Contest Database
View our curated results of the best free literary contests!
| Name | Deadline | Type | Status | Top Prize | WW Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Not Quite Write Prize for Flesh Fiction | 08/24/25 | Short Fiction | Active | A$500.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline August 24 (must be received by this date). Recommended free contest from Australian writers' podcast Not Quite Write gives prizes up to A$500 for erotic short fiction, 1,500 words maximum. 2025 theme is "Making the unsexy irresistible." Entrants should be 18+. All characters must be consenting adults and original to the author (no real-life characters or fan fiction). Winners and runners-up receive publication in anthology, story read aloud on Not Quite Write podcast, free or discounted entry fee to NQW's flash fiction contest, plus other gifts. Deadline is in Australian time, so entrants in other time zones should adjust the date accordingly. | ||||||
| Women's Prize for Fiction | 08/29/25 | 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. | ||||||
| Diana Woods Memorial Award in Creative Nonfiction | 08/31/25 | Creative Nonfiction | Active | $250.00 | Neutral | |
Deadlines February 28, August 31 (must be received by these dates; don't enter before February 1, August 1). Neutral twice-yearly contest awards $250 and publication in Lunch Ticket, the literary journal of the Antioch University Los Angeles MFA program, for an unpublished creative nonfiction essay, 3,500 words maximum. Enter via online form. | ||||||
| Eugene Paul Nassar Poetry Prize | 08/31/25 | Published Poetry Book | Active | $2,000.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline August 31. Recommended free contest from Utica University awards $2,000 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. | ||||||
| Gabo Prize for Literature in Translation and Multilingual Texts | 08/31/25 | Individual Poems Short Fiction & Creative Nonfiction | Active | $200.00 | Neutral | |
Deadlines February 28, August 31 (must be received by these dates; don't enter before February 1, August 1). Neutral free contest gives $200 and publication in Lunch Ticket for multilingual texts and English translations of poetry or literary prose. Send 1-3 poems (any length) or 1 story/essay (maximum 3,500 words). If submitting a translation, please include a translator's statement as well as the original work along with your translation. See sponsor's terms and conditions regarding rights and permissions for the translated works. Enter online. Lunch Ticket is the literary journal of the MFA community of Antioch University of Los Angeles; the prize is named for Colombian novelist and Nobel laureate Gabriel Garcia Marquez. | ||||||
| Intrepid Times Travel Writing Contest | 08/31/25 | Creative Nonfiction | Active | $300.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline August 31 (must be received by this date). Neutral free contest gives $300 prize and online publication for a nonfiction, first-person travel story, maximum 2,000 words, on a theme that changes each time. For Summer 2025, the theme is "A Book Led Me There". 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 | 08/31/25 | 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. | ||||||
| Jacques Maritain Prize for Nonfiction | 08/31/25 | Creative Nonfiction Memoir Scholarly Essay | Active | $500.00 | Neutral | |
Deadline August 31 (must be received by this date). Neutral free contest from Dappled Things: A Quarterly of Ideas, Art, & Faith awards prizes up to $500 for nonfiction (essays, memoirs) from a Catholic perspective. No separate application process; winners selected from essays published in the preceding four issues of the journal. Early submission is strongly encouraged. Must submit by the end of August to be considered for this year's prize. Enter online. Award is named for Jacques Maritain, an influential 20th century Thomist philosopher and Catholic convert. | ||||||
| Kindle Storyteller Award | 08/31/25 | 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 | 08/31/25 | 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 | 08/31/25 | 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 | 08/31/25 | 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. | ||||||
| Val Wood Prize for Creative Writing | 08/31/25 | 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 2025, the theme is "Secrets", and the sponsor seeks entries that are "show the emotional weight and human impact of secrets" as well as "uncover the hidden truths, untold histories, private thoughts, and concealed moments that shape lives". 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. | ||||||
| Giles St Aubyn Awards for Nonfiction | 09/01/25 | Prose Manuscript | Active | £10,000.00 | Highly Recommended | |
Deadline September 1 (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, 2026. 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. | ||||||
