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Competitions

Welcome to my Competitions Calendar. Below are some competitions run throughout the year (in order of deadline dates). If you know of ones that I haven’t listed here, find any of these have closed or discover any broken links, please do email me with details. I will be adding more shortly. :) Also see the ‘Submission info.‘ page and genre sub-pages) for submission opportunities.

NB. I may well not have tried these competitions myself so please take a good look at the websites before parting with money and submitting your hard work!  ALSO please note that not all the competitions run each year so please check their validity before entering (and their guidelines do change from year to year).

Colour Key: blue = external websites, purple = emails, green = pages on this blog

  • Details of the H.E. Bates Short Story Competition that one of my writing groups runs and for 2013 we have Della Galton as our Head Judge (late October deadline) is here.
  • Details of the NLG Flash Fiction Competition that I’m Head Judging (end June deadline) is here.

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JANUARY
  • Children’s: Frances Lincoln.
  • Flash Fiction: Fiction Desk, Indies Unlimited hosts a weekly 250-word max. prompt competition – see Indies Unlimited. Also see ‘Short stories’ below.
  • Flash Fiction: Writer Austin Briggs runs a monthly 55-word competition (different theme each month). It’s free to enter and you can win $55 (of his own money!).
  • Flash Fiction: Each week on http://theironwriter.com, four writers agree to compose a five hundred word story involving the same four elements. Please remember to give your story a title. The stories can be in any genre except erotica. The writers will not know what the four elements are prior to committing to the challenge. There is a four day time limit to complete the story. I email the elements early Thursday morning, my time. The story is due at midnight, Sunday, your time. Each author retains full and complete copyright of their story submitted to The Iron Writer for this competition. However, it is understood each story will remain on this website indefinitely. The Iron Writer will not publish any submission outside this website without express permission from the author. So, if you are up to the challenge, please email me at HERE and we can schedule when you are willing to participate. Please include your main blog or website. I will link your story to your site. You may participate as often as you want.
  • Memoir: Lightship Short Memoir Contest: Do you want to tell your own story, or an episode of it? 1st prize £1,000 closing date 31 January. Thanks again to The New Writer magazine for the info.
  • Mixed: Christian magazine Pockets has a different theme per month.
  • Mixed: The Pen Cove Award (formerly the Whidbey Writing Competition). This contest from Whidbey Writers Workshop in the USA is open worldwide and is for fiction, creative non-fiction, poetry and writing for children or young adults. Up to 1,000 words. I’m told they have a rather strange way of selecting a winner for this one. The judge reads submissions until he or she finds one that ‘knocks his/her socks off’. Never mind that the next one might have divested the judge of his/her pants and woolly vest, the remaining entries are tossed aside without so much as a glance.  However, you can submit you entry again if it isn’t selected (try to get it in early, as entries are read in order of submission).
 Closing: Monthly.
 Prize: $50.
 Entry Fee: Free to enter.
 Comp Page: http://whidbeystudents.com/student-choice-contest.
  • Mixed (novels & short story collections): iWriteReadRate and Cornerstones Literary Consultancy (http://www.voteformyebook.com) are offering a monthly social competition to members of the community – see ‘Monthly’ towards the end of this page.
  • Mixed: Bronte Society Creative Competition 2013/14 invites you to write a poem, short story or illustrate a scene from a Brontë novel. Judges Margaret Drabble, Simon Armitage, Victoria Brookland. 3 x £500 first prizes, deadline 31 January 2014. See http://www.bronte.org.uk/bronte-society/creative-competition.
  • Non-fiction: Nature writing essays welcomed for the Resurgence & Ecologist magazine. The deadline is early January.
  • Novels: www.booklinethinker.com/hookline.
  • Novels: Novel Rocket runs an annual Launch Pad Contest: Boosting You Out of the Slush Pile. Entries will be accepted in all genres beginning mid-January. The deadline for submission is different for genre categories according to the following schedule. In each case, entries must be received by 11:59 PM EST on the 10th day of the month (April to September) listed on http://www.novelrocket.com/p/launch-pad-contest.html. They also post a new writing-related article seven days a week, from author interviews to marketing discussions to articles about the craft of writing.
  • Plays: Bruntwood (OPENS 31st January).
  • Plays: The Drama Wales One-Act Play was ON HOLD for 2013 – I’ll let you know if this changes in 2014.
  • Poetry: Kent & Sussex Poetry Society Open Poetry Competition has a First Prize: £1000, 2nd: £300,  3rd: £100,  4th: 4 x £50. Entry fee: £5 per poem. 3 or more poems: £4 each. Closing date: 31st January. Entries to: The Competition Organiser, 26 Courtlands, Teston, Maidstone, Kent, ME18 5AS. Put name and address on separate sheet – not on poem or enter online and pay by Paypal. For more details, go to: www.kentandsussexpoetry.com.
  • Poetry: other poetry competitions include Haiku Calendar, Hippocrates, Leaf Press, Strokestown, Writing / Writers’ News magazines (monthly), www.haikusoc.ndo.co.uk, www.slipstream-poets.co.uk, www.bevlit.org.
  • Poetry: The Writers’ Forum Poetry Competition is a monthly contest for poems of up to 40 lines. Closing: Monthly. Entries arriving too late for one month go forward to the next. Prizes: 1st – £100. Runners-up – A Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. Entry Fee: £5 each, £3 each thereafter. Includes a critique (sae required if entering by post). Comp Page: http://www.writers-forum.com/poetrycomp.html.
  • Screenwriting: Canada-based Wildsound run monthly screenwriting competitions.
  • Short stories: Home-Start Bridgwater Short Story Prize has a January deadline and this year’s judge is Dame Margaret Drabble.
  • Short stories: Hayley Sherman runs a monthly short story competition for submissions on any subject up to 2,000 words. The winners are published on the website, promoted online and receive a £10 First Writer voucher. All entrants are also considered for publication in The New Short Story Annual at the end of the year. Deadline 25th of the month. Heather Marie Schuldt runs a similar contest, although 500-750 words max., but with the same deadline.
  • Short stories: The Bath Short Story Award opened October 2012 for entries – see ‘March’.
  • Short stories: Writer Selection has a 31st January deadline and 200-2000 word count. The 2013 judge is writer / poet and Costa / Troubadour winner John Hayes. Prizes £150, £50, £25. Entry is free and all entrants receive a year’s membership (normally £10).
  • Short stories: Other competitions include Bury St Edmunds, Chudleigh, Fiction Desk, Five Stop Story, Glimmer Train (different category each month), Home-Start Bridgewater, Mslexia, National Galleries Scotland, Writing / Writers’ News magazines (monthly), www.flair4words.co.uk/news.
  • NB. Don’t forget to check out the ongoing competition websites listed at the end of this page.

FEBRUARY

MARCH
  • Children’s: Academy of Children’s Writers, Crystal Magazine.
  • Flash Fiction: Indies Unlimited hosts a weekly 250-word max. prompt competition – see Indies Unlimited. Also see ‘Short stories’ below.
  • Flash Fiction: Weekly challenge on http://theironwriter.com.
  • Flash Fiction: Writer Austin Briggs runs a monthly 55-word competition (different theme each month). It’s free to enter and you can win $55 (of his own money!).
  • Flash Fiction: Flashbang 2013 is now open to entries: http://flashbangcontest.wordpress.com. Sponsored by CrimeFest. £2 entry fee. 150 words maximum. Deadline 1 March 2013. First prize is two passes to CrimeFest. Shortlisted and winning stories published online. Judge is bestselling crime writer, Zoë Sharp. Full details are here.
  • Flash Fiction: Erewash has a free flash fiction competition. Deadline noon (UK time) Thursday 21st March 2013. Full details here.
  • Flash Fiction: The Berkhampstead Writing Competition has a 31st March deadline.
  • Flash Fiction: The NLG Flash Fiction Competition (that I am Head Judge of) is now open – see ‘June’ for full details.
  • Mixed: Winchester Writers’ Conference has opened their 17(!) mixed writing competitions (deadline Friday 24th May). Details in their competitions brochure 2013. £7 per entry if attending, £9 if not.
  • Mixed: Words for the Wounded (W4W) is a new charity that raises money via writing prizes and donations for the rehabilitation of wounded servicemen and women. All proceeds will be passed to projects such as Battle Back, funded by Help for Heroes, which uses sports rehabilitation to help wounded service personnel gain independence and confidence. W4W is launching its first writing prize on Armistice Day, November 11, and is calling for all non-writers, aspiring, and experienced writers to enter. Entries can be up to 400 words, written in poetry or prose, fiction or life story tale. Winners will receive a small cash prize and their entries will be published in the monthly writers’ magazine Writers’ Forum (http//writers-forum/com). Entry costs just £3.50 and the deadline is March 11 2013, winners will be announced on 6 June (D Day). Oscar-winning screen writer and author Julian Fellowes and his wife Emma are among W4W’s patrons. Julian says: “Emma and I feel strongly that we must never forget the debt we all owe to these brave men and women. We are honoured to be involved in this wonderful charity.” Other patrons include Rt Hon Lord Ashdown, Lt. Col J. Dryburgh, authors Katie Fforde, Katherine McMahon, Louis de Bernieres , Sarah Challis and Mark Hodgson, Daisy Goodwin, paralympian Ann Wild OBE, Taryn Lee QC, artist Rowena Hampton, extreme sportsman  Hugh Williams Preece, Lt Ian Thornson and Founder/Director of the Winchester Writers’ Conference Barbara Large. For more information, see www.wordsforthewounded.co.uk or follow us on Twitter @Words_4_Wounded.
  • Mixed: Christian magazine ‘Pockets‘ has a different theme per month.
  • Mixed: www.helenwhittaker.net/phpBB2 (shorts & poetry).
  • Mixed (novels & short story collections): iWriteReadRate and Cornerstones Literary Consultancy (http://www.voteformyebook.com) are offering a monthly social competition to members of the community – see ‘Monthly’ towards the end of this page.
  • Novels: Novel Rocket runs an annual Launch Pad Contest: Boosting You Out of the Slush Pile. Entries will be accepted in all genres beginning mid-January. The deadline for submission is different for genre categories according to the following schedule. In each case, entries must be received by 11:59 PM EST on the 10th day of the month (April to September) listed on http://www.novelrocket.com/p/launch-pad-contest.html. They also post a new writing-related article seven days a week, from author interviews to marketing discussions to articles about the craft of writing.
  • Novels: Rubery Book Award First Prize is £1,000 and the winning book is guaranteed to be read by a top London literary agent from MBA Lit. Second and third prizes are £200 and £75 respectively. The books should either be published by an independent press or self-published. All genres welcome. Visit www.ruberybookaward.com for more details. Deadline 30th April.
  • Novels: other March-deadline competitions include Dundee International Book Prize and The Next Big Author.
  • Playwriting: Windsor Fringe Kenneth Branagh Award for New Drama. and www.sohotheatre.com (Verity Bargate Award).
  • Playwriting: Cambridge Theatre Challenge: Would you like to write a one act play for the stage and enter it in a competition where short listed plays are given full performance, judged by the audience, considered for publication and given a written assessment by a publishing company? The winning playwright will also receive a cash prize of £200. Every play will be read in its entirety by a minimum of two judges and entrants will receive two lots of feedback on request, at no extra charge! A shortlist of up to ten plays will be drawn up and posted on the Sky Blue website.  Local actors and a production team will be assembled by professional directors to rehearse the plays for performance at the Junction Theatre in Cambridge 6th / 7th July 2013 where the audience will vote for the winner. Closing date for submissions is 30th March 2013. Plays must be submitted on line and full details can be found on our website http://skybluetheatre.com/newplaywriting.php.
  • Poetry: The Writers’ Forum Poetry Competition is a monthly contest for poems of up to 40 lines. Closing: Monthly. Entries arriving too late for one month go forward to the next. Prizes: 1st: £100. Runners-up: A Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. Entry Fee: £5 each, £3 each thereafter. Includes a critique (sae required if entering by post). Comp Page: http://www.writers-forum.com/poetrycomp.html.
  • Poetry: other poetry competitions include Cardiff International, Fish Prize for Poetry, Literature Wales, MAG, Michael Marks (pamphlets), Northern Writers’ Awards, Writing Magazine (WM: open to all theme: creative acrostic mini), www.davidburlandpoetryprize.com, www.treehousepress.co.uk (Three-in-One), www.towerpoetry.org.uk, www.firebirdpoetry.com, www.scottishbooktrust.com/familylegends.
  • Screenwriting: Canada-based Wildsound run monthly screenwriting competitions.
  • Scripts: www.euroscript.co.uk.
  • Short stories: Mslexia Women’s Short Story Competition 2013. Judge Janice Galloway, 1st prize £2,000. Closing date 18th March. http://www.mslexia.co.uk/whatson/msbusiness/scomp_active.php.
  • Short stories: Graffiti Magazine Short Story Competition Rules: *For crime stories* 1. Closing date March 16th 2013;

    2. Entries must be in English and be the writer’s own unpublished work. They must not be on offer for publication or entered in any other current competition;

    3. Maximum length 1,500 words;

    4. Each piece of work, with its title, must be in clear type on one side of A4 sheet(s). Details of the writer must not appear on this sheet;

    5. The name and address of the writer and the titles of all entries should be typed on a separate sheet of A4 paper;

    6. The prize-winner will be notified by post, if SAE provided, or by email if email address is provided;

    7. Entries are only accepted by post. Please keep a copy of your work, as entries will not be returned;

    8. The fee is £3 per story. Cheques / Postal Orders in sterling only, should be made payable to ‘

    Catchword Writing Group’;

    9. All entries that arrive on time will be considered by the adjudicator, whose decision is final. No correspondence will be entered into concerning the result;

    10. Competitors wishing to be informed of the results should enclose an SAE marked ‘Results’ or provide an email address.

    Send entries to: Graffiti Magazine Writing Competition, c

    /o 33 Sandford Leaze,

    Avening,

    Glos.

    GL8 8PB (UK).

    Prize: £25 The winning entry and up to five of the short listed stories will be published in Graffiti.

    For more information: graffiti.magazine@yahoo.co.uk.

