SSN or ITIN, the individual will receive a 1042 and could be subject to a withholding of a percentage of the cash prize.
Books must be submitted in the year after their publication, which means that books published in 2023 may not be submitted for consideration until 2024.
The 2023 contest is open to any book of original poetry, in English, published in the United States during 2022 in a standard edition (48 pages or more) by a living poet.
Self-published books are not eligible.
Translations and new editions of previously published books are not eligible.
Publishers may submit as many titles as they wish.
To submit an entry, publishers must upload a PDF copy to Submittable. A $75 entry fee and completed entry form via Submittable signifying the publisher’s acceptance of these guidelines is required for each title submitted.
The winner will be announced in September 2023.
The Academy of American Poets agrees to purchase approximately two hundred copies of the winning book for distribution to its members. The Academy may purchase additional copies of the book for its own use, but not for resale. No royalties will be paid to the author on the copies purchased by the Academy. The publisher agrees to sell to the Academy of American Poets the number of copies requested at a standard paper, printing, and binding, or at-cost discount.
The decisions of the Academy of American Poets as to eligibility are final. Books will not be returned.
All correspondence concerning the contest should be addressed to the Academy of American Poets and sent to awards@poets.org.
Please also note: It’s the mission of the Academy of American Poets to support American poets at all stages of their careers and to foster the appreciation of contemporary poetry. In furtherance of our mission, we are committed to maintaining the highest standards of quality and integrity in our publications and programs, and expect and require the same from the poets with whom we collaborate.
All applicants and selected award recipients agree that, as part of their eligibility to receive the Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize, they will maintain the highest standards of fairness, decency and personal integrity, in the Academy’s sole discretion, including with adherence to all applicable laws and community values. The decisions of the Academy of American Poets regarding eligibility, both initial and throughout the award period, are final.
Prizes: $800 USD total prize pool. First Prize is $400 USD and publication, Second Prize is $250 USD and publication, Third Prize is $150 USD and publication. All entries are considered for publication.
Who May Enter: Unrestricted. We welcome writers from everywhere in the world.
Entry Fee: $15 USD for one poem, $27 for two, and $35 for three. You may enter as many poems as you wish.
Opens: Now.
Deadline: 30th April 2023 11:59 pm (ET).
Length: Each individual poem should not exceed 70 lines.
Restrictions: No subject or style restrictions. All poems are welcome.
Letter Review is offering $1000 USD total Prize pool in a competition for short stories between 1000 – 3000 words. No genre or theme restrictions: all stories are welcome. Open to writers who live anywhere in the world. First Place receives $600 USD and publication, Second Place receives $250 USD and publication, and Third Place receives $150 USD and publication. Twenty writers will be longlisted. All entries are considered for publication, submission to the Pushcart Prize, and further anthologies. The Prize is judged blind to ensure fairness. See our Previous Winners Page here, and our Comments / Testimonials Page here. Enter via Submittable using the button below.
Letter Review is offering an $800 USD total Prize pool in a competition for poems of not more than 70 lines. No subject or style restrictions: all poems are welcome. Open to writers who live anywhere in the world. First Prize is $400 USD, Second Prize is $250 USD, and Third Prize is $150 USD. All winning entries are published at Letter Review. Twenty poets will be Longlisted. All entries are considered for publication, submission to the Pushcart Prize, and further anthologies. The Prize is judged blind to ensure fairness. See our Previous Winners Page here, and our Comments / Testimonials Page here. Enter via Submittable using the button below.
Letter Review is offering $600 USD total Prize pool in a competition for short stories up to 1000 words in length. No genre or theme restrictions: all stories are welcome. The Prize is open to writers who live anywhere in the world. First Prize is $300 USD and publication, Second Prize is $200 USD and publication, and Third Prize is $100 USD and publication. Twenty writers will be Longlisted. All entries are considered for publication, submission to the Pushcart Prize, and for further anthologies. The Prize is judged blind to ensure fairness. See our Previous Winners Page here, and our Comments / Testimonials Page here. Enter via Submittable using the button below.
The poetry can be of any type, length, or content, but it must be your own. The poetry can be serious or whimsical, fact or fiction, but it should strike a chord that makes us sit up and take notice. We’re looking for poems that say something and make a reader sit up and think. You may submit as many entries as you like.
One winner will receive:
Grand prize winner (Booksie Gold Poet Laureate).
