There seem to be so many writing contests for the upcoming year! So, we’ve decided to break them up by month to make it easier for people to digest and submit. On the fence about submitting your writing to contests or journals? Take a look at our post Why You Should Submit to Writing Contests and Literary Journals, and good luck!
“‘Dear You’: The Third Annual Common Good Books Poetry Contest” by Garrison Keillor
Deadline: April 4, 2015
We love poetry at Common Good Books, and to prove it our proprietor is putting his money where his mouth is. Garrison Keillor is offering five thousand dollars in prize money to the seven winners of “‘Dear You’: The Third Annual Common Good Books Poetry Contest.” Three poets will receive grand prizes of $1000 each, and four poets will receive $500 for poems of particular merit. http://commongoodbooks.com/%E2%80%9C%E2%80%98dear-you%E2%80%99-third-annual-common-good-books-poetry-contest%E2%80%9D
Album Review Writing Contest
Deadline: April 14, 2015
What’s in your music library? A few crowd pleasers, that album that was better than you first thought… and too many embarrassing guilty pleasures to mention? If you love listening to music, you just might like to write about it too… If so, check out Write the World’s newest competition for young writers, ages 13-18. The Album Review Competition opens Monday, March 30, 2015. Cash Prizes and Public Praise! http://writetheworld.com
SRPR Editors’ Prize $1000
Deadline: April 15, 2015
SRPR (Spoon River Poetry Review) 2015 Editors’ Prize. Winner awarded $1000, an honorarium to read at our annual gala reading event, and a published introduction to the winning poem written by this year’s judge. Two runners up awarded $100 each. Three-five honorable mentions. All winning poems & several finalists are published. 2014 judge: Joshua Corey. 2015 judge announced after winners are selected. Submit up to three poems by 4/15/2015. Entry fee of $20 includes subscription (two issues). See website for guidelines www.srpr.org.
Beecher’s 2015 Contest Has Begun!
Deadline: April 15, 2015
Beecher’s Magazine, an annual print journal produced by graduate students at the University of Kansas, is open to contest submissions from February 15-April 15, 2015. Judges are LaTasha N. Nevada Diggs (Poetry), Matt Bell (Fiction), and Alissa Nutting (Nonfiction). Winners receive $200 and publication in Beecher’s 5. Runners-up may also be considered for publication. The entry fee is $12 per submission. All entrants will receive a copy of Beecher’s 5. To submit, visit http://beechersmag.submittable.com/submit.
Sycamore Review Wabash Prize in Fiction
Deadline: April 17, 2015
Sycamore Review’s Wabash Prize in Fiction is open to submissions March 1 through April 17. This year, Kelly Link will judge. Winner receives $1,000 dollars and publication in Sycamore Review. All entries considered for publication. Reading fee of $20 includes copy of the prize issue. For more details, see www.sycamorereview.com.
Passages North Nonfiction and Poetry Prizes Open
Deadline: April 20, 2015
Passages North will accept submissions for the Thomas J. Hrushka Memorial Nonfiction Prize and Elinor Benedict Poetry Prize through April 20, 2015. Contest judges will be Steven Church and Lynn Emanuel, respectively. One winner in each contest will receive $1000 and publication in Passages North Issue 37. Entry Fee is $15 and all entrants will receive a copy of Issue 37. See full contest details at http://passagesnorth.com/contests/. Issue 37 will also feature the winner of Little Presque Books’ 2015 Novella Contest. Entry fee is $20 and submissions close April 24. Novella contest details at http://littlepresquebooks.com.
Epiphany Magazine’s Chapbook Competition
Deadline: April 20, 2015
Reading Fee: $6 per submission. Fiction (judged by Luis Jaramillo), poetry (judged by Katie Peterson), literary nonfiction (judged by Kristin Dombek), and graphic literature (judged by Lydia Conklin) accepted. For fiction, nonfiction, and graphic lit: total of 5k-10k words, double-spaced, 12pt font. You can submit a single story or several stories within that limit to be published as a whole. Graphic lit entries must be black and white illustrations only. For poetry: one poem per page, total page count should not exceed 20 pages. All poems should be unpublished. All poetry forms are acceptable and welcome. Award: Publication, cash prize in each genre, and 5 contributor copies. http://epiphanyzine.com/submit.html
Tom Howard/John H. Reid Fiction & Essay Contest
Deadline: April 30, 2015
23rd year. $4,000 in cash prizes, including two top awards of $1,500 each. Seeks short stories and essays up to 6,000 words each. All entries that win cash prizes will be published on WinningWriters.com (nearly one million page views per year) and announced in the Winning Writers Newsletter. Both published and unpublished work accepted. Fee per entry is $16. Final judge: Arthur Powers. See guidelines, past winners, and enter at www.winningwriters.com/tomstory
Inlandia Institute announces The Hillary Gravendyk Prize poetry book competition
Deadline: April 30, 2015
The Inlandia Institute is proud to announce The Hillary Gravendyk Prize, an open poetry book competition for all writers regardless of the number of previously published poetry collections. Two winners, one entry fee: National and Regional, $1000 each. Submit a poetry manuscript between 48 – 100 pages. Submissions accepted via Inlandia’s Submittable portal: http://inlandiaaliteraryjourney.submittable.com/submit/37899. Submissions must be received by April 30, 2015 at midnight Pacific Standard Time. Reading fee is $20. The winners will be announced in September 2015, and we expect to publish the winning books in December of 2015.
Cloudbank Magazine Poetry/Flash Fiction Prize Call for Submissions
Deadline: April 30, 2015
Cloudbank magazine is offering a $200 prize for one poem or flash fiction published in the upcoming issue, Cloudbank 9. The winning poem or flash fiction is chosen by editors Michael Malan and Peter Sears, Oregon’s poet laureate. Revive us with your fire! Send up to 5 poems or short prose pieces with the $15 fee by April 30. Fee includes a two-issue subscription, starting with the current issue. Send to: Cloudbank, P.O. Box 610, Corvallis, OR 97339. Full guidelines and more at www.cloudbankbooks.com.
Competition for Imagine This! An Artprize Anthology
Deadline: April 30, 2015
For writers of poetry, short stories (1500 words) and personal essays (1500 words). Submissions through April 30, 2015. First Prize: $1,000. Second Prize: $500. Third Prize: $250. Top 25 entries will be published in anthology. Submission fee: $20. Managed by the Cascade Writers’ Group and Great Lakes Commonwealth of Letters, Imagine This! An ArtPrize Anthology will be sold through the ArtPrize hub and other venues. ArtPrize is an international art competition held in Grand Rapids, Michigan, with over 1,000,000 visitors and 25,900,000 page views each year. Named by Time as one of the top five festivals of the year. http://readwritelive.org/anthology-competition-2015
$6,000 in Prizes with the Nimrod Literary Awards
Deadline: April 30, 2015
The 37th Annual Nimrod Literary Awards are now open! Submit to The Pablo Neruda Prize for Poetry and The Katherine Anne Porter Prize for Fiction, with first prizes of $2,000 and publication, and second prizes of $1,000 and publication. All finalists will be considered for publication. For poetry, submit 3-10 pages (one long poem or several short poems); for fiction, one short story, 7,500 words maximum. Each entry must be accompanied by a $20 entry fee, which includes a one-year subscription to Nimrod. For more information and complete submission guidelines, visit www.utulsa.edu/nimrod.
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