These contests, grants, and fellowships are for fiction, non-fiction, poetry, journalism, and playwriting, with prizes ranging up to $100,000. None of them charge an entry fee. – S. Kalekar
INTERNATIONAL CONTESTS
Alpine Fellowship Prizes
They have a Poetry Prize, a Writing Prize, a Theatre Prize, as well as Music, Philosophy, Refugee Scholar, and Visual Arts prizes. Please read the guidelines for each genre carefully. The theme for this year is ‘Language’ and the work must address that theme; you can read more about the theme here. Winner receives a cash prize in each category, and a stipend to attend the symposium.
Value: Varies; cash awards of £3,000, £1,000, £500 for winners in creative writing categories (poetry, writing, theatre), £500 travel stipend to attend the symposium
Deadline: 1 March 2024
Open for: All writers
Details here (click on individual tabs for various genres).
On the Premises Short Story Contest: Vehicle
Their website says, “write a creative, compelling, well-crafted story between 1,000 and 5,000 words long in which some kind of vehicle plays an important role. Merely using the vehicle as a simple plot device or to help characters get somewhere is not enough. For instance, “While flying home I made a bunch of new friends on the flight” isn’t good enough, because the same story–making new friends–could easily be told without the plane.”
Value: $250, $200, $150, $75 (see here)
Deadline: 1 March 2024
Open for: All writers
Details here, here, and here.
(Submissions are also open for a prose and poetry contest on the ‘folklore’ theme, run by four zines in collaboration. Prizes are $20 each for poetry and prose, and other non-cash prizes; the deadline is 3rd March 2024; details here.)
Tales to Terrify Flash Fiction Contest: Secret Societies
Tales to Terrify is a horror podcast. For this contest, they want themed short fiction of up to 1,000 words. “The story must have horror elements and relate to the theme of Secret Societies. Secret societies are distinct from cults in that they don’t operate based on a specific dogma and focus on manipulating outcomes to further their own nefarious agendas. Other than this distinction, how you choose to interpret that theme is up to you, but it must be central to the story.” And, “The top flash piece will be produced for audio narration on Tales to Terrify and receive $50 (USD). Up to four runners up may also be considered for production.”
Value: $50
Deadline: 1 March 2024
Open for: All writers
Details here.
The Miracle Monocle Award for Young Black Writers
Miracle Monocle publishes poetry, prose, and hybrids, and they are affiliated with the University of Louisville. Their website says, “The winner of the prize will receive a $200 prize and publication in the journal. We welcome work in the following categories: poetry, prose, and experimental and hybrid literature. Writers must be 25 years old or younger and identify as Black. We seek only original work that has not been published elsewhere. We ask that writers refrain from sending us more than one submission during this editorial cycle and follow our guidelines carefully.” You can see their general submission guidelines here and read the latest issue here.
Value: $200
Deadline: 1 March 2024
Open for: Young Black writers
Details here. (Their Submittable has more than one category open, please be sure to submit in the correct one.)
Chismosa Literary
This is a new literary magazine accepting poetry, prose, fiction, and creative nonfiction (see guidelines). Their website says, “Our debut issue is themed “CHISMOSA.” To celebrate the beginning of our magazine, we will be awarding $100 to the piece that best captures the spirit of chismosa that lives in all writers. We want work that explores the idea that to be a writer is to gossip; it is to people-watch and eavesdrop and turn the things we observe into protagonists and plot-devices. Give us a story brimming with gossip, or write a poem to tell us about the art of eavesdropping. Tell us what being a chismosa writer means to you.” And, “We accept all genres of writing, and we encourage work that is experimental. Pieces that are heavily inspired by real people and events are encouraged.”
Value: $100
Deadline: 1 March 2024
Open for: All writers
Details here.
Deep Wild Graduate Student Prose Contest
This is an international contest from Deep Wild: Writing from the Backcountry magazine – they want students currently enrolled in graduate studies to submit work for their Graduate Student Contest and for this cycle, they are accepting prose (fiction or non-fiction) entries of up to 3,000 words. “We seek work that conjures the experiences, observations, and insights of backcountry journeys. By “backcountry,” we mean away from roads, on journeys undertaken by foot, skis, snowshoes, kayak, canoe, horse, or any other non-motorized means of conveyance.”