$1,000 cash award
Gold winner badge
Promotion across Booksie in the contest winner sections of the site
Two runners-up will receive:
Two runners-up (Booksie Silver Poet Laureates).
$150 cash
Silver winner badge
Promotion across Booksie in the contest winner sections of the site
The Dream Quest One Poetry & Writing Contest is open to anyone who enjoys expressing their innermost thoughts and feelings in the beautiful literary art of poetry or writing a story that’s worth telling everyone! Welcome to all, having the ability to dream… Write a poem or short story to win cash prizes totaling $1275.00! All works must be original.
Guidelines:
Write a poem of 30 lines or fewer on any subject, style, or form, typed or neatly hand-printed.
And/or write a short story, 5 pages maximum length, on any subject or theme. Genres: fiction, non-fiction, and creative nonfiction (including essay compositions, diary, journal entries, short screenplays, stage plays, and screenwriting). All entries must be either typed or legibly hand-printed.
Multiple and simultaneous poetry and short story entries are accepted.
Postmark deadline: March 19, 2023
All contest winners will be published on April 30, 2023
Prizes (USD):
Writing First Prize is $500. Second: $250. Third: $100.
Poetry First Prize is $250. Second: $125. Third: $50.
Entry fees (USD): $5 per poem, $10 per story
To send entries: Include title(s) with your story (ies) or poem(s), along with your name, mailing address, phone#, email, and brief biographical info. (Tell us a little about yourself), on the coversheet. Add a self-addressed stamped envelope for entry confirmation. Fees payable to “DREAMQUESTONE.COM”
No one who achieves success does so without acknowledging the help of others. The wise and confident acknowledge this help with gratitude. “And remember, in whatever you do, it’s okay to dream, for dreams do come true.” –Dream Quest One
The Dream Quest One Poetry & Writing Contest is open to anyone who enjoys expressing innermost thoughts and feelings in the beautiful literary art of poetry or writing a story that’s worth telling everyone! Welcome to all, having the ability to dream… Write a poem or short story for a chance to win cash prizes totaling $1275.00! All works must be original.
Guidelines:
Write a poem, 30 lines or fewer on any subject, style, or form, typed or neatly hand printed.
And/or write a short story, 5 pages maximum length, on any subject or theme. Genres: fiction, non-fiction, and creative nonfiction (including essay compositions, diary, journal entries, short screenplays, and, stageplays, and screenwriting). All entries must be either typed or legibly hand printed.
Multiple and simultaneous poetry and short story entries are accepted.
Postmark deadline: September 30, 2022
All contest winners will be published on November 30, 2022
Prizes(USD):
Writing First Prize is $500. Second: $250. Third: $100.
Poetry First Prize is $250. Second: $125. Third: $50.
Entry fees(USD): $5 per poem, $10 per story
To send entries: Include title(s) with your story (ies) or poem(s), along with your name, mailing address, phone#, email, and brief biographical info. (Tell us a little about yourself), on the coversheet. Add a self-addressed stamped envelope for entry confirmation. Fees payable to “DREAMQUESTONE.COM”
No one who achieves success does so without acknowledging the help of others. The wise and confident acknowledge this help with gratitude. “And remember, in whatever you do, it’s okay to dream, for dreams do come true.” –Dream Quest One
The Francine Ringold Awards for New Writers honor the work of writers at the beginning of their careers.
Prizes: $500 prizes will be awarded in both the fiction and poetry categories, and the winning manuscripts will appear in the spring issue of Nimrod. Winners will have the chance to work with the Nimrod board of editors to refine and edit their manuscripts before publication.
Contest Rules
Eligibility: Open only to writers whose work has not appeared or is not scheduled to appear in more than 2 publications in the genre in which they are submitting. (Self-published works, works with a distribution of fewer than 100 copies, and journalistic articles are not considered toward the count of 2 publications.)
Guidelines:
· Poetry: Up to 5 pages of poetry (one long poem or several short poems)
· Fiction: 5,000 words maximum (one short story or a self-contained excerpt from a novel)
· All work submitted must be unpublished.
· Work submitted may be on any theme, any subject.
· The contest is open internationally.
· Include a cover sheet containing title(s), author’s name, full address, phone, and email.
· Omit author’s name on the manuscript.
Dates: The contest opens May 1st, 2022. Postmark Deadline: July 15th, 2022.
