Contest Database
View our curated results of the best free literary contests!
| Name | Deadline | Type | Status | Top Prize | WW Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| American-Scandinavian Foundation Translation Prizes | 09/15/25 | Poetry Manuscript Prose Manuscript | Active | $2,500.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline September 15 (must be received by this date). Recommended free contest awards $2,500 Nadia Christensen Prize for unpublished English translations of modern poetry, fiction, drama, or literary prose originally written in Danish, Finnish, Icelandic, Norwegian, or Swedish by a Nordic author born after 1900. $2,000 Leif & Inger Sjoberg Prize will be awarded to an individual whose Nordic translations have not previously been published; $2,000 Wigeland Prize will be awarded to a Norwegian translator; and $2,000 Inger and Jens Bruun Prize also will be awarded for the best Danish translation. Submissions should not exceed 25 double-spaced pages of poetry or 50 double-spaced pages of prose. See sponsor's guidelines for additional required application materials. Enter online. Sponsored by the American-Scandinavian Foundation. | ||||||
| Washington State Book Awards | 09/15/25 | Published Poetry Book Published Prose Book | Active | Neutral | ||
Deadlines June 30, September 15, November 15, January 16 (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. | ||||||
| International Booker Prize | 09/25/25 | Published Prose Book | Active | £25,000.00 | Highly Recommended | |
Deadlines July 24, September 25, October 23 (must be received by these dates; don't enter before June 24). 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, a PDF of the text, and other required materials specified in the contest's full rules of entry by July 24 (if slated for publication between May 1 and November 30, 2025) or September 25 (if slated for publication between December 1, 2025 and April 30, 2026). Any imprint that has more than 3 books to submit may nominate additional titles as call-ins; all call-in nomination forms and other required application materials must be submitted by October 23. Sponsored and coordinated by the Booker Prize Foundation. | ||||||
| Fountain Magazine Essay Contest | 09/30/25 | Short Fiction & Creative Nonfiction | Active | $1,000.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline September 30 (must be received by this date; don't enter before July 1). Recommended free contest awards publication and prizes up to $1,000 for a personal essay or short story, 1,500-2,500 words, on a specified theme. This year's theme is "AI: Real or Fake?". Share your thoughts and feelings about life in the age of artificial intelligence. Entries should be general-interest articles with a few references but not full-scale scholarly essays. The journal seeks to promote respectful dialogue among many worldviews and fields of study; entries should reflect these values. Enter via online form. Contest sponsor The Fountain is a bimonthly magazine that publishes essays on spirituality, philosophy, science, and the universe. Published by Tughra Books, an Islamic press. | ||||||
| Jerry Jazz Musician Fiction Contest | 09/30/25 | 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. | ||||||
| Kari Ann Flickinger Memorial Literary Prize | 09/30/25 | Prose Manuscript | Active | $1,500.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline September 30 (must be received by this date; don't enter before May 2). Neutral free contest gives prizes up to $1,500 and publication by Ballerini Book Press for a short fiction or short experimental fiction manuscript of at least 40,000 words. Offered in odd-numbered years only. San Francisco Bay Area poet Kari Ann Flickinger published her last collection, 'Ceiling Fan', with Rare Swan Press shortly before her death in May 2022. This prize was created in 2023 to celebrate her artistic legacy and to honour her contribution to literary life. | ||||||
| L. Ron Hubbard's Writers of the Future Contest | 09/30/25 | 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. | ||||||
| Sejong Cultural Society International Sijo Competition | 09/30/25 | Individual Poems | Active | $500.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline September 30 (must be received by this date). Neutral free contest from the Sejong Cultural Society awards a $500 top prize for an English-language sijo poem, 3 lines maximum, on any topic. Be sure to read more about this Korean poetic form in the resources provided on the sponsor's rules page. Submissions must be unpublished and may not have previously won any awards. Limit one sijo per author. Enter online. | ||||||
| Short Story Substack's Monthly Contest | 09/30/25 | 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. | ||||||
| VersoFrontera | 09/30/25 | Poetry Manuscript | Active | Neutral | ||
Deadline September 30 (must be received by this date). Neutral free contest from Texas Review Press awards a standard royalty contract for a poetry manuscript in any style or form, 50-100 pages, by any poet writing in English, or a combination of English and Spanish, who has not yet published a full-length collection of poetry. Enter online. Sponsored by Texas Review Press in collaboration with the VersoFrontera Literature and Arts Festival. | ||||||
| Willie Morris Award for Southern Poetry | 09/30/25 | Individual Poems | Active | $3,000.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline September 30 (must be received by this date; don't enter before July 1). Recommended free contest gives $3,000 and expenses-paid trip to award ceremony in Oxford, Mississippi for an unpublished poem that evokes the American South. Submit one poem, maximum 60 lines, online. | ||||||