  • Short stories: Hayley Sherman runs a monthly short story competition for submissions on any subject up to 2,000 words. The winners are published on the website, promoted online and receive a £10 First Writer voucher. All entrants are also considered for publication in The New Short Story Annual at the end of the year. Deadline 25th of the month. Heather Marie Schuldt runs a similar contest, although 500-750 words max., but with the same deadline.
  • Short stories: Thresholds International Short Story Forum Feature Writing Competition 2013. Free to enter, international, max 1500 words, 1st prize £500, closing date 27 March.
  • Short stories: The Bath Short Story Award opened for entries in October. This new international competition welcomes stories of up to 2,200 words on any theme or subject from published or unpublished writers. Prizes are as follows: 1st £500, 2nd £100, 3rd £50, and a local prize of £50. The competition closes March 30th, 2013. For further details see www.bathshortstoryaward.co.uk.
  • Short stories: The Greenacre Writers Short Story Competition usually has a 31st March deadline. Entries may be made by post: you can e-mail for an entry form or see their website. They also run a two-day festival in May (17-18th in 2013) – see Events.
  • Short stories: Writers’ Village runs a quarterly short story competition which attracts entrants worldwide. Click here for the rules… and every entrant receives invaluable critique! Their spring deadline is 31st March.
  • Short stories: The Yellow Room Spring Short Story Competition has a max 1,000 words, any theme, first prize £100, closing date 31 March.
  • Short stories: Stringybark Erotic Short Fiction Award 2013. International, max 1800 words. Closing date 31 March. Find out more about the award here.
  • Short stories: Lightship One-page Short Story Competition. Judge Calum Kerr. Max 300 words. Closing date 31 March.
  • Short stories: Exeter Writers is pleased to announce that the prizes in its 2013 Short Story Competition have all increased in this fifth annual Competition. The first prize is £500, 2nd and 3rd are £250 and £100. There is also an additional prize of £100 for a writer living in Devon so please pass on this information if you know writers who live here. Stories can be in any genre except for children, they can be up to 3,000 words and the entry fee is £5 per story. The closing date is 31st March 2013.  Rules/entry form: www.exeterwriters.org.uk or you can send a stamped self-addressed envelope (SAE) to Competition, 4 Albion Place, Exeter EX4 6LH.
  • Short stories: Short Fiction, The Visual Literary Journal. 7th Annual Short Story Competition
    1st prize £500 plus publication, max 5,000 words. Closing date 31 March.
  • Short stories: The Moth Magazine Short Story Prize. Judge Martina Evans, 1st prize €1,000 + publication, closing date 31 March.
  • Short stories: West Sussex Writers. One of the UK’s largest and oldest writing groups has announced the launch of its first national short story competition. With an open theme, generous word count and well-respected final judge – crime and comedy author Simon Brett – West Sussex Writers hopes to attract the cream of the UK’s short story writers. Max 3000 words. Closing date 31 March. 1st prize £200; 2nd prize £75; 3rd prize £50.
  • Short stories: Five Stop Story runs a quarterly short story competition (end March / June / September / December). Membership to the site is £25 but you get to enter up to five stories in each competition. Further details at http://www.fivestopstory.com/write.
  • Short stories: Other March short story competitions include Calderdale, Chapter One Romantic, Dark Tales, Exeter Writers, Fish Prize for Flash Fiction, Glimmer Train (different category each month), Meridian Writing, Mslexia, Northern Writers’ Awards, Rider Haggard, Writing Magazine (WM: open to all open: 750-words max / subscriber-only theme: last line ‘Out she walked with a spring in her step.’), and Wyvern.
  • NB. Don’t forget to check out the ongoing competition websites listed at the end of this page.
APRIL
  • Flash Fiction: Indies Unlimited hosts a weekly 250-word max. prompt competition – see Indies Unlimited. Also see ‘Short stories’ below.
  • Flash Fiction: Weekly challenge on http://theironwriter.com.
  • Flash Fiction: Writer Austin Briggs runs a monthly 55-word competition (different theme each month). It’s free to enter and you can win $55 (of his own money!).
  • Flash Fiction: The NLG Flash Fiction Competition (that I am Head Judge of) is now open – see ‘June’ for full details.
  • Flash Fiction: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • Mixed: Winchester Writers’ Conference has opened their 17(!) mixed writing competitions (deadline Friday 24th May). Details in their competitions brochure 2013. £7 per entry if attending, £9 if not.
  • Mixed: Christian magazine Pockets has a different theme per month.
  • Mixed (novels & short story collections): iWriteReadRate and Cornerstones Literary Consultancy (http://www.voteformyebook.com) are offering a monthly social competition to members of the community – see ‘Monthly’ towards the end of this page.
  • Non-fiction: ​Elephants. You gotta LOVE ‘em! And can you WRITE about them? Let’s find out. We’re looking for FICTION (including but not limited to fantasy and humor) and for Narrative Non-Fiction, between 500 and 5,000 words.Prize for 1st place is $150 and 2nd place is $50. Plus, the top tales may be included in an anthology {ELEPHANTHOLOGY} with your name. See http://www.phylsbooks.com/#!contest/c1kbb. Submissions accepted from 1 April 2013 – midnight of 1 July 2013. Cost $10.
  • Non-fiction: Nature Writer of the Year 2013. You could win a place on a research expedition to Madagascar. The judges are looking for a short piece of nature writing (800 words) that describes your experience of the wild. The winning story will also be published in BBC Wildlife magazine, closing date 30 April. Judges: Miriam Darlington, Ben Hoare, Rob Stringer, Kate Humble, Paul Evans. Open to all writers aged 18 and over, whether previously published or not,
    http://www.discoverwildlife.com/webform/nature-writer-year-2013-call-entries.
  • Novels: Novel Rocket runs an annual Launch Pad Contest: Boosting You Out of the Slush Pile. Entries will be accepted in all genres beginning mid-January. The deadline for submission is different for genre categories according to the following schedule. In each case, entries must be received by 11:59 PM EST on the 10th day of the month (April to September) listed on http://www.novelrocket.com/p/launch-pad-contest.html. They also post a new writing-related article seven days a week, from author interviews to marketing discussions to articles about the craft of writing.
  • Playwriting: The 7th King’s Cross Award For New Writing. Up to two full-length plays may be entered per writer, unpublished and unperformed scripts only. £5,000 prize. Closing date 30 April. http://www.thecourtyard.org.uk/content/25/writers-group.
  • Poetry: Poetry-Next-The-Sea Open Competition. Judge Heidi Williamson, max 40 lines, £100 first prize, closing date 6 April. http://www.poetry-next-the-sea.com/index.html.
  • Poetry: UK’S First Bug Poetry Competition marking Buglife’s tenth year as the only conservation charity in Europe devoted to the conservation of all invertebrates, closing date 8 April.
  • Poetry: Buxton Poetry Competition History and Heritage theme, all ages, judge Philip Wells, 40 lines max, closing date 8 April. http://www.derby.ac.uk/buxtonpoetrycompetition.
  • Poetry: The Writers’ Forum Poetry Competition is a monthly contest for poems of up to 40 lines. Closing: Monthly. Entries arriving too late for one month go forward to the next. Prizes: 1st – £100. Runners-up – A Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. Entry Fee: £5 each, £3 each thereafter. Includes a critique (sae required if entering by post). Comp Page: http://www.writers-forum.com/poetrycomp.html.
  • Poetry: other poetry competitions include Nonsense Poetry & Flash Fiction (2014), Ver, Writing Magazine (WM: open to all theme: horror), www.poetrypf.co.uk, www.swconline.co.uk.
  • Poetry & Short stories: Deddington Writers’ Group Open Writing Competition 2013 Short Story or Poem. Competition information and entry forms available from website end January, 2013 or send SAE to: 7, The Daedings, Deddington, OX15 ORT. 1st prize: £100, 2nd: £50,  3rd: £25, awarded in both categories. Closing date 13 April. See http://www.deddington.org.uk/community/arts/writing or www.deddingtonfestival.org.uk.
  • Poetry: The Royal Berkshire Poetry Competition open to all, 40 lines max, 1st prize £200, closing date 14 April. http://www.glowmagazine.me/poetry-competition.
  • Poetry: Poetry on the Lake International Poetry Competition has a theme of ‘metal’. Top prizes of €200, judges include Anne-Marie Fyfe, closing date 22 April. See http://www.poetryonthelake.org.
  • Poetry: The Winter Poetry Competition has grown out of the exhibition, Ice Dance, which features the photography and poems of Rona Campbell. The exhibition is touring throughout Wales and England in 2013 and the winners of the ‘Winter’ Poetry Competition will be announced during her exhibition at The Greenwich Gallery, London, on Monday May 13th 2013.There are three prizes £100 £65 & £35.We are looking for original poems on the theme of ‘Winter’. The subject is wide ranging and can be tackled through any number of approaches, including landscape, environment, political, personal or any other idea you may have. Poems inspired by Rona’s photographs are also welcome, and these can be found on her website www.ronacampbell.co.uk. The Judges are Aled Lewis Evans and Peter Read. Rules: 1.Writers must be over 18 years old. 2. Poems must be your original work, unpublished and not accepted for publication. 3. Poems must be written in English and not exceed 40 lines. 4. Each poem must be typed, single spaced on one side of A4 paper, which must not bear the name of the author, or any form of identification. 5. The titles of the poem/s and name and address of the poet should be clearly listed on the entry form. 6. The entry fee is £4 per poem, or three poems for £10. 7. Receipt of entry will be acknowledged if a s.a.e. is enclosed with the entry. 8. A list of prize winners will be sent if an envelope marked Prize Winners is enclosed with the entry. 9. Copyright will remain with the author, but the organisers reserve the right to publish any of the winning or recommended poems, up to one year after the end of the competition. 10. The awards will be announced at The Greenwich Gallery, Linear House, Peyton Place, Greenwich, London SE10 8RS, at a special poetry event on May 13th 6.30 – 8.30pm. 11. The judges’ decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into regarding the results. The poems will not be returned. 12. The organisers reserve the right to return poems and entry fees if the need arises. 13. The judges will read all the entries.

    14 Closing date: Friday 26th April 2013. Cheques / POs made payable to ‘Winter’ and send the completed poem and application form to ‘Winter’ Poetry Competition, 5 Salisbury Road, Wrexham, LL13 7AS.

