November-deadline Writing Competitions

I still don’t have any guest bloggers (where are you all?) booked in until November, so I thought I’d bring you the competitions early (taken from this blog’s Competitions page) so you can prepare early, followed by regular (repeated) competitions and competition websites…

NOVEMBER

• Auto/biography: The New England Book Festival Competition – see below.
• Children’s: The New England Book Festival Competition – see below.
• Flash Fiction: Weekly challenge on theironwriter.com.
• Flash Fiction: Each month the Scottish Book Trust provides a prompt to get you started, but where the <50-word story goes from there is entirely up to you. Their favourite story will be published on their page and the writer will receive a lovely Novel Poster from The Literary Gift Company. You can submit your story in the body of an email or as an attachment and remember to include your full name with your entry. They also welcome entries in Gaelic or Scots.
• 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.
• Flash Fiction: The Writing Competition is a short story competition hosted by Jeni Durlston-Powell. This writing contest offers writers the chance to win cash and publication, and is currently run quarterly (late Feb, late May, late Aug, late Nov). Short Stories up to 500 words. Titles to be limited to 10 words. Open theme and genre. Entry fee: £4. Prizes: £100, £75, £50. See http://www.writingcompetition.org.uk and http://www.shortstorycompetitionhq.com/the-writing-competition-writing-competition for details.
• Mixed (novels & short story collections): iWriteReadRate and Cornerstones Literary Consultancy (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 New England Book Festival Competition – see below.
• Mixed: Christian magazine Pockets has a different theme per month.
• Mixed: hud.ac.uk/mh/english/grist/competitions/index.htm (shorts & poetry).
• Mixed: The annual The New Writer Prose & Poetry Prizes: Short Story / MicroFiction / Non-Fiction / Single Poem / Poetry Collection. Closing date 30th November.  You can enter at: thenewwriter.com/entryform.htm.
• Non-fiction: The New England Book Festival Competition – see below.
• Novels: societyofauthors.org/betty-trask.
• Novels: The 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 Tuesday 25 November 2013.
• Playwriting: livetheatre.com.au/html/cms/35/one-act-playwriting-competition-noosa has an AS$6,000 prize pot and a mid-November deadline.
• Playwriting: Almost Random Theatre is running two competitions – 1. Wellbeing Playwriting Competition: We are seeking one outstanding 20 minute play to be put on in Oxford, England in January 2014. The play must be no more than 20 minutes long and require no more than three actors. CLOSING DATE 10th October 2013. 2. Retreats Playwriting Competition: We are seeking one outstanding 10 minute play to be put on in Oxford, England in January 2014. The play must be no more than 10 minutes long and require no more than three actors. CLOSING DATE 10th November 2013. See http://www.almostrandomtheatre.co.uk/competitions. My thanks go to Margaret Taylor for the info.
• Poetry: The Writers’ Forum Poetry Competition is a monthly contest for poems of up to 40 lines. Closing: Monthly. Entries arriving too late (after the 15th) 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: 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), 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 Writers’ Forum Short Story Competition is a monthly no-theme contest for stories between 1,000 and 3,000 words. Closing: Monthly. Entries arriving too late (after the 15th) for one month go forward to the next. Prizes: £350, £150, £100 and publication in Writers’ Forum magazine (and possible anthology). Entry Fee: £3 per story for subscribers, £6 each non-subscribers. £5 extra for a critique (sae required if entering by post). Comp Page: http://writers-forum.com/storycomp.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: Short Sentences is a free-to-enter 1,000-word max competition run by Bloomsbury and has a different theme every two months (deadlines 30th September then 30th November) . Seehttp://www.shortstorycompetitionhq.com/short-sentences-crime-fiction-short-story-competitionand  http://shortsentencecompetition.wordpress.com/rules-and-submissions for details.
• 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 FREE 2014 Commonwealth Short Story Prize is being run by Commonwealth Writers, a cultural initiative from the Commonwealth Foundation. Cash prizes are on offer for the winning writers, and prizes for translation are also available. Short stories 2000 – 5000 words. Genre, theme and setting is open. Writers must be citizens of a Commonwealth country. Writers do not need to currently reside in that country. Entries must be original and unpublished with the exception of personal blogs and personal websites. English entires only. Translations of short stories written in languages other than English are eligible if submitted by the writer (not the translator) and provided the translator is a citizen of a Commonwealth country. One entry per writer. Opens 1 October 2013, closes 30 November 2013. Free entry. One winner is chosen from each regional category – 1. Africa, 2. Asia, 3. Canada and Europe, 4. Caribbean and 5. Pacific. One regional winner will be selected as the overall winner with four runners up from remaining regions. Overall winner will receive £5,000. Remaining four regional winners £2,500. If the winning short story is a translation into English, the translator will receive additional prize money:  £2,000 for the overall winning story and £1,000 for a regional winning story. Details on: http://www.commonwealthwriters.org/prizes/commonwealth-short-story-prize/entry-rules.
• Short stories: The Bath Short Story Award opened October for entries – see ‘March’.
• Short stories: other competitions include Ashby Writers Club (Mary Gornell Memorial), Bridgehouse Publishing, Emerald Flash Fiction, 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.

