Submit your contest for possible posting. But first, please read what we DON’T post. Then if your contest appears to meet our guidelines, submit your contest. (We need the basics: Name of contest, brief description of what is to be submitted, awards, entry fee, deadline, website URL, and contact email for our follow-up questions.)
Most recently added contest(s) noted in orange — Contests posted by deadline dates
Read Writing Contest Cautions on our companion site
The Toni Beauchamp Prize in Critical Art Writing for work that has been written (or published) within the last year, not exceeding 1,500 words. Awards: $3,000 plus $1,000 each for two runners up. No entry fee. Deadline: September 14, 2026. Info: https://gulfcoastmag.org/beauchamp-prize-contest/index.html
Writer’s Digest’s 14th Annual Self-Published E-book Awards – eight of the most popular categories; fiction and nonfiction. Awards: $13,000 in total cash prizes, plus all entrants will receive a brief review of their book from one of Writer’s Digest’s competition readers. Entry fee: $125. Deadline: September 15, 2026. Info: https://tinyurl.com/3uya2d9u
Brittingham and Felix Pollak Prizes for poetry collections. Awards: Winner of each prize receives $1,500 and the publication of their work by the University of Wisconsin Press. Entry fee: $28 each contest. Deadline: September 15, 2026. Info: https://uwpress.wisc.edu/Submissions/Poetry-Prize-Submission-Guide and https://wicw.submittable.com/submit
Eyelands Book Awards 2026. Published and unpublished book sections. Categories (fiction, short story collection, poems, historical fiction/memoir, children’s/YA books, LGBTQIA+, sci-fi – crime/thriller, self-published) in each section. Awards: Grand prize (published books): Five-day holiday in Athens. Grand prize (unpublished books): Translation into Greek and publication from Strange Days Books. 14 more prizes. Entry fees: Early bird $35; Regular $45. Deadlines: Early bird: September 20, 2026; Regular October 20, 2026. Info: https://eyelandsawards.com/
Six Word Wonder 2026 annual international writing competition celebrating the art of telling a complete story in exactly six words – stories, memoirs, poems or jokes. Award: $100; shortlisted entries published in the next Six Word Wonder anthology. No entry fee for up to 5 entries. Deadline: September 30, 2026. Info: https://dougweller.net/contest
L. Ron Hubbard’s Writers of the Future Contest for new writers of science fiction and fantasy. Enter a science fiction, fantasy, or light horror short story of up to 17,000 words. Awards: $1,000, $750, $500. No entry fee. Deadline: September 30, 2026. Info: https://writersofthefuture.com/contest-rules-writers/
Fresh Words – An International Literary Magazine has three Calls for Submissions for forthcoming international anthologies: (1) The City in Three Lines: An Urban Haiku Anthology. Show us your city in three lines. Submission Limit: Up to 7 haiku (2) Tiny Revolutions: A Flash Fiction Anthology. Small acts. Quiet rebellions. Lives changed one choice at a time. We are seeking original flash fiction of 100–300 words exploring small acts of rebellion, courage, resistance, transformation, or unexpected change. (3) Hello Godot! (Volume 12) An Anthology of Existential & Absurd Plays. Where every word commands the stage. Length: Approximately 2 pages. Maximum Recommended Cast: 4 characters. Submissions: Up to 4 plays. No submission fee. Deadline: September 30, 2026. Info: https://sites.google.com/view/freshwordsmagazine/announcements
2027 Next Generation Indie Book Awards for books released in 2025, 2026 or 2027 or with a 2025, 2026 or 2027 copyright date. 80+ Categories. Awards: $1500, $750, $500, $100, plus more. Entry fee: $80. Deadlines: Early Bird Special: Enter and pay by September 30, 2026, to receive your second category (for the same title) for free. Regular: February 12, 2027. Info: https://indiebookawards.com/
Writer’s Digest Personal Essay Awards – 2,000 words maximum. Awards: $2,500, $1,000, $500, $100 plus more. Entry fee: $35. Deadline: October 1, 2026. Info: https://www.writersdigest.com/writers-digest-competitions/personal-essay-awards or https://tinyurl.com/yjapavef
John Steinbeck Award for Fiction, 5,000-word limit, stand-alone short story. Award: $1,000. Entry fee: $25, which includes a free copy of the latest edition of Reed Magazine. Deadline: October 1, 2026. Info: https://www.reedmag.org/john-steinbeck-award-for-fiction
National Writers Association Poetry Contest – any form and style, maximum 40 lines. Must be unpublished. Awards: $100, $50, $25. Entry fee: $10. Deadline: October 1, 2026. Info: https://nationalwriters.com/contests-1 – PDF entry form: https://tinyurl.com/5n6e827u
Fall 2026 Fellowship Opportunity: The Harold W. McGraw, Jr. Center for Business Journalism provides experienced journalists with grants up to $15,000 and the editorial support needed to produce deeply reported enterprise and investigative stories with a strong economic, financial or business angle. You don’t need to be a business reporter to apply – many of our previous Fellows have been generalists, or cover beats such as healthcare, education or the environment. Others have focused on issues such as economic inequality or corporate accountability. We consider proposals from both freelance and staff journalists in all forms of media. The exact amount will depend on the time it takes to complete the project and the expenses needed. Freelance journalists may use some of the funding as a stipend for living expenses during the Fellowship. Deadline: October 12, 2026. Info: https://www.mcgrawcenter.org – Application form: https://tinyurl.com/4u3xyna4