  • Poetry: Ver Poets Open Competition 2013. Judge Nick Drake, 1st prize £600. 30 lines max, closing date 30 April. See http://verpoets.org.uk/news/competitions.
  • Poetry: Ware Poets Open Poetry Competition 2013. Prizes: £600, £250, £100. £100: The Ware Sonnet Prize. Anthology publication for winners and shortlisted poets (£3.50 pre-ordered). Closing date 30 April. Informal prize-giving ceremony at Ware Arts Centre, 5 July 2013. Fee: £4;  4 poems for £12, then £3 per poem (in the same submission). Length:  up to 50 lines. Sole judge: Susan Utting. Include contact sheet with usual details. Download flyer from website, or send SAE: The Competition Secretary, Ware Poets Competition, 21 Trinity Road, Ware, Herts. SG12 7DB or email: warepoets_competition@hotmail.co.uk and see http://www.poetrypf.co.uk/images/compware13.pdf.
  • Poetry: Southport Writers’ Circle International Poetry Competition 2013 Final Adjudicator: Stephen Beattie. First Prize £150, Second Prize £75, Third Prize £25 A maximum of 40 lines per poem is allowed. Closing date 30 April. See http://www.swconline.co.uk/n1/?cat=5.
  • Poetry: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • Screenwriting: Canada-based Wildsound run monthly screenwriting competitions.
  • Screenwriting: http://www.oscars.org/awards/nicholl/apply.html is a screenwriting competition with a late April deadline.
  • Script: Royal Court Theatre’s 100-word plays and ’Ticket to Write’ 2013: competition for stage plays about The Beatles lasting 15 minutes, closing date 5 April. http://www.acedrama.co.uk/index.html
  • Scriptwriting: The Nick Darke Award is open to all writers – stage play screenplay or radio play – prize fund £6,000. Closing date 29 April. http://www.falmouth.ac.uk/nickdarkeaward.
  • Short stories: ​Elephants. You gotta LOVE ‘em! And can you WRITE about them? Let’s find out. We’re looking for FICTION (including but not limited to fantasy and humor) and for NARRATIVE NONFICTION, between 500 and 5,000 words.Prize for 1st place is $150 and 2nd place is $50. Plus, the top tales may be included in an anthology {ELEPHANTHOLOGY} with your name. See http://www.phylsbooks.com/#!contest/c1kbb. Submissions accepted from 1 April to 1 July 2013. Cost $10.
  • Short stories: William Trevor / Elizabeth Bowen International Short Story Competition 1st prize €3,000, closing date 5 April. http://www.mitchelstownlit.com/index.html.
  • Short stories & Poetry: Deddington Writers’ Group Open Writing Competition 2013 Short Story or Poem. Competition information and entry forms available from website end January, 2013 or send SAE to: 7, The Daedings, Deddington, OX15 ORT. 1st prize: £100, 2nd: £50,  3rd: £25, awarded in both categories. Closing date 13 April. See http://www.deddington.org.uk/community/arts/writing or www.deddingtonfestival.org.uk.
  • Short stories: The Fowey Festival of Words and Music (formerly the Daphne du Maurier Festival) has announced the launch of the Short Story Competition for 2013. First Prize is £100 and Runner-up £75. Entry is £6.00 and entry form and full details at http://www.foweyfestival.com/the-du-maurier-festival-society-short-story-competition. The closing date is 19th April 2013.
  • Short stories: Five Stop Story, Glimmer Train (different category each month), The Moth-Altun Short Story Prize, Nonsense Poetry & Flash Fiction (2014), Nottingham Writing Magazine (WM: open to all theme: horror / subscriber-only theme: food), www.francobritishcouncil.org.uk, www.west-linton.org.uk/content/pentlands-writers-group. Also see Deddington in ‘Poetry…’ above.
  • Short stories: Hayley Sherman runs a monthly short story competition for submissions on any subject up to 2,000 words. The winners are published on the website, promoted online and receive a £10 First Writer voucher. All entrants are also considered for publication in The New Short Story Annual at the end of the year. Deadline 25th of the month. Heather Marie Schuldt runs a similar contest, although 500-750 words max., but with the same deadline.
  • Short stories: Young Writers’ Competition. The annual Young Writers’ Competition at Jane Austen’s House Museum is entering its fourth year and is now open for entries. Annalie Talent, Education Officer said ‘Next year is the 200th anniversary of publication of Pride and Prejudice and so we have made the theme of the competition First Impressions which was the original title of Jane’s best-loved novel.’ Entries should be short stories of 300-400 words and entrants can interpret the theme in any way they want. Entry is open to all UK school pupils in school years 7-11. There are two categories: years 7 and 8 and years 9, 10 & 11. The competition will be judged by Professor Kathryn Sutherland of St Anne’s College Oxford and the Museum’s previous Writer-in-Residence, Rebecca Smith.
    Closing date 26 April. See http://www.jane-austens-house-museum.org.uk for details.
  • Short stories: National Express / Little, Brown / Jenny Colgan are running a free-to-enter short story competition, max 2000 words. “We’re offering you the chance to become a published author. To enter, we would like you to write a short story no more than 2,000 words long with the premise of ‘take us on a journey’. You can use your own creativity to elaborate your journey into a literary masterpiece. The winning short story will be published in the back of Jenny Colgan’s, The Good, The Bad and The Dumped, e-Book edition. Closing date 28 April. More details here.
  • Short stories: first Annual Sara Park Memorial Short Story Competition. Theme Journeying, max 2000 words, closing date 30 April. http://www.redsquirrelpress.com/SquirrelCOMP.html.
  • Short stories: The 2013 James Plunkett Short Story Award for new and emerging writing talent, open to all writing in English who have not had a short story collection published. 1st prize €2,000, max 3000 words. Next closing date 30 April. See http://www.ireland-writers.com/index.htm.
  • Short stories: 2013 Bristol Short Story Prize is open to all writers internationally over 16 years of age. Stories can be on any theme or subject and entry can be made online via the website or by post. Entries must be previously unpublished with a maximum length of 4,000 words (There is no minimum). Entry fee £8 per story. Closing date 30 April. 1st prize £1,000 plus £150 Waterstone’s gift card. 20 shortlisted writers will have their stories published in the Bristol Short Story Prize Anthology. See http://www.bristolprize.co.uk.
  • Short stories: The 2013 Bristol Short Story Prize is open to all writers, UK and non-UK based, over 16 years of age. Stories can be on any theme or subject and entry can be made online via the website or by post. Entries must be previously unpublished with a maximum length of 4,000 words (There is no minimum). The entry fee is £8 per story. The closing date for entries is April 30th 2013. Prizes: 1st £1000 plus £150 Waterstones gift card, 2nd £700 plus £100 Waterstones gift card, 3rd £400 plus £100 Waterstones gift card, 17 further prizes of £100 will be presented to the writers whose stories appear on the shortlist. All 20 shortlisted writers will have their stories published in the Bristol Short Story Prize Anthology Volume 6. The winning story will, also, be published in Bristol Review of Books magazine. The 20 shortlisted writers will be invited to an awards ceremony in Bristol in October 2013 when the winners will be announced and the anthology launched. Any shortlisted writers unable to attend the awards ceremony will be sent their prizes. The awards ceremony will be part of the 2013 Bristol Festival of Literature. Judging panel : Ali Reynolds (literary consultant, former Random House editor), Bidisha (writer, broadcaster, critic), Anna Britten (author and journalist), Chris Wakling (novelist, Creative Writing tutor). Full details and rules at www.bristolprize.co.uk.
  • Short stories: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • NB. Don’t forget to check out the ongoing competition websites listed at the end of this page.
MAY
  • Children’s: bookweek.ca/information-artists
  • Flash Fiction: Indies Unlimited hosts a weekly 250-word max. prompt competition – also see Indies Unlimited and ‘Short stories’ below.
  • Flash Fiction: Weekly challenge on http://theironwriter.com.
  • Flash Fiction: Writer Austin Briggs runs a monthly 55-word competition (different theme each month). It’s free to enter and you can win $55 (of his own money!).
  • Flash Fiction: 16th May is National Flash Fiction day and you can find some competitions (various dates) on http://www.nationalflashfictionday.co.uk/competitions.html.
  • Flash Fiction: The Bridport Prize. Poems 42 lines max, short stories 5,000 words max, flash 250 words max. £15,000+ prize fund, closing date 31 May. See http://www.bridportprize.org.uk.
  • Flash Fiction: Erewash has a 1,000 words maximum with free mini-crit feedback for all entrants. First Prize £50, Second Prize £25. Closing date: Thursday 2nd May 2013.
  • Flash Fiction: The NLG Flash Fiction Competition (that I am Head Judge of) is now open – see ‘June’ for full details.
  • Flash Fiction: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • Memoir: Lightship Short Memoir Contest. Tell your own story, or an episode of it. 1st prize £1,000, judge Rachel Cusk. Closing date 1 May. http://www.lightshippublishing.co.uk/competition/the_lightship_short_memoir_contest.
  • Mixed: Free prose and poetry competition with a 10th May deadline: see http://morgenbailey.wordpress.com/2013/04/13/listenupnorth-com-national-uk-prose-poetry-competition-18-10th-may-deadline.
  • Mixed: Winchester Writers’ Conference has opened their 17(!) mixed writing competitions (deadline Friday 24th May). Details in their competitions brochure 2013. £7 per entry if attending, £9 if not.
  • Mixed: The International 2013 Yeovil Literary Prize has a closing date of 31st May 2013 and there are three categories:
    THE NOVEL – Please send the synopsis with opening chapters (up to 15,000 words in total) :
    Prizes: 1st = £1,000; 2nd = £250; 3rd = £100. Fee £11.
    THE SHORT STORY – Up to a maximum of 2,000 words.
    Prizes: 1st = £500; 2nd = £200; 3rd = £100. Fee £6.
    POETRY – A poem with a maximum of 40 lines.
    Prizes: 1st = £500; 2nd = £200; 3rd = £100. Fee £6, two for £9, three for £11.
    The Yeovil Literary Prize can be entered online or by post. The judges are all professional writers and publishers. For details see the website (http://www.yeovilprize.co.uk) or write to: Yeovil Literary Prize, The Octagon Theatre, Hendford, Yeovil, BA20 1UX.
  • Mixed: Christian magazine Pockets has a different theme per month.
  • Mixed (novels & short story collections): iWriteReadRate and Cornerstones Literary Consultancy (http://www.voteformyebook.com) are offering a monthly social competition to members of the community – see ‘Monthly’ towards the end of this page.
  • Non-fiction: ​Elephants. You gotta LOVE ‘em! And can you WRITE about them? Let’s find out. We’re looking for FICTION (including but not limited to fantasy and humor) and for narrative non-fiction, between 500 and 5,000 words.Prize for 1st place is $150 and 2nd place is $50. Plus, the top tales may be included in an anthology {ELEPHANTHOLOGY} with your name. See http://www.phylsbooks.com/#!contest/c1kbb. Submissions accepted from 1 April 2013 to midnight of 1 July 2013. Cost $10.
  • Non-fiction: another non-fiction competition is FBFT Sports Writing.
  • Novels: A brand new ‘Navegator’ Competition is now officially launched. This time writers are invited to produce the first pages (800-1500 words) of a credible continuation of the first novel. The judging panel will be guided by Philip Purser, who has several books to his credit and a prestigious career as a journalist. Another crime novelist, Leo McNeir, will also be one of the judges. No purchase is necessary and you can enter from anywhere in the world. Entries close on 31st May and full details can be found on the website: http://www.navegator.co.uk
  • Novels: Novel Rocket runs an annual Launch Pad Contest: Boosting You Out of the Slush Pile. Entries will be accepted in all genres beginning mid-January. The deadline for submission is different for genre categories according to the following schedule. In each case, entries must be received by 11:59 PM EST on the 10th day of the month (April to September) listed on http://www.novelrocket.com/p/launch-pad-contest.html. They also post a new writing-related article seven days a week, from author interviews to marketing discussions to articles about the craft of writing.
  • Novels: Words With JAM is running a ‘First Page Competition’ where you can enter the first page of a finished novel, work in progress or page specifically written for the competition. Closing date 31st May 2013.This year’s judge is Sue Grafton. Prizes £500 / £100 / £50 with fee of £6 first entry, £4 per entry thereafter. See http://wordswithjam.co.uk/#/first-page-competition-2013/4573741026 for details.
  • Playwriting: RealDeal Theatre is looking for 10-15 minute scripts for its new event, Popcorn Saturday!, short plays inspired by the movies, to be held on Saturday, 29th June 2013 to be held at Westminster Reference Library, off London’s Leicester Square. The entry window for sending entries to scripts@realdealtheatre.org.uk is Monday 20th May – Sunday 26th May 2013. A link straight to the entry details http://realdealtheatre.webs.com/scripts.htm.
  • Playwriting: Lightship First Act Competition. Judges: Micheline Steinberg, Dave Whybrow, Anthony McCarten. Maximum 6,000 words, closing date 31 May. See http://www.lightshippublishing.co.uk/competition/lightship_first_act_competition.
  • Playwriting: Pint-sized Plays 2013. Scripts should be capable of being staged in a pub with a running time of 5-10 mins, closing date 31 May. See http://www.pintsizedplays.org.uk.
  • Poetry: Email received from The Pen Company.co.uk: With the start of Spring fast approaching, The Pen Company have launched a competition to win a Graf von Faber-Castell Guilloche Fountain Pen in the colour of your choice. All the details to enter the competition can be found here: http://www.thepencompany.com/blog/competitions/spring-poetry-competition (deadline 1st May). We look forward to seeing your entry. Take care, Anna, Marketing Assistant, The Pen Company.
  • Poetry: The Poetry London Competition is in its 14th year. Judge Pascale Petit. 1st Prize £1000, max 80 lines. Closing date 1 May. See http://poetrylondon.co.uk/competition.
  • The Poetry Box International Dark & Horror Poetry Silver Cup Trophy Award 2013 – Poetry Competition - Deadline: 1 May 2013: The Poem/s Must Be Dark, Horror, Gothic, Gothic-Horror, Fantasy or Satire-Themed. Prizes: First Prize Winner - the elegant, generously-sized and engraved ‘The Poetry Box International Dark & Horror Poetry Silver Cup Trophy 2013’  and the decorative ‘Winner’ Award-Winning Certificate. 2nd and 3rd Place Finalists - will receive decorative Award-Winning Certificates and Prize Cheques of £50.00 and £30.00 each respectively.  The ‘Judge’s Special Commendation Award’ winning Entries will receive decorative ‘Judge’s Special Commendation Award’ Certificates and ‘Highly Commended Award’ winning Entries will receive decorative ‘Highly Commended Award’ Certificates. ALL Prize Winners and Finalists will receive a copy of the Special  ‘Winners & Finalists’ Edition of ’The Poetry Box Dark & Horror Poetry Magazine Monthly’ which will include their published Winning Entry/ies. Entry Fees: GBP £5.00 for 1 Poem – GBP £10.00 for 3 Poems – GBP £14.00 for 4 Poems, up to a maximum of 4 Poems per Entrant. Entry Fees are Payable By Personal Cheque Drawn Against a British Bank Only to: LK Robinson - or - via Paypal to Account: NLKROBINS@aol.com. Entry Form available via The Poetry Box website www.ThePoetryBox.co.uk. Postal Entries, Entry Forms and Enquiries to The Poetry Box Magazine and Studio Address: The Poetry Box, ‘Ramshackles’ 2 Downview, Nyewood, Petersfield, Hampshire GU31 5JA, England.  Tel: 01730 821030 Email: FairyTaleRhymes@aol.com.