| Willie Morris Awards for Southern Fiction and Southern Nonfiction | 09/30/25 | Published Prose Book | Active | $12,000.00 | Highly Recommended | |
Deadline September 30 (must be received by this date; don't enter before July 1). Highly recommended free contest offers prizes of $12,000 apiece for the authors of a novel and a nonfiction book published in the deadline year and about the Southern US. Winners also receive an expenses-paid trip to Oxford, Mississippi. Authors should be "under-recognized, original voices in conversations about the South". Titles must "ask readers to engage with or reflect on the complexities of the American South"; be uplifting, optimistic, and hopeful; and demonstrate a "sense of period, place, and people". Publisher, editor, or author should submit registration form online and then send one hard copy to prize sponsor. | ||||||
| Working Class Writers Grant | 09/30/25 | Fellowship Fellowship | Active | $1,000.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline September 30 (must be received by this date; don't enter before September 1). Recommended free contest awards $1,000 for published or unpublished writing samples (poetry, drama, fiction, or nonfiction) by working-class, blue-collar, financially disadvantaged, and homeless writers. Submit a sample of up to 10 pages of poetry or drama, or 5,000 words of fiction or creative nonfiction. Along with your writing sample, send a 750-word personal statement that addresses both your relevant financial background and what you hope to accomplish with the help of this grant as well as a 1-page bibliography of any previously published work. If sending a segment of a novel or novella, include 1-page synopsis. See website for other submission requirements. Enter online via sponsor's submissions portal. Sponsored by Speculative Literature Foundation. | ||||||
| Write Before Midnight Short Fiction Contest | 09/30/25 | Short Fiction | Active | $3,000.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline September 30 (must be received by this date). Recommended free contest awards prizes up to $3,000 for short stories in any genre, maximum 7,000 words, on "the business of not ending the world." Sponsored by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, an independent, nonprofit organization which main goal is to "equip the public, policymakers, and scientists with the information needed to reduce man-made threats to our existence." | ||||||
| Changes Book Prize | 10/01/25 | Poetry Manuscript | Active | $10,000.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline October 1 (must be received by this date; don't enter before September 1). Recommended free contest from Changes Press gives $10,000 and publication for a poetry manuscript, 48-96 pages, by a US resident with no more than one previously published poetry collection. Winner also receives a book launch in New York City. Enter online. Formerly known as the Bergman Prize. | ||||||
| Glenna Luschei Prize for African Poetry | 10/01/25 | Published Poetry Book | Active | $1,000.00 | Highly Recommended | |
Deadline October 1 (don't enter before May 1). Highly recommended free contest awards $1,000 for the best full-length collection of poetry, 48 pages minimum, published in the previous calendar year by an African national, African resident, or poet of African birth or African parentage. Translations are eligible; self-published books are not. Publisher should send an entry form and 4 copies of each nominated title to the African Poetry Book Fund at Brown University. | ||||||
| Sunlight Press Flash Fiction Contest | 10/03/25 | Short Fiction | Active | $750.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline October 3 (must be received by this date; don't enter before September 2). Neutral free contest from digital literary journal The Sunlight Press awards $750 prize and online publication for flash fiction (1,000 words maximum). Note that early entry is strongly encouraged, as sponsor will close its submission window on the deadline date or when they reach 75 submissions, whichever comes first. Limit one entry per person. Email your submission and write "Fall Flash Fiction Contest" in the subject line. According to sponsor's website, "We want to hear the ways people turn toward light and hope, whether it is through the arts, culture, spirituality, or humor, and also how they respond to the darkness and navigate unknown spaces." | ||||||
| Neal Peirce Foundation Journalism Travel Grants | 10/07/25 | Fellowship | Active | $1,500.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline October 7 (must be received by this date). Recommended free contest offers up to seven travel grants of up to $1,500 apiece to journalists with a professional publication history, to cover "under-told stories about ways to make cities and their metro regions work better for all their people." Travel must be within the US, within three months of award receipt, and the story should be submitted to the pitched outlet within three months of travel ending. See website for application form. | ||||||