2026 New Women’s Voices Chapbook Competition for a manuscript of 16 to 34 pages of poetry. Open to any writer identifying as a woman who has not yet published a full-length collection. Award: $1,500, royalty contract, and publication by Finishing Line Press. Entry fee: $20. Deadline: October 15, 2025. Info: https://finishinglinepress.com/submissions/
21st Annual Writer’s Digest Poetry Awards – open to all styles, maximum length 32 lines. Awards: $1,000, $250, $100 plus more. Entry fees: early-bird $20 for the first single poem entry; $35 for the first chapbook entry; regular $25 for the first single poem entry; $40 for the first chapbook entry. Deadlines: early-bird November 2, 2026; regular December 1, 2026. Info: https://www.writersdigest.com/writers-digest-competitions/poetry-awards
Anthology Travel Writing Competition 2026 for writers who like to share authentic travel experiences and to provide a platform for publication. We are looking for an engaging article that will capture the reader’s attention, conveying a strong sense of the destination and the local culture. Maximum 1,000 words. Award: €300 cash prize and publication in a future issue of Anthology. Entry fee: €15. Deadline: November 30, 2026. Info: https://anthology-magazine.com/awards/travel-writing-competition/
2027 Next Generation Short Story Awards – 30+ categories; 5,000 words or less. Awards: $500, $300, $200, $75 plus gold medals. Entry fee: $25 per story for the first category entered and $20 for each additional category entered for the same story. Deadline: January 28, 2027. Info: https://shortstoryawards.com/
Our Contest Posting Rules & Guidelines
We will NOT knowingly post or leave posted contests that retain all rights to either submitted or winning entries. Nor will we knowingly post contests that retain ownership to all entries or assume the right to publish all entries, either on the Web or in print, thereby costing the creators the ability to eventually sell first rights. Such contests are simply attempting to get free content or, even worse, are getting the writers to pay for their content. If winners only are posted or published, the writer can determine prior to entering whether or not the winning prize money is sufficient for transferring first or one-time rights.
Thus, we will not post contests where entries are posted for general judging by site visitors.
We do not post “sweepstakes” – or contests where winners are determined by drawings or chance. Our intent is to publish only those contests where the writing itself is judged against other entrants; not where the luck of the draw determines winners.
Similarly, we will not post contests where the entrants must post their entries on their own sites or blogs, or get them published on others’ sites or blogs, with the intent of linking back to the sponsor’s directed Web site or blog, and particularly using key words that will be of benefit to the sponsor. Our feeling is that if an author or Web site owner wishes to use others’ material to drive traffic to them, or to rev up their ad click revenues, they should simply pay writers for their promotional or content writing.
Also, we do not post contests sponsored by book publishers that have entry or reading fees, with the reward being a published book and/or advance. Viable publishing houses treat manuscript reading and advances as costs of doing business, and do not charge authors for submissions.
We do not knowingly post contests sponsored by or promoting websites or services that offer writing of academic essays, term papers, or other assigned papers for enrolled students or applicants for enrollment..
We also do not knowingly post contests requesting material that is pornographic or promotes violence.
We do not post contests where the “prize money” is really a certificate or credit toward products or services that will cost the writer additional money in order to accept the prize.
We post literary contests that offer cash, publication, or book (or related) prizes, but not those where the prize is a house or other property. These contests are illegal in a number of locations.
We may post “Calls for Anthology Submissions” on our Contests page; however, we will not post anthology notices if (1) there is a submission fee required, (2) rights to *entries* are retained, or (3) rights to *winning entries* extend beyond one-time use in that anthology. This also applies to magazine contests with the “prize” being publication in an upcoming “contest” issue.
If your contest appears to meet our guidelines, submit the following basic information: Name of contest, brief description of what is to be submitted, awards, entry fee, deadline, website URL, contact email in case we have follow-up questions, to contestadd@writers-editors.com.