  • Poetry: Templar Poetry Pamphlet & Collection Awards closes for submissions on 7 May.
  • Poetry: Northampton Literature Group usually runs a yearly poetry competition with a mid-May deadline but it has 2013 off and is running a flash fiction competition instead!
  • Poetry: The Montreal International Poetry Prize has a top prize $20,000 CDN, single poem, max 40 lines. Closing date 15 May. See http://montrealprize.com.
  • Poetry: Printerpix Poetry Competition is a free competition to enter and winners will receive $100 worth of Amazon vouchers and a free canvas. The theme for this competition is ‘sunshine’. Entries can be no longer than 45 lines and must be original work. Competition closes Friday 24th May 2013. For more details and how to enter, click here.
  • Poetry: The Welsh Poetry Competition. £4 entry per poem. Prizes: £400, £200, £100. The judge for their 7th competition (2013) is Eloise Williams and the deadline is Sunday 26th May. Poems in English, 50 lines, unpublished. See http://www.welshpoetry.co.uk for entry forms and rules.
  • Poetry: The second ‘Poems Please Me’ Poetry Competition has a deadline of 31st May. Entry is by subscription to the site and the example given is a ‘single’ at £12 which entitles you to three entries to the competition. See http://www.poemsplease.me/?page_id=118 for more details.
  • Poetry: The fourth Battered Moons Poetry Competition is now open to all UK residents aged 18 or over and accepts poems on any topic and style of up to 40 lines. Main judge Alice Oswald and Cristina Newton will read all the poems. The 3 winners and 4 commended poets will be invited to read their poems at the Swindon Festival of Poetry on Saturday 5th October 2013, when Alice Oswald will present the prizes and read from her own work. Winning and commended poems will appear in the Battered Moons pamphlet and website. First prize, £300; second, £150; third, £75. Entry fee: £3 each poem or £10 for 4. Closing date for entries is 31st May 2013. Online and postal entries accepted. For further information and to enter, visit http://batteredmoons.com. Queries to Cristina Newton on cristina.ne.newton@gmail.com. Supported by Swindon Artswords, the Swindon Festival of Poetry, and Arts Council England.
  • Poetry: David Burland International Poetry Prize 2013 - in either French or English - closing date 31st May, 1st prize £200 + website publication. See http://www.davidburlandpoetryprize.com.
  • Poetry: The Bridport Prize. Poems 42 lines max, short stories 5,000 words max, flash 250 words max. £15,000+ prize fund, closing date 31st May. See http://www.bridportprize.org.uk.
  • Poetry: The Frogmore Poetry Prize 2013 has been annual since 1987. You can win 200 guineas and 2-year sub to The Frogmore Papers. 2013 adjudicator is Stephanie Norgate. Max 40 lines, closing date 31st May. See http://www.frogmorepress.co.uk.
  • Poetry: Another 31st May deadline is Wigtown Poetry Competition. First Prize: Main Prize £2000. Runner-up £400. Gaelic Prize £250. Scots Prize £250. Eight additional prizes of £25 each. The first poem submitted costs £7.00. Multiple entries: the first three poems cost a total of £19.00. Each subsequent entry after the first three costs £5 or a total of £14 for every additional block of 3, ie: 1 poem £7; 2 poems £14; 3 poems £19; 4 poems £24; 5 poems £29; 6 poems £33; 7 poems £38; 8 poems £43; 9 poems £47; 10 poems £52; 11 poems £57; 12 poems £61 etc. Main Prize Judge: Robin Robertson, Gaelic Prize Judge: Meg Bateman, Scots Prize Judge: Liz Niven. Winners will be invited to read their poems at the Wigtown Book Festival 2013 (28th September to 7th October).  Winning poems will be published on the Festival website. For further details, rules and entry form, visit: www.wigtownbookfestival.com/poetrycomp.
  • Poetry: The Writers’ Forum Poetry Competition is a monthly contest for poems of up to 40 lines. Closing: Monthly. Entries arriving too late for one month go forward to the next. Prizes: 1st – £100. Runners-up – A Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. Entry Fee: £5 each, £3 each thereafter. Includes a critique (sae required if entering by post). Comp Page: http://www.writers-forum.com/poetrycomp.html.
  • Poetry: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • Poetry: Other poetry competitions include Bridport Prize (also shorts / flash), Northampton Literature Group (on hold for 2013 but flash fiction instead), Partners, Templar Poetry Pamphlet & Collection Awards, Writing Magazine (WM: subscriber-only theme: poetry for children), Stephen Spender.
  • Screenwriting: Canada-based Wildsound run monthly screenwriting competitions.
  • Scriptwriting: Mini Operas scriptwriting competition opens March closes May.
  • Scriptwriting: The 10th Annual Screenwriting Challenge is a competition open to screenwriters around the world. There are 3 rounds of competition. In the 1st Round (June 14-22), writers are placed randomly in heats and are assigned a genre, subject, and character assignment (see examples of past assignments here). Writers have 8 days to write an original short screenplay no longer than 12 pages. The judges choose a top 5 in each heat to advance to the 2nd Round (July 25-28) where writers receive new assignments, only this time they have just 3 days to write an 8 page (maximum) short screenplay. Judges choose a top 25 from the 2nd Round to advance to the 3rd and final round of the competition where writers are challenged to write a 5 page (maximum) screenplay in just 24 hours (August 23-24). It’s easy to register.  First, download and read the Official Rules and Participation Agreement.  Once you have read, understood, and agree to the terms, you are ready to register by clicking here.  The entry fee is USD $39* until the Early Entry Deadline of May 16, 2013 and USD $49* until the Final Entry Deadlline of June 13, 2013.
  • Short stories: ​Elephants. You gotta LOVE ‘em! And can you WRITE about them? Let’s find out. We’re looking for FICTION (including but not limited to fantasy and humor) and for NARRATIVE NONFICTION, between 500 and 5,000 words.Prize for 1st place is $150 and 2nd place is $50. Plus, the top tales may be included in an anthology {ELEPHANTHOLOGY} with your name. See http://www.phylsbooks.com/#!contest/c1kbb. Submissions accepted from 1 April 2013 – midnight of 1 July 2013. Cost $10.
  • Short stories: Curry Mallet History Festival Short Story Competition judge is novelist Amelia Carr, max 2500 words with the title The Reunion or The Journey or The Letter, 1st prize £100, closing date 17 May. See http://www.currymallet.org/short-story-competition.
  • Short stories: The Bridport Prize. Poems 42 lines max, short stories 5,000 words max, flash 250 words max. £15,000+ prize fund, closing date 31 May. See http://www.bridportprize.org.uk.
  • Short stories: The Fiction Desk Ghost Story Competition welcomes ghost stories from 2,000 – 5,000 words. Closing date: 31st May 2013. (Annual competition). Prizes: First prize £500, second prize £100. Entry fee:  £6 for one story; £9 for two stories submitted together. For more details, see: http://www.thefictiondesk.com/submissions/ghost-story-competition.php.
  • Short stories: Bridport Prize (shorts/flash, was June), The British Fantasy Society, Glimmer Train (different category each month), The Lorian Hemingway, Writing Magazine, Biscuit Publishing and the monthly competition Five Stop Story.
  • Short stories: Hayley Sherman also runs a monthly short story competition for submissions on any subject up to 2,000 words. The winners are published on the website, promoted online and receive a £10 First Writer voucher. All entrants are also considered for publication in The New Short Story Annual at the end of the year. Deadline 25th of the month. Heather Marie Schuldt runs a similar contest, although 500-750 words max., but with the same deadline.
  • Short stories: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • NB. Don’t forget to check out the ongoing competition websites listed at the end of this page.
JUNE
  • Children’s: The Commonword Diversity Writing for Children Prize 2013 has a 30th June deadline. See www.ihaveadream.org.uk and / or email w4c@cultureword.org.uk or phone +44 161 832 3777.
  • Flash Fiction: Weekly challenge on http://theironwriter.com.
  • Flash Fiction: Northampton Literature Group usually runs a yearly poetry competition with a mid-May deadline but it has 2013 off and is running a flash fiction competition instead! The deadline is Sunday 30th June (midnight, UK time) and their Head Judge is… me! :)
  • Flash Fiction: Indies Unlimited hosts a weekly 250-word max. prompt competition – see Indies Unlimited. Also see ‘Short stories’ below.
  • Flash Fiction: Lightship Publishing runs eight competitions; flash fiction, first chapter, one-page, memoir, poetry, poetry book, first act, short stories, all with a 30th June deadline. See http://www.lightshippublishing.co.uk and/or email admin@lightshippublishing.co.uk for more information.
  • Flash Fiction: Writer Austin Briggs runs a monthly 55-word competition (different theme each month). It’s free to enter and you can win $55 (of his own money!).
  • Flash Fiction: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • Mixed: Submission to the Shirley You Jest Book Awards opens 1st June (closes 1st August). I’m one of the sponsors!
  • Mixed: Marple (shorts & poetry), Christian magazine Pockets has a different theme per month, Cinnamon Press Writing Awards (for novellas, poetry and short stories).
  • Mixed: The Cowley Literary Award is a global short story competition, fiction and non-fiction, $5,000AUD prizes, max 4000 words, closing date 30 June. See http://www.australianartsales.com.au/cowley-award.
  • Mixed (novels & short story collections): iWriteReadRate and Cornerstones Literary Consultancy (http://www.voteformyebook.com) are offering a monthly social competition to members of the community – see ‘Monthly’ towards the end of this page.
  • Mixed: Lightship Publishing runs eight competitions; flash fiction, first chapter, one-page, memoir, poetry, poetry book, first act, short stories, all with a 30th June deadline. See http://www.lightshippublishing.co.uk and/or email admin@lightshippublishing.co.uk for more information.
  • Non-fiction: ​Elephants. You gotta LOVE ‘em! And can you WRITE about them? Let’s find out. We’re looking for FICTION (including but not limited to fantasy and humor) and for NARRATIVE NONFICTION, between 500 and 5,000 words.Prize for 1st place is $150 and 2nd place is $50. Plus, the top tales may be included in an anthology {ELEPHANTHOLOGY} with your name. See http://www.phylsbooks.com/#!contest/c1kbb. Submissions accepted from 1 April 2013 – midnight of 1 July 2013. Cost $10.
  • Non-fiction: another non-fiction competition is http://greberwritingaward.com/submissions.htm
  • Novels: Submission to the Shirley You Jest Book Awards opens 1st June (closes 1st August). I’m one of the sponsors!
  • Novels: Lightship Publishing runs eight competitions; flash fiction, first chapter, one-page, memoir, poetry, poetry book, first act, short stories, all with a 30th June deadline. See http://www.lightshippublishing.co.uk and/or email admin@lightshippublishing.co.uk for more information.
  • Novels: Novel Rocket runs an annual Launch Pad Contest: Boosting You Out of the Slush Pile. Entries will be accepted in all genres beginning mid-January. The deadline for submission is different for genre categories according to the following schedule. In each case, entries must be received by 11:59 PM EST on the 10th day of the month (April to September) listed on http://www.novelrocket.com/p/launch-pad-contest.html. They also post a new writing-related article seven days a week, from author interviews to marketing discussions to articles about the craft of writing.
  • Novels: other June deadline competitions include Impress Prize, and Lightship International First Chapter.
  • Plays: Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting has a 1st prize of £16,000. Open to anyone resident in the UK and Ireland. The play must an original, unperformed and unproduced piece of work, an hour long or more in playing time. Closing date 3rd June. See http://www.writeaplay.co.uk/about.
  • Plays: Adrienne Benham Award 2013: £2,000 prize now accepting applications: Theatre Centre offers the Adrienne Benham Award, a £2,000 seed commission, to support the work of a promising playwright interested in exploring the Theatre for Young Audiences sector, but who has little experience in the field. The award is intended to steer gifted writers towards young audiences by giving them a seed commission and attachment to Theatre Centre as they develop an original idea for young audiences. Prize: £2,000 seed commission and attachment. Deadline: 7 June 2013 at 12 noon. Further information (including the full criteria and application form) available from the Theatre Centre website.
  • Plays: Write Lines: New Writing for Young Audiences Conference: Do you write plays for young audiences, or do you want to? Celebrating 60 years of working with writers to produce outstanding theatre for young audiences, Theatre Centre hosts a day-long conference for writers and theatre professionals on Thursday 20 June. The keynote speech will be delivered by playwright Bryony Lavery. Other guest speakers include playwrights Amanda Dalton, Rob Evans, Philip Osment and Evan Placey; and industry professionals Anthony Banks (NT), Jonathan Lloyd (Polka Theatre) and Purni Morell (Unicorn Theatre). Reserve your place today!
  • Plays: Ace Drama have a Beatles-themed ‘Ticket to Write’ contest ending 25th June.
  • Plays: www.angletheatre.co.uk/discovered.html.
  • Plays: Lightship Publishing runs eight competitions; flash fiction, first chapter, one-page, memoir, poetry, poetry book, first act, short stories, all with a 30th June deadline. See http://www.lightshippublishing.co.uk and/or email admin@lightshippublishing.co.uk for more information.
  • Poetry: Wirral Festival of Firsts Open Poetry Competition 2013 has a closing date of 1st June 2013. First Prize: £200, Second Prize: £75, 3 runner-up prizes of £25. For poems on any subject, of no more than 40 lines. Submissions can be made online or by post. Postal submissions should include a separate sheet with the entrant’s name, address and the titles of the poem(s) and a cheque or postal order for £3 per poem or £10 for 4 poems payable to: “Festival of Firsts”. Postal submissions to: FOF Poetry Competition, 71 Alderley Road, Hoylake, Wirral CH47 2AU. See website www.festivaloffirsts.com for all the competition rules and online entries.
  • Poetry: Mslexia (for women poets – sorry, guys): 2013 Poetry and Pamphlet Competitions. “This year the Poetry Competition for single poems will be judged by the fantastic Costa-award winning poet Kathleen Jamie, and the first prize is £2,000 – a substantial prize that also includes two optional extras: a week at the idyllic poets’ retreat of Cove Park, and a mentoring session with the editor of Poetry Review. Other winners will receive a share of the remaining £1,100 prize pot, and all winning poems will be published in the September 2013 issue of Mslexia. Following the success of the inaugural 2012 competition, and the publication of the winning pamphlet by Polly Atkin, Shadow Dispatches, we have also launched our 2013 Pamphlet Competition. For collections of 20-24 pages of 18-20 poems. the first prize is the publication of the pamphlet by Seren Books, plus £250, 25 complimentary copies of the pamphlet and royalties from all subsequent sales. If you’ve never had a full-length collection published and want to take your work to the next level, this could be the competition for you…