Postal Submissions: Clearly indicate “Ringold Contest Entry” on both the outer envelope and the cover sheet. Staple manuscript if possible; if not, please bind with a heavy clip. Include SASE for results only; manuscripts will not be returned. The results will be posted on Nimrod’s website.
Mail to:
Nimrod International Journal
Francine Ringold Awards for New Writers–Fiction or Poetry (indicate the appropriate category)
The University of Tulsa
800 S. Tucker Dr.
Tulsa, OK 74104
Entry Fee: Each entry must be accompanied by a $12 fee, which includes both the reading fee and a copy of the spring issue of Nimrod. Make checks payable to Nimrod. Writers may submit multiple entries, but each entry must include its own $12 fee.
Founded by Ruth G. Hardman The Katherine Anne Porter Prize for Fiction & The Pablo Neruda Prize for Poetry
First Prize: $2,000 and publication Second Prize: $1,000 and publication
The winners will also be flown to Tulsa from a domestic airport location for the Awards Ceremony and Writing Conference in October or, if global health situations do not allow for an in-person conference, winners will take part in a virtual Awards Ceremony and reading. All finalists will be considered for publication.
2022 Judges: Kaveh Bassiri and Toni Jensen
Contest Rules
Postmark Deadline: April 1, 2022
Poetry: 3-10 pages of poetry (one long poem or several short poems)
Fiction: 7,500 words maximum (one short story or a self-contained excerpt from a novel)
No previously published works or works accepted for publication elsewhere. The author’s name must not appear on the manuscript. Include a cover sheet containing titles, author’s name, full address, phone number, and email.
New for 2022: The Nimrod Literary Awards are open internationally.
Postal Submissions: “Contest Entry” should be clearly indicated on both the outer envelope and the cover sheet. Manuscripts should be stapled, if possible; if not, please bind with a heavy clip. Manuscripts will not be returned. Include SASE for results only. If no SASE is sent, no contest results will be sent; however, the results will be posted on Nimrod’s website.
Mail to: Nimrod International Journal Literary Contest–Fiction or Poetry (indicate the appropriate category) The University of Tulsa 800 S. Tucker Dr. Tulsa, OK 74104
Entry Fee: Each entry must be accompanied by a $20 fee. Make checks payable to Nimrod. $20 includes both an entry fee & a one-year subscription (two issues). Writers may submit multiple entries, but each entry must include its own $20 fee.
Rattle is proud to announce Prairie Moon Dalton’s “Grandmother”, which appeared in issue #72, is the winner of the 2022 Neil Postman Award for Metaphor.
We established the Neil Postman Award for Metaphor in honor and remembrance of Neil Postman, who died on October 5, 2003. The intention of the award is simple and two-fold: to reward a given writer for their use of metaphor, and to celebrate (and, hopefully, propagate) Postman’s work and the typographical mind.
Each year, the editors choose one poem that was published from regular submissions to Rattle during the previous year. There are no entry fees or submission guidelines involved. The author of the chosen poem receives $2,000.
For more information and to read all fifteen previous winners, please visit the award’s webpage. To submit your own poems, choose any free submission option on our Submittable page.
“GRANDMOTHER” by Prairie Moon Dalton
Georgia was hot and she was so small she slept inside a dresser drawer. Hair like gossamer, legs like a bird’s.
When she was eight a movie was eight cents. When she was eight she watched her brother kill her sister with a metal license plate.
Now she is flesh folded heavy against a chair, TV flashing pale on the trailer’s walls. Her pictures, pills, jewelry surrounding her like treasure.
Announcing the second annual Perkoff Prize, a new contest from the Missouri Review. The re-vamped Perkoff Prize is a tri-genre contest that will award $1000 and publication each to writers of the best story, set of poems, and essay that engage in evocative ways with health and medicine as judged by the editors.
The initial concept for the Perkoff Prize was as a post-publication award (much like TMR’s Peden Prize) that recognized literary excellence in a piece that had a meaningful connection to health and medicine. The original benefactor of this prize, the late Dr. Gerald Thomas Perkoff, was Professor Emeritus at the University of Missouri School of Medicine in the Department of Family and Community Medicine (learn more about his life here). His love of poetry and the possibilities in treating the vast, rich arena of human experience with health and medicine drove this desire to take note of and reward literary achievement. We started planning ways to reinvent and revitalize the prize in the late spring of 2019, with no idea what the following years would bring us. Now here we are, amidst a pandemic that has relentlessly revealed to us the precarity—and resourcefulness—of human health and the endeavors of medicine to relieve pain and suffering. It is our humble hope that the Perkoff Prize is an opportunity for the artful expression of these infinitely diverse and collectively resonant human experiences.