Value: $300, $200, and $100
Deadline: 1 March 2024
Open for: Students enrolled in graduate studies
Details here and here.
(Their Submittable is also open for other submissions; please be sure to submit in the correct category.)
Baltimore Science Fiction Society Poetry Contest
For this contest, poets are required to submit poetry on science fiction/fantasy/horror/science themes. Up to 3 entries are allowed per person, of up to 60 lines each. Winners will receive a cash prize, convention membership and be invited to read their winning entries at Balticon. Attendance at Balticon is not required to win. Their submission form also says, entries received after 1 March will be automatically entered in next year’s contest.
Value: $100, $75, $50
Deadline: 1 March 2024
Open for: All poets
Details here.
(Submissions are also open for the 1st Annual Solitary Daisy Haiku Contest – send up to 3 haiku. The first prize is $25, and the deadline is 2nd March 2024. Details here.)
University of Washington: Mo Habib Translation Prize in Persian Literature
This is the second cycle of the Mo Habib Translation Prize in Persian Literature. Their website says, “the prize seeks to enable the publication and dissemination of Persian literary works that stand on their own in engaging English translation. … This cycle will focus on Persian poetry (any genre or period, from the 10th century CE to the present day). Bi- or multilingual projects are welcome (e.g. Persian-Arabic, Persian-Pashto). Translators are free to propose the translation of one or more collections of poems (no fewer than 50 and no more than 250 texts) from a single poet or multiple authors, provided that the final manuscript is submitted by the deadline. The winning translation will receive a prize of $10,000 ($2,000 once the award is announced in June 2024, and $8,000 once the work is turned in by the deadline May 2025). This prize comes with a commitment by Deep vellum to publish the translated work.” One of the submission requirements is a bilingual sample of the proposed translation (five texts or 10-15 pages, single spaced, in both languages).
Value: $10,000
Deadline: 1 March 2024
Open for: Unspecified
Details here.
The Shenandoah Fellowship for Emerging Editors
This will open in March 2024. They say, “Through this editorial fellowship, we’re committed to expanding the roster of people we work with and to discovering new voices to amplify and empower. Selected fellows will receive a $1000 honorarium and will curate a selection of published work in a genre of their choosing for a single issue of Shenandoah, working with the Shenandoah staff to guide the work to publication. This opportunity will give fellows the chance to learn about all aspects of a small literary publisher and create connections with peers and potential future employers in the industry and in academia. … A single fellow will be selected for each issue of Shenandoah going forward, alternating genres (fiction, nonfiction, poetry, comics) as we see fit. Working with the editorial staff, fellows will curate a suite of work for their issue. Each fellow will receive a $1000 honorarium for their work. We welcome writers and editors of all experience levels. No previous editorial experience is necessary, but we are looking for applicants who are passionate and informed about the literary community.” This fellowship will open on 1 March 2024, on a rolling basis. Their submission portal will have a section for the fellowship during the application period.
Value: $1,000
Opens on: 1 March 2024
Open for: Unspecified
Details here (see the fellowship announcement date near the top of the page, under Open and Upcoming Submission Periods, and details of the fellowship by scrolling to the middle of the page).
International Women’s Media Foundation Grants
International Women’s Media Foundation (IWMF) has several grants/awards for women and non-binary journalists; some of them are open now, including the international Courage in Journalism Awards (deadline 3rd March 2024); international Howard G. Buffet Fund for Women Journalists (rolling deadline); and US-based Fund for Indigenous Journalists: Reporting on Missing & Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, Two-Spirit, Transgender People (rolling deadline).
Value: Varies
Deadline: Varies
Open for: Women and non-binary journalists
Details here.
(Click on IWMF’s Opportunities and Awards tabs on this page for more.)