    The deadline for both competitions is 17th June 2013, so there’s still plenty of time to decide which poem to enter – or to write one! – and to come up with a winning title for that short collection. Full details of how to enter both competitions are on our website at www.mslexia.co.uk/poetrycompetition and www.mslexia.co.uk/pamphletcompetition respectively. Keep an eye out there too for specially commissioned poetry writing workshops which will be available over the coming weeks.

  • Poetry: Scroll’s 4th of July Front Cover Contest: Be Published on the front cover of Scroll Original Artist Magazine, Scroll Publ cover on Facebook, and on the front page of scrolloriginalartistmagazine.com from July 1st thru August 30, 2013 along with your colored photo and 80 word bio. Independence Day is the theme for the July / Aug 2013 issue. To Enter send 2 poems – 21 lines, photo, biography and full contact info to scrollpubl@outlook.com. Deadline; June 21, 2013.
  • Poetry: The Writers’ Forum Poetry Competition is a monthly contest for poems of up to 40 lines. Closing: Monthly. Entries arriving too late for one month go forward to the next. Prizes: 1st – £100. Runners-up – A Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. Entry Fee: £5 each, £3 each thereafter. Includes a critique (sae required if entering by post). Comp Page: http://www.writers-forum.com/poetrycomp.html.
  • Poetry: Second Light Poetry Competition for Long and Short Poems by Women is judged by Moniza Alvi, £300 first prizes, closing date 25 June. See http://www.secondlightlive.co.uk/news.shtml#Comp13.
  • Poetry: Poetry Space Competition 2013. Max 40 lines, judge Martyn Crucefix. 1st prize £250 + anthology, closing date 30 June. See http://www.poetryspace.co.uk/2013/01/poetry-space-competition-2013.
  • Poetry: Lightship Publishing runs eight competitions; flash fiction, first chapter, one-page, memoir, poetry, poetry book, first act, short stories, all with a 30th June deadline. See http://www.lightshippublishing.co.uk and/or email admin@lightshippublishing.co.uk for more information.
  • Poetry: The Keats-Shelley Prize 2013 for Essays and Poems on Romantic Themes – open to all. Prize Chair: acclaimed novelist Salley Vickers. £3,000 prize money. Winning poems and essays will be published in The Keats-Shelley Review. Theme for poems in 2013 is Noise. Essays are invited on any aspect of the work and lives of the Romantics and their circle. Poems judged by John Hartley-Williams and Matthew Sweeney, essays by leading Romantic scholars Prof. Simon Bainbridge and Prof. Sharon Ruston. Closing date 30 June.
  • Poetry: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • Poetry: Other poetry competitions include: Creative Competitor, Earth Words, Edwin Morgan, Keats-Shelley Prize 2012, Margaret Reid, Ted Walters, United Press, Writing Magazine.
  • Screenwriting: Canada-based Wildsound run monthly screenwriting competitions.
  • Scriptwriting: Lightship Publishing runs eight competitions; flash fiction, first chapter, one-page, memoir, poetry, poetry book, first act, short stories, all with a 30th June deadline. See http://www.lightshippublishing.co.uk and/or email admin@lightshippublishing.co.uk for more information.
  • Scriptwriting: Ted Walters.
  • Scriptwriting: The 10th Annual Screenwriting Challenge is a competition open to screenwriters around the world. There are 3 rounds of competition. In the 1st Round (June 14-22), writers are placed randomly in heats and are assigned a genre, subject, and character assignment (see examples of past assignments here). Writers have 8 days to write an original short screenplay no longer than 12 pages. The judges choose a top 5 in each heat to advance to the 2nd Round (July 25-28) where writers receive new assignments, only this time they have just 3 days to write an 8 page (maximum) short screenplay. Judges choose a top 25 from the 2nd Round to advance to the 3rd and final round of the competition where writers are challenged to write a 5 page (maximum) screenplay in just 24 hours (August 23-24). It’s easy to register.  First, download and read the Official Rules and Participation Agreement.  Once you have read, understood, and agree to the terms, you are ready to register by clicking here.  The entry fee is USD $39* until the Early Entry Deadline of May 16, 2013 and USD $49* until the Final Entry Deadlline of June 13, 2013.
  • Short stories: ​Elephants. You gotta LOVE ‘em! And can you WRITE about them? Let’s find out. We’re looking for FICTION (including but not limited to fantasy and humor) and for NARRATIVE NONFICTION, between 500 and 5,000 words.Prize for 1st place is $150 and 2nd place is $50. Plus, the top tales may be included in an anthology {ELEPHANTHOLOGY} with your name. See http://www.phylsbooks.com/#!contest/c1kbb. Submissions accepted from 1 April 2013 – midnight of 1 July 2013. Cost $10.
  • Short stories: Hayley Sherman runs a monthly short story competition for submissions on any subject up to 2,000 words. The winners are published on the website, promoted online and receive a £10 First Writer voucher. All entrants are also considered for publication in The New Short Story Annual at the end of the year. Deadline 25th of the month. Heather Marie Schuldt runs a similar contest, although 500-750 words max., but with the same deadline.
  • Short stories: Scotland’s International Crime Festival Bloody Scotland (which runs mid-September) has a short story competition deadline late June.
  • Short stories: Fantasy Faction have a fantasy short story competition which ends June 30th. Thanks to Sophie E Tallis for that one! :)
  • Short stories: Lightship Publishing runs eight competitions; flash fiction, first chapter, one-page, memoir, poetry, poetry book, first act, short stories, all with a 30th June deadline. See http://www.lightshippublishing.co.uk and/or email admin@lightshippublishing.co.uk for more information.
  • Short stories: The Fourteenth V.S. Pritchett Memorial Prize is now open. “The Royal Society of Literature is delighted to inform you that the fourteenth V.S. Pritchett Memorial Prize for best unpublished short story of the year is now open to submissions. The winning author will be awarded a prize of £1,000, and the short story will be published in Prospect online and in our annual magazine, the RSL Review. In addition to this, there will be an opportunity to appear at an RSL event with established short story writers in autumn 2013 (the 2012 winner read at an event with short-story writer, novelist, and poet Jackie Kay. This year’s judges are award-winning short story writers Adam Foulds, Jackie Kay and Helen Simpson. The entry form is available on our website. The closing date for entries is 13 June 2013, and all submissions should be posted with the £5 administrative fee to: V.S. Pritchett Memorial Prize, Royal Society of Literature, Somerset House, Strand, London WC2R 1LA For further information, please email Molly Rosenberg (molly@rslit.org) and / or see website http://rslit.org/v-s-pritchett. Stories must be 2,000 to 5,000 words long, printed on one side of an A4 in double-spaces and sent to the London address above.
  • Short stories: Writers’ Village runs a quarterly short story competition which attracts entrants worldwide. Click here for the rules… and every entrant receives invaluable critique! Their summer deadline is 30th June.
  • Short stories: Words Magazine Short Story Competition is free to enter, international, and has a closing date of 30 June. See http://www.wordsmag.com/compcal13.htm.
  • Short stories: Five Stop Story runs a quarterly short story competition (end March / June / September / December). Membership to the site is £25 but you get to enter up to five stories in each competition. Further details at http://www.fivestopstory.com/write.
  • Short stories: GKBC (Giving Kudos to Brilliant Content) is running a free crime-writing competition with a deadline of 30th June 2013. See http://gkbcinc.com/the-gkbcinc-short-story-competition for more details.
  • Short stories: The Booktown Writers’ Annual Short Story Competition 2013 welcomes 1000-3000 words, cash prizes + anthology. Closing date 30 June. See http://www.booktownwriters.co.uk/competition.html.
  • Short stories: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • Short stories: Other June deadline competitions include Aeon Award (quarterly), Countryside Tales, Creative Competitor, Cwrtnewydd Scribblers, Earlyworks, Erewash, Five Stop Story, Glimmer Train (different category each month), Lightship Publishing, sandralit, Ted Walters, Words Magazine, Writing Magazine (WM: open to all theme: writing for children – dog tales / subscriber-only theme: passport, glove, tuba), Writers Bureau, Writers Reign and Calderdale.
  • Soundtracks: Mini Operas soundtrack competition opens early June closes late July.
  • NB. Don’t forget to check out the ongoing competition websites listed at the end of this page.
JULY
  • Flash Fiction: Indies Unlimited hosts a weekly 250-word max. prompt competition – see Indies Unlimited. Also see ‘Short stories’ below.
  • Flash Fiction: Weekly challenge on http://theironwriter.com.
  • Flash Fiction: Writer Austin Briggs runs a monthly 55-word competition (different theme each month). It’s free to enter and you can win $55 (of his own money!).
  • Flash Fiction: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • Mixed: Submission to the Shirley You Jest Book Awards opens 1st June (closes 1st August). I’m one of the sponsors!
  • Mixed: Christian magazine ‘Pockets‘ has a different theme per month, Matrix Magazine (poetry & fiction), Tenby Arts Festival (shorts & poetry), Arthritis Care (shorts & poetry), Wasafiri (poetry, fiction, life writing), Poundbury Voices (shorts & poetry with Dorset connection), Leaf Books (book reviews), Liverpool Writers (poetry, shorts, script), Wells Lit Fest (novels, poetry, short stories), Slingink (shorts & poetry), Dream Questone.
  • Mixed (novels & short story collections): iWriteReadRate and Cornerstones Literary Consultancy (http://www.voteformyebook.com) are offering a monthly social competition to members of the community – see ‘Monthly’ towards the end of this page.
  • Non-fiction: ​Elephants. You gotta LOVE ‘em! And can you WRITE about them? Let’s find out. We’re looking for FICTION (including but not limited to fantasy and humor) and for NARRATIVE NONFICTION, between 500 and 5,000 words.Prize for 1st place is $150 and 2nd place is $50. Plus, the top tales may be included in an anthology {ELEPHANTHOLOGY} with your name. See http://www.phylsbooks.com/#!contest/c1kbb. Submissions accepted from 1 April 2013 – midnight of 1 July 2013. Cost $10.
  • Non-fiction: another non-fiction competition is Sportswriters.org.
  • Novels: Novel Rocket runs an annual Launch Pad Contest: Boosting You Out of the Slush Pile. Entries will be accepted in all genres beginning mid-January. The deadline for submission is different for genre categories according to the following schedule. In each case, entries must be received by 11:59 PM EST on the 10th day of the month (April to September) listed on http://www.novelrocket.com/p/launch-pad-contest.html. They also post a new writing-related article seven days a week, from author interviews to marketing discussions to articles about the craft of writing.
  • Novels: Wells Lit Fest (novels, poetry, short stories) - Poetry and Short Story: First Prize £500, Second Prize £200, Third Prize £100.  In addition there is the Wyvern Prize of £100 for entrants living in the BA, BS, and TA postcodes. Crime Novel: The winning entry will be read by a major publisher and by a leading agent.  In addition there will be a cash prize of £100.  The judge may also arrange for an exceptional runner-up entry to be read by an agent or a publisher. Entry fees: Poetry and Short Story: £5 for each entry, Crime Novel: £10 for each entry. For an additional fee of £20, entrants may request comments from the judge. Deadline 31st July. For full rules see http://www.wellslitfest.org.uk/competitionrules.php.
  • Novels: other July deadline competitions include The Greenhouse Funny Prize (in association with The University of York’s Writers’ Workshop Festival of Writing), Aurora Metro‘s The Virginia Prize.
  • Have you designed a nice cover for your book? Five Stop Story has a mid-July deadline.
  • Plays: Sussex Playwrights.
  • Poetry: Ledbury Poetry Festival Poetry Competition 2013 
Judge: Esther Morgan.
 
Closing date: Tuesday 9th July 2013.
 First Prize: £1000 and a residential writing course at Tŷ Newydd

. Ledbury Poetry Festival Poetry Competitions opens March with a great first prize of £1000 cash and a residential course at
 Tŷ Newydd, The National Writers’ Centre for Wales. 
Tŷ Newydd is renowned for its excellent writing courses, taught by outstanding poets, in a beautiful setting.
 We are delighted that Esther Morgan has agreed to judge all entries: Since winning an Eric Gregory award in 1998 Esther has produced three collections of poetry. The first, Beyond Calling Distance, was published in 2001 by Bloodaxe Books and went on to win the Aldeburgh First Collection Prize and was also shortlisted for the Mail on Sunday / John Llewellyn Rhys Prize, and the third, Grace, was shortlisted for the TS Eliot award in 2011. She has taught at UEA and was editor of Reactions Magazine.

 Adults: First Prize  £1000 and a week at Tŷ Newyd
 Second Prize £500
. Third Prize £250. 

See website www.poetry-festival.co.uk for details of Young People and Children’s competition section. 

Winners have the opportunity to read their poems at next year’s Ledbury Poetry Festival.
 Go to www.poetry-festival.co.uk for further details of our poetry competition and to download an entry form, or telephone 0845 458 1743 and we will put a leaflet in the post for you. Entry fees: first poem £5, for each subsequent poem £3.
 Children and Young People enter free for first poem.

