Fair Submissions

 full details and under The Octo Books Competition is being run by independent children's publisher Octo Books, and is inviting entries from Rising Authors (aged 7-17) and Adult Storytellers.  Entries may be up to 800 words, on the 'Hidden Worlds' theme, and must be original and unpublished. Winners will be published online and receive prize bundles.  

  FUll details   Tell a Story in Exactly Six Words Win $100 cash + Publication in the next Anthology Free to enter • Open worldwide 2026 Six Word Wonder Contest Deadline: 30 September 2026 • Midnight PST “For sale: baby shoes. Never worn.” — The most famous six-word story ever told SUBMIT YOUR SIX-WORD STORIES NOW

 F ull Details o enter the Anthology Nature Writing Competition, submit an original, previously unpublished work, written in English with a maximum of 1,500 words. Adapted, revised or otherwise reworked versions of previously published material are not eligible for entry. There is no limit to the number of entries you can submit. Each submission will require a separate entry form and will be subject to a separate entry fee. There is no age limit. In order to minimise administrative costs and maintain affordable fees, please note that entry fees are non-refundable. Submissions will be judged on their emotional impact, creativity, and the ability to captivate the reader.  Once selected, the winner will be contacted by email or telephone. Copyright remains with the author but  Anthology  reserves the right to be the first to publish or arrange a broadcast of selected works.  The use of Generative AI is not permitted for e...

 FUll Details you want a reader to buy your book or an agent to offer you representation, then it only makes sense to have a stunning first page. That's what the First Page Challenge is all about—we're open to fiction or narrative nonfiction, short stories or full-length manuscripts.  Our judge, Michelle Barker, will be asking herself one question: how likely am I to turn this page and keep reading? First place: $700 CAD Second place: $200 CAD Third place: $100 CAD All three finalists win publication on the Chopping Blog and receive complimentary access to one of our craft books. The Finer Points • Entry is $5 CAD • One page: double-spaced, 12-point font • Multiple submissions accepted • Original, unpublished, unrepresented work only • Once you've paid, send your docx/pdf to editors@darlingaxe.com • Submission deadline: September 30 Check out the 2025 winner here . And the 2024 winner here . And the 2023 winner here . And the 2022 winner ...

  full Detials Theme + Genres The theme of this year’s contest is: BELONGING Accepted genres include: Contemporary, historical fiction, fantasy, and science fiction, but each story must be centered on the theme of belonging. Stories should be written with an upper Middle Grade and/or YA audience in mind. Submissions Close September 1st. Prizes 1 st Place: $50 Amazon gift card Lantern Lighters 2026 Award Editorial feedback Winning story published on our website + social media 2 nd Place: $25 Amazon gift card Editorial feedback Winning story published on our website + social media 3 rd Place: Winning story published on our website + social media Rules --Stories must be formatted in 12-point Times New Roman. --Paragraphs must be double spaced. --Stories cannot exceed 1,000 words. --No part of your story may be generated or edited by AI. --Stories must not contain profanity, gore, or sexual content or innuendo. --Up to 2 submissions per author allowed. Stories MAY be read and criti...

  FUll Detials e Climate Playwriting Prize 2026 will uncover the most exciting new plays about the climate crisis, and support them to find their audiences.  We believe that playwrights have a vital role to play in the conversation around the climate. Theatre is a space for animating audiences, forming communities, and experimenting with form; a space for processing the past, articulating the present, and imagining the future. In order to surface the breadth and diversity of new stories about this planetary moment, the Climate Playwriting Prize is an open invitation to playwrights to respond creatively to this subject matter. Regional and touring theatre is playing a vital role in engaging audiences, and we are partnering with organisations all around the country to deliver workshops to writers, unlocking how they might want to tell their climate story. This moment is marked by rising temperatures, escalating impacts of change on communities and ecosystems, but ...