ALTA Travel Fellowships
Each year, several fellowships are awarded to emerging translators (someone who does not yet have a book-length work of translation published or under contract) to help them pay for hotel and travel expenses to the annual American Literary Translators Association (ALTA) conference. Part of the application requirement is up to 10 pages of translated work (poetry or prose – see guidelines). “While the Travel Fellowships are open to all applicants, we especially encourage applications from translators of color, translators with disabilities, and LGBTQ+ translators.” They also have the Peter K. Jansen Memorial Travel Fellowship, which is preferentially awarded to one emerging translator of color or a translator working from an underrepresented diaspora or stateless language (apply using the ALTA Travel Fellowship application, and check the Jansen Fellowship eligibility box in the application form – see guidelines). Also see ALTA’s other awards for published works, including the international ALTA First Translation Prize, inaugurated in 2024, for emerging literary translators and their editors – $2,000 to the translator and $1,000 to the editor – open to all genres, awards one debut literary translation from any other language into English published in the previous calendar year.
Value: $1,000 each
Deadline: 18 March 2024
Open for: Unspecified
Details here and here (scroll down).
(Also see ALTA’s Emerging Translator Mentorship Program, the deadline for which has passed.)
Red Hen Press Ann Petry Award
This is for a work of previously unpublished prose, either a novel or a collection of short stories or novellas, with a minimum of 150 pages, by a Black writer.
Value: $3,000 and publication
Deadline: 31 March 2024
Open for: Black writers
Details here and here.
(See all of the Red Hen Press awards here.)
Robert B. Silvers Foundation: Silvers Grants for Work in Progress
Anglophone writers of any nationality may apply for their grants to support long-form essays (essay-length or book-length) in the fields of literary criticism, arts writing, political analysis, and/or social reportage. Grants may not be used to fund translation. Applicants should have an editorial agreement with a publication or publishing house for the work under consideration. Some of the submission requirements are a writing sample, project description, and a full responses to their financial questionnaire. And, “Your responses to the financial questionnaire should include all anticipated costs and should state other sources of funding, including book advances. Priority is given to projects that have not been supported by a significant advance.
The writing sample can be from the writer’s work in progress or from a previously published essay, article, or book.”
Value: Up to $10,000
Deadline: 31 March 2024
Open for: All writers
Details here.
Parsec Ink Short Story Competition: AI Mythology
Parsec Ink also publishes the annual Triangulation anthology series. They are open now for a short speculative fiction contest by non-professional writers, who have not met the eligibility requirements for SFWA Full Membership. The theme is AI Mythology. Send stories of up to 3,500 words.
Value: $200, $100, and $50 for adults, and $50 for the best youth story
Deadline: 31 March 2024
Open for: Non-professional writers (see guidelines)
Details here and here.
Sisters in Crime: Eleanor Taylor Bland Crime Fiction Writers of Color Award
This international grant is for supporting the recipient in crime fiction writing and career development activities. The writer may choose activities that include workshops, seminars, conferences, and retreats, online courses, and research activities required for completion of the work. This is for an emerging writer of color (see guidelines). The application process includes a writing sample – an unpublished piece of crime fiction, An unpublished work of crime fiction, aimed at readers, from children’s chapter books through adults. This may be a short story or first chapter(s) of a manuscript in-progress of 2,500 to 5,000 words. The Eleanor Taylor Bland grant is administered by Sisters in Crime, an international organization of mystery authors, readers, publishers, agents, booksellers and librarians which promotes “the ongoing advancement, recognition and professional development of women crime writers.”
Value: $2,000; the winner can choose from a range of activities
Deadline: 31 March 2024
Open for: Emerging writers of color
Details here. (Download the 2024 press release.)
America Media: The Foley Poetry Contest
For the contest, they want an unpublished poem of 45 lines or fewer. Apart from the contest, this Catholic magazine is also open for general submissions. Value: $1,000
Deadline: 31 March 2024
Open for: Unspecified
Details here.
Wergle Flomp Humor Poetry Contest
This prize is for humor poetry. Submit a poem of up to 250 lines.
Value: $2,000 and a two-year subscription to Duotrope; $500; $250; 10 prizes of $100 each
Deadline: 1 April 2024
Open for: All poets
Details here.