 Ledbury Poetry Festival date for the diary 5 – 14 July 2013. If you wish to join our email list and receive a programme in May email: boxoffice@poetry-festival.co.uk.
  • Poetry: The Writers’ Forum Poetry Competition is a monthly contest for poems of up to 40 lines. Closing: Monthly. Entries arriving too late for one month go forward to the next. Prizes: 1st – £100. Runners-up – A Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. Entry Fee: £5 each, £3 each thereafter. Includes a critique (sae required if entering by post). Comp Page: http://www.writers-forum.com/poetrycomp.html.
  • Poetry: The First Liverpool Writers Poetry, Script and Short Story Competition has a deadline of 31st July. See http://liverpoolwriters.wix.com/liverpool-writers#!competition/c1vm7 for details.
  • Poetry: Wells Lit Fest (novels, poetry, short stories) - Poetry and Short Story: First Prize £500, Second Prize £200, Third Prize £100.  In addition there is the Wyvern Prize of £100 for entrants living in the BA, BS, and TA postcodes. Crime Novel: The winning entry will be read by a major publisher and by a leading agent.  In addition there will be a cash prize of £100.  The judge may also arrange for an exceptional runner-up entry to be read by an agent or a publisher. Entry fees: Poetry and Short Story: £5 for each entry, Crime Novel: £10 for each entry. For an additional fee of £20, entrants may request comments from the judge. Deadline 31st July. For full rules see http://www.wellslitfest.org.uk/competitionrules.php.
  • Poetry: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • Poetry: other poetry competitions include Aldeburgh First Collection Prize, Buzzwords, LIPP, Tenby Arts Fest, Thynks Postcard, Vallum Mag, Writers Bureau, Writing Magazine (monthly), Essex Poetry Festival, Mslexia, Buzzwords Open Poetry Competition, Foyle Young Poets.
  • Science-fiction: Literary science magazine Cosmos is looking for short stories by end July.
  • Screenwriting: Canada-based Wildsound run monthly screenwriting competitions.
  • Scriptwriting: The First Liverpool Writers Poetry, Script and Short Story Competition has a deadline of 31st July. See http://liverpoolwriters.wix.com/liverpool-writers#!competition/c1vm7 for details.
  • Short stories: ​Elephants. You gotta LOVE ‘em! And can you WRITE about them? Let’s find out. We’re looking for FICTION (including but not limited to fantasy and humor) and for NARRATIVE NONFICTION, between 500 and 5,000 words.Prize for 1st place is $150 and 2nd place is $50. Plus, the top tales may be included in an anthology {ELEPHANTHOLOGY} with your name. See http://www.phylsbooks.com/#!contest/c1kbb. Submissions accepted from 1 April 2013 – midnight of 1 July 2013. Cost $10.
  • Short stories: The 2013 Doris Gooderson Short Story Competition from Wrekin Writers – maximum 1200 words, 1st prize £150, entry fee £3 per story, all profit (Entry Fees less Prize Money) to Severn Hospice, closing date 15 July. See https://sites.google.com/site/wrekinwriters/Home/competitions-1/doris-gooderson-2013-competition.
  • Short stories: Hayley Sherman runs a monthly short story competition for submissions on any subject up to 2,000 words. The winners are published on the website, promoted online and receive a £10 First Writer voucher. All entrants are also considered for publication in The New Short Story Annual at the end of the year. Deadline 25th of the month. Heather Marie Schuldt runs a similar contest, although 500-750 words max., but with the same deadline.
  • Short stories: 3-into-1 story competition has a 3,000 word limit, £1,000 top prize (then £500, £300, £200 and top 20 stories will be published in an anthology. Fee £7. Judges Michael Dobbs and Adèle Geras. No genre limit but you have to include a black queen chess piece, bunch of fresh flowers and a £10 note in the story. :) A portion of the entry proceeds goes to The Arthrogryposis Group charity and the deadline is 31st July.
  • Short Stories: The First Liverpool Writers Poetry, Script and Short Story Competition has a deadline of 31st July. See http://liverpoolwriters.wix.com/liverpool-writers#!competition/c1vm7 for details.
  • Short stories: Wells Lit Fest (novels, poetry, short stories) - Poetry and Short Story: First Prize £500, Second Prize £200, Third Prize £100.  In addition there is the Wyvern Prize of £100 for entrants living in the BA, BS, and TA postcodes. Crime Novel: The winning entry will be read by a major publisher and by a leading agent.  In addition there will be a cash prize of £100.  The judge may also arrange for an exceptional runner-up entry to be read by an agent or a publisher. Entry fees: Poetry and Short Story: £5 for each entry, Crime Novel: £10 for each entry. For an additional fee of £20, entrants may request comments from the judge. Deadline 31st July. For full rules see http://www.wellslitfest.org.uk/competitionrules.php.
  • Short stories: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • Short stories: Other July deadline competitions include Five Stop Story, Glimmer Train (different category each month), HISSAC, Laurel House, Monologue With A Twist, Tenby Arts Fest, Writing Magazine, Wrekin Writers, Literature Wales, Hay Short Story, Munster, Narrative Magazine, Helene James, Writers of the Future (<17,000 words), Writers’ Clinic, Laurel House Creative Workshops, Alibi.
  • Soundtracks: Mini Operas soundtrack competition opens 4th June closes late July.
  • NB. Don’t forget to check out the ongoing competition websites listed at the end of this page.
AUGUST
  • Biography: Tony Lothian Prize.
  • Children’s: The Helmdon (Northamptonshire)-based Bookmarks Festival takes place on 25th August 2013 and is host to three “notable novelists” (Adrian Magson, Alison McQueen aka Alison Penton-Harper and Garry O’Connor) coming down for the afternoon, amidst much else going on. As part of the festival this year they are running two short story competitions; one for adults, one for children. There is a prize of £50.00 in National Book Tokens for the winning entry, as well as other notable entries being displayed on the day, and it is free to enter (deadline 4th August). Details on http://www.bookmarksfest.moonfruit.com/#/short-story-competitions/4575565307.
  • Film: Mini Operas film competition opens early August closes late September.
  • Flash Fiction: Indies Unlimited hosts a weekly 250-word max. prompt competition (see Indies Unlimited).
  • Flash Fiction: Weekly challenge on http://theironwriter.com.
  • Flash Fiction: Writer Austin Briggs runs a monthly 55-word competition (different theme each month). It’s free to enter and you can win $55 (of his own money!).
  • Flash Fiction: Online literary magazine Eclectica have teamed up with Circalit and are looking for <800 word flash fiction / short stories by early August. Free entry.
  • Flash Fiction: Stringybark Flash Fiction and Micro Fiction Awards. <1,800 words. A$770 prizes cash + books. Closing date late August. Thank you to The New Writer magazine for that one.
  • Flash Fiction: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • Mixed: Christian magazine Pockets has a different theme per month.
  • Mixed: Aesthetica Magazine invites poetry 40 lines max, fiction 2000 words max. 2 x £500 prizes,
    winners and finalists will be published in the Aesthetica Creative Writing Annual. Closing date 31 August. See http://www.aestheticamagazine.com/creativewriting.
  • Mixed: Malahat (poetry, fiction, non-fiction), , Ilkley Literature Festival (shorts & poetry), Words With Jam (<1000 words script, novel, extract, short story), Eccles Centre (fiction & non-fiction).
  • Mixed: Mslexia (Themed Poetry & Prose Competition) and other opportunities inc. feature articles, monologues, reviews, poems, rants & raves.
  • Mixed (novels & short story collections): iWriteReadRate and Cornerstones Literary Consultancy (http://www.voteformyebook.com) are offering a monthly social competition to members of the community – see ‘Monthly’ towards the end of this page.
  • Non-fiction: Earlyworks Press Memoir & Journalism Competition, Biographers Club.
  • Novels: Novel Rocket runs an annual Launch Pad Contest: Boosting You Out of the Slush Pile. Entries will be accepted in all genres beginning mid-January. The deadline for submission is different for genre categories according to the following schedule. In each case, entries must be received by 11:59 PM EST on the 10th day of the month (April to September) listed on http://www.novelrocket.com/p/launch-pad-contest.html. They also post a new writing-related article seven days a week, from author interviews to marketing discussions to articles about the craft of writing.
  • Novels: other August deadline competitions include Luke Bitmead Bursary, Nemesis Publishing Debut, Moth Publishing (Northern Crime Competition).
  • Plays: www.ovationtheatreawards.webs.com.
  • Poetry: Delhi London Poetry Foundation, Lorca Translation, Salopian Poetry Society, Todd Swift, Writing Magazine, BBC Proms.
  • Poetry: Aesthetica Creative Writing Competition has two categories for entry, Poetry and Short Fiction, and a selection of fantastic prizes including: £500 prize money for each winner and publication in the Aesthetica Creative Writing Annual. Submissions previously published elsewhere are accepted. Entry is £10 and allows for the entry of two works into any one category. Deadline 31st August. Thank you again to The New Writer magazine for that one.
  • Poetry: Torbay Open Poetry Competition: judge Hilary Davies, max 50 lines, closing date 31st August. Thank you again to The New Writer magazine for that one.
  • Poetry: The Manchester Poetry Prize 2012 International, send 3-5 poems, 1st prize a whopping £10,000. Judges Ian Duhig, Frances Leviston, Adam O’Riordan. Deadline 31st August. Thank you again to The New Writer magazine for that one.
  • Poetry: The Writers’ Forum Poetry Competition is a monthly contest for poems of up to 40 lines. Closing: Monthly. Entries arriving too late for one month go forward to the next. Prizes: 1st – £100. Runners-up – A Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. Entry Fee: £5 each, £3 each thereafter. Includes a critique (sae required if entering by post). Comp Page: http://www.writers-forum.com/poetrycomp.html.
  • Poetry: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • Screenwriting: Canada-based Wildsound run monthly screenwriting competitions.
  • Scriptwriting: Ovation Theatre Awards.
  • Short stories: Other competitions include Aesthetica Magazine, Emerald Flash Fiction, Five Stop Story, Glimmer Train (different category each month), Manchester, New Eastbourne Writers, Wellington, The Write Place, Writing Magazine, For Books Sake, Brighton Cow.
  • Short stories: Online literary magazine Eclectica is looking for <800 word flash fiction / short stories by 9th August.
  • Short stories: UK-based Fantastic Books Publishing is running a short story competition for sci-fi / fantasy stories 700-1,500 words. Prizes £100, £50, £25. Winners + 7 runners up will feature in their anthology. % to cancer research charity. The deadline is mid August. Details here.
  • Short stories: Hayley Sherman runs a monthly short story competition for submissions on any subject up to 2,000 words. The winners are published on the website, promoted online and receive a £10 First Writer voucher. All entrants are also considered for publication in The New Short Story Annual at the end of the year. Deadline 25th of the month. Heather Marie Schuldt runs a similar contest, although 500-750 words max., but with the same deadline.
  • Short stories: Choc Lit Short Story Competition: max 1,500 words in which the central theme is a hero or heroes – they don’t have to be irresistible or romantic. 1st prize £200, online publication and a tin of Cadbury Heroes. Closing date 31st August. Judges are Choc Lit authors Margaret James, Sue Moorcroft and Linda Mitchelmore. Thank you to The New Writer magazine for that one.
  • Short stories: Short Story (crime) competition run by The Cremona, a 4 star Bournemouth B&B.
    First prize: weekend B&B for two (sharing) plus £50 cash. Deadline 31st August. Full details at http://www.cremona.co.uk/index.php?page=competition.
  • Short stories: Aesthetica Creative Writing Competition has two categories for entry, Poetry and Short Fiction, and a selection of fantastic prizes including: £500 prize money for each winner and publication in the Aesthetica Creative Writing Annual. Submissions previously published elsewhere are accepted. Entry is £10 and allows for the entry of two works into any one category. Deadline 31st August. Thank you again to The New Writer magazine for that one.
  • Short stories: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • NB. Don’t forget to check out the ongoing competition websites listed at the end of this page.
SEPTEMBER
  • Children’s novel: The Mslexia Children’s Novel Competition 2012 is open to children’s novels in any genre by previously unpublished women novelists, but it must be for children who are able to read for themselves or for young adults. Crossover fiction (i.e. that aimed at children and adults) is eligible. Nonfiction, and fiction intended for adults is not eligible. To qualify as a novel, your book must total at least 30,000 words. To enter the competition, send up to 3,000 words – which must be the first 3,000 words of the novel. Any preface is included in your 3,000 words. There is no need to submit a synopsis. First Prize: £5,000. Juding panel: Malorie Blackman, award-winning children’s author; Julia Churchill, literary agent specialising in children’s books for Greenhouse Literary Agency; Julia Eccleshare, children’s books editor at the Guardian newspaper. Closing date: 10 September 2012. Entry fee: £25. Thank you The New Writer magazine for the info.
  • Film: Mini Operas film competition opens 6th August closes 24 September.
  • Flash Fiction: Weekly challenge on http://theironwriter.com.
  • Flash Fiction: Writer Austin Briggs runs a monthly 55-word competition (different theme each month). It’s free to enter and you can win $55 (of his own money!).
  • Flash Fiction: Open Short Story Competition (Summer 2013) Closing date: 26th September, 2013. Prizes: Six prize winners, two categories of entry: ‘New Writer’ Category and ‘Open’ Category. Prizes for both categories are: £60 First, £40 Second, £10 Third, plus we will make a charitable donation (amount starts at £25). Entry Fee: £3.00 for one entry, £5.00 for two, £2.50 thereon. Max 2,000 words, no minimum. There is no theme for this competition, you can write anything you like. There is no minimum word count although the maximum is 2,000 words. As we thoroughly enjoy the variety found in entries from both novice and experienced writers we have decided this year ‘New Writer’ and ‘Open’ will be our two categories of entry. Please see Rules of Entry to determine which category you should enter. Click on this link: erewashwriterscompetition.weebly.com/2013….
  • Flash Fiction: The winner of The Harry Bowling Flash Fiction Prize will receive £100 and the chance for their story to be published on the MBA Literary Agents and Harry Bowling Prize websites. Submit stories of 750 words maximum, the title is not included in the word count. Flash fiction entries must also have an urban setting. Closing date 30 September 2013. See http://www.harrybowlingprize.co.uk for details.
  • Flash Fiction: Indies Unlimited hosts a weekly 250-word max. prompt competition – see Indies Unlimited. Also see ‘Short stories’ below.
  • Flash Fiction: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • Graphic Novel: Chapter One.
  • Mixed: Christian magazine Pockets has a different theme per month, Ideas Tap (Sky Arts 18-30s), Glass Woman Prize (shorts & non-fiction), www.abervalley-arts.co.uk/competition, Salt (short stories, flash fiction, poetry).
  • Mixed (novels & short story collections): iWriteReadRate and Cornerstones Literary Consultancy (http://www.voteformyebook.com) are offering a monthly social competition to members of the community – see ‘Monthly’ towards the end of this page.
  • Non-fiction: Foreign Flavours, Glass Woman Prize, The Society of Women Writers & Journalists International Online ‘Life Writing’ Competition.
  • Non-fiction: The Observer/Anthony Burgess Prize for Arts Journalism. Open contest. Essay 1500 words max. £2,000 prize. £10 entry fee. Judges William Boyd, Kamila Shamsie, Scarlett Thomas. Closing date 15th September. Thank you to The New Writer magazine for that one.
  • Novels: The Harry Bowling Prize for New Writing 2014 is “committed to discovering talented new writers -  open to all unpublished writers”. Submit the synopsis of a novel (not more than 500 words) and the first chapter(s) of the novel (not more than 5,000 words). Recommended that entries are for substantially developed novels (although not required to be fully finished), so that the winner can get most benefit from the editorial consultation included as part of their prize. The winner will also receive £1,000, an exclusive lunch and an editorial consultation with a top agent, publisher and novelist. Closing date 30 September 2013. See http://www.harrybowlingprize.co.uk for details.
  • Novels: Historical Novel Society International Award: first 5000 words of unpublished novel in any historical genre (deadline 30th September). Thanks again to The New Writer magazine for these details.
  • Novels: Mslexia (Unpublished women novelists), Beak Books and www.harrybowlingprize.co.uk.
  • Novels: Novel Rocket runs an annual Launch Pad Contest: Boosting You Out of the Slush Pile. Entries will be accepted in all genres beginning mid-January. The deadline for submission is different for genre categories according to the following schedule. In each case, entries must be received by 11:59 PM EST on the 10th day of the month (April to September) listed on http://www.novelrocket.com/p/launch-pad-contest.html. They also post a new writing-related article seven days a week, from author interviews to marketing discussions to articles about the craft of writing.
  • Novella: The Paris Literary Prize is an international novella competition for unpublished writers. Any topic is welcome. Thank you to The New Writer magazine for that one.
  • Playwriting: The Courtyard (King’s Cross Award for New Writing).
  • Playwriting: The Trinity College London International Playwriting Competition 2012. Encouraging new playwriting for young performers and audiences – submit one-act play for young performers, closing date 7 September. Entry for Trinity’s third annual International Playwriting Competition is now open, and there are amazing prizes on offer to aspiring playwrights worldwide. The winning playwright in each category will be awarded a cash prize of £1,000 and will travel to London to see their plays performed at the Unicorn Theatre. There are also prizes for Highly Commended plays and special awards for the Most Promising Young Playwrights. Thanks again to The New Writer magazine.
  • Poetry: Havant Literary Festival (19/20 October) Open Poetry Competition 2012. Judge: Naomi Foyle. First Prize £200. Closing date 1st September. Thank you to The New Writer magazine for that one.
  • Poetry: The 2013 Cheshire Prize for Literature is for a previously unpublished poem or collection of poems, free to enter and for poets with a Cheshire connection, 100 lines max, closing date 1st September. See http://www.chester.ac.uk/literatureprize.
  • Poetry: Second Light Poetry Competition for Short and Long Poems. Closing date 4th September, judge Katherine Gallagher. 1st Prize £250 in both categories. Also closing that day is Nottingham Open Poetry Competition 2012. Sole adjudicator: Neil Astley, 1st prize £300, max 40 lines. Thank you to The New Writer magazine for both of those.
  • Poetry: The Live Canon 2012 International Poetry Competition has a 5th September deadline. The first prize is £1000 and all short listed poets have their work published in an anthology and performed at the prize giving event at Greenwich Theatre.
  • Poetry: Ryedale Book Festival Story and Poetry Competitions for Yorkshire, Humberside, Teesside residents has a closing date of 15th September. Thank you to The New Writer magazine for that one.
  • Poetry: Geoff Stevens Memorial Poetry Prize 2012: two winners will have a poetry collection published by Indigo Dreams Publishing and receive 25 copies. Submit selection of 10 poems, max 36 lines. Entry fee £18 per block of poems. Closing date 28 September. Thank you to The New Writer magazine for these details.
  • Poetry: The Book Prize – The Poet In You Competition: To win a copy of this book sent us a short essay on your favourite poem – telling us why this particular poem ‘spoke to you and what it said in less than 500 words. Send by post or email to the TNW editorial office marked ‘Poet’ – closing date: 30th September. The Poet in You by Jay Ramsay is published by Compass Books and can be ordered from Amazon—price £11.99/US$24.95. ISBN: 978-1-84694-025-5. See The New Writer magazine website for details.
  • Poetry: Poetry Kit Summer Poetry Competition 2012: poems on the theme of “the natural world” (this can be broadly interpreted). There are no style or length restrictions but it should be stressed that a short poem is just as likely to be selected as a longer one. 1st prize £100. Online entry only. All entries must be received before midnight 30 September. First prize £100 and the winning poem plus those sellected for special commendation will be published at the Poetry Kit website. Entry fees: 1 poem £3.50, 3 Poems £8, 5 poems £10. Competition Judge: Lesley Burt. Thank you to The New Writer magazine for that one.
  • Poetry: The Writers’ Forum Poetry Competition is a monthly contest for poems of up to 40 lines. Closing: Monthly. Entries arriving too late for one month go forward to the next. Prizes: 1st – £100. Runners-up – A Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. Entry Fee: £5 each, £3 each thereafter. Includes a critique (sae required if entering by post). Comp Page: http://www.writers-forum.com/poetrycomp.html.
  • Poetry: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • More September poetry comps: Marple International, Tom Howard / John H Reid, Writing Magazine (WM: open to all theme: write a Petrarchan sonnet), Nottingham Poetry Society, Poetry Society (Stanza Poetry Competition), Flipped Eye Venture (pamphlets)
  • Screenwriting: Canada-based Wildsound run monthly screenwriting competitions.
  • Scriptwriting: The Courtyard Theatre.
  • Scriptwriting:  Red Planet Pictures is a Bedford-based (UK) company owned by ex-Eastenders scriptwriter and creator of Hustle, Holby Blue and Moving Wallpaper, Tony Jordan. It runs a yearly competition with an end-September deadline. The ‘opportunities’ page has a link for unrepresented writers which says “As Red Planet is deeply passionate about the advancement of new writing talent, we are keen to hear of new ideas.  Could we therefore ask you to submit a brief synopsis/treatment of your idea, marked for the attention of Simon Winstone, Head of Development? Should we like your idea, we will contact you and request the script. This way we can manage the reading between our development team and not hold on to scripts…”.
  • Short stories: The Cheshire Prize for Literature is open to residents of Cheshire, Warrington, Wirral and Halton including those who have ever lived or worked in the area. The 2012 prize is for a short story, top prize £2,000.  Max 1,500 words. Closing date 1 September. Thank you to The New Writer magazine for that one.
  • Short stories: listenupnorth.com is looking for your short stories, wildly romanticised – lovers who ride off into the sunset or at the very least live happily ever after and we want stories in the writing style of our heroine Celia. With a first prize of £75, 2nd prize of £50, 3rd prize of £25 and 3 runners up, all winning stories will be read by Celia herself (actor Penny Lamport) and uploaded as audio files to listenupnorth.com for everyone to hear. In addition, each winning writer will have their own profile page on listenupnorth.com. The deadline is usually early September.
  • Short stories: The Costa Short Story Award is open to published and unpublished authors writing in English and resident in UK or Ireland since 1 November 2009. £3,500 first prize, £750 x 2 runners up, free to enter. 4,000 words max, closing date 7th September. Thank you to The New Writer magazine for that one.
  • Short stories: The Plymouth Proprietary Library is running a new short story competition. All stories must use the word ‘citadel‘ at least once in any context and contain no more than 1,500 words. Any theme or genre is acceptable and there is an entry fee of £3.00 per story. The First Prize is £50.00.  The Second prize £20.00 and the Third prize £10.00. All entries can be typed or presented in legible handwriting and the authors name must not appear anywhere on the manuscript.  A covering sheet with: name, address and telephone number (and e-mail if online) must accompany each short story and be posted to: The Plymouth Proprietary Library, Short Story Competition, Alton Terrace, 111 North Hill, Plymouth  PL4 8JY. The closing date is Friday 14 September 2012 and the results will be announced in November 2012 for National Short Story Week.