| Adina Talve-Goodman Fellowship | 10/08/25 | Fellowship | Active | $2,000.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline October 8 (must be received by this date; don't enter before September 8). Recommended free contest from One Story literary magazine awards year-long fiction writing mentorship opportunity for an early-career fiction writer aged 21+ who has not yet published a book and has never been enrolled in an MFA program. Fellowship includes free tuition for all of sponsor's online classes and programming, a travel stipend of $2,000 and tuition to attend week-long summer writers' conference, and a full manuscript review/consultation of a story collection or novel in progress with an executive editor. To qualify, writer must not have a book under contract with an agent and/or publisher at time of application, and writer cannot have been published by One Story (or have a forthcoming publication with One Story). Submit a fiction writing sample, 3,000-5,000 words, that "speaks to issues and experiences related to inhabiting bodies of difference" via sponsor's online submissions portal. Also upload personal statement (600-1,100 words), 1-page resume, and contact details of two professional references. Be sure to read sponsor's complete guidelines before entering. | ||||||
| John Lewis Writing Grants | 10/10/25 | Fellowship Fellowship | Active | $500.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline October 10 (must be received by this date). Neutral free contest awards up to four fellowships $500 each for fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, or screen/playwriting by Black and African American writers who have resided in Georgia for at least one year. Submit a completed grant application, an artist statement of 500 words maximum, and a writing sample up to 10 pages of a published or unpublished piece in the genre in which you are applying. Sponsored by the Georgia Writers Association and the Hawthornden Foundation. | ||||||
| Money Chronicles: A Story Initiative | 10/12/25 | Short Fiction & Creative Nonfiction | Active | $1,000.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline October 12 (must be received by this date; don't enter before September 8). Recommended free contest gives $1,000 top prize and up to 20 prizes of $150 for unpublished short fiction and personal essays about our complex relationships with money and personal finance. Entries should be 7,500 characters maximum, including spaces. Only the first 400 submissions will be read, so send early. Co-sponsored by Short Édition, a French publishing house of short literature; Principal Foundation; and The Center for Fiction in NYC. | ||||||
| Dinesh Allirajah Prize for Short Fiction | 10/13/25 | Short Fiction | Active | £500.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline October 13 (must be received by this date; don't enter before August 26). Neutral free contest gives ebook anthology publication and 500 pounds prize for a previously unpublished short story, 2,000-7,500 words, by a UK resident aged 18+ on a theme that changes annually. For 2026, the theme is "Fandoms". Complete the entry form online and upload your entry. Co-sponsored by Comma Press and the University of Central Lancashire. Named after founding Comma Press board member, writer Dinesh Allirajah. | ||||||
| Latino Voices in Children's Literature Writing Contest | 10/13/25 | Prose Manuscript | Active | $1,000.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline October 13 (must be received by this date). Neutral free contest from Free Spirit Publishing awards prizes up to $1,000 for original children's books, written for either ages 0-4 or 4-8, by Latino authors residing in the US. The contest's mission is "to elevate authentic, culturally relevant children's stories written by and about Latino people." Every entry will be considered for publication. Enter online or via postal mail. | ||||||
| Manchester Cathedral Poetry Competition | 10/14/25 | Individual Poems | Active | £200.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline November 14 (must be received by this date; don't enter before August 28). Neutral free contest gives prizes up to 200 pounds for unpublished poems, 30 lines maximum. The 2025 theme is "Bells". The first entry is free, additional entries 5 pounds each. Enter by email. This was formerly a contest for religious poetry but that is no longer required. | ||||||
| Amy Lowell Poetry Travelling Scholarship | 10/15/25 | Fellowship | Active | $76,000.00 | Highly Recommended | |
Deadline October 15 (must be received by this date). Highly recommended free contest awards a fellowship of about $76,000 for US poets, to fund a year of travel outside North America. Entrants must be US citizens by virtue of birth in the US, or birth outside the US to an American citizen parent who was born in the US. While contest is open to all, poets with significant publishing credits have the best chance. Send two copies of application and include 40 pages of poetry OR published book and maximum 20 pages of additional (more recent) poetry. See website for other required materials. | ||||||
| Charles Potts Poetry Award | 10/15/25 | Poetry Manuscript | Active | $1,000.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline October 15 (must be received by this date). Neutral free contest gives publication and $1,000 for the author's first book of poetry, minimum 85 pages in total. Enter via email. Limit one manuscript per author. Sponsored by Hand to Mouth Books, a publishing house established by Charles Potts. | ||||||
| International Booker Prize | 10/23/25 | Published Prose Book | Active | £25,000.00 | Highly Recommended | |
Deadlines July 24, September 25, October 23 (must be received by these dates; don't enter before June 24). 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, a PDF of the text, and other required materials specified in the contest's full rules of entry by July 24 (if slated for publication between May 1 and November 30, 2025) or September 25 (if slated for publication between December 1, 2025 and April 30, 2026). Any imprint that has more than 3 books to submit may nominate additional titles as call-ins; all call-in nomination forms and other required application materials must be submitted by October 23. Sponsored and coordinated by the Booker Prize Foundation. | ||||||