The Mike Resnick Memorial Award
This award is sponsored by Galaxy’s Edge magazine and Dragon Con. They want a science fiction story by a new writer (who has not been paid a per-word rate of 6 cents a word or more or received a payment for any single work of fiction totaling more than $50). Send stories up to 7,499 words. Writers do not need to be members of Dragon Con.
Value: $250, $100, $50
Deadline: 1 April 2024
Open for: New writers
Details here (scroll down), here, and here.
The Marguerite and Lamar Smith Fellowship for Writers
These three-month fellowships are to afford writers uninterrupted time to focus on their work at an apartment in Carson McCuller’s childhood home in Columbus, Georgia. A spouse or companion is welcome. The application includes a writing sample of up to 20 pages.
Value: $5,000
Deadline: 1 April 2024
Open for: Unspecified
Details here (scroll down to Academic Opportunities and click on Fellowships).
Fabula Press Short Story Competition
This is a fiction contest; they want stories of 2,500-7,000 words. Regarding the kind of stories they want, they say, “There is no theme to the contest. We are not picky about genre either. What we are looking for is exceptional writing, so a Chekovian piece of truth and drama, a Poesque tale of horror, or a work of science fiction in the nature of Connie Willis’ Firewatch hold a similar appeal for us. Chick Lit, Young Adult, and Hard Science Fiction do not work for us, though, given the nature of the anthology.” They have a fee-free submission window, and they also have paid submissions (see guidelines). Please see their note about anthology inclusions for both free and paid entries.
Value: $500, $250, $100
Deadline (for fee-free submissions): 3 April 2024
Open for: All writers
Details here, here, and here.
A couple of contests with later deadlines:
— Whiting Foundation’s Creative Nonfiction Grants: Grants of $40,000 each will be awarded to writers of creative non-fiction books – projects that were under contract with a publisher in the US, UK, or Canada. It is intended for multiyear book projects requiring large amounts of deep and focused research, thinking, and writing, after significant work has been accomplished; the deadline is
23 April 2024. Details here.
— The Black Orchid Novella Award: This is an international contest for novellas (15,000-20,000 words) that confirm to the tradition of Rex Stout’s Nero Wolfe series (see guidelines). They should focus on the deductive skills of the sleuth. They are not looking for derivatives of the Nero Wolfe series, or the milieu. The prize is $1,000 and publication in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, and the deadline is 31 May 2024. Submission is via a form. Details here (also download the flyer from here.)
FOR US/CANADA WRITERS
The Waterman Fund Essay Contest
This contest is run by Appalachia, the mountaineering and conservation journal published by the Appalachian Mountain Club, and The Waterman Fund. The contest is for emerging writers – those who have not published a book-length work of fiction or narrative nonfiction on topics of wilderness, wildness, or the ethics and ecology of environmental issues are eligible. Essays should be 2,000 to 3,000 words, on the theme of experiencing wildness – the detailed prompt for this year is here. They welcome personal, scientific, adventure, or memoir essays. The contest is run by the Waterman Fund – their tagline is, “Fostering the Spirit of Wildness and Conserving the Alpine Areas of Northeastern North America”.
Value: $3,000; $1,000
Deadline: 1 March 2024
Open for: Emerging writers (see guidelines) in the US or Canada (see eligibility here)
Details here and here.
Edward R. Murrow Press Fellowship
Applicants must have covered international news as a working journalist for print, broadcast, or online media widely available in the United States, and must be US citizens. They must have distinguished credentials in journalism; two of the selection criteria are, professional experience as a foreign correspondent or editor, and firm grounding in foreign policy. The Fellow spends 10 months full-time in residence at the Council for Foreign Relations’ headquarters in New York. The program enables the Fellow to engage in sustained analysis and writing, expand his or her intellectual and professional horizons, and extensively participate in CFR’s active program of meetings and events.
Value:$100,000 and a modest travel grant
Deadline: 1 March 2024
Open for: US citizens
Details here.