NEW DEADLINE: MARCH 31, 2022
Guidelines:
All submissions must engage with health and medicine in some way.
All submissions must be previously unpublished.
Poetry: up to 10 pages of poetry.
Fiction and Nonfiction: up to 8500 words, double-spaced.
Winners will be published in print issue of TMR.
All entries will be considered for publication (whether in print, or as part of our Poem of the Week or Blast features).
Multiple submissions and simultaneous submissions are welcome, but you must pay a separate fee for each entry and withdraw the piece immediately if accepted elsewhere.
Current University of Missouri students and faculty are ineligible.
Standard Entry fee: $15. Each entrant receives a one-year subscription to the Missouri Review in digital format (normal price $24).
“All Access” Entry fee: $30. In addition to the one-year digital subscription to the Missouri Review, the “All Access” entry fee grants access to the last 10 years of digital issues and the audio recordings of each digital issue.
How to Submit, click on the designated links below:
If you love expressing innermost thoughts and feelings using the beautiful literary art of poetry and/or writing a story that’s worth telling everyone, then here is an excellent opportunity for you. This poetry and writing contest is open to everyone and international. This is a platform where you can showcase creative writing and poetic talent, skills, and abilities.
Writing Contest entries may be written on a maximum of 5 pages, wither neatly handwritten or typed, single or double line spacing, on any subject or theme, fiction, nonfiction or creative nonfiction (including essay compositions, diary, journal entries and screenwriting).
Poetry Contest entries may be written on any subject, theme, or form. All poems must be 30 lines or fewer and either neatly handwritten or typed, single or double line spacing.
Multiple and simultaneous entries in both the Poetry Contest and the Writing Contest are accepted.
The following are the details of the prizes:
The First Writing Prize is $500.00
Second Writing Prize is: $250.00
Third Writing Prize is: $100.00
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The First Poetry Contest is: $250.00
Second Poetry Prize is: $125.00
Third Poetry Prize is: $50.00
There is a $5.00 (US dollars) entry fee per poem submitted and a $10.00 (US dollars) entry fee per short story submitted.
Kindly note that DEADLINE is MARCH 31, 2022 at 11:59 PM.Enter Now! for a chance to win cash prizes totaling $1275.00.
The Dream Quest One Poetry & Writing Contest is open to anyone who enjoys expressing innermost thoughts and feelings into the beautiful literary art of poetry or writing a story that’s worth telling everyone! Welcome to all, having the ability to dream… Write a poem or short story for a chance to win cash prizes totaling $1275.00! All works must be original. https://www.dreamquestone.com
Guidelines:
Write a poem, 30 lines or fewer on any subject, style, or form, typed or neatly hand printed.
And/or write a short story, 5 pages maximum length, on any subject or theme, fiction or non-fiction (including essay compositions, diary, journal entries, short screenplays, and screenwriting). Also, all entries must be either typed or legibly hand-printed.
Multiple and simultaneous poetry and short story entries are accepted.
Postmark deadline: March 31, 2022 at 11:59 PM
All contest winners will be published on May 22, 2022
Prizes(USD):
Writing First Prize is $500. Second: $250. Third: $100.
Poetry First Prize is $250. Second: $125. Third: $50.
Entry fees(USD): $5 per poem, $10 per story
To send entries: Include title(s) with your story (ies) or poem(s), along with your name, mailing address, phone#, email, brief biographical info. (Tell us a little about yourself), on the coversheet. Add a self-addressed stamped envelope for entry confirmation. Fees payable to: “DREAMQUESTONE.COM”
No one who achieves success does so without acknowledging the help of others. The wise and confident acknowledge this help with gratitude. “And remember, in whatever you do, it’s okay to dream, for dreams do come true.” –Dream Quest One
Introduction:Dream Quest One Poetry and Writing Contest is about showcasing the creative writing and poetic talent, skills, and abilities of all poets and writers. The Dream Quest One mission is to inspire, motivate and encourage anyone having the desire or love for poetry and writing, to continue doing so without fear of failure or success!