 F ull Detials  tterkenny Cathedral Quarter Literary Festival is delighted to announce its 2026 Poetry Competition is open for submissions. This year, the theme of the competition is New World. Poets, interpret as you wish! Five shortlisted poets will be invited to read their entries at the Letterkenny Cathedral Quarter Literary Festival on Saturday 17th October when the overall winner will be announced. The judge this year is Deirdre Hines. Deirdre is an award-winning poet and author of The Language of Coats (New Island) which includes her Listowel Prize-winning collection, and The Mermelf: A Fable for Our Times (Austin Macauley Publishers), runner-up in the the London Book Festival 2024. Her Japanese Poetry Workbook: Master Haiku, Tanka, Renku, Haibun & more with prompts, is an Amazon Top 50 bestseller. The Festival Committee wish to thank Brennan’s Pharmacy and Donegal ETB for sponsoring our main prizes.  The winner will receive €150 and the runner-up €100...

  Full details nchester Poetry Prize is our globally popular, annual poetry competition, which began in 2016.  ​ The competition attracts entries from all over the world and is judged blind. It opens in April, and closes in July. ​ Previous judges have included Fiona Benson, Clare Shaw, Zaffar Kunial, Jacqueline Saphra, Andrew McMillan, Helen Mort, Liz Berry, Sarah Howe, Mimi Khalvati and Jo Bell. The competition judge reads all of the poems entered (we do not use sifters) and chooses the longlisted poems. These are announced in September. ​ These longlisted poets are invited to read at a special prize-giving ceremony as part of Winchester Poetry Festival in October - it is here that the winners are announced. This exciting event is free to attend, in person or online.  ​ Winning poets receive cash prizes (1st prize: £1000, 2nd prize: £500, 3rd prize: £250) and all longlisted poems are published in a printed anthology. The best poem entered by ...

 F ull Details id Bruce Smith’s Grateful American Foundation was founded on President’s Day 2014, with a mission to restore enthusiasm about American history for kids—and adults. The organization seeks to provide interest, insight, and to increase awareness about the people and events that influenced the founding of the United States. Smith has boundless enthusiasm for American History and a limitless longing to share it with America’s schoolchildren. So, it’s no wonder that the author and publisher co-created the Grateful American Book Prize the following year. The Prize The Grateful American Book Prize was co-founded by David Bruce Smith and Dr. Bruce Cole, the former chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities, in 2015. It is awarded annually to the authors of books for children, ages 11 to 15; they can be works of historical fiction, fiction, non-fiction, and biographies. “We are looking for excellence in writing and storytelling.” The Prize consists ...

  FUll Details Event Details The HG Wells Short Story Competition is an international writing contest that celebrates the legacy of H.G. Wells by encouraging original short fiction linked to a yearly theme — for 2026, “The Cheat.” Winners and shortlisted stories are published in a professionally produced paperback anthology. The competition is open to original, previously unpublished short stories written in English on the theme for this year. Submissions must be 1,500–5,000 words and uploaded online as PDF or text. Stories should be anonymised (no author name on the manuscript) to enable blind judging. There are two categories: Under 21 category: Writers aged 21 or under on the closing date can enter for free and compete for a £1,000 prize. Senior category (22+): Writers aged 22 or over pay a £10 entry fee (£5 with valid student ID) and compete for a £500 prize. The competition is international, open to writers anywhere. Judges select sh...

  Full Details Deadline 30 June 2026 Who may enter The competition is open to poets anywhere in the world. Short description The contest is organized by   Poetry London , a literary magazine based in London. Poems must be in English. Entries must not have been previously published or self-published, in print or online, or have won a prize in another competition. The maximum length is 80 lines. This year's judge is Seán Hewitt. Entry fees For Poetry London subscribers the entry fee is £5 per poem; for non-subscribers it is £10 .  Prizes • 1st prize: £5,000 • 2nd prize: £2,000 • 3rd prize: £1,000  Competition website Visit the official competition website for more information.    

