Writing Contests, Grants & Awards

The Writing Contests, Grants & Awards database includes details about the creative writing contests—including poetry contests, short story competitions, essay contests, awards for novels, and more—that we’ve published in Poets & Writers Magazine during the past year. We carefully review the practices and policies of each contest before including it. Ours is the most trusted resource for legitimate writing contests available anywhere.

Boulevard

Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $18
Application Deadline: 6/1/25
Genre: Poetry

A prize of $1,000 and publication in Boulevard is given annually for a group of poems by a poet who has not published a poetry collection with a nationally distributed...

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PEN America

Cash Prize: $4,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 6/1/25

Ten grants of $4,000 each are given annually to support the translation of book-length works of poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction that have not previously appeared in...

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PEN America

Cash Prize: $15,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 6/1/25

Two grants of $15,000 each are given annually for nonfiction works-in-progress that “use oral history to illuminate an event, individual, place, or movement.” Using only the...

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National Book Foundation

Cash Prize: $10,000
Entry Fee: $135
Application Deadline: 6/6/25

Four prizes of $10,000 each are given annually for books of poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and young people’s literature written by U.S. writers and published in the United...

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42 Miles Press

Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 6/15/25
Genre: Poetry

A prize of $1,000, publication by 42 Miles Press, and 50 author copies is given annually for a poetry collection. The winner is also invited to give a reading at Indiana...

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Tusculum Review

Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 6/15/25

A prize of $1,500 and publication in Tusculum Review is given annually for a collection of poems, a short story, or an essay in alternating years. The winner’s work is...

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University of Akron Press

Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 6/15/25
Genre: Poetry

A prize of $1,500 and publication by University of Akron Press is given annually for a poetry collection. Eduardo C. Corral will judge. Using only the online submission system...

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Towson University

Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 6/15/25

A prize of $1,000 is given annually for a book of poetry, fiction, or creative nonfiction by a current resident of Maryland who has lived in the state for at least three years...

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Omnidawn Publishing

Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $30
Application Deadline: 6/16/25
Genre: Poetry

A prize of $1,000, publication by Omnidawn Publishing, and 20 author copies is given annually for a poetry chapbook. Ewa Chrusciel will judge. Using only the online submission...

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Griffin Trust for Excellence in Poetry

Cash Prize: $90,479
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 6/20/25
Genre: Poetry

A prize of $130,000 Canadian (approximately $90,479) is given annually for a poetry collection written in or translated into English by a living poet or translator from...

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Griffin Trust for Excellence in Poetry

Cash Prize: $6,960
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 6/20/25
Genre: Poetry

A prize of $10,000 Canadian (approximately $6,960) is awarded for a debut poetry collection by a living Canadian poet or permanent resident. The winner is also offered a six-...

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Artist Trust

Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 6/23/25

Grants of $1,500 each are given annually to poets, fiction writers, and nonfiction writers who are residents of Washington State. Students enrolled in a degree-granting program...

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Lascaux Review

Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $15
Application Deadline: 6/30/25
Genre: Fiction

A prize of $1,000 and online publication in Lascaux Review is given annually for a work of flash fiction. Previously published or unpublished stories are eligible. Using...

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University of Pittsburgh Press

Cash Prize: $15,000
Entry Fee: $0
Application Deadline: 6/30/25
Genre: Fiction

A prize of $15,000 and publication by University of Pittsburgh Press is given annually for a collection of short fiction. Writers who have published at least one previous book...

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Cider Press Review

Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $27
Application Deadline: 6/30/25
Genre: Poetry

A prize of $1,000, publication by Cider Press Review, and 25 author copies is given annually for a poetry collection. The editors will judge. Using only the online...

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Kinsman Quarterly

Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 6/30/25

A prize of $1,000 and publication in Kinsman Quarterly is given annually for a group of poems, a short story, or an essay on a theme related to African culture or...

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Anthology Magazine

Cash Prize: $1,089
Entry Fee: $16
Application Deadline: 6/30/25
Genre: Poetry

A prize of €1,000 (approximately $1,089) and publication in Anthology Magazine is given annually for a single poem. Rachael Hegarty will judge. Using only the online...

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Bauhan Publishing

Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $30
Application Deadline: 6/30/25
Genre: Poetry

A prize of $1,000, publication by Bauhan Publishing, and 50 author copies is given annually for a poetry collection. Anthony Walton will judge. Using only the online submission...

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The Moth

Cash Prize: $3,267
Entry Fee: $16
Application Deadline: 6/30/25
Genre: Fiction

A prize of $1,500 and publication in Michigan Quarterly Review is given annually for an essay or a work of nonfiction in hybrid form. Using only the online submission...

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Autumn House Press

Cash Prize: $2,500
Entry Fee: $30
Application Deadline: 6/30/25
Genre: Poetry

A prize of $1,000 and publication by Autumn House Press is given annually for a poetry collection. The winner also receives a $1,500 travel and publicity grant. Matthew Olzmann...

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Poetry London

Cash Prize: $6,482
Entry Fee: $13
Application Deadline: 6/30/25
Genre: Poetry

A first-place prize of £5,000 (approximately $6,482), a second-place prize of £2,000 (approximately $2,593), and a third-place prize of £1,000 (approximately $1,296) are given...

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Los Angeles Review

Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $20
Application Deadline: 6/30/25

Four prizes of $1,000 each and publication in Los Angeles Review are given annually for a poem, a short story, a work of flash fiction, and an essay. Using only the...

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Barrow Street Press

Cash Prize: $1,500
Entry Fee: $30
Application Deadline: 6/30/25
Genre: Poetry

A prize of $1,500 and publication by Barrow Street Press is given annually for a poetry collection. Using only the online submission system, submit a manuscript of 50 to 80...

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University of North Texas Press

Cash Prize: $1,000
Entry Fee: $25
Application Deadline: 6/30/25
Genre: Fiction

A prize of $1,000 and publication by University of North Texas Press is given annually for a collection of short fiction. Using only the online submission system, submit a...

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The Story Prize

Cash Prize: $20,000
Entry Fee: $75
Application Deadline: 7/1/25
Genre: Fiction

A prize of $20,000 is given annually for a story or novella collection written in English and published in the United States in the current year. Two runners-up receive $5,000...

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