Poets & Writers: Maureen Egen Writers Exchange Award
This is an award for one poet and one fiction writer; applicants must be U.S. residents and an enrolled members of a Native American tribe in the US or Alaska (see guidelines), and have never published a book or have published no more than one full-length book in the genre in which they are applying. Winners get a $500 honorarium; an all-expenses-paid trip to New York City to meet with editors, agents, publishers, and other writers, and to give a public reading, hosted by Poets & Writers; and a one-month residency at the Jentel Artist Residency Program in Wyoming.Value: $500 each, residency, meetings with agents, editors, and more
Deadline: 1 March 2024
Open for: US Indigenous writers (see above)
Details here.
University of Colorado: Ted Scripps Fellowships in Environmental Journalism
Their website says, “Five Ted Scripps Fellowships are awarded each year. The fellowship is open to full-time journalists working in any medium who are interested in advancing their knowledge of environmental issues. It is aimed at outstanding journalists committed to a career in professional journalism. Applicants must have five years of full-time professional journalism experience and must also have a BA or BS college degree, at minimum. Applicants may include reporters, editors, producers, photojournalists, documentarians, and feature writers. Both salaried staff and full-time freelancers are welcome to apply. Prior experience in covering the environment is not required.” And, “We welcome applications from international journalists; however, please be advised that you must hold a current visa and be authorized to work in the United States at the time of application to be considered for this position.” Fellows audit classes, pursue an independent project, attend weekly seminars, and participate in field trips to world-renowned institutions to learn what’s new in the realm of environmental science and policy. Fellows pay for their own housing and make their own housing arrangements. They receive a stipend, and will travel (expenses paid) to the Society of Environmental Journalists annual conference.
Value: $80,000
Deadline: 1 March 2024
Open for: Full-time journalists authorised to work in the US (see guidelines)
Details here and here.
National Endowment for the Arts’ Creative Writing Fellowships
This is for US-based writers, and they are accepting applications for poetry this year. Grants alternate yearly between poetry and prose. While the deadline is 13th March, they recommend submitting applications early. Several fellowships are awarded. They have several links on the website, including eligibility, how to apply, and FAQ.
Value: Up to $25,000
Deadline: 13 March 2024
Open for: US writers
Details here.
(For QTBIPOC+ poets in the larger San Francisco Bay Area, submissions are open for Foglifter’s Start a Riot! poetry chapbook prize for local emerging queer and trans Black writers, indigenous writers, and writers of color. There is a $1,500 prize, and $1,000 to support their book tour/promotion. The deadline is 1 March 2024. Details here.)
Goose Lane: Claire Harris Poetry Prize
This is a prize for a poetry manuscript organized by Goose Lane’s icehouse poetry imprint. “Eligible writers include Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada who are writers from Black, Indigenous, or other racialized communities and who have not previously published a book-length collection of poetry. (Poets who have published a chapbook, but not yet a book-length collection, are eligible to apply.)
Manuscripts should be book-length works of poetry, i.e., approximately 48-100 pages. (Chapbook-length manuscripts are not eligible.) Submissions may draw upon a broad range of aesthetic practises, from lyric poetry to genre-busting experimentation.”
Value: $1,000
Deadline: 31 March 2024
Open for: Canadian writers from Black, Indigenous, or other racialized communities
Details here and here.
Maya Angelou Book Award
This award is for a work has demonstrated a commitment to social justice. It is for books published in 2023, or scheduled to be published until November 2024. The award alternates between poetry and fiction, and for this cycle, books of fiction (both novels and short story collections) are eligible. Entrants must be available for a two-week reading tour at partnering educational institutions in Missouri (see guidelines). Entries have to be made by publishers only, not writers.
Value: $10,000
Deadline: 1 April 2024
Open for: US writers
Details here.
PEN America: US Writers Aid Initiative
This is intended to assist fiction and non-fiction authors, poets, playwrights, screenwriters, translators, and journalists. To be eligible, applicants must be based in the United States, be professional writers, and be able to demonstrate that this one-time grant will be meaningful in helping them to address an emergency situation. Various deadlines are listed for 2024, and the next one is 1st April. Other deadlines are in July and October. Writers do not have to be PEN members to apply.