 FUll dertails Poetry, prose and Prizes Spring into action if you want to enter the 2026 International Competitions hosted by Wells Festival of Literature, now an eagerly contested annual event. We have the judges – you have the words. Just decide which of the quartet of competitions suits your style of writing and you could be one of the winners to walk away with both kudos and cash. Prizes totalling £5,000 will be awarded to the winning entries in the competition’s four sections: Open Poetry, Short Story, Book for Children, and Young Poets. Entries are invited from 1 April 2026 until 30 June 2026 in the categories Open Poetry, Short Stories and Book for Children. There is a longer entry period for Young Poets from 1 April 2026 until 31 July 2026 . All the judges, one for each category, are well-respected experts in their own field so entrants can be confident of the final judgements. Winners will be announced at a celebratory event at 2pm on 19 Octob...

 Full details Regeneration Climate collapse. Culture wars. Physical wars. The global picture in these Roaring Twenties can leave little to inspire and uplift, and rhetoric is rife aiming to stoke fires of hate and distrust. But poetry – like many art forms, but perhaps more so than any other – is universal, and the power to unite. It is so easy to be overwhelmed by the negative news churn surrounding the climate emergency, and in the slew of statistics it’s all too easy to forget how we come into the picture. Raising voices from around the globe, from across continents and myriad walks of life, Regeneration refocuses the lens on the complex relationship we have with nature. This is a powerful and wide-ranging exploration, a cry for change and a celebration of the forces for good all around us. Please do help us to get the word out – on social media (#RegenerationPoetry) and in real life, as we’d love to reach people who aren’t on social media sites too! If you know s...

 FULL Details he Hilary Weston Writers’ Trust Prize for Nonfiction 2026 is organised by Writers’ Trust of Canada , a major Canadian literary charity that administers several national literary awards. This prize recognises the year’s most outstanding book-length nonfiction work by a Canadian author, celebrating excellence in research, narrative craft, and contribution to public discourse. Eligible entries must be nonfiction books written in English and published in Canada during the previous calendar year. Works may encompass biography, history, essays, science, memoir, or other nonfiction categories, provided they demonstrate literary merit and originality. Entries are submitted by publishers on behalf of the authors; self-published or.independently published books are eligible if they meet eligibility criteria defined by the award. The competition is restricted to Canadian authors (Canadian citizens or permanent residents). A panel of distinguished jurors appointed b...

 F ull Details e Anne Brown Essay Prize awards £1500 for the best literary essay by a writer in or from Scotland. The Anne Brown Essay Prize will launch on 16 February 2026. Terms and Conditions Entries open on 16 February 2026 Entries close on 15 June 2026  4000-word limit Essays may be on any subject There is no limit to the number of essays that entrants can submit Each essay should be submitted as a separate Word or PDF document Alterations cannot be made once an essay has been submitted The judging panel has sole interpretation of what constitutes an essay The organisers especially welcome unpublished essays. Published authors and their publishers are also invited to submit work published no earlier than 1 July 2025 Entries should be emailed to annebrownessayprize@wigtownbookfestival.com . Please include your name, address, email address and telephone number in the body of the email. If you do not currently live...

 FUll Details iami Book Fair will award one $2,000 prize every other year (in even years) for the publication of a previously unpublished book of poetry originally written in Spanish by an American resident.  The prize will recognize book-length manuscripts of poetry written in Spanish. Translations, works of literary criticism and scholarly texts do not qualify.  The next Paz Prize competition will open in May, 2026. The winner will be selected by an esteemed Spanish-speaking poet.  The chosen book will be translated into English by an experienced translator, and will be published in a bilingual edition. Eligible poets include: U.S. Citizens Residents of the United States for a ten-year period prior to January 1 of the prize year, or Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) status, Temporary Protected Status (TPS), Legal Permanent Status (LPS), or any subsequent categories designated by the U.S. authorities as conferring similar enhanced status upo...

  FUll Detils Who Can Enter There will be two age categories in this competition 1. Rising Authors (Ages 7-17) 2. Adult Storytellers (Ages 18+) Theme & Prompt This years theme is....... Hidden Worlds! Imagine an amazing world—underwater kingdoms, secret space colonies, underground tunnels, or something entirely your own. Use the theme however you like, as long as your story is suitable for ages 12 and under. Key Dates 1. Entries Open - Now 2. Entries Close - May 20th 9:00pm GMT 3. Winner's Reveal - May 24th 7:00pm GMT  How To Enter The Competition You can submit a form online via our Google Form. Click here to enter once entries have opened. The file will only be accepted in PDF format. Please remember to check your story is suitable for ages 12 and under. If you are not sure if your story will meet the guidelines, feel free to contact us and we can check for you. Judging Criteria The judges will be looking for amazing stand-out stories this year, but your story w...