| Atlas Shrugged Essay Contest for Students | 10/31/25 | Scholarly Essay | Active | $25,000.00 | Highly Recommended | |
Deadlines July 31, October 31, 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'. After registering online for the contest, students will receive instant access to the book, the essay prompts, 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. Enter online. Contest is looking for entries that are sympathetic to Rand's rationalist, libertarian philosophy. See sponsor's website for other student contests. | ||||||
| Drinking Gourd Chapbook Poetry Prize | 10/31/25 | Poetry Chapbook | Active | $500.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline October 31 (must be received by this date). Recommended free contest awards $500 and chapbook publication by Northwestern University Press for a poetry manuscript, 25-35 pages, by an emerging poet of color who is a US citizen and has not previously published a book-length volume of poetry. Winner also receives 15 copies of their book. Simultaneous submissions to other contests should be noted. See sponsor's guidelines online for details. Email MS and submission form. Co-sponsored by Northwestern University’s Poetry and Poetics Colloquium and Northwestern University Press to celebrate and publish works of lasting cultural value and literary excellence by minority poets. | ||||||
| Fountainhead Essay Contest for Middle and High School Students | 10/31/25 | Scholarly Essay | Active | $25,000.00 | Highly Recommended | |
Deadlines July 31, October 31, December 20 (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. | ||||||
| Marfield Prize/National Award for Arts Writing | 10/31/25 | Published Prose Book | Active | $10,000.00 | Highly Recommended | |
Deadline October 31 (must be received by this date). Highly recommended free contest awards $10,000 for a nonfiction book first published in the US in the current calendar year about an artistic discipline (e.g., visual, literary, performing, or media arts). Publishers, agents, or authors should complete the entry form and submit 3 copies of the book. Winner will participate in a short, all-expenses-paid residency in Washington, DC. Sponsored by the Arts Club of Washington. | ||||||
| New York Historical Children's History Book Prize | 10/31/25 | Published Prose Book | Active | $10,000.00 | Highly Recommended | |
Deadline October 31 (must be received by this date). Highly recommended free contest gives $10,000 for the best book of nonfiction history or historical fiction for middle-grade readers that was published in the US in the current calendar year. Send 6 copies to the director of the DiMenna Children's History Museum at the New York Historical. | ||||||
| Preservation Foundation Essay Contest for Unpublished Writers | 10/31/25 | 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 | 10/31/25 | 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. | ||||||
| Solstice Nature Prize for Young Writers | 10/31/25 | Individual Poems Short Fiction | Active | £100.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline October 31 (must be received by this date). Neutral free contest from Writing East Midlands gives prizes of 100 pounds in each age category (7-11, 12-14, 15-17, and 18-25 years) for unpublished nature-themed poems, stories, or blog posts by young writers residing in the UK. Send one poem, maximum 40 lines, or one prose piece, maximum 500 words, by mail or online. No simultaneous submissions. For 2025, sponsor seeks entries about any aspect of nature. | ||||||
| USNI General Prize Essay Contest | 10/31/25 | Scholarly Essay | Active | $6,000.00 | Highly Recommended | |
Deadline October 31 (must be received by this date). Highly recommended free contest from the US Naval Institute gives top prize of $6,000 for previously unpublished essays, maximum 3,000 words, on a topic that "advances the understanding of sea power (Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard) and other issues critical to global security". See website for this year's specific theme. Open to active-duty military, reservists, veterans, and civilians. Essays must not be under consideration for publication elsewhere; no simultaneous submissions. Enter via sponsor's online submissions portal. | ||||||
| Women's Prize for Fiction | 10/31/25 | Published Prose Book | Active | £30,000.00 | Highly Recommended | |
Deadlines August 29, October 31, November 28 (must be received by these dates; don't enter before July 7). Highly recommended free contest offers 30,000 pounds for full-length novels (no short story collections or novellas) by women, first published in the UK between April 1 of the current year and March 31 of the following year. Deadline varies depending on title's publication schedule. Translations and self-published books are not eligible. No fee, but publishers must contribute significantly toward the publicity budget for shortlisted books. Publishers should read detailed eligibility conditions on website closely before submitting. Publishers with a list of 15 or more fiction titles per year may submit up to 2 book-length novels; publishers with a list of 14 fiction titles or fewer may submit 1 book-length novel. Publishers must complete online entry form and send both a print-ready PDF file and 6 hard copies for each submitted title. It is the UK's most prestigious annual book award for fiction written by a woman. Formerly known as the Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction, it is now simply the Women's Prize for Fiction. | ||||||
