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Best Writing Contests in 2024
Showing 428 contests that match your search.
National Poetry Competition 2024
The Poetry Society
Genres: Poetry
The competition, run by The Poetry Society since 1978, is one of the world’s most prestigious prizes for a single unpublished poem. Judged by Stephen Sexton, Romalyn Ante, John McAuliffe. Open to all poets worldwide aged 18+.
Additional prizes:
Runners-up receive £2,000 and £1,000. Commended entries receive £500
💰 Entry fee: $8
📅 Deadline: October 31, 2024 (Expired)
The Reedsy Prompts Contest
Genres: Fiction and Short Story
Every Friday, Reedsy sends out five writing prompts. Enter your response within a week for a chance at $250. Winners may also be included in a future issue of Reedsy’s literary magazine, Prompted.
$25 credit toward Reedsy editorial services
💰 Entry fee: $5
📅 Deadline: December 31, 2024
Stringybark Open Short Story Award 2024
Stringybark Publishing
Genres: Fiction, Mystery, Short Story, Crime, Flash Fiction, Horror, Humor, Science Fiction, Thriller, and Young Adult
Our annual flagship competition, the Stringybark Stories Open Short Story Award 2023, is now bigger than ever! Thanks to Graeme Simpson and Anne Buist, a record prize pool of over $1300 is on offer. The theme is open, the only constraint is that there must be a reference to Australia somewhere in the story. It doesn't matter how small a link there is (it could be a jar of vegemite on the counter), there just needs to be one!
2nd: $360 | 3rd: $210 | 4th: $110
💰 Entry fee: $15
📅 Deadline: February 25, 2024 (Expired)
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Annual Flash Fiction Competition
This quarterly open-themed competition has closing dates of 31st March, 30th June, 30th September and 31st December. The results will be announced about six weeks after each closing date and the three winning entries each quarter will be published on the website.
💰 Entry fee: $7
📅 Deadline: June 30, 2024 (Expired)
World Historian Student Essay Competition
World History Association
Genres: Children's and Essay
The World Historian Student Essay Competition is an international competition open to students enrolled in grades K–12 in public, private, and parochial schools, and those in home-study programs. Membership in the World History Association is not a requirement for submission. Past winners may not compete in the same category again.
📅 Deadline: May 01, 2024 (Expired)
Killer Nashville Silver Falchion Award
Killer Nashville
Genres: Crime, Essay, Fantasy, Fiction, Humor, Memoir, Mystery, Non-fiction, Novel, Poetry, Science Fiction, Script Writing, Short Story, and Thriller
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.
💰 Entry fee: $79
📅 Deadline: June 15, 2024 (Expired)
Aurora Polaris Creative Nonfiction Award
Trio House Press
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.
Publication
💰 Entry fee: $25
📅 Deadline: May 15, 2024 (Expired)
Oxford Poetry Prize
Partus Press Ltd
The Oxford Poetry Prize is an annual competition for a single poem in English. The prize opens on May 1, 2024, with a deadline of August 31, 2024. The guest judge for this year is Rachel Long. Winners receive cash prizes and publication in Oxford Poetry.
Second: £200 Third: £100 Publication offered to all winning poets.
💰 Entry fee: $10
📅 Deadline: August 31, 2024 (Expired)
Claymore Award
Genres: Mystery, Non-fiction, Science Fiction, Short Story, Suspense, and Thriller
The Claymore Award is an annual writing contest aimed at helping new and rebranding authors get published. It seeks the best first 50 pages of unpublished manuscripts, plays, or screenplays, focusing on genres like mystery, thriller, and action. Winners are announced at the annual Killer Nashville Awards Dinner, which is open to the public and media. The award was created in 2009 and aims to facilitate recognition for writers.
Recognition and potential agent representation
💰 Entry fee: $50
📅 Deadline: April 01, 2025
Crossings Travel Writing Competition
Intrepid Times
Genres: Non-fiction, Short Story, and Travel
The competition invites writers to explore the theme of 'crossings' through original, factual, first-person travel stories. Entries must be between 1200 and 2000 words and should depict a personal travel experience that embodies the theme.
The winner's story will be published on Intrepid Times. Up to five shortlisted entries will also be published under standard terms.
💰 Entry fee: $0
📅 Deadline: April 30, 2024 (Expired)
Ethos Literacy Annual Short Short Story Contest
Ethos Literacy
Genres: Fiction, Flash Fiction, and Short Story
The challenge: write a story using 100 words on one of four topics. Open to all ages with a special prize for authors 14 years or younger. The contest supports nonprofit literacy programs.