Value: Unspecified
Deadline:1 April 2024
Open for: US writers
Details here.
(Some of PEN America’s other initiatives are open now, including the PEN America Free Expression Essay Competition, a US-based student essay competition with cash prizes, deadline 30 April 2024; see their Submittable for details.)
Poetry Foundation: Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships
These grants, which will open for applications in early March, are for US poets ages 21-31 years. Applicants have to register on their online portal. Poets can also apply for alternative formats to submit applications. One of the application requirements is a writing sample, up to 10 pages of poetry. The application period will open on 4th March 2024.
Value: $27,000
Submission period: 4th March to 15th April 2024 (deadline to apply for alternative formats is 1st April, and deadline to register on the online portal is 8th April – see guidelines).
Open for: US writers
Details here.
(See all of Poetry Foundation’s grants and awards for individuals here. And Poetry Magazine’s Submittable is here.
And, Poetry Foundation has grants for poetry/literary arts organizations in the US – two of them are open now; Equity in Verse of $10,000-100,000, for nonprofit poetry and literary organizations, which includes presses and publications, led and staffed by people of color; and Poetry Programs, Partnerships, and Innovation grants of $10,000-75,000, which support nonprofit organizations invested in at least one of the following priorities: broadening the audiences for poetry; increasing access to poetry; new collaborations and partnerships in poetry; and innovations in the field of poetry, including investment in new technologies. The deadline to apply is 1 March 2024. Details here.)
FOR UK/IRELAND WRITERS
The Papatango New Writing Prize
This is for residents of the UK and Ireland. Send an original play script, which should have a running time of at least 60 minutes, or be at least 9,000 words, or be at least 40 pages. The winning play receives a cash prize and production.
Value: £7,500, 8% box office royalties, production, publication
Deadline: 11 March 2023
Open for: UK and Ireland residents
Details here.
Jane Martin Poetry Prize
This is for writers in the UK between ages 18 and 30 years. Send up to two poems, a total of two sides of A4.
Value: £700, £300
Deadline: 15 March 2024
Open for: UK writers ages 18-30
Details here (you can download the flyer here).
Fitzcarraldo Editions/Mahler & Lewitt Studios Essay Prize
This is a prize for unpublished writers in the UK. Their website says, “the prize awards £3,000 to the best proposal for a book-length essay (minimum 25,000 words) by a writer resident in the UK & Ireland who has yet to secure a publishing deal. In addition to the £3,000 prize the winner will have the opportunity to spend up to two months in residency at the Mahler & LeWitt Studios in Spoleto, Italy, to work on their book. The book will then be published by Fitzcarraldo Editions.”
Value: £3,000, residency
Deadline: 17 March 2024
Open for: Unpublished UK/Ireland writers (see guidelines)
Details here.
BBC Radio 4: BBC National Short Story Award
This prestigious award, by BBC and the Cambridge University, is for UK writers, for a short story of up to 8,000 words. Writers must have a prior record of publication in the UK.
Value: £15,000, four awards of £600 each
Deadline: 18 March 2024
Open for: Published UK writers (see FAQ)
Details here and here.
(They also have the Young Writers’ Award, a short fiction contest for UK-based writers ages 14-18.)
Cymera-Shoreline of Infinity Prize for Speculative Short Fiction
This is a speculative fiction contest for writers who are Scottish by birth or inclination (see guidelines), ages 14+ years. Send a story of up to 2,500 words. The stories that are selected for the shortlist will be published on the Cymera (Scotland’s festival of science fiction, fantasy, and horror writing) website after the festival.
Value: £150
Deadline: 31 March 2024
Open for: Scottish writers (see guidelines)
Details here.
Anne Brown Essay Prize
This is an essay prize for Scottish writers. Send an essay of up to 4,000 words, on any subject.
Value: £1,500
Deadline: 31 March 2024
Open for: Scottish writers (see guidelines)
Details here.
Bio: S. Kalekar is the pseudonym of a regular contributor to this magazine. She can be reached here.
