Contest Database
View our curated results of the best free literary contests!
| Name | Deadline | Type | Status | Top Prize | WW Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Giles St Aubyn Awards for Nonfiction | 07/06/26 | Prose Manuscript | Active | £10,000.00 | Highly Recommended | |
Deadline July 6 (must be received by this date). Highly recommended free contest gives top prize of 10,000 pounds to residents of the UK or the Republic of Ireland, who are writing their first major commissioned works of nonfiction for a general audience. Entries must be scheduled for publication in the UK or Ireland by a UK- or Ireland-based publisher, and the manuscript should be due to the publisher no earlier than April 1 of the year following the deadline. Applications should include a completed entry form, a draft chapter from the book (maximum 20 pages), a 2-page book synopsis with time frame for completion, a 2-page statement regarding your writing and your financial circumstances, a signed copy of the publishing contract, and a supporting letter from the editor. Author, agent, or publisher/editor may submit application online. Sponsored by the Royal Society of Literature and named after nonfiction author, history professor, and RSL Fellow Giles St Aubyn. Known as the Jerwood Awards prior to 2017. | ||||||
| Vincent Buckley Poetry Prize | 07/06/26 | Fellowship | Active | A$20,000.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline July 6 (must be received by this date; don't enter before April 13). Recommended free contest sponsored by the Australian Centre at the University of Melbourne is offered alternately to enable Irish poets to visit Australia and Australian poets to visit Ireland. Approximate A$20,000 stipend is included. 2026 deadline award is for an Irish poet to visit Australia. Submit application, poetry manuscript, and supporting materials online. | ||||||
| Donn Goodwin Poetry Prize | 07/14/26 | Individual Poems | Active | $100.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline July 14 (must be received by this date; don't enter before June 1). Neutral free contest from Milwaukee Irish Fest awards $100 prize for a previously unpublished poem reflecting Irish or Irish-American poetic traditions. Open to all authors. Email or send one poem, of any length. | ||||||
| Helen Schaible Sonnet Contest | 07/15/26 | Individual Poems | Active | $50.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline July 15 (must be received by this date; don't enter before June 1). Neutral free contest gives two top prizes of $50 apiece for the best sonnets (one Shakespearean or Petrarchan and one Modern). One poem per category per person. Submit your previously unpublished entry via the sponsor's online submission form. Be sure to specify which sonnet type (Shakespearean, Petrarchan, or Modern) you're submitting on each entry. No simultaneous submissions. Sponsored by the Poets & Patrons of Chicago, an organization that fosters an appreciation of poetry through writing workshops and other activities. | ||||||
| Stone Canoe Awards | 07/15/26 | Individual Poems Short Fiction | Active | $250.00 | Neutral | |
Deadlines July 15 (fiction), August 18 (poetry) (must be received by these dates). Neutral free contest gives prizes of $250 apiece for previously unpublished poetry and fiction by writers who live or have lived in upstate New York and who have not yet published full-length books. Winners will be published in Stone Canoe literary journal. Awards are for work already published in the journal. No separate application process; all submissions are automatically considered for the prizes. An entrant may submit one entry in each of the two genres. Submit 1-5 poems and/or one story (up to 7,500 words), through the sponsor's online submissions portal. Be sure to include a biographical note clearly detailing your current or past residency in the eligible region of New York State. | ||||||
| Roscommon New Writing Award | 07/16/26 | Individual Poems Short Fiction | Active | €500.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline July 16 (must be received by this date). Neutral free contest awards two top prizes of 500 euros for a poem, 30 lines maximum, or a short story, 2,000 words maximum, by a writer aged 18+ with a strong connection to Roscommon, Ireland: e.g. birth, current or former residency, education, or employment. Winning entries will be published in the Roscommon Herald. Send up to two entries (one per genre) along with an explanation of your connection to the county by email. Sponsored by the Roscommon County Council. | ||||||