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 month the Scottish Book Trust provides a prompt to get you started, but where the <50-word story goes from there is entirely up to you. Their favourite story will be published on their page and the writer will receive a lovely Novel Poster from The Literary Gift Company. You can submit your story in the body of an email or as an attachment and remember to include your full name with your entry. They also welcome entries in Gaelic or Scots.
• Flash Fiction: Each week on 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 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 (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 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: 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: The Global Short Story Competition is a monthly event hosted by Inscribe Media. There is no theme or set genre. 2000 word maximum word count. Writers must be 16 years or over. Maximum 4 submissions per month. Closing Date: The last day of every month. Prize: Monthly first prize – £100, Monthly runner up – £25, Annual Grand Prize – £250. Entry Fee: £5 per story (up to 4 per month). Details from http://www.inscribemedia.co.uk/global-short-story-competition.html.
• 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: fivestopstory.com/write: 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 2013 league table and you can become a member for £25 which entitles you to 3 free entries per month (2013).
• 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

• Flash fiction: Wow Women on Writing and writingcompetition.org.uk.
• Poetry: Flash 500 Fiction Competition.
• Short stories: Aeon Award, Cheer Reader, Dark Tales, Emerald Flash Fiction, Five Stop Story, Flash 500 Fiction Competition, and Writers’ Village.
• NB. Don’t forget to check out the ongoing competition websites listed at the end of this page.

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: 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 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: 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 submitto. 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: on-going competition for submissions of 500 words or fewer on any theme. First prize is £100 plus publication on our website and promotion via our social media sites (twitter, google+ and facebook).  Second prize is £75 and publication on the website, third prize is £50 and publication on the website.  The judge changes quarterly and is currently BAFTA and OSCAR nominee, screenwriter, playwright and novelist William Nicholson.  Entry is just £4.  William Nicholson will be judging until 28th August when the competition will then continue with another judge.Entries would be very welcome and please tell your members that we just launched yesterday! (June 1, 2013) Thank you, Jeni. writingcompetition.org.uk Find us on Facebook: facebook.com/TheWritingCompetition?ref=hl Tweet us on Twitter: twitter.com/writing_comp.
• 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

• Flash Fiction: Creative Times has a list of their top 10 paying flash fiction competition sites. There are also some listed on nationalflashfictionday.co.uk/competitions.html.
• Flash Fiction: @ShortStoryCompHQ has great list of flash fiction and short story competitions on shortstorycompetitionhq.com/directory.
• Mixed: Be a Better Writer has a list of (mostly American) current and future competitions.
• Mixed: Book Marketing Maven has a list of a few.
• Mixed: Duotrope is a great resource for competition and submission opportunities.
• Mixed: FanStory lists a variety of ongoing competitions and is a site where you can “share your writing and learn from the feedback that you will receive on everything you write. That includes poetry, stories, book chapters and scripts. When you post your writing you will get feedback that will determine your place in the rankings. FanStory.com is a popular writing site for writers of all skill levels”.
• Mixed: Fiction Addiction lists a few competition sites.
• Mixed: firstwriter.com/competitions has a great list of competitions but you have to subscribe (not free) to the site to access the full details.
• Mixed: Ideas Tap has a great list of allsorts.
• Mixed: Jacqui Burnett’s Writer’s Bureau has a list of a variety of forthcoming and ongoing competitions.
• Mixed: Carole Burdock’s bi-monthly magazine Kudos.
• Mixed: Loquax.com lists thousands of competitions including writing comps.
• Mixed: The National Association of Writers Groups (based in the UK) lists their competitions on nawg.co.uk/competitions/open-competitions.
• Mixed: West Country Writers has a bijoux collection of competitions. 🙂
• Mixed: Words Magazine has a variety of competition information.
• Mixed: The Poets & Writers website include contests, grants and awards.
• Mixed: prizemagic.co.uk has a variety of competitions.
• Mixed: Sally Quilford‘s competition calendar.
• Mixed: Trafford Publishing lists them a month per page.
• Mixed: free literary monthly magazine Words with Jam have regular competitions.
• Mixed: Write Link also lists forthcoming competitions.
• Mixed: Writers Reign lists short story, poetry, non-fiction, performing arts, rolling competitions, children’s writing competitions and book writing awards.
• Mixed: writingcontests.wordpress.com lists various competitions.
• Novels: apostrophebooks.com/fictionfasttrack.
• Poetry: Poetry Kit, poetrylibrary.org.uk/competitions, Writers Reign.
• Poetry: You might also like to take a look at Poet Laureate Alice Shapiro’s website. Alice kindly provided some poetry tips for this blog in August 2011. 🙂  Poet Scott E Green dropped by and left a comment on my me page to say that his blog has multi-genre competition and submission info. I checked it out and it looks really useful.
• Poetry: The Writers’ Forum