Awards:
Writing First Prize: $500, 2nd: $250, 3rd: $100.
Poetry First Prize: $250, 2nd: $125, 3rd: $50
Eligibility: The Dream Quest One Poetry and Writing Contest is international, and is open to all poets and writers whether published or not. Current and former employees of Dreamquestone.Com or their relatives are not eligible. Previously published poems and short stories in other contests, books, magazines, etc., are accepted and welcome as long as they are original to the contest entrant.
Rules: All poems must be 30 lines or fewer, may be either neatly handwritten or typed, single or double line spacing, on any subject, theme, form, or style. All entries must be original works.
All short stories may be on any subject or theme. Genres: any fiction, non-fiction, creative nonfiction, essays, diary, journal entries and short screenplays are accepted. Contestants will enter their short stories either neatly hand printed or typed, using single or double line spacing, within a maximum of (5) pages or less. No word count. All entries must be original works. You may submit entries to both the poetry contest and the writing contest, at the same time. Multiple entries are accepted.
Fee Details: $5.00 (US dollars) per poem. $10.00 (US dollars) per story.
All entries may be submitted by March 31, 2022 at 11:59PM, Pacific Standard Time (PST)
Winners will be notified and published online in the Dare to Dream pages on May 22, 2022.
Contact: c/o Andre L. West Dream Quest One Poetry & Writing Contest P.O. Box 3141 Chicago, IL 60654
NARRATIVE INVITES all writers, poets, visual artists, photographers, performers, and filmmakers between eighteen and thirty years old to send us their best work. We’re looking for the traditional and the innovative, the true and the imaginary. We’re looking to encourage and promote the best young authors and artists working today.
Awards: First Prize is $1,500, Second Prize is $750, Third Prize is $300, and ten finalists will receive $100 each. The prizewinners and finalists will be announced in Narrative.
Written: Works of prose and of poetry, including short stories, all poetic forms, novel excerpts, essays, memoirs, and excerpts from book-length nonfiction. Prose submissions must not exceed 15,000 words. Each poetry submission may contain up to five poems. The poems should all be contained in a single file. All submissions should be double-spaced (excluding poetry, which should be single-spaced), with 12-point type, at least one-inch margins, and sequentially numbered pages. Please provide your name, address, telephone number, and email address at the top of the first page. Submit your document as a .doc, .docx, .pdf, or .rtf file. You may enter as many times as you wish, but we encourage you to be selective and to send your best work. All entries will be considered for publication.
Drawn: Graphic stories, graphic-novel excerpts, and comics of no more than thirty pages, in .pdf format.
Photographed: Photo essays of between five and twenty images, previously unpublished (including on sites like Instagram, your personal website, stock photography sites, etc.). Images should be submitted together in low-resolution .pdf format; however, upon acceptance, images will need to be provided that have a resolution of at least 300 dpi, in a .tif, .jpg, or raw format that can be reproduced at 2,048 pixels wide. Captions or text should be included, either with the file containing the images or as a separate document in a .doc or .pdf format, with numbered captions corresponding to the similarly numbered photographs. Please provide your name, address, telephone number, and email address on the first page.
Spoken: Original works of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry in audio theater, including performance, radio journalism, and stories and poems read aloud. Submissions may run up to ten minutes, in .mp3 format, with a bit rate of at least 128 kbit/s.
Filmed: Short films and documentaries of up to fifteen minutes. Submissions must be in .mp4 or .mov format.
Timing: Entries will be accepted through November 19, 2021, at midnight, Pacific standard time.
Entry fee: There is a $26 fee for each entry. And with your entry, you’ll receive three months of complimentary access to Narrative Backstage.
Judging: The contest will be judged by the editors of the magazine. Winners and finalists will be announced to the public by December 18, 2021. All entrants will be notified by email of the judges’ decisions, which will be final. The judges reserve the option to declare ties and to designate and award only as many winners and/or finalists as are appropriate to the quality of contest entries and of work represented in the magazine.
Entries must be previously unpublished, though we do accept works that have appeared in college publications. Entries cannot have been the winner, finalist, or honorable mention in another contest. We accept online entries only. We do accept simultaneous submissions, but if your entry is accepted elsewhere, please let us know as soon as possible (and accept our congratulations!).
Creative Writing Contests 