| Peter Blazey Fellowship | 07/27/26 | Fellowship | Active | A$20,000.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline July 27 (must be received by this date; don't enter before April 27). Recommended free contest sponsored by the University of Melbourne gives an Australian writer a fellowship of up to A$20,000 to further a work-in-progress in the nonfiction fields of autobiography, biography, or life writing. Applicant must have a publishing record. Manuscript cannot be part of a submission for a higher degree. Submit 2-page CV, 1-page synopsis, and 5,000-word writing sample from the manuscript online. Fellowship is named in honor of journalist, author, and gay activist Peter Blazey. | ||||||
| Alocasia Microgrant for Queer Nature Writers | 07/31/26 | Fellowship Fellowship | Active | $500.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline July 31 (must be received by this date). Neutral free contest from Alocasia, an online journal of queer plant-based writing, gives two fellowships of $500 for authors' future creative endeavors. Contest is open to LGBTQ writers in the US. Send 1-5 pages of nature writing, personal statement of 1,000 words max, and brief bio via email. | ||||||
| Col. Darron L. Wright Memorial Writing Awards | 07/31/26 | Individual Poems Short Fiction & Creative Nonfiction | Active | $250.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline July 31 (must be received by this date; don't enter before June 1). Neutral free contest gives prizes up to $250 and anthology publication for poetry, fiction, and essays by current and former US military service members and their immediate family (parents, siblings, children). Send 1-5 poems or one prose piece up to 5,000 words. Contest sponsor Line of Advance is a literary journal founded by veterans of the war in Afghanistan. | ||||||
| Fountainhead Essay Contest for Middle and High School Students | 07/31/26 | Scholarly Essay | Active | $25,000.00 | Highly Recommended | |
Deadlines July 31, October 31, January 31 (must be received by these dates). Highly recommended free contest for middle and high school students in grades 8-12 awards $25,000 annual grand prize, three $3,000 top seasonal prizes, and other large prizes, for essays on Ayn Rand's novel 'The Fountainhead'. After registering for the contest online, student will receive instant access to the book, the essay prompt(s), as well as the word limit. The winning essays in the three seasonal contests are eligible to win the annual grand prize. A student can enter any or all of the three seasonal rounds. Submit your essay online. Contest is looking for entries that are sympathetic to Rand's rationalist, libertarian philosophy. See sponsor's website for other student contests. | ||||||
| Foyle Young Poets of the Year Award | 07/31/26 | Individual Poems | Active | Highly Recommended | ||
Deadline July 31. Highly recommended free contest for unpublished poems, 40 lines maximum, by authors aged 11-17 gives winners anthology publication, tuition to a week-long Arvon writing class, and other prizes. Online entries accepted. Poets aged 11-12 must submit a signed parent/guardian permission form to enter. Submissions can be made by the individual poet, a parent/guardian, or a teacher. Sponsored by the Poetry Society of the UK, a prestigious literary society. | ||||||
| Landfall Tauraka Essay Prize | 07/31/26 | Creative Nonfiction | Active | NZ$3,000.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline July 31 (must be received by this date). Recommended free contest for New Zealand citizens or permanent residents gives NZ$3,000 and possible publication for the best essay on any topic connected to New Zealand culture, maximum 4,000 words. Sponsored by the literary journal Landfall. The purpose of the competition is "to encourage New Zealand writers to think aloud about New Zealand culture, and to revive and sustain the tradition of vivid, contentious, and creative essay writing in this country". One entry per person. Send via email. | ||||||
| Northwind Writing Award | 07/31/26 | Individual Poems Short Fiction & Creative Nonfiction | Active | $100.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline July 31 (don't enter before May 1). Neutral free contest from Alaska-based small press Raw Earth Ink gives prizes of $100 per genre and anthology publication for poetry, short fiction, prose-poems, and essays. Maximum 2 entries per person. Writers must be aged 16+ and reside in the United States to participate. Enter by mail or email. Previously published work is acceptable if you have reprint rights. | ||||||
| Protopian Prize | 07/31/26 | Short Fiction | Active | $5,000.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline July 31 (must be received by this date; don't enter before May 1). Neutral free contest awards $5,000 and publication for an original short story of 500-6,000 words in one of two categories: Public AI or Democratic Futures. Submit one story in a single category via sponsor's online form. Co-sponsored by Metagov and Public AI Network. Winning stories will be published in 'In the Loop: Stories from the Future of People, Power, and Machines', an anthology forthcoming from MIT Press and edited by judging leads Gideon Lichfield and Ruthanna Emrys, alongside invited stories by professional science fiction authors. | ||||||
| Short Story Substack's Monthly Contest | 07/31/26 | Short Fiction | Active | $100.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline January 31 (must be received by this date), subsequent deadlines on the last day of each month. Neutral free contest for short fiction gives a monthly prize of $100 plus 50% of the site's subscription revenue for that month, and publication in their monthly Substack newsletter that is archived on the website. Entries may be published or unpublished, as long as you have the reprint rights. Send one story, 6-10,000 words, by email to shortstorystack@gmail.com as an MS Word or Google Doc file. | ||||||
| Sisters in Crime Pride Award for Emerging LGBTQIA+ Crime Writers | 07/31/26 | Short Fiction Novel Excerpt | Active | $2,000.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline July 31 (must be received by this date; don't enter before June 1). Recommended free contest from Sisters in Crime awards $2,000 grant for unpublished crime fiction, 2,500-5,000 words, by an emerging writer in the LGBTQIA+ community who has not published more than ten pieces of short fiction or two books. (Preference is given to previously unpublished authors.) Entries may be aimed at readers of all ages (from children's chapter books through adults). Winner may be asked to share thoughts on their win and the impact the award has made as well as serve as a member of next year's award selection committee. Send short story or first chapter(s) of a manuscript-in-progress, resume, and cover letter describing how the applicant is emerging in the genre and how the grant money would be used. Submit application materials via sponsor's online portal. | ||||||
| Tilted House 1BR/3BATH Chapbook Prize | 07/31/26 | Poetry Chapbook | Active | $200.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline July 31 (must be received by this date; don't enter before June 1). Neutral contest gives $200 prize, a publication run of 150-200, and 15 author copies to poets for an "innovative, sonic, omissive, dislocated, explorative, cryptic, and/or transgressive" poetry chapbook, between 16-35 pages. This contest has a sliding scale reading fee, and you can pay zero. Excerpts may have been previously published, but MS. must be unpublished. Author can submit multiple entries online. Sponsored by Tilted House, a New Orleans-based mico-press that publishes experimental works. | ||||||
| Granum Foundation Prizes | 08/01/26 | Fellowship Fellowship | Active | $5,000.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline August 1 (must be received by this date; don't enter before May 1). Recommended free contest gives $5,000 top prize to a US resident age 18+ for a writing sample of a work-in-progress (all genres compete together). Authors must not have published more than five books or chapbooks. The prizes are meant to assist writers in "completing substantive literary works (poetry books, essay or short story collections, novels, and memoirs) or to help launch these works". A special Translation Prize of at least $1,500 is also awarded to a US-based writer age 18+ to support the completion of a translation into English. Complete the appropriate entry form online, and be sure to include a cover letter, project description, timeline for project completion, and an explanation of how the grant will assist you. Upload approximately 12 poems or approximately 25 pages of prose (for short stories or essays, send AT LEAST two full pieces even if this exceeds the 25-page limit). Sponsored by the Granum Foundation, a nonprofit that offers grants to writers to enable the completion of new projects. Applications will close once 1,000 entries are received, so early submission is encouraged. | ||||||
| Oregon Literary Fellowships | 08/07/26 | Fellowship Fellowship | Active | $10,000.00 | Highly Recommended | |
Deadline August 7 (must be received by this date; don't enter before June 1). Highly recommended free contest awards two fellowships of $10,000 each and up to thirteen fellowships of $4,000 apiece to full-time Oregon residents, particularly those in the early stages of their writing career and demonstrating exceptional talent, in the following genres: poetry, fiction, literary nonfiction, drama, and young readers literature. Two fellowships (one $10,000 grant and one $4,000 grant) are reserved specifically for writers of color. There are also fellowships for women/gender-nonconforming writers as well as special fellowships for fiction writers who have lived in Oregon over the past 5 years. All genres compete together, and the total number of fellowships varies from year to year depending on funding. Fellowship recipients in the last 5 years (2022-26) are ineligible for this 2027 cycle. Submit up to 12 pages of poetry or 15 pages of prose with the required entry form online. To apply for the larger grant, also submit your 1-page artist's statement and 1-page impact statement. | ||||||
| Scotiabank Giller Canadian Book Prize | 08/14/26 | Published Prose Book | Active | C$100,000.00 | Highly Recommended | |
Deadlines February 13, April 17, June 19, August 14 (must be received by these dates). Highly recommended free contest awards top prize of C$100,000 for a full-length novel, graphic novel, or short story collection written in English (either originally or in translation) by a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, that is scheduled for publication in Canada between October 1 of the previous year and September 30 of the deadline year. Book must be available for sale in retail/book stores across Canada. Publishers of shortlisted titles must agree to pay C$2,000 per shortlisted book. Shortlisted authors must attend award ceremony in Toronto in November, participate in various marketing activities, and sign 2,000 copies of their book (purchased by sponsor for internal distribution). Deadline varies based on the time of year that the book was published; see website for complete schedule and entry rules. Publisher must send 5 hard copies by post AND provide e-books as PDFs. Founded in 1994 to honor literary journalist Doris Giller, the prize has been sponsored by Scotiabank since 2005. | ||||||
| Waterford Poetry Prize | 08/14/26 | Individual Poems | Active | £600.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline August 14 (must be received by this date; don't enter before May 22). Neutral free contest from the Waterford City & County Council's Arts Office awards prizes up to 600 pounds for a previously unpublished poem, 40 lines maximum, by a resident of Ireland. No simultaneous submissions permitted. Enter online. | ||||||
| Stone Canoe Awards | 08/18/26 | Individual Poems Short Fiction | Active | $250.00 | Neutral | |
Deadlines July 15 (fiction), August 18 (poetry) (must be received by these dates). Neutral free contest gives prizes of $250 apiece for previously unpublished poetry and fiction by writers who live or have lived in upstate New York and who have not yet published full-length books. Winners will be published in Stone Canoe literary journal. Awards are for work already published in the journal. No separate application process; all submissions are automatically considered for the prizes. An entrant may submit one entry in each of the two genres. Submit 1-5 poems and/or one story (up to 7,500 words), through the sponsor's online submissions portal. Be sure to include a biographical note clearly detailing your current or past residency in the eligible region of New York State. | ||||||
| Daniel Pearl Investigative Journalism Initiative Fellowship | 08/20/26 | Fellowship | Active | $5,000.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline August 20 (must be received by this date). Recommended free contest awards $5,000 grant for the completion of an investigative journalism piece about modern prejudice, written by journalists aged 22-38. Winner will be mentored by a prestigious panel of journalists, and winning article will be published in Moment, an arts and culture magazine with a Jewish focus. Submit resume, 3 published clips (including at least one long-form story), a story proposal description, a letter of recommendation, and 3 references via email. | ||||||
| Eugene Paul Nassar Poetry Prize | 08/31/26 | Published Poetry Book | Active | $3,000.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline August 31. Recommended free contest from Utica University awards $3,000 for a poetry collection, at least 48 pages long, published between July 1 of the previous year and June 30 of the deadline year by an upstate New York author. Winner must agree to attend award ceremony at Utica University, give a reading, and meet with students in a master class. Entries may be submitted by author or publisher. Send 2 copies plus entry form and CV listing creative and scholarly accomplishments. | ||||||
| Intrepid Times Travel Writing Contest | 08/31/26 | Creative Nonfiction | Active | $300.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline December 10 (must be received by this date). Neutral free contest gives $300 prize and online publication for a nonfiction, first-person travel story, 1,500-1,800 words, on a theme that changes each time. For Winter 2025, the theme is "A Human Moment". Sponsored by Intrepid Times, a weekly digital publisher that exclusively features what it calls "travel writing with heart". Intrepid Times runs these themed contests on an irregular schedule, once or twice per calendar year. | ||||||
| Iowa Short Fiction and John Simmons Short Fiction Awards | 08/31/26 | Prose Manuscript | Active | Recommended | ||
Deadline August 31 (don't enter before July 1). Recommended free contest from the prestigious Iowa Writers' Workshop seeks two manuscripts of short fiction (each 150 double-spaced pages minimum) by authors who have not previously published books of prose fiction in English. (Books in other genres or languages and self-published books do not disqualify you.) Prize is publication by the University of Iowa Press under a standard royalty contract. Enter online or by post. | ||||||
| Kindle Storyteller Award | 08/31/26 | Poetry Manuscript Prose Manuscript | Active | £20,000.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline August 31 (must be received by this date; don't enter before May 1). Recommended free contest from Amazon UK awards top prize of 20,000 pounds for previously unpublished English-language books, minimum 24 pages when in paperback format, in any genre, by authors aged 18+. To qualify, entries must be enrolled in Amazon's Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) Select program online and made available for sale both as an e-book and in print exclusively through Amazon during the entry period. Winner will also receive a marketing campaign to support the winning book on Amazon.co.uk. | ||||||
| PADIBA Awards | 08/31/26 | Published Prose Book | Active | $1,500.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline August 31 (must be received by this date; don't enter before July 1). Neutral free contest gives two prizes of $1,500 in the categories of Picture Book/Graphic Novel and Middle Grade/Young Adult for books where the main character has two or more marginalized identities, such as race, ethnicity, appearance, disability, neurodivergence, gender and sexual identity, religion, economic class, or family structure. Eligible books must have been traditionally published or scheduled for publication within this calendar year. Online application must be received by the deadline. Sponsor will then send the judges' addresses for mailing the books. PADIBA stands for "Pedro and Daniel Intersectionality Book Award". It is sponsored by Read Your World, the sponsor of Multicultural Children's Book Day. Each $1,500 prize will be shared equally with the authors, illustrators, and/or translators listed on the book cover. | ||||||
| Preservation Foundation Essay Contest for Unpublished Writers | 08/31/26 | Creative Nonfiction | Active | $200.00 | Neutral | |
Deadlines April 30, June 30, August 31, October 31 (must be received by these dates). Neutral free contest gives prizes up to $200 and web publication for essays, 1,000-5,000 words, by unpublished writers, defined as those whose creative writing has never produced revenues of over $250 in any single year. Nonfiction categories are General, Biographical, Travel, and Animal. April 30 deadline is for entries in the Animal Nonfiction category; June 30 deadline is for entries in the General Nonfiction category; August 31 deadline is for entries in the Biographical Nonfiction category; and October 31 deadline is for entries in the Travel Nonfiction category. The Preservation Foundation is a Tennessee-based nonprofit with the goal of preserving the extraordinary stories of ordinary people. "Since our object is to preserve these stories for future generations, not to put them up one year and take them down the next, all contest entries will be posted on our website and must remain on the site for as long as the Preservation Foundation exists." Submit up to 2 entries in each of the 4 nonfiction categories via email. | ||||||
| Short Story Substack's Monthly Contest | 08/31/26 | Short Fiction | Active | $100.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline January 31 (must be received by this date), subsequent deadlines on the last day of each month. Neutral free contest for short fiction gives a monthly prize of $100 plus 50% of the site's subscription revenue for that month, and publication in their monthly Substack newsletter that is archived on the website. Entries may be published or unpublished, as long as you have the reprint rights. Send one story, 6-10,000 words, by email to shortstorystack@gmail.com as an MS Word or Google Doc file. | ||||||
| Val Wood Prize for Creative Writing | 08/31/26 | Short Fiction | Active | £100.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline August 31 (must be received by this date). Neutral free contest gives online publication and top prize of 100 pounds for a short story, maximum 1,500 words, on a theme that changes annually, by a writer age 16+. For 2026, the theme is "Titles", and the sponsor seeks entries that "are shaped by, and reflect, the title they choose" as well as "show how powerfully a title can inspire a story of its own". No simultaneous submissions. Limit one story per author. Stories must not have been previously published, broadcast, or awarded a prize. Enter by email. Prize is named after contest sponsor and British author, Val Wood. | ||||||