6 cash prizes of $100 each; publication in digital magazine, inclusion in webcast
💰 Entry fee: $12
📅 Deadline: February 01, 2024 (Expired)
Michael Waters Poetry Prize
University of Southern Indiana
The Michael Waters Poetry Prize awards a $6,000 prize and publication by SIR Press for a collection of poetry written in English. Entries are considered annually, with the next deadline on February 3, 2025, and judged by Monica Youn. The contest aims to honor Michael Waters’ contributions to American arts and letters.
Publication by SIR Press.
💰 Entry fee: $3
📅 Deadline: February 03, 2025
IEW Writing Contest
Institute for Excellence in Writing
Genres: Children's
The contest invites students aged 8-18 to participate, regardless of experience with IEW's writing methods. Each participant submits an essay based on specified prompts for different age levels.
1st place: $200 for the student winner and a $200 gift certificate for their parent or teacher Additional monetary prizes and gift certificates for 2nd and 3rd places. Participants receive a free IEW bookmark.
Ó Bhéal Five Words International Poetry Competition
The competition invites poets to submit works based on five given words each week over a 42-week period. It aims to encourage creativity and showcases poets' works in an anthology.
Second place: 500 euros Third place: 250 euros Travel fee and accommodation for winners attending the event. Physical award crafted by Michael Ray, plus opportunities for winners to read at events.
📅 Deadline: January 28, 2025
Free Verse Poetry Contest
FanStory.com Inc.
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.
📅 Deadline: August 22, 2022 (Expired)
First Chapter + Synopsis Competition
Fiction Factory
Genres: Fiction and Novel
Why not enter the Fiction Factory First Chapter Competition? Send us your first chapter + a 1 page synopsis (if your first chapter is more than 5000 words, send it with the 5000 word point clearly marked). First Prize: £500 + an appraisal and a reading by a top London Literary Agent. All short-listed entrants will receive a free appraisal. Appraisals: For an extra fee, £20, we will write a comprehensive appraisal of your chapter. Results will be published in July, 2024
A reading by a top London Literary Agent plus publication
💰 Entry fee: $22
📅 Deadline: February 29, 2024 (Expired)
Tom Howard / Margaret Reid Poetry Contest
Winning Writers
Welcome to the 20th annual Tom Howard/Margaret Reid Poetry Contest. Submit published or unpublished work. $3,000 for a poem in any style or genre. $3,000 for a poem that rhymes or has a traditional style.
$200 for 10 honorable mentions
💰 Entry fee: $20
📅 Deadline: October 01, 2024 (Expired)
Katherine Anne Porter Prize in Short Fiction
University of North Texas Press
Genres: Short Story, Flash Fiction, and Novella
An annual award celebrating excellence in short fiction, the Katherine Anne Porter Prize invites submissions of unpublished collections of short stories, novellas, or flash fiction.
Cricket Magazine Contest
Cricket Magazine
The contest invites children to submit original art related to a camp theme. It emphasizes creativity and originality, encouraging participants to depict their ideal camping experiences.
Winning entries will be published in the November/December 2024 issue of Cricket Magazine.
📅 Deadline: July 25, 2024 (Expired)
Ironclad Creative Short Story Competition
Ironclad Creative CIC
Genres: Fiction, Short Story, Crime, Fantasy, Flash Fiction, Horror, Humor, Mystery, Novella, Romance, Science Fiction, and Thriller
The Ironclad Creative Short Story Competition is held quarterly, encouraging original short stories based on a provided prompt. The latest competition had a theme of '7.12am' and featured multiple prize-winning entries. The organization aims to support writers, especially those with low incomes and neurodivergent backgrounds.
2nd: £50 3rd & 4th: £25 10 short-listed entries ge4t publication
Self-Publishing Literary Awards
Black Caucus of ALA (BCALA)
Genres: Fiction, Non-fiction, Novel, and Poetry
The BCALA Self-Publishing Literary Awards honors the best self-published ebooks by African American authors in the U.S. across fiction and poetry genres. The awards focus on the cultural, historical, and sociopolitical aspects of the Black Diaspora.
Formal recognition at the NCAAL conference, BCALA Literary Award Seal.
Miller Williams Poetry Prize
University of Arkansas Press
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.
Publication through the University of Arkansas Press
💰 Entry fee: $28
📅 Deadline: September 30, 2024 (Expired)
Indignor Play House Annual Short Story Competition
Indignor House Publishing
Genres: Fiction, Flash Fiction, Short Story, Crime, Essay, Fantasy, Horror, Humor, Memoir, Mystery, Non-fiction, Novella, Poetry, Romance, Science Fiction, Thriller, and Young Adult
Indignor House Publishing is proud to announce that our annual writing competition (INDIGNOR PLAYHOUSE Short Story Annual Competition) is officially open with expected publication in the fall of 2024. Up to 25 submissions will be accepted for inclusion in the annual anthology.