  Full details 2 026 Competition Categories There are four competition categories: 1. Fiction Short Story (maximum 2,500 words) 2. Flash Fiction (maximum 700 words)  3. Poetry (maximum 40 lines) 4. Memoir/Personal Essay (maximum 1,000 words) The independent panel of judges will select the winners and each category winner will be invited to read from their work at a public event as part of the festival. 2 026 Competition Prizes The winner of each category will receive a cash prize of €500 and a free weekend pass to the Write By The Sea Festival 2026. All four winning pieces will be published in Issue 12 of The Waxed Lemon Literary Journal. The runners-up in each category will receive €300, and third place will receive €200. 2 026 Competition Timeline Friday 3 rd April 2026 – submissions open through writebythesea.ie Sunday 7 th June 2026, competition closes at 18:00 Sunday 9 th August 2026– shortlist of the winning entry titles will be posted on the WBTS website, writ...

 F Ull Details We are searching for the next big voice in romance fiction and we are different from other literary prizes in that the winner will be offered literary representation! Enter your opening chapter to a romance novel. From sizzle to slow burn, we are open to all types of romantic fiction from romantic comedy to historical romance to newer sub genres such as romantasy and mafia romance. The MeetCute Festival brilliantly champions the romance genre by bringing authors and readers together and the winners will be announced at this year’s festival in July. Kate Nash Literary Agency is an author talent management agency representing the careers of authors worldwide from USA Today to Sunday Times bestsellers through to our long track record in growing newer authors into bestsellers. MeetCute Storyteller Prize Rules The Prize is open to writers aged 18 or over who are unrepresented by a literary agency. Entries must be wholly original work written by the entrant. AI ...

  Full Details oet of the Year 2026 is now open for submissions!  Our 2025 competition received over 500 entries from around the world with Lucy Crispin taking first place for her poem  something happened here .   Our 2026 competition is now open for submissions. Poems entered may be on any subject and in any poetic format but no more than 60 lines long. There is an entry fee of £5 per poem, with all funds raised helping to support our annual 2-week festival and year-round public engagement work.   Before entering, please download the info pack and entry form below. All submissions will require an accompanying entry from and a copy of your order confirmation.   Longlisted poems will be compiled in our annual printed Anthology, and shortlisted poems will be read at our online Awards Evening on 1 October, when the winners will be announc...

 F Ull Details OVERVIEW: WOW ! hosts a (quarterly) writing contest every three months, and has done so since 2006. The mission of this contest is to inspire creativity, great writing, and provide well-rewarded recognition to contestants. The WOW Contest has awarded over $150,000 in cash to writers since its inception. The contest is open globally; age is of no matter; and entries must be in English. We are open to all styles and genres of flash fiction, although we do encourage you to take a close look at our guest judge for the season (upper right hand corner) if you are serious about winning. Please make sure to download our Contest Terms & Conditions PDF below for complete guidelines. Get creative, and let’s have some fun! Remember, we have limited entries, so enter early to ensure your spot. We look forward to reading your work! WORD ...

  Full Details tement from the Director Jonathan Silver was a sculptor and writer. He worked from the model and from his imagination. He was passionately interested in the history of sculpture, from ancient Egypt and Hellenistic Greece through Michelangelo, Rodin, Giacometti, and Richard Serra. The questions he asked himself about sculpture were fundamental. Why, since prehistory, had human beings needed sculpture? What made this sculpture successful and not that one? What enabled some sculptures to stand on their own and how had other sculptures defined and become inseparable from the environments they created? How did process, materials, and form express both individual personality and history and the world in which the work emerged? How could sculpture become a vehicle for ideas? Silver’s sculpture and writing are rigorous and fearless, as well as provocative and searching. While working on plaster heads and figures, he read epic poetry and European novels and s...