Participating in writing competitions might be the perfect platform for you. Writing competitions offer an invaluable opportunity to not only hone your writing skills but also gain exposure, win prizes, and even have your work published. With countless competitions available, it can be challenging to determine which ones are truly worth your time and effort.
To help you navigate through the vast landscape of writing competitions, we have curated a list of remarkable contests that cater to various genres, writing styles, and experience levels. There is no entry fee to participate in these contests.
Kindly go through the guidelines for submission for each one before you submit. Also, be sure to bookmark this page and check back occasionally, as the list will be updated within the month.
Randon Journal
They’re accepting short story and poetry submissions containing elements of anarchism, transhumanism, dystopia, or science fiction. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prize: Fiction: $0.01/word | Poetry: $10.
Deadline: Currently open, Year-round.
The Forge Literary Magazine
They’re currently accepting creative non-fiction and fiction. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prize: $75
Deadline: Until filled.
Flash Frog
They want stories that are “Small. Brightly Colored. Deadly to the Touch.” Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prize: $25.
Deadline: Currently open, Year-round.
The Fairy Tale Magazine
They’re seeking new fairy tales or mashups of fairy tales, as well as poetry on the theme of “love” with romance preferred, but love between friends, family members, pets and their humans, etc., will be considered as well. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prize: $50.
Deadline: 2 June 2023.
Black Girl Times
They’re accepting pitches related to “anti-Blackness, Juneteenth, or freedom for Black Americans.” They’re especially looking for contributors who identify as Black, LGBTQ, disabled, women, and POC. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prize: $0.25 to $1.00 per word.
Deadline: June 7th, 2023.
Barrelhouse
They’re currently accepting non-fiction essays and flash essays. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prize: $50
Deadline: 7th June 2023.
Lightspeed
Lightspeed is open to submissions of science fiction flash stories and fantasy flash fiction in June and early July. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prize: $0.08/word.
Deadlines: 7th June | 30th June | 7th July, 2023.
TOLKA Journal
This journal is currently publishing essays, reportage, travel writing, auto-fiction, individual stories and the writing that flows in between. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prize: €500.
Deadline: 11 June 2023.
Bow Seat Ocean Awareness Contest
The contest theme is Climate Heroes in Action. They’re seeking entries in various categories such as visual art, poetry & spoken word, creative writing, film, performing arts: music & dance and interactive & multimedia. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prizes: $1,500, $1,000, $500, $300, $250 (Senior division) | $1,000, $750, $250, $150, $100 (Junior division).
Deadline: 12 June 2023.
Imagine 2200
They’re looking for stories that envision the next 180 years of climate progress — roughly seven generations – imagining intersectional worlds of abundance, adaptation, reform, and hope. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prizes: $3,000 | $2,000 | $1,000 | $300 each for 9 winners.
Deadline: 13 June 2023.
Extra Teeth
They’re publishing Scottish and international writing. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prize: £100.
Deadline: 14 June 2023.
Electric Literature
They’re seeking full drafts of personal essays that interrogate, investigate, adventure, and introspect. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prize: $100.
Deadline: 15th June 2023, or until filled.
The Journal of Compressed Creative Arts
They publish fiction and creative nonfiction, as well as fiction and creative nonfiction prose poetry. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prize: $50.
Deadline: 15th June 2023.
Sapiens Plurum Short Fiction Contest
They’re conducting an annual short fiction contest, inviting stories that explore how we can use science and technology to build resilient communities in a rapidly changing world. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prizes: $1,000 | $500 | $300.
Deadline: 15 June 2023.
Grantchester Award
They publish poems in their journal. In each issue, two poems will be eligible for The Grantchester Award. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prizes: $50 | $30.
Deadline: 15 June 2023.
International Essay Contest for Young People
This international essay contest is for people aged up to 25 years, and the theme is, Youth Creating a Peaceful Future. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prizes: 1st: JPY100,000 (about $740) | Three 2nd prizes: JPY50,000 (about $370) each | Five 3rd prizes | 25 honourable mentions.
Deadline: 15 June 2023.
Baffling Magazine
This quarterly online flash fiction magazine is seeking speculative stories that explore science fiction, fantasy, and horror with a queer bent. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prize: $0.08/word.
Deadline: 15th June 2023.
The Saltbush Review
This magazine accepts submissions of creative non-fiction, literary fiction (including flash), poetry, and works that challenge genre boundaries. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prize: Fiction and non-fiction: AUD$150 | Poem and flash fiction: AUD$100.
Deadline: 16 June 2023.
Sylvia
They’re accepting non-fiction, fiction, and poetry magazine. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prizes: Poetry: £1.75 per line | Prose: £0.25 per word.
Deadline: 19th June 2023.
NPQ Magazine
They’re seeking short climate fiction stories that spark imaginative visions of the future. “Particularly, we want to see writing that is largely speculative in nature but scientifically grounded.” Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prize: Substantive science-grounded stories: $500 | Short stories around 500 words: $300.
Deadline: 30 June 2023.
Midnight & Indigo
They’re accepting work by Black women writers – speculative fiction, character-driven fiction, and essays. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prizes: Speculative fiction: $100 | Works compiled in their anthology: $200 | Essays: $100 | Other fiction: $0.08/word.
Deadline: 30 June 2023.
Last Stanza Poetry Journal
They’re seeking poetry submissions on the theme, “The Things We Carry”. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prize: $100.
Deadline: 30 June 2023.
Drue Heinz Literature Prize
This international award is for authors who have published a novel, a book-length collection of fiction or at least three short stories or novellas in commercial magazines or literary journals. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prize: $15,000.
Deadline: 30 June 2023.
Preservation Foundation Contest
This international writing contest is for unpublished writers. They’re seeking appropriate nonfiction topics; true stories, not semi-fictional accounts. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prizes: $200 | $100.
Deadline: 30 June 2023.
Briefly Write Poetry Prize
They want well-crafted poems of up to 10 lines; innovative language, strong imagery and a subtle, focused composition. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prizes: £40 | £20 | £10.
Deadline: 30 June 2023.
My Writing Journey Writing Competitions
This is one of the international writing competitions and is for a 600-word essay on the topic, The best writing tip I’ve ever received. Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prize: NZ$200 (R2000 or £100).
Deadline: 30 June 2023.
Emerging Writers’ Short Story Writing Competitions
In this contest, they’re accepting stories from writers who have never been published, or who have been published fewer than four times in any genre.” Read the details and guidelines for submission >>here<<
Prizes: NZ$1,000 | NZ$500 | NZ$250.
Deadline: 30 June 2023.
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