2nd: $250 | 3rd: $150
📅 Deadline: March 01, 2024 (Expired)
Marsh Hawk Press Poetry Prize
Marsh Hawk Press
The Marsh Hawk Press Poetry Prize is an annual contest that accepts poetry manuscripts. The winner receives a cash prize of $1,000 and publication. The contest is open to both emerging and established poets, with a blind submission process.
Winner gets publication. Robert Creeley Memorial Award ($250), Rochelle Ratner Memorial Award ($250) are also available.
Great American Think-Off
New York Mills Regional Cultural Center
Genres: Essay and Non-fiction
The Great American Think-Off is an annual philosophical essay contest that invites participants to submit essays on significant questions of life. The contest culminates in a live debate where finalists present their arguments, and the audience votes on the best perspective.
Four cash prizes of $500 each for finalists.
📅 Deadline: April 01, 2024 (Expired)
Wergle Flomp Humor Poetry Contest
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.
Two-year gift certificate for Duotrope | 2nd: $500
Bridport Poetry Prize
Bridport Arts Centre
You don't have to be Tennyson. Just talented. All we ask is that you please keep poems to 42 lines, max. You can, of course, write less. In addition to the prize money, the top three poems are automatically entered into the Forward Prize For Poetry’s best single poem competition, with the chance to win a further £1000. This exclusive award is not open to the public. You can write about absolutely anything but whatever your rhyme or reason, we want to read your poetry.
£1000 for 2nd, £500 for 3rd
📅 Deadline: May 31, 2024 (Expired)
Rhyming Poetry Contest
Write a poem of any type that has a rhyme scheme.
📅 Deadline: August 12, 2024 (Expired)
Best Stories on Human Impact of Climate Change
Secant Publishing
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.
2nd: $500 | 3rd: $250 | Up to 30 entries will be published in an anthology.
WOW! Women On Writing Quarterly Creative Nonfiction Essay Contest
WOW! Women On Writing
Genres: Non-fiction and Essay
Seeking creative nonfiction essays on any topic (1000 words or less) and in any style--from personal essay and memoir to lyric essay and hybrid, and more! The mission of this contest is to reward bravery in real-life storytelling and create an understanding of our world through thoughtful, engaging narratives. Electronic submissions via e-mail only; reprints/previously published okay; simultaneous submissions okay; multiple submissions are okay as long as they are submitted in their own individual e-mail. Open internationally.
2nd: $300 | 3rd: $200 | 7 runner-ups: $25 Amazon Gift Cards
The Caterpillar Poetry Prize 2024
The Moth Magazine Ltd.
The Caterpillar Poetry Prize is an annual competition for unpublished poems written by adults for children aged 7–11. It has been awarded since 2015 by notable judges like Michael Rosen and includes past winners such as Louise Greig and Coral Rumble.
€1,000 plus a week at Circle of Misse in France
2nd: €500 | 3rd: €250 Some poems may be commended at the judge's discretion.
💰 Entry fee: $16
📅 Deadline: March 31, 2024 (Expired)
BBC National Short Story Award
BBC Radio 4 and Cambridge University
The BBC National Short Story Award encourages submissions of short stories up to 8,000 words. The contest promotes the art of storytelling and awards notable literary contributions.
4x shortlisted stories: £600
📅 Deadline: March 18, 2024 (Expired)
Biopage Storytelling Writing Contest
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.
📅 Deadline: July 31, 2024 (Expired)
ReadWrite Strategies Funny Workplace Anthology Contest
ReadWrite Strategies
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.
2nd: 200 and print copy | 3rd, 4th, & 5th: $100 and print copy
📅 Deadline: December 18, 2023 (Expired)
Snowbound Chapbook Award
Tupelo Press
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.
Publication by Tupelo Press, 25 copies of the winning title, a book launch, and national distribution. Finalists will be considered for publication.
📅 Deadline: February 28, 2025
Discover the finest writing contests of 2024 for fiction and non-fiction authors — including short story competitions, essay writing competitions, poetry contests, and many more. Updated weekly, these contests are vetted by Reedsy to weed out the scammers and time-wasters. If you’re looking to stick to free writing contests, simply use our filters as you browse.
Why you should submit to writing contests
Submitting to poetry competitions and free writing contests in 2024 is absolutely worth your while as an aspiring author: just as your qualifications matter when you apply for a new job, a writing portfolio that boasts published works and award-winning pieces is a great way to give your writing career a boost. And not to mention the bonus of cash prizes!
That being said, we understand that taking part in writing contests can be tough for emerging writers. First, there’s the same affliction all writers face: lack of time or inspiration. Entering writing contests is a time commitment, and many people decide to forego this endeavor in order to work on their larger projects instead — like a full-length book. Second, for many writers, the chance of rejection is enough to steer them clear of writing contests.