  • Short stories: Ryedale Book Festival Story and Poetry Competitions for Yorkshire, Humberside, Teesside residents has a closing date of 15th September. Also closing that day are The Short Story Competition 2012 has max 5000 words) and Future Voices Competition, a new short fiction anthology, judged by a panel of leading publishers and literary agents, which is seeking the freshest up-and-coming voices in interactive writing, with a cash prize for the winning three entries. Thank you to The New Writer magazine for those.
  • Short stories: The Asham Award 2012: judges Sara Wheeler, Helen Dunmore, Lennie Goodings. £2,700 prize money plus anthology publication.  Entry fees have again been pegged at £15 and £10 (concessions). Closing date 21st September. The stories must be on the theme Journey and can be set in the past or the present. Stories must be no more than 4000 words in length. Entrants must be female and can be of any nationality and from any country providing that they are over 18 and currently resident in the United Kingdom. They should not have had a novel or book of short stories for adults previously published. Thanks again goes to The New Writer magazine.
  • Short stories: Hayley Sherman runs a monthly short story competition for submissions on any subject up to 2,000 words. The winners are published on the website, promoted online and receive a £10 First Writer voucher. All entrants are also considered for publication in The New Short Story Annual at the end of the year. Deadline 25th of the month. Heather Marie Schuldt runs a similar contest, although 500-750 words max., but with the same deadline.
  • Short Stories: Open Short Story Competition (Summer 2013) Closing date: 26th September, 2013. Prizes: Six prize winners, two categories of entry: ‘New Writer’ Category and ‘Open’ Category. Prizes for both categories are: £60 First, £40 Second, £10 Third, plus we will make a charitable donation (amount starts at £25). Entry Fee: £3.00 for one entry, £5.00 for two, £2.50 thereon. Max 2,000 words, no minimum. There is no theme for this competition, you can write anything you like. There is no minimum word count although the maximum is 2,000 words. As we thoroughly enjoy the variety found in entries from both novice and experienced writers we have decided this year ‘New Writer’ and ‘Open’ will be our two categories of entry. Please see Rules of Entry to determine which category you should enter. Click on this link: erewashwriterscompetition.weebly.com/2013….
  • Short stories: Writers’ Village runs a quarterly short story competition which attracts entrants worldwide. Click here for the rules… and every entrant receives invaluable critique! Their autumn deadline is 30th September.
  • Short stories: Another 30th September deadline courtesy of The New Writer magazine is The Yellow Room Autumn Short Story Competition: up to 1,500 words and Flash Fiction to 300 words. Prizes for Short Story Category: 1st £100, 2nd £50, 3rd £25. Prizes for Flash Fiction Category: 1st £50, 2nd £25, 3rd £15. Entry Fee: £5 for one story or for 2 flash pieces. The winning stories will be published in The Yellow Room Magazine.
  • Short stories: Write-Connections’ innovative new writing competition challenging entrants to rewrite the ending of Shakespeare’s classic love story of Romeo & Juliet. The ending could be adapted to any historical period, any parallel universe, across any genre. For example, Romeo and Juliet could be set in Vegas; in the future; in the sixties, in a galaxy far, far away, or as vampires. The options are endless. The winner will receive a free upgrade to Write-Connections’ Orwell Package, worth £129.99. The story will also be featured in newsletter and website. The 2nd and 3rd winning entries will receive a choice of a comprehensive chapter appraisal, or a place at a Write-Connections Workshop of their choice. The stories will also appear in our newsletter and on the website. £10 per entry. For an extra £10 short personalised critique from the judging panel. Texts between 1000 and 3000 words. Deadline 30th September. Thanks again to The New Writer magazine.
  • Short stories: For all historical short story enthusiasts Snapshots of History: Stories from the Past is a bi-annual journal dedicated to historical short story writing. It includes an ongoing competition for subscribers’ stories, which can be set in any time up to the end of WWII, and can include themes such as adventure, intrigue, traditional romance, or simply life stories from a previous age. Deadline 30 September, see the website: http://www.snapshotsofhistory.co.uk for full details and examples of previously included stories.
  • Short stories: Five Stop Story runs a quarterly short story competition (end March / June / September / December). Membership to the site is £25 but you get to enter up to five stories in each competition. Further details at http://www.fivestopstory.com/write.
  • Short stories: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • Other short stories: Aeon Award (quarterly), www.fantasybookreview.co.uk, Five Stop Story, Glass Woman Prize, Glimmer Train (different category each month), Rubery, The Short Story, Writing Magazine (WM: open to all theme: ghost story / subscriber-only theme: sci-fi), SWWJ (life writing – judges Sophie King & Katie Fforde), Zurich Writers Workshop.
  • Songwriting: www.songwritingcompetition.com.
  • NB. Don’t forget to check out the ongoing competition websites listed at the end of this page.
OCTOBER
  • Children’s: The Times/Chicken House.
  • Flash Fiction: Indies Unlimited hosts a weekly 250-word max. prompt competition – see Indies Unlimited. Also see ‘Short stories’ below.
  • Flash Fiction: Weekly challenge on http://theironwriter.com.
  • Flash Fiction: Writer Austin Briggs runs a monthly 55-word competition (different theme each month). It’s free to enter and you can win $55 (of his own money!).
  • Flash Fiction: Words with JAM‘s ‘Shorter Story’ and ‘Shortest Story‘ competitions have a deadline of end October.
  • Flash Fiction: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • Graphic novel: www.myriadeditions.com.
  • Mixed: Christian magazine Pockets has a different theme per month, Caketrain and www.mkweb.co.uk (poetry & shorts).
  • Mixed: The Prolitzer Prize for Prose writing 1st prize £130 + publication, max 2000 words fiction or non-fiction. Closing date usually 1st October. Thanks again to The New Writer magazine for the info.
  • Novels: iWriteReadRate and Cornerstones Literary Consultancy (http://www.voteformyebook.com) are offering a monthly social competition to members of the community – see ‘Monthly’ towards the end of this page.
  • Novels: www.societyofauthors.org/mckitterick.
  • Poetry: Milton Keynes Writers’ Group runs a Speakeasy poetry and short story competition with a 31st October deadline. Click here for the entry form (submissions via post only).
  • Poetry: The Writers’ Forum Poetry Competition is a monthly contest for poems of up to 40 lines. Closing: Monthly. Entries arriving too late for one month go forward to the next. Prizes: 1st – £100. Runners-up – A Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. Entry Fee: £5 each, £3 each thereafter. Includes a critique (sae required if entering by post). Comp Page: http://www.writers-forum.com/poetrycomp.html.
  • Poetry: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • Poetry: other October-deadline poetry competitions include Balsall Writers, Hastings International, Sentinel, TRYangle, Writing Magazine (WM: subscriber-only theme: sunrise), National Poetry Competition, www.societyofauthors.org/eric-gregory, www.raggedraven.co.uk and NAWG (see below).
  • Screenwriting: Canada-based Wildsound run monthly screenwriting competitions.
  • Scriptwriting: The Channel 4/Òran Mór Comedy Drama Award carries a prize of £5000 and is open to all writers resident in the UK. Submit script in one act and no more than 50 minutes in length and using no more than 3 actors. The winning entry will be selected by a panel of judges drawn from Òran Mór and Channel 4 and will be given its stage premier in March 2013 at A Play A Pie and A Pint during the Glasgow International Comedy Festival. The winning entry will also be produced as a 2-minute viral video. Closing date usually 1st October. Thanks again to The New Writer magazine for the info.
  • Short stories: Chorley & District Writers’ Circle Short Story Competition closes 7 Oct 2012. Story: 3,000 words. Theme varies each year. Fee: £4, or £7/two or £10/three. Prizes: £100, £50 and £30. Judges: Fiction Feedback at http://www.fictionfeedback.co.uk. For full details visit: http://www.chorleywriters.org.uk. Email your story to: mail@chorleywriters.org.uk. Post your cheque (and story if you prefer) to: Aware Competition, 27 Thirlmere Road, Blackrod, Bolton, UK BL6 5EB. Please make your cheque out to Chorley & District Writers’ Circle. Please send a with your name and contact details, story’s title and first line with your story. This acts as an entry form. separate cover sheet. Your name should not appear anywhere on the story itself. Your story is eligible for entry if it has not been published in print or won first prize in a competition (provided you retain the rights to it). You retain all rights to your story by entering this competition, but you do give your permission for your story, if shortlisted, to be published online. Tip: In previous competitions, several well-written stories have missed out on prizes because the theme wasn’t treated strongly enough. Craft your story around the theme rather than the other way round. Good luck! Chorley & District Writers’ Circle. Tel. 01257 233614.
  • Short stories: Foyles runs a short story competition – full details here. Closing date usually early / mid October.
  • Short stories: Milton Keynes Writers’ Group runs a Speakeasy poetry and short story competition with a 31st October deadline. Click here for the entry form (submissions via post only).
  • Short stories: The H.E. Bates Short Story Competition (run by one of my writing groups) usually has a late October / early November deadline and for 2013 has Della Galton as Head Judge.
  • Short stories: Avogel, Balsall Writers, Chorleywood Literature Festival, Five Stop Story, Spilling Ink, TRYangle, Writing Magazine (WM: open to all theme: adult fairy tale / subscriber-only theme: marriage / anniversary), Rrofihe, Raspberry & Vine, A Vogel Dormeasan, Ruth Rendell, Earlyworks, Aphrodite’s Dream, www.fiction-garden.co.uk, www.societyofauthors.org/tom-gallon-trust-and-olive-cook-award, Sunpenny Open Short Story, Words with JAM.
  • Short stories: Hayley Sherman runs a monthly short story competition for submissions on any subject up to 2,000 words. The winners are published on the website, promoted online and receive a £10 First Writer voucher. All entrants are also considered for publication in The New Short Story Annual at the end of the year. Deadline 25th of the month. Heather Marie Schuldt runs a similar contest, although 500-750 words max., but with the same deadline.
  • Short stories: Writing East Midlands / Lincolnshire Echo competition (only open to writers currently living in the East Midlands – Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Rutland, Leicestershire and Northamptonshire) with a ‘winner’ each month (submitted by 25th) with an October deadline and the overall winner wins £300. See here for more details.
  • Short stories: Glimmer Train (different category each month).
  • Short stories: The Second NAWG 2012 Open Writing Competitions has a closing date of 31st October, 2012. The second Open Short Story Competition – Stories can be any length from 500 to 2000 words. The first Open Poetry Competition - Poems can be any style, maximum 40 lines. Prizes for each category – First: £250 – Second: £100 – Third: £50. Fourth and Fifth: A signed copy of The Writer’s Treasury of Ideas by Linda Lewis. Short Story – Judged by Linda Lewis, a successful short story writer and columnist for Writers Forum. Poem – Judged by Alison Chisholm, poet – Writing Magazine columnist and teacher. Entry fee for each category £5 (Cheques to NAWG, or pay on the website by PayPal). But NO EMAIL entries please ALL manuscripts must be received by post. An optional critique from both Linda and Alison is available for a further £3. * Important Note* When requesting a critique, please enclose an s.a.e. with the correct postage. Competition rules, full details and a downloadable entry form can be found on the National Association of Writers’ Groups website: www.nawg.co.uk or request full details by email: pamfish@ntlworld.com or by post: NAWG Competition Administrator, 28 Riversdale Avenue, Stakeford, Choppington, Northumberland, NE62 5LE. Telephone: 01670-816420 Entrants may win more than one prize. Results will be announced by Christmas 2012. The winning entry will be published on the NAWG website and in the NAWG Anthology, October 2013. Copyright remains with the author. Closing Date: 31st October.
  • Short stories: The Benjamin Franklin House Literary Prize for ages 18-25, interpret a Franklin quote in max 1500 words. 1st prize £750, closing date 31 October. See http://www.benjaminfranklinhouse.org/site/sections/news/literary_prize.html.
  • Short story collections: iWriteReadRate and Cornerstones Literary Consultancy (http://www.voteformyebook.com) are offering a monthly social competition to members of the community – see ‘Monthly’ towards the end of this page.
  • Short stories: The Bath Short Story Award opens in October for entries – see ‘March’.
  • Short stories: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • NB. Don’t forget to check out the ongoing competition websites listed at the end of this page.
NOVEMBER
  • Auto/biography: The 2012 New England Book Festival Competition – see below.
  • Children’s: The 2012 New England Book Festival Competition – see below.
  • Flash Fiction: Weekly challenge on http://theironwriter.com.
  • Flash Fiction: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • Flash Fiction: Indies Unlimited hosts a weekly 250-word max. prompt competition – see Indies Unlimited. Also see ‘Short stories’ below.
  • Flash Fiction: Writer Austin Briggs runs a monthly 55-word competition (different theme each month). It’s free to enter and you can win $55 (of his own money!).
  • Flash Fiction: Empirical Magazine started a monthly flash fiction (<1000-word) competition.
  • Mixed (novels & short story collections): iWriteReadRate and Cornerstones Literary Consultancy (http://www.voteformyebook.com) are offering a monthly social competition to members of the community – see ‘Monthly’ towards the end of this page.
  • Mixed: Words for the Wounded (W4W) launching its first writing prize on Armistice Day, November 11, with a March deadline – see below.
  • Mixed: The 2012 New England Book Festival Competition – see below.
  • Mixed: Christian magazine Pockets has a different theme per month.
  • Mixed: www.hud.ac.uk/mh/english/grist/competitions/index.htm (shorts & poetry).
  • Mixed: 16th annual The New Writer Prose & Poetry Prizes: Short Story / MicroFiction / Non-Fiction / Single Poem / Poetry Collection. Closing date 30th November.  You can enter the 2012 Prizes at: http://www.thenewwriter.com/entryform.htm.
  • Non-fiction: The 2012 New England Book Festival Competition – see below.
  • Novels: www.societyofauthors.org/betty-trask.
  • Novels: The 2012 New England Book Festival has issued a call for entries to its annual program honoring the best books of the holiday season. The competition is currently accepting entries in the following categories: non-fiction, fiction, biography / autobiography, children’s books, young adult, how-to, cookbooks, science fiction, photography / art, poetry, spiritual works, compilations / anthologies, gay, unpublished stories and wild card (for books that don’t neatly fit elsewhere). All entries must be in English. Books published on or after January 1, 2010 are eligible. Deadline submissions in each category must be received by November 25.
  • Playwriting: http://www.livetheatre.com.au/html/cms/35/one-act-playwriting-competition-noosa has an AS$6,000 prize pot and a mid-November deadline.
  • Poetry: The Writers’ Forum Poetry Competition is a monthly contest for poems of up to 40 lines. Closing: Monthly. Entries arriving too late for one month go forward to the next. Prizes: 1st – £100. Runners-up – A Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. Entry Fee: £5 each, £3 each thereafter. Includes a critique (sae required if entering by post). Comp Page: http://www.writers-forum.com/poetrycomp.html.
  • Poetry: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • Poetry: other November deadline poetry competitions include Cafe Writers, Countryside Tales, Cinnamon Press Writing Awards, The New Writer, Writing Magazine (WM: open to all theme: nostalgia), www.theploughprize.co.uk.
  • Science-fiction: Aeon Award (quarterly), Writing Magazine.
  • Screenwriting: Canada-based Wildsound run monthly screenwriting competitions.
  • Short stories: The Erewash Writers’ Group competition website is running two free entry competitions and these close early November. One of our competitions has two categories of entry ie two age groups. We recently held our first competition open to entries from outside the group. It attracted all levels of writer from complete newbies to the professional. One of the successful entrants, their story chosen by our judge Keith ‘Carrot Nappers’ Large, told me they’d never even entered a writing competition before. I think it’s a good thing any writer will want to join in with a competition, whatever their experience and ability. In my opinion that’s what competitions are there for, to encourage us all to write and to give everyone an outlet for our short stories and other works. They’re also fun as they provide deadlines to work to and in some cases, themes to challenge us. Although one of our current competitions is already categorised so that entries from children will not be judged in competition with adult entries, we will consider this point you have raised when organising our future competitions. If I may add, we are in the process of putting a call out to seek a judge for an open competition we intend to hold in 2013. We are also seeking judges for mini competitions. At present, we are delighted Rosalie Warren author of ‘Coping with Chloe’ is judging one of our free entry competitions. If anyone reading this knows of anyone suitably qualified, please will they email Debbie at erewashwriterscomps@hotmail.co.uk to register their interest.
  • Short stories: The New Writer 17th Annual Prose & Poetry Prizes launched April 2013. £2,000 in prizes. Closing date 30th November. Short stories, flash fiction and poetry.
  • Short stories: Hayley Sherman runs a monthly short story competition for submissions on any subject up to 2,000 words. The winners are published on the website, promoted online and receive a £10 First Writer voucher. All entrants are also considered for publication in The New Short Story Annual at the end of the year. Deadline 25th of the month. Heather Marie Schuldt runs a similar contest, although 500-750 words max., but with the same deadline.
  • Short stories: The Roy B Giv competition seeks 2,000-4,000 words on a colour. :)
  • Short stories: The Bath Short Story Award opened October 2012 for entries – see ‘March’.
  • Short stories: other competitions include Ashby Writers Club (Mary Gornell Memorial), Bridgehouse Publishing, Emerald Flash Fiction, Five Stop Story, Glimmer Train (different category each month), The New Writer, Writing Magazine (WM: open to all theme: flash fiction <500 words / subscribers only).
  • NB. Don’t forget to check out the ongoing competition websites listed at the end of this page.
DECEMBER
  • Children’s: The Frances Lincoln Diverse Voices and www.theredtelephone.co.uk.
  • Children’s: Write Now is a relatively new (2012) competition for authors of children’s books. See http://www.writenowcompetition.com/FAQs for more information. They’re also on Twitter (@WriteNowPrize)
  • Flash Fiction: Indies Unlimited hosts a weekly 250-word max. prompt competition – see Indies Unlimited. Also see ‘Short stories’ below.
  • Flash Fiction: Weekly challenge on http://theironwriter.com.
  • Flash Fiction: Writer Austin Briggs runs a monthly 55-word competition (different theme each month). It’s free to enter and you can win $55 (of his own money!).
  • Mixed: Christian magazine Pockets has a different theme per month.
  • Mixed (novels & short story collections): iWriteReadRate and Cornerstones Literary Consultancy (http://www.voteformyebook.com) are offering a monthly social competition to members of the community – see ‘Monthly’ towards the end of this page.
  • Playwriting: New Perspectives has a £1000 prize fund for their Dream Up script competition which ends mid-December. Open to any writer living in the East Midlands area of England, the theme is ‘Starting out in the East Midlands’ and should last no longer than 10-15 minutes with a maximum of four characters. See http://newperspectives.co.uk/STEPUP for more details.
  • Poetry: Print Express are running their first poetry competition and this is free to enter, with the winner will receive £100 worth of Amazon vouchers. The theme is ‘Winter’ and poems must be no longer than 45 lines. The deadline for this is late December.  You can view further details here: http://www.printexpress.co.uk/blog/2011/10/17/the-print-express-poetry-competition.
  • Poetry: The Writers’ Forum Poetry Competition is a monthly contest for poems of up to 40 lines. Closing: Monthly. Entries arriving too late for one month go forward to the next. Prizes: 1st – £100. Runners-up – A Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. Entry Fee: £5 each, £3 each thereafter. Includes a critique (sae required if entering by post). Comp Page: http://www.writers-forum.com/poetrycomp.html.
  • Poetry: Other poetry competitions include Anthony Hecht, Holland Park Press, www.le.ac.uk/engassoc and Writing Magazine (WM: subscriber-only theme: waiting for the post).
  • Screenwriting: Canada-based Wildsound run monthly screenwriting competitions.
  • Screenwriting: www.screenplay-competition.com.
  • Short stories: The H.E. Bates Short Story Competition (run by one of my writing groups) usually has a late October / early November deadline and for 2013 has Della Galton as Head Judge.
  • Short stories: New (2012) free to enter short story competition from Printerinks: Are you a budding writer? Fancy putting your skills to the test in our short story competition? By entering our competition you have the chance to get your book printed in hard copy. This prize is perfect for any author who would like to get their work published. The winner will receive 10 copies so they can share their winning story with family and friends. To celebrate the beginning of the autumn season we are asking you to write your story on the theme ‘autumn’. For a chance of winning this amazing prize, email your story in a Word document to competitions@printerinks.com. The competition is free to enter. Good Luck! Rules: The story can be no longer than 3000 words. We will only accept one entry per person. The competition deadline is 1st December. Prize: The winner will have their book published and receive 10 copies of their story. The story will be published in a 14.8 x 10.5cm book, with a 350gsm card cover. The winner can either choose to design their own cover or our in house team can help. The runner up will receive £50 worth of amazon vouchers. These details on: http://www.printerinks.com/blog/2012/10/02/short-story-competition.
  • Short stories: Hayley Sherman runs a monthly short story competition for submissions on any subject up to 2,000 words. The winners are published on the website, promoted online and receive a £10 First Writer voucher. All entrants are also considered for publication in The New Short Story Annual at the end of the year. Deadline 25th of the month. Heather Marie Schuldt runs a similar contest, although 500-750 words max., but with the same deadline.
  • Short stories: Writers’ Village runs a quarterly short story competition which attracts entrants worldwide. Click here for the rules… and every entrant receives invaluable critique! Their winter deadline is 31st December.
  • Short stories: Five Stop Story runs a quarterly short story competition (end March / June / September / December). Membership to the site is £25 but you get to enter up to five stories in each competition. Further details at http://www.fivestopstory.com/write.
  • Short stories: The Bath Short Story Award opened October for entries – see ‘March’.
  • Short stories: Five Stop Story, Glimmer Train (different category each month), Willesden Herald, www.westcountrywriters.com, Words Magazine, Writing Magazine.
  • NB. Don’t forget to check out the ongoing competition websites listed at the end of this page.