| Sydney Taylor Manuscript Award | 09/01/25 | Prose Manuscript | Active | $1,000.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline September 1 (must be received by this date). Recommended free contest offers $1,000 for an unpublished middle-grade fiction book with Jewish content by a writer with no prior published works of children's literature. Manuscripts should be 64-200 double-spaced pages. Submit your MS., cover letter, CV, and completed application form online. This award from the Association of Jewish Libraries is named for novelist Sydney Taylor, author of the 'All-of-a-Kind Family' classic children's books. | ||||||
| Young Lions Fiction Award | 09/05/25 | Published Prose Book | Active | $10,000.00 | Highly Recommended | |
Deadline September 5 (must be received by this date). Highly recommended free contest sponsored by the New York Public Library awards $10,000 for the best published book of fiction (novel, short story collection, or graphic novel) by a US author age 35 or under. Books must have been published or scheduled for publication during the current calendar year. Must be submitted by publisher. See website for nomination form. Send completed form, PDF of galley or final book manuscript, author's bio, and any available reviews of the work by using sponsor's online portal. Then send 12 hard copies of the nominated book by post with tracking. | ||||||
| Stories Out of School Flash Fiction Contest | 09/07/25 | Short Fiction | Active | $1,000.00 | Recommended | |
Deadline September 7 (must be received by this date). Recommended free contest gives prizes up to $1,000 and possible print and online publication for an unpublished flash fiction piece, 6-499 words, in which the protagonist or narrator is a K-12 teacher. Author need not be a teacher, but they must be 18+. Submit one story online. Sponsored by the Academy for Teachers, which organizes master classes and other events that bring New York City's teachers together with our culture's most brilliant and creative minds. | ||||||
| Sunday Times Charlotte Aitken Young Writer of the Year Award | 09/08/25 | Published Poetry Book Published Prose Book | Active | £10,000.00 | Highly Recommended | |
Deadline September 8 (must be received by this date). Highly recommended free contest gives prizes up to 10,000 pounds for a published or self-published book of poetry, fiction, or creative nonfiction (all genres compete together) by an author aged 18-35 as of December 31 of the deadline year. Books must have been first published in the UK and/or the Republic of Ireland, in the English language, between November 1 of the preceding year and October 31 of the deadline year. Authors must be UK or Irish citizens, or residents for the three years preceding the award. Send 8 physical books and one electronic copy. Sponsored by the Society of Authors. | ||||||
| Shaughnessy Cohen Prize for Political Writing | 09/10/25 | Published Prose Book | Active | C$25,000.00 | Recommended | |
Deadlines September 10, November 5, January 7 (must be received by these dates). Recommended free contest awards C$25,000 for literary nonfiction books about Canadian politics by Canadian citizens or permanent residents and first published in Canada during the deadline year. Deadline varies depending on when the book was published: Books published between January 1, 2025 and August 31, 2025 must be received by September 10; those published between September 1, 2025 and October 31, 2025 must be received by November 5; and those published between November 1, 2025 and December 31, 2025 must be received by January 7, 2026. Publishers should complete online entry form and upload author and book cover images as well as a PDF copy of each submitted title. Send 5 copies of the book. Sponsored by the Writers' Trust of Canada and named after Shaughnessy Cohen, an outspoken and popular Member of Parliament from Ontario. | ||||||
| Toni Beauchamp Prize in Critical Art Writing | 09/14/25 | Scholarly Essay | Active | $3,000.00 | Highly Recommended | |
Deadline September 14 (must be received by this date). Highly recommended free contest from Gulf Coast literary journal awards publication and prizes up to $3,000 for a critical art writing piece, maximum 1,500 words, by young and mid-career writers who "deal with the spirit of the age and [are] unafraid to ask difficult questions". Critical art writing genre includes thematic essays, exhibition reviews, scholarly essays, as well as other creative approaches and formats to writing on the visual arts. Previously unpublished work and work that has been published within the last year will be considered. Submit online. | ||||||
| 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 | Poetry Chapbook Short Fiction 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. | ||||||
| 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. | ||||||