But we’re here to tell you that two of the great benefits of entering writing contests happen to be the same as those two reasons to avoid them.
When it comes to the time commitment: yes, you will need to expend time and effort in order to submit a quality piece of writing to competitions. That being said, having a hard deadline to meet is a great motivator for developing a solid writing routine.
Think of entering contests as a training session to become a writer who will need to meet deadlines in order to have a successful career. If there’s a contest you have your eye on, and the deadline is in one month, sit down and realistically plan how many words you’ll need to write per day in order to meet that due date — and don’t forget to also factor in the time you’ll need to edit your story!
For tips on setting up a realistic writing plan, check out this free, ten-day course : How to Build a Rock-Solid Writing Routine.
In regards to the fear of rejection, the truth is that any writer aspiring to become a published author needs to develop relatively thick skin. If one of your goals is to have a book traditionally published, you will absolutely need to learn how to deal with rejection, as traditional book deals are notoriously hard to score. If you’re an indie author, you will need to adopt the hardy determination required to slowly build up a readership.
The good news is that there’s a fairly simple trick for learning to deal with rejection: use it as a chance to explore how you might be able to improve your writing.
In an ideal world, each rejection from a publisher or contest would come with a detailed letter, offering construction feedback and pointing out specific tips for improvement. And while this is sometimes the case, it’s the exception and not the rule.
Still, you can use the writing contests you don’t win as a chance to provide yourself with this feedback. Take a look at the winning and shortlisted stories and highlight their strong suits: do they have fully realized characters, a knack for showing instead of telling, a well-developed but subtly conveyed theme, a particularly satisfying denouement?
The idea isn’t to replicate what makes those stories tick in your own writing. But most examples of excellent writing share a number of basic craft principles. Try and see if there are ways for you to translate those stories’ strong points into your own unique writing.
Finally, there are the more obvious benefits of entering writing contests: prize and publication. Not to mention the potential to build up your readership, connect with editors, and gain exposure.
Resources to help you win writing competitions in 2024
Every writing contest has its own set of submission rules. Whether those rules are dense or sparing, ensure that you follow them to a T. Disregarding the guidelines will not sway the judges’ opinion in your favor — and might disqualify you from the contest altogether.
Aside from ensuring you follow the rules, here are a few resources that will help you perfect your submissions.
Free online courses
On Writing:
- "How to Craft a Killer Short Story" ( Click here )
- "The Non-Sexy Business of Writing Non-Fiction" ( Click here )
- "How to Write a Novel" ( Click here )
- "Understanding Point of View" ( Click here )
- "Developing Characters That Your Readers Will Love" ( Click here )
- "Writing Dialogue That Develops Plot and Character" ( Click here )
- "Stop Procrastinating! Build a Solid Writing Routine" ( Click here )
On Editing:
- "Story Editing for Authors" ( Click here )
- "How to Self-Edit Your Manuscript Like a Pro" ( Click here )
- "Novel Revision: Practical Tips for Rewrites" ( Click here )
- "How to Write a Novel: Steps From a Bestselling Writer" ( Click here )
- "How to Write a Short Story in 9 Simple Steps" ( Click here )
- "100 Literary Devices With Examples: The Ultimate List" ( Click here )
- "20 Writing Tips to Improve Your Craft" ( Click here )
- "How to Write Fabulous Dialogue [9 Tips + Examples]" ( Click here )
- "8 Character Development Exercises to Write 3D Characters" ( Click here )
Bonus resources
- 200+ Short Story Ideas ( Click here )
- 600+ Writing Prompts to Inspire You ( Click here )
- 100+ Creative Writing Exercises for Fiction Authors ( Click here )
- Story Title Generator ( Click here )
- Pen Name Generator ( Click here )
- Character Name Generator ( Click here )
After you submit to a writing competition in 2024
It’s exciting to send a piece of writing off to a contest. However, once the initial excitement wears off, you may be left waiting for a while. Some writing contests will contact all entrants after the judging period — whether or not they’ve won. Other writing competitions will only contact the winners.
Here are a few things to keep in mind after you submit:
Many writing competitions don’t have time to respond to each entrant with feedback on their story. However, it never hurts to ask! Feel free to politely reach out requesting feedback — but wait until after the selection period is over.
If you’ve submitted the same work to more than one writing competition or literary magazine, remember to withdraw your submission if it ends up winning elsewhere.
After you send a submission, don’t follow it up with a rewritten or revised version. Instead, ensure that your first version is thoroughly proofread and edited. If not, wait until the next edition of the contest or submit the revised version to other writing contests.
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