WEEKLY

  • Flash Fiction: Indies Unlimited hosts a weekly 250-word max. prompt competition – see Indies Unlimited. Co-run by interviewee Kat ‘K.S.’ Brooks. Also see ‘Short stories’ below.
  • Flash Fiction: Each week on http://theironwriter.com, four writers agree to compose a five hundred word story involving the same four elements. Please remember to give your story a title. The stories can be in any genre except erotica. The writers will not know what the four elements are prior to committing to the challenge. There is a four day time limit to complete the story. I email the elements early Thursday morning, my time. The story is due at midnight, Sunday, your time. Each author retains full and complete copyright of their story submitted to The Iron Writer for this competition. However, it is understood each story will remain on this website indefinitely. The Iron Writer will not publish any submission outside this website without express permission from the author. So, if you are up to the challenge, please email me at HERE and we can schedule when you are willing to participate. Please include your main blog or website. I will link your story to your site. You may participate as often as you want.
  • Mixed: Needle in the Hay runs weekly and monthly competitions (“awards”). See http://needleinthehay.net/submission-guidelines for their guidelines. Thanks to Jason Fink for pointing me in that direction.
  • Poetry: Buxton’s Word Wizards slam poetry competition runs in the coffee lounge at the Grove Hotel, Buxton, Derbyshire, UK at 7:30pm on the last Tuesday of every month. Entry is £2.50. More info can be obtained by e-mailing Rob at: poetryslamUK@aol.com.
  • Poetry: Well Versed is the weekly poetry column of daily UK newspaper the Morning Star, published every Thursday, in print and online. Poetry editor Jody Porter. Under the stewardship of the late and esteemed John Rety, Well Versed developed into a widely-read forum for new and established writers. Send submissions, with biographical information, to: wveditor@gmail.com. Poems need not be overtly political, but space is limited so they must be short to medium in length.
  • Short stories: Flash Fiction Online occasionally closes to submissions (I guess because they’re overwhelmed), but they are currently open.
  • NB. Don’t forget to check out the ongoing competition websites listed at the end of this page.
MONTHLY
  • Flash Fiction: Writer Austin Briggs runs a monthly 55-word competition (different theme each month). It’s free to enter and you can win $55 (of his own money!).
  • Flash Fiction: Empirical Magazine runs a monthly flash fiction (<1000-word) competition.
  • Mixed: iWriteReadRate and Cornerstones Literary Consultancy (http://www.voteformyebook.com) are offering a monthly social competition to members of the community; it’s a great opportunity to receive professional feedback as well as contribute to developing your profile and platform. The prize is a fantastic Cornerstones masterclass mini-critique on the winning writer’s first pages of their story, up to 2000 words. This is designed to give the writer a professional critique on how to improve the opening as well as hints to consider throughout their writing. Simply upload an ebook (novels or collections of short stories) to iWriteReadRate. Every month we’ll select five to take part in the competition. All the writer needs to do is promote it with their networks and aim to get as many votes for their ebook as possible. At the end of each month the ebook with the most votes wins the prize.
  • Mixed: Needle in the Hay runs weekly and monthly competitions (“awards”). See http://needleinthehay.net/submission-guidelines for their guidelines. Thanks to Jason Fink for pointing me in that direction.
  • Mixed: Pockets and Creative Print Publishing (both have different themes each month), Opening Editions (free).
  • Novels: http://www.novelrocket.com/p/launch-pad-contest.html has monthly competitions (April-Sept) with a different genre each month.
  • Screenwriting: Canada-based Wildsound run monthly screenwriting competitions.
  • Scriptwriting: Scripped has a variety of script contests including a monthly one.
  • Short stories: Hayley Sherman has a monthly short story competition.
  • Short stories: Brighton COW (currently on hiatus), Coast to Coast, Glimmer Train (different category each month), Writing / Writers’ News magazines and Opening Editions.
  • Short stories: Bound Off now take submissions via Submishmash.
  • Short stories: Darker Times Fiction is a monthly short story competition for stories of 3,000 words and less in the horror genre or on the subject of ‘darker times’. It’s open to UK and international writers and ends on the last day of each month and costs £5 / $8 a time.
  • Short stories: Hayley Sherman runs a monthly short story competition for submissions on any subject up to 2,000 words. The winners are published on the website, promoted online and receive a £10 First Writer voucher. All entrants are also considered for publication in The New Short Story Annual at the end of the year. Deadline 25th of the month.
  • Short stories: Heather Marie Schuldt runs a short story contest, 500-750 words max., on her blog, with the same deadline (25th of the month).
  • Short stories: http://www.fivestopstory.com/write: 2012 competitions cost £4 per entry (2 for £7, 3 for £8, optional feedback £5) and have monthly prizes of £50. There is also a £150 prize for the overall winner of their 2012 league table and you can become a member for £25 which entitles you to 3 free entries per month (2012).
  • Short stories: LinkedIn’s Aspiring Writers Group runs a monthly short story competition. You do have to be a member of LinkedIn (free) and the writing group itself (a closed group but you can ask to join) to enter the competition.
  • NB. Don’t forget to check out the ongoing competition websites listed at the end of this page.
QUARTERLY
ONGOING
  • Children’s: Dal Burns‘ children’s writing competition ‘Write Across America‘.
  • Children’s: Little Star Writing is a site where you can “get published, enter competitions, win prizes, play games, improve literacy skills, receive certificates and HAVE FUN!”.
  • Flash fiction: One Forty Fiction and Wow Women on Writing.
  • Mixed: What The Dickens magazine lists “competitions and give-aways which are all free to enter”.
  • Mixed: sterlingmag and sundayat6mag.wordpress.com
  • Mixed: You can apply for a three-month residency on the Mslexia blog (women only).
  • Non-fiction: http://www.tales2inspire.com/HOME.html (free :) )
  • Novels: Novel Rocket runs an annual Launch Pad Contest: Boosting You Out of the Slush Pile. Entries will be accepted in all genres beginning mid-January. The deadline for submission is different for genre categories according to the following schedule. In each case, entries must be received by 11:59 PM EST on the 10th day of the month (April to September) listed on http://www.novelrocket.com/p/launch-pad-contest.html. They also post a new writing-related article seven days a week, from author interviews to marketing discussions to articles about the craft of writing.
  • Poetry: Poetic Republic is an ongoing online poetry competition in which the entrants are also the judges.
  • Scriptwriting: http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/links5.shtml.
  • Short stories: Creative Writers’ Circle competitions are open to all and are free.
  • Short stories: Flash Fiction Online is a 500-1000 word site that is free to subscribe / read, free to submit to. Payment is via donations with 60% going to the author and 40% going to the site so there’s no way of knowing how much (if anything) you’d earn but another opportunity perhaps.
  • Short stories: Author and columnist Lorraine Mace runs the Flash 500 flash fiction and humorous verse competitions.
  • Short stories: Short Funny Story wants humorous short stories or true-life events and pay $15 for every story published online with $25 extra for any story chosen for inclusion in their anthologies.
  • Short stories: Penny Dreadfuls 21 commissions short stories.
  • Short stories: Words Magazine short story competition guidelines.
COMPETITION WEBSITES

If you discover any broken links, closed competitions or know of ones that I haven’t listed here, please do email me with details.

 

9 Responses to Competitions

  1. Quillers

    February 28, 2012 at 3:31 pm

    Morgen thanks for the link. My comps calendar has now moved to: https://writingcalendar.wordpress.com/

    Reply
     

  2. morgenbailey

    February 28, 2012 at 3:47 pm

    Duly amended, thanks Sally. :)

    Reply
     

  3. kimatsafkhet

    April 6, 2012 at 9:43 pm

    nice, Morgen – how well compiled! Thank you for all the hard work!

    Reply
     

  4. morgenbailey

    April 6, 2012 at 9:56 pm

    Hi Kim. Thank you very much… and I have more to add. :)

    Reply
     

  5. Sophie E Tallis

    April 6, 2012 at 10:36 pm

    Great list, Morgen, well done! Just one addition here, Fantasy Faction have a short story competition which ends June 30th 2012: http:fantasywritingcontest.com/ :D

    Reply
     

  6. FazalAliButt

    June 15, 2012 at 6:00 pm

    I Appreciate your these efforts for the writers like me who are new in the writing business.
    I’ve put your blog in my favorites. looking forward to getting more from you in future too. Thinks

    Reply
     

    • morgenbailey

      June 15, 2012 at 6:04 pm

      You’re very welcome. I post something at least three times a day so there’s plenty to look forward to. :)

      Reply
       

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