Contest Database

View our curated results of the best free literary contests!

Name	Deadline	Type	Status	Top Prize	WW Rating
J. Anthony Lukas Work-in-Progress Award	12/05/24	Fellowship	Active	$25,000.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline December 5 (must be received by this date). Highly recommended free contest from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism gives two $25,000 fellowships to aid in the completion of a significant work of nonfiction on a topic of American political or social concern. Applicants for the award must already have a contract with a US publisher to write a nonfiction book. Applicants should submit an entry form, a copy of their original book proposal, 50-75 pages (12,000-19,000 words) from the book, a photocopy of a contract with a publisher, and an explanation of how the award will advance the progress of the book. Enter online.
RSL Christopher Bland Prize	12/06/24	Published Prose Book	Active	£10,000.00	Recommended
Deadline December 6 (must be received by this date). Recommended free contest from the Royal Society of Literature gives 10,000 pounds for a debut book of fiction or nonfiction by an author who was aged 50+ at time of publication. Books must be submitted by an agent or publisher. Open to residents of the UK or the Republic of Ireland.
Watermelon Grant for Palestinian Creators	12/06/24	Individual Poems Fellowship Short Fiction Novel Excerpt Fellowship	Active	$2,000.00	Neutral
Deadline December 6 (must be received by this date; don't enter before September 17). Neutral free contest gives two annual grants of $2,000 to early or mid-career Palestinian creators of speculative arts. Literature is the 2024 genre. Send up to 15 pages of poetry or 20 pages of fiction, which can be short stories or a novel excerpt. Applications are extended to any Palestinian creator in the global diaspora. Contest is funded by speculative fiction writer and editor L.D. Lewis and administered by The Dream Foundry.
International Booker Prize	12/13/24	Published Prose Book	Active	£25,000.00	Highly Recommended
Deadlines September 6, November 1, December 13 (must be received by these dates; don't enter before July 10). Highly recommended free contest awards 25,000 pounds each for author and translator of an English translation of a novel or collection of short stories published in the UK or Ireland between May 1 of the deadline year and April 30 of the following year by an established UK/Ireland imprint. Author and translator need not be UK/Ireland citizens or residents, but entries must be submitted by an established UK/Ireland publisher. E-books and self-translated works welcome, but self-published titles are ineligible. Submit completed entry form, 10 copies of the work, and other required materials specified in the contest's full rules of entry by September 6 (if slated for publication between May 1 and December 31, 2024) or December 13 (if slated for publication between December 31, 2024 and April 30, 2025). Any imprint that has more than 6 books to submit may nominate additional titles as call-ins; all call-in nomination forms and other required application materials must be submitted by November 1. Sponsored by the Booker Prize Foundation and coordinated by Parallel.Net.
Friends of American Writers Literary Awards	12/14/24	Published Prose Book	Active	$2,500.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline December 14 (must be received by this date; don't enter before August 1). Highly recommended free contest from Friends of American Writers gives two awards of $2,500 apiece for books of fiction or creative nonfiction for adults. Books must have been published in the current calendar year and be set in the Midwest or written by a Midwestern author. Entrants must have published no more than 3 books, including the one under consideration for the prize. The author must be a resident (or previously have been a resident for approximately five years) of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, Nebraska, Ohio, South Dakota, or Wisconsin; or the locale of the book must be in a region identified above. Send 2 copies of book plus author's biographical information to the address specified on sponsor's rules page.
Fabuly Writer's Challenge	12/15/24	Short Fiction	Active	$500.00	Neutral
Deadline December 15 (must be received by this date). Neutral free contest gives $500 and e-book and audiobook publication for a short story, 2,000 words maximum, on a selected theme. Contest sponsor Fabuly is an app that offers free classic literature in e-book and audio formats. Submissions are capped at 200, so enter early. "It is advisable to reduce or altogether avoid the use of dialogue in your short story to ensure its successful adaptation into a generated audiobook."
Lit Fox Award	12/15/24	Poetry Manuscript	Active	$1,500.00	Recommended
Deadline December 15 (must be received by this date; don't enter before September 15). Recommended free contest from Lit Fox Books, a literary press in Austin, TX, offers $1,500 and publication for a full-length poetry manuscript (at least 48 pages). Enter online.
Massachusetts Book Awards	12/15/24	Published Poetry Book Published Prose Book	Active		Neutral
Deadline December 15 (must be received by this date). Neutral free contest gives statewide publicity for books copyrighted in the current calendar year by Massachusetts residents. Award categories are 1) fiction, (2) nonfiction, (3) poetry, (4) children’s picture books/early readers, (5) middle-grade/young adult literature, (6) translated literature (biennial, deadlines in odd-numbered years only), and (7) graphic novel/memoir (biennial, even-numbered years). Fill out form online and follow up with two copies of book by mail.
Minotaur Books/Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel Competition	12/15/24	Prose Manuscript	Active	$10,000.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline December 15 (must be received by this date). Highly recommended free contest gives $10,000 advance for a crime novel written by an author with no previously published books in any genre and who is not under contract with a publisher for publication of a novel. Authors of self-published works may enter, as long as the manuscript submitted is not the self-published work. Entries should be at least 220 double-spaced pages (60,000 words). Entrants must be over 18. Complete the online entry form and upload your manuscript. Co-sponsored by major publishing house Minotaur Books and nonprofit Mystery Writers of America.
Women Artists Datebook	12/15/24	Individual Poems	Active	$70.00	Neutral
Deadline December 15 (must be received by this date). Neutral free contest awards $70 for inspirational poems that "promote activism and/or healing" by writers who self-identify as women, to be included in a spiral-bound datebook with original art. Syracuse Cultural Workers describes itself as a "peace and justice publisher" with interest in the environment, social change, and marginalized groups. Email up to 4 previously unpublished poems, 30 lines maximum apiece.
RBC Bronwen Wallace Award for Emerging Writers	12/16/24	Individual Poems Short Fiction & Creative Nonfiction	Active	C$10,000.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline December 16 (must be received by this date). Highly recommended free contest awards top prizes of C$10,000 apiece for poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction by Canadian authors with no published books, but whose work has appeared in at least one independently edited literary magazine, journal, anthology, or journalistic source. Finalists in each genre also receive C$2,500 and an invitation to attend the award ceremony. Genre usually alternates by year, but "2025" contest is for all three genres. Submit up to 10 pages of unpublished poetry, a single unpublished story or a creative nonfiction piece (or an excerpt from a longer piece of prose), 2,500 words maximum, online. Author can make one entry in each genre in a given year. Sponsored by Writers' Trust of Canada.
Andromeda Award	12/18/24	Prose Manuscript	Active	$5,000.00	Recommended
Deadline December 18 (must be received by this date; don't enter before September 25). Recommended free contest for unpublished science fiction or fantasy novels gives prizes up to $5,000 and the opportunity to have your work read by talent agents from the contest sponsors: literary agencies Conville & Walsh and United Talent Agency, and UK-based writing academy Curtis Brown Creative, a branch of the Curtis Brown Group literary agency. Open to un-agented authors aged 18+ who are legal residents of the US or UK. Books should be 120,000 words maximum. Enter online.
Fountainhead Essay Contest for Middle and High School Students	12/20/24	Scholarly Essay	Active	$25,000.00	Highly Recommended
Deadlines June 7, September 13, December 20 (must be received by these dates). Highly recommended free contest for middle and high school students, ages 13+, 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'. Essays should be based on one of the three prompts on the sponsor's website (one assigned for each of the three seasonal entry rounds: summer, fall, and winter) and be 800-1,600 words long. 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.
Griffin Poetry Prize	12/20/24	Published Poetry Book	Active	C$130,000.00	Highly Recommended
Deadlines June 21, December 20 (must be received by these dates). Highly recommended free contest gives C$130,000 for English-language poetry books published in the current calendar year, as well as C$10,000 for shortlisted entries and a debut Canadian author. Translations are eligible, with the prize split between author and translator. See website for detailed eligibility rules. Publisher should send 4 copies of book plus entry form and a press packet. This is one of the most lucrative poetry prizes, as well as one of the most prestigious. Prize is awarded once a year, but there are ordinarily two deadlines depending on when the book was published. For the "2025" award, books published between January 1-June 30, 2024 must be received by June 21, 2024, and those published between July 1-December 31 must be received by December 20, 2024.
Love Letters to London Writing Competition	12/20/24	Individual Poems Short Fiction & Creative Nonfiction	Active	£500.00	Recommended
Deadline December 20 (must be received by this date). Recommended free contest from The London Society awards four top prizes of 500 pounds for writing in any form and style, 40 lines maximum for poetry and 500 words maximum for prose, on the theme of "Dreams for London", describing "your passions, hopes, and dreams for this incredible city". Prizes will be given in each of the following four categories: Aged 11 and under, 12-18 year olds, Open--all other entrants, and Poetry. Entries must have been written during the deadline year, and they may have been previously published. Submit up to three entries via email or by post.
Atlas Shrugged Essay Contest for Students	12/27/24	Scholarly Essay	Active	$25,000.00	Highly Recommended
Deadlines June 14, September 20, December 27 (must be received by these dates). Highly recommended free contest for high school, college, and graduate students awards $25,000 annual grand prize, three $3,000 top seasonal prizes, and other large prizes, for essays on Ayn Rand's novel 'Atlas Shrugged'. Essays should be based on one of the three prompts in the 'Challenging Essay Topics' section of the sponsor's website (one assigned for each of the three seasonal entry rounds: summer, fall, and winter) and be 800-1,600 words long. 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. Enter online. Contest is looking for entries that are sympathetic to Rand's rationalist, libertarian philosophy. See sponsor's website for other student contests.
Elie Wiesel Prize in Ethics Essay Contest	12/30/24	Scholarly Essay	Active	$10,000.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline December 30 (must be received by this date). Highly recommended free contest for US college students gives top prize of $10,000 and other large prizes for essays about ethical issues and the place of ethics in human life. Entries should be 3,000-4,000 words. See website for specific themes. Entrants must be registered full-time undergraduate juniors or seniors at accredited four-year colleges or universities in the US during the fall semester in which the contest opens for submissions, and they are encouraged to have a faculty sponsor. Enter online only.
VCU Cabell First Novelist Award	12/30/24	Published Prose Book	Active	$5,000.00	Recommended
Deadline December 30 (don't enter before July 1). Recommended free contest from Virginia Commonwealth University gives between $3,000 - $5,000 prize (varies based on sponsor's budget, but will be at least $3,000) for a first novel published in the US during the calendar year. Winner must attend an award event, which includes a public reading and other publicity opportunities. Email a digital copy as a PDF and send 5 hard copies of published book.
Alice Fay Di Castagnola Award	12/31/24	Fellowship	Active	$1,000.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline December 31 (must be received by this date; don't enter before October 1). Highly recommended contest gives $1,000 fellowship for completion of a manuscript-in-progress of poetry. Submit 10 pages of unpublished and/or published poetry online. Sponsored by The Poetry Society of America, the nation's oldest poetry organization. We highly recommend joining ($55 per year, $35 for students). Free to Poetry Society of America members; $15 entry fee for nonmembers.
Benjamin L. Hooks Book Award	12/31/24	Published Prose Book	Active	$1,000.00	Recommended
Deadline December 31. Recommended free contest gives $1,000 for a nonfiction book published in the current calendar year that best furthers understanding of the American Civil Rights Movement and its legacy. Send one copy of the book by the deadline date; finalists may be asked to send additional copies. Sponsored by the Benjamin L. Hooks Institute, an an interdisciplinary center for civil rights studies at the University of Memphis.
Canute A. Brodhurst Prize for Short Fiction	12/31/24	Short Fiction	Active	$600.00	Neutral
Deadline December 31 (must be received by this date; don't enter before March 1). Neutral free contest awards $600 for the best story, maximum of 3,500 words, accepted by The Caribbean Writer during the deadline year on a theme that varies annually. 2024 theme is 'Possibilities: Beyond Tradition, Inside of Courage'. The Caribbean should be central to the work, or the work should reflect a Caribbean heritage, experience, or perspective. Entries must be previously unpublished. No simultaneous submissions. All eligible submissions to the magazine are also considered for the Daily News Prize for a US or UK British Virgin Islands resident ($500), the Vincent Cooper Literary Prize for exemplary writing in Caribbean Nation Language ($300), the Cecile de Jongh Literary Prize for a work that best expresses the spirit of the Caribbean ($500), and the Marvin E. Williams Literary Prize to an emerging Caribbean author ($500). Submit online.
Cecil Hemley Memorial Award	12/31/24	Individual Poems	Active	$500.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline December 31 (must be received by this date; don't enter before October 1). Highly recommended contest awards $500 for a narrative poem. Sponsored by The Poetry Society of America, the nation's oldest poetry organization. We highly recommend joining ($55 per year, $35 for students). Submit your entry online. No entry fee to members; $10 entry fee for nonmembers.
Daily News Prize	12/31/24	Short Fiction & Creative Nonfiction	Active	$500.00	Neutral
Deadline December 31 (must be received by this date; don't enter before March 1). Neutral free contest awards $500 for the best prose writing (1-2 short stories, maximum 3,500 words each; or 1-2 essays, maximum 3,500 words each) by a US or UK Virgin Islands resident accepted for publication by The Caribbean Writer during the deadline year. Eligible submissions to the magazine are also considered for the Vincent Cooper Literary Prize for exemplary writing in Caribbean Nation Language ($300), the Canute A. Brodhurst Prize for best short fiction ($600), the Cecile de Jongh Literary Prize for a work that best expresses the spirit of the Caribbean ($500), and the Marvin E. Williams Literary Prize to an emerging Caribbean author ($500). Theme changes annually. 2024 theme is 'Possibilities: Beyond Tradition, Inside of Courage'. The Caribbean should be central to the work, or the work should reflect a Caribbean heritage, experience, or perspective. Entries must be previously unpublished. No simultaneous submissions. Submit online.
Elizabeth Alexander Creative Writing Award	12/31/24	Individual Poems Short Fiction & Creative Nonfiction	Active	$500.00	Neutral
Deadline December 31 (must be received by this date; don't enter before October 15). Neutral free contest gives $500 for creative writing that engages with feminism, race, and transnationalism (all genres compete together). Send 3-5 poems OR one story or essay, maximum 7,500 words, OR one play script, maximum 5,000 words. No simultaneous submissions. Enter online. Meridians is a literary journal at Smith College, a women's liberal arts college in Western Massachusetts.
Ernest J. Gaines Award for Literary Excellence	12/31/24	Published Prose Book	Active	$15,000.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline December 31 (must be received by this date; don't enter before May 1). Highly recommended free contest for a book of fiction (novel or short story collection) by an emerging African-American US citizen published during the current calendar year gives $15,000 and travel-expenses-paid trip to Baton Rouge, LA for award ceremony. Winner must participate in educational activities and small creative writing workshops with local students during the week of ceremony. No self-published books. Send entry form and 8 copies of book (or galleys if necessary). Sponsored by the Baton Rouge Area Foundation.
Four Quartets Prize	12/31/24	Individual Poems Fellowship	Active	$21,000.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline December 31 (don't enter before October 1). Highly recommended free contest awards a top prize of $21,000 for a unified and complete sequence of poems, 14 pages minimum, published in the US in a print or online journal, chapbook, or book during the current year. Self-published works are ineligible. Poet, publisher, or agent may send entry form, four copies of the sequence of poems, and four copies of a paragraph-length statement describing its aims. See full application instructions on sponsor's website. Sponsored by the Poetry Society of America.
George Bogin Memorial Award	12/31/24	Individual Poems	Active	$500.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline December 31 (must be received by this date; don't enter before October 1). Highly recommended contest awards $500 for a selection of 4-5 poems that "use language in an original way to reflect the encounter of the ordinary and the extraordinary and to take a stand against oppression in any of its forms". Submit your entry online. Sponsored by The Poetry Society of America, the nation's oldest poetry organization. We highly recommend joining ($55 per year, $35 for students). Free to Poetry Society of America members; $15 entry fee for nonmembers.
L. Ron Hubbard's Writers of the Future Contest	12/31/24	Short Fiction	Active	$6,000.00	Highly Recommended
Deadlines March 31, June 30, September 30, December 31. Highly recommended free contest for emerging writers of short science fiction, fantasy, and horror awards quarterly prizes of $1,000 plus an annual $5,000 grand prize for one of the four winners. Send only one story per quarter, maximum 17,000 words. See website for eligibility rules. Entrants may not have professionally published a novel or short novel, or more than one novelette, or more than three short stories, in any medium.
Lex:lead Essay Competition	12/31/24	Scholarly Essay	Active	$500.00	Neutral
Deadlines October 31 (must be registered online by this date) and December 31 (must be received by this date; don't enter before December 1). Neutral free contest awards up to 15 one-time scholarships of $500 each for English-language essays on a law and economic development topic that changes annually, written by law students who are studying in and citizens of the world's least developed countries, across Africa, Asia, and the Americas. See list of eligible nations in sponsor's downloadable rules document. For 2024, the question to be addressed is "How can laws regulating climate change and the environment support economic development?" Although any and all references used by the writer must be cited within the essay, sponsor is "looking for insight and ideas that solve the problem posed; not a review of academic literature on the subject". Send your essay, maximum 5 single-spaced pages, via email. Based in New York City, Lex:lead is a nonprofit organization of lawyers seeking to create greater economic advancement and development worldwide.
Lilith Magazine Fiction Competition	12/31/24	Short Fiction	Active	$300.00	Neutral
Deadline December 31 (must be received by this date; don't enter before September 1). Neutral free contest gives $300 for unpublished stories touching on the experience of Jewish women. Send one story, maximum 3,000 words (shorter stories preferred). Sponsored by Lilith, a Jewish feminist magazine. Contest is open to writers of all genders. Enter online or by email.
Lucille Medwick Memorial Award	12/31/24	Individual Poems	Active	$500.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline December 31 (must be received by this date; don't enter before October 1). Highly recommended contest awards $500 for a prose poem. Sponsored by The Poetry Society of America, the nation's oldest poetry organization. We highly recommend joining ($55 per year, $35 for students). No entry fee to members; $10 entry fee for nonmembers. Submit your entry online.
Lyric Poetry Award	12/31/24	Individual Poems	Active	$500.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline December 31 (must be received by this date; don't enter before October 1). Highly recommended contest awards $500 for a lyric poem on any subject. Sponsored by The Poetry Society of America, the nation's oldest poetry organization. We highly recommend joining ($55 per year, $35 for students). No entry fee to members; $10 entry fee for nonmembers. Submit your entry online.
Neil Postman Award for Metaphor	12/31/24	Individual Poems	Active	$2,000.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline December 31 (rolling deadline). Highly recommended free contest awards $2,000 for the best use of metaphor in a poem published in Rattle, a prestigious journal. Submissions are accepted year-round. Send up to 4 unpublished poems, any length. Wait for a decision on your first entry before submitting more. All poems published in Rattle in a given year are automatically considered for this award. No separate application process.
Robert H. Winner Memorial Award	12/31/24	Fellowship	Active	$2,500.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline December 31 (must be received by this date; don't enter before October 1). Highly recommended contest awards $2,500 for unpublished or published poetry by a mid-career poet who has not had substantial recognition, and is open to poets over 40 who have published no more than one full-length collection of poetry. Submit brief but cohesive manuscript of 10 pages online. Sponsored by The Poetry Society of America, the nation's oldest poetry organization. We highly recommend joining ($55 per year, $35 for students). Free to Poetry Society of America members; $15 entry fee for nonmembers.
Short Story Substack's Monthly Contest	12/31/24	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.
The Lyric College Poetry Contest	12/31/24	Individual Poems	Active	$500.00	Recommended
Deadline December 31 (don't enter before October 1). Recommended free contest gives prizes up to $500 for poems in traditional forms by full-time US or Canadian undergraduates. Submit up to 3 poems, each 39 lines maximum. Founded in 1921, The Lyric is the oldest magazine in North America in continuous publication devoted to traditional poetry. Note that contest address differs from magazine's regular address. Enter by email or by post.
The Writer Magazine/Emily Dickinson Award	12/31/24	Individual Poems	Active	$250.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline December 31 (must be received by this date; don't enter before October 1). Highly recommended contest awards $250 for a short poem, 16 lines maximum. Sponsored by The Poetry Society of America, the nation's oldest poetry organization. We highly recommend joining ($55 per year, $35 for students). No entry fee to members; $10 entry fee to nonmembers. Submit your entry online.
W.Y. Boyd Literary Award for Excellence in Military Fiction	12/31/24	Published Prose Book	Active	$5,000.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline December 31. Highly recommended free contest gives $5,000 for the best published book of fiction set in a period when the United States was at war. Both young adult and adult fiction are eligible. Book must have been published during the deadline year. Submit 7 copies of the book and complete the online application form. Administered by the American Library Association, sponsored by William Young Boyd II.
Vermont Writers' Prize	01/01/25	Individual Poems Short Fiction & Creative Nonfiction	Active	$1,250.00	Neutral
Deadline January 1 (must be received by this date). Neutral free contest awards two prizes of $1,250 (one for prose and one for poetry) and publication for the best previously unpublished writing about "Vermont: Its People, Its Places, Its History, or Its Values". Entries may be an essay, short story, play, or poem. Maximum 40 lines for poetry, maximum 1,500 words for prose. Contest is open to current Vermont residents and students. Submit your entry online. Co-sponsored by Green Mountain Power, an environmentally conscious utility company in Vermont, and Vermont Magazine. Formerly known as the Ralph Nading Hill Contest, it was renamed in 2013.
MoCo360 Short Story Contest	01/07/25	Short Fiction	Active	$500.00	Neutral
Deadline January 7 (must be received by this date). Neutral free contest awards publication in Bethesda Magazine as well as prizes up to $500 in adult category (age 18+) and $250 in high school category (grades 9-12) for previously unpublished short stories by residents of Montgomery County, MD and Upper Northwest Washington, DC (20015 and 20016 zip codes). Stories must be between 1,500 and 2,500 words. One entry per person. Enter via online submissions portal only.
Japan Center-Canon Essay Competition	01/08/25	Scholarly Essay	Active	$3,000.00	Recommended
Deadline January 8 (must be received by this date). Recommended free contest for high school and college students in the New York Metropolitan area gives scholarships up to $3,000 for essays, 500-750 words, on the spirit of Japan. Finalists also receive Canon cameras. Entrants must be 13 years old or older and enrolled in New York Metropolitan area high schools or undergraduate programs during the current school year. Entrants must be US citizens or legal permanent residents of the US except void in Maine and wherever prohibited by law. Winners are required to present their essays during an award ceremony at Stony Brook University in May. Enter online only.
Stop the Hate: Youth Speak Out Essay Contest Grades 6-10	01/09/25	Scholarly Essay	Active	$400.00	Neutral
Deadline January 9 (must be received by this date; don't enter before September 1). Neutral free contest sponsored by the Maltz Museum of Jewish Heritage awards five top prizes of $400 to students (one in each grade level) as well as a $1,000 award for Teacher of the Year for essays, maximum 500 words, on fighting discrimination. Essays must be true accounts, not fictitious stories. 2025 prompt is inspired by a quote from Marc Chagall, a Jewish artist who escaped the Nazi occupation of France during World War II. Open to students in grades 6-10 in certain Northeastern Ohio counties. Enter online using sponsor's submissions portal.
Bechtel Prize	01/10/25	Creative Nonfiction	Active	$1,000.00	Recommended
Deadline January 10 (must be received by this date; don't enter before October 1). Recommended free contest from Teachers & Writers Magazine gives $1,000 and publication for an essay, 2,500 words maximum, about teaching creative writing. Editors say, "We are looking for essays that describe a project or activity that got students excited about writing and fostered a vibrant and dynamic culture of literacy in the classroom." Judges are prominent authors. Enter online.
Encore Award	01/10/25	Published Prose Book	Active	£15,000.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline January 10 (must be received by this date). Highly recommended free contest awards top prize of 15,000 pounds for a second novel published during the previous calendar year. Authors must have resided in the UK or the Republic of Ireland for the past three years, and the submitted book must have been first published in the UK or the Republic of Ireland. UK publishers should complete the online entry form, upload a digital copy of the book, and mail 3 hard copies. Administered by the Royal Society of Literature.
BRIO Literary Arts Awards	01/13/25	Fellowship Fellowship	Active	$5,000.00	Recommended
Deadline January 13 (must be received by this date; don't enter before November 15). Recommended free contest awards approximately 40 grants of $5,000 to literary, visual, media, and performing artists aged 18+ who reside in the Bronx, NY. Full-time college and graduate students are not eligible. Works submitted must have been created in the past 5 years. See website for rules and length limits for each genre as well as other application materials that need to be submitted along with the work sample. Submit online. Sponsored by the Bronx Council on the Arts.
Discoveries Prize	01/13/25	Novel Excerpt	Active	£5,000.00	Recommended
Deadline January 13 (must be received by this date; don't enter before September 19). Recommended free contest gives top prize of 5,000 pounds and representation from the Curtis Brown Literary Agency for the first 10,000 words of a novel-in-progress by a female UK or Ireland resident age 18+. All shortlisted authors will be offered personalized packages of mentorship from an agent tailored to their individual needs, as well as free or discounted Curtis Brown Creative writing courses and Audible subscriptions. Prize is intended to discover and promote "the most talented and original new female writing voices". Writers must be unagented, and submissions must be previously unpublished. Writers need not have completed their novel at the time of entry. Enter online by completing the submission form, including the introductory extract of your work-in-progress and a concise synopsis (up to 1,000 words allowed, but sponsor prefers 500 words). Co-sponsored by the Women's Prize Trust, Curtis Brown Literary Agency, Curtis Brown Creative Writing School, and Audible.
Bethesda Urban Partnership Essay Contest	01/14/25	Creative Nonfiction	Active	$500.00	Neutral
Deadline January 14 (must be received by this date). Neutral free contest awards publication and prizes up to $500 in adult category (age 18+) and $250 in high school category (grades 9-12) for essays by residents of Washington, DC and select counties in Maryland and Virginia. Essays should be 500 words maximum. One entry per person. Obscene or objectionable material will be disqualified. Enter via online submissions portal. Sponsored by the Bethesda Urban Partnership.
Bethesda Urban Partnership Poetry Contest	01/14/25	Individual Poems	Active	$350.00	Neutral
Deadline January 14 (must be received by this date). Neutral free contest awards prizes up to $350 in adult category (ages 18+) and $75 in high school category (ages 14-18 and enrolled in grades 9-12) for previously unpublished poetry by residents of Washington, DC and select counties in Maryland and Virginia. All winners will be published on Bethesda.org and honored during Bethesda's Local Writer's Showcase in March; winner in adult category will also receive publication on The Writer's Center "First Person Plural" blog and a free class and membership to The Writer's Center. Poems should be 21 lines maximum. One entry per person. Enter via online submissions portal only; no mail or email entries accepted. Sponsored by the Bethesda Urban Partnership.
French-American Foundation Translation Prizes	01/15/25	Published Prose Book	Active	$10,000.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline January 15 (must be received by this date). Highly recommended free contest gives prizes of $10,000 apiece for the best published book-length translations of French fiction and creative nonfiction into English. Entries must have been published in the US during the calendar year preceding the deadline. Three excerpts from the translated book (the first 6 pages, 6 pages in the middle, and 6 pages at the end of the work) along with the three corresponding excerpts from the original work in French must be submitted online by the publisher, agent, publicist, or translator. Hard copies will be requested for finalists later on in the judging process. See detailed application requirements and instructions on sponsor's website.
Janet Heidinger Kafka Prize	01/15/25	Published Prose Book	Active	$15,000.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline January 15 (must be received by this date). Highly recommended free contest awards prize of $15,000 for a book-length work of prose fiction by a US woman, published in the preceding calendar year. Entries may be a novel, a collection of short stories, or experimental writing. A digital file must be submitted by publisher, and application form must be completed online; if a title is chosen as a finalist, sponsor will contact publisher for hard copies of the book. Sponsored by the University of Rochester's Susan B. Anthony Institute for Gender, Sexuality, and Women's Studies.
Levis Reading Prize	01/15/25	Published Poetry Book	Active	$5,000.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline January 15 (must be received by this date). Highly recommended free contest awards $5,000 for a first or second book of poetry by a US resident published during the preceding calendar year. Winner also receives an expenses-paid trip to Richmond, VA for a reading in the fall. Publisher must email a PDF of the book AND send three copies of the book, a cover letter, and a brief author bio by mail. Awarded by the Department of English and its MFA in Creative Writing program at Virginia Commonwealth University.
Moving Words Poetry Competition for Adults	01/15/25	Individual Poems	Active	$250.00	Neutral
Deadline January 15 (must be received by this date; don't enter before November 15). Neutral free contest awards 7 prizes of $250 for poems, of 10 lines or less, by writers aged 18+ living in the greater Washington, DC Metro transit area. The winning poems will be displayed inside Arlington Transit's buses for 7 months; winners also will receive online publication. For previously published poems, author must hold the copyright. Submit up to 10 poems online. Sponsored by Arlington Cultural Affairs as part of its Moving Words program.
Penguin Random House Creative Writing Awards	01/15/25	Individual Poems Short Fiction & Creative Nonfiction	Active	$10,000.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline January 15 (must be received by this date). Highly Recommended free contest gives six $10,000 scholarships to current US public high school seniors age 21 and under for creative writing, 4-10 pages, "with a strong, clear voice by authors who are daring, original, and unafraid to take risks" in one of the following categories: poetry, spoken word, fiction, personal essay/memoir, or book bans prompt. Winners also receive virtual meetings with editors, networking workshops, a panel about career opportunities in publishing, and chats with authors. Winners must plan to enroll in an accredited two- or four-year college, university, or approved vocational-technical school in the Fall of the deadline year, and the scholarships will be paid out over four years. Enter early because sponsor will only accept the first 1,000 applications received, which may occur before the deadline date. Co-sponsored by Penguin Random House and We Need Diverse Books.
Stacy Doris Memorial Poetry Award	01/15/25	Individual Poems	Active	$500.00	Recommended
Deadline January 15 (must be received by this date; don't enter before November 1). Recommended free contest from Fourteen Hills: The San Francisco State University Review awards $500 and publication for a poem, 3-10 pages long, that demonstrates a "truly inventive spirit". Open to all poets except current SFSU students. Limit one poem per writer. Enter online via sponsor's submissions portal.
Walter Muir Whitehill Prize in Early American History	01/15/25	Scholarly Essay	Active	$2,500.00	Recommended
Deadline January 15. Recommended free contest from the Colonial Society of Massachusetts awards $2,500 and publication in the New England Quarterly for a previously unpublished scholarly essay on pre-1825 American history. Essay must be between 40-60 double-spaced pages, use footnotes rather than endnotes, and follow Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition). Preference is given to New England subjects. Email your essay as both a Word document and a PDF or mail a hard copy of your essay. Electronic submission is strongly encouraged.
Stop the Hate: Youth Speak Out Essay Contest Grades 11-12	01/16/25	Scholarly Essay	Active	$20,000.00	Recommended
Deadline January 16 (must be received by this date; don't enter before September 1). Recommended free contest awards scholarships and prizes up to $20,000 for essays, fewer than 500 words, on fighting discrimination. Essays must be true accounts, not fictitious stories. 2025 prompt is inspired by a quote from Marc Chagall, a Jewish artist who escaped the Nazi occupation of France during World War II. Open to 11th and 12th graders in certain counties in Northeast Ohio. Enter online using sponsor's submissions portal. Sponsored by the Maltz Museum of Jewish Heritage in Beachwood, Ohio.
John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Essay Contest	01/17/25	Scholarly Essay	Active	$10,000.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline January 17 (must be received by this date; don't enter before September 1). Highly recommended free contest for US high school students under the age of 20 awards a top prize of $10,000 for essays about how an elected official who served during or after 1917, the year John F. Kennedy was born, risked their career to take a stand based on moral principles. Essays should be between 700-1,000 words and cite at least five varied research sources. Must complete and submit a registration form online for student and school information, including the name of a nominating teacher.
Washington State Book Awards	01/17/25	Published Poetry Book Published Prose Book	Active		Neutral
Deadlines June 30, September 15, November 15, January 17 (must be received by these dates). Neutral free contest recognizes seven authors for published books of poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction/memoir, and general nonfiction/biography for adults, along with children's book awards for picture, young reader, and young adult books, that were published during the calendar year. Authors must currently reside in Washington. An author who lives in Washington part of the year and considers Washington to be home is eligible. Publisher or author should complete entry form online and submit 6 copies of book (4 copies for children's books). Sponsored by The Washington Center for the Book at The Washington State Library.
Poetry Society of Virginia Student Contest	01/19/25	Individual Poems	Active	$25.00	Neutral
Deadline January 19 (must be received by this date). Neutral free contest awards online publication and prizes of $25, $15, and $10 in the elementary through high school categories for poems in any form and on any subject. Age categories are Grades 3-4, Grades 5-6, Grades 7-8, Grades 9-10, and Grades 11-12. One poem, 35 lines maximum, per entrant per category. Submit your poem online. Sponsored by the Poetry Society of Virginia, the second oldest state poetry society in the nation.
Zocalo Public Square Poetry Prize	01/24/25	Individual Poems	Active	$1,000.00	Recommended
Deadline January 24 (must be received by this date; don't enter before November 25). Recommended free contest awards $1,000 for a poem by a US author that best evokes a connection to place. "Place" may be interpreted by the poet as a location of historical, cultural, political, or personal importance; it may be a literal, imaginary, or metaphorical landscape. Send 1-3 unpublished poems, no length limit, by email. Zocalo Public Square connects people to ideas and to each other in an open, accessible, non-partisan, and broad-minded spirit.
Nine Dots Prize	01/27/25	Scholarly Essay Fellowship	Active	$100,000.00	Neutral
Deadline January 27 (must be received by this date; don't enter before October 11). Neutral free contest awards a $100,000 prize for a summary response (up to 3,000 words) to a set social science-related question by authors age 18+. For 2025, the question is "Is data failing us?" The winner will expand on the ideas expressed in their summary response by participating in a seminar at the University of Cambridge or virtually and by writing a short book (25,000-40,000 words) to be published by Cambridge University Press. Submit all required application materials (summary response, book outline, and justification statement) via sponsor's online submissions portal. Co-sponsored by the Kadas Prize Foundation, Cambridge University Press, and the University of Cambridge. Named after the lateral thinking puzzle that can only be solved by thinking outside the box, this prize honors "innovative thinking that tackles contemporary societal issues".
Dandelion Cottage Short Story Contest for Michigan Students	01/31/25	Short Fiction	Active	$250.00	Neutral
Deadline January 31 (must be received by this date; don't enter before September 1). Neutral free contest gives publication and prizes up to $250 for short stories, between 500 and 4,000 words, written by secondary and middle school students in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Also open to home-schooled students. See sponsor's detailed formatting requirements before entering. Teacher or school representative must submit student's entry via sponsor's online entry form. No limit to number of entries a teacher can make, but only one story per student may be submitted. Sponsored by the Michigan-based nonprofit Upper Peninsula Publishers & Authors Association.
Danuta Gleed Literary Award	01/31/25	Published Prose Book	Active	C$10,000.00	Highly Recommended
Deadline January 31 (must be received by this date; don't enter before November 12). Highly recommended free contest awards top prize of C$10,000 for the best first collection of short fiction written in the English language by a Canadian author and published in Canada during the preceding calendar year. Publisher must send 4 copies to the Writers' Union of Canada and also complete a submission form online, which includes uploading publicity materials.
Jerry Jazz Musician Fiction Contest	01/31/25	Short Fiction	Active	$150.00	Neutral
Deadlines January 31, May 31, and September 30 (must be received by these dates). Thrice-yearly free neutral contest awards $150 and web publication for short fiction. The Jerry Jazz Musician reader has interests in music, social history, literature, politics, art, film, and theatre, particularly that of the counter-culture of mid-20th century America. Entries should appeal to a reader with these characteristics. Submit a story of up to 4,000 words (3,000 words is ideal), along with a brief 100-word story synopsis, by email.
Story Unlikely Short Story Contest	01/31/25	Short Fiction & Creative Nonfiction	Active	$1,500.00	Recommended
Deadline January 31 (must be received by this date; don't enter before October 1). Recommended free contest gives prizes up to $1,500 and online publication for a short story or essay in any genre, maximum 4,000 words. No simultaneous submissions. To qualify for this contest, and receive the results, you must subscribe to their free monthly newsletter. Email your entry following the detailed formatting instructions on sponsor's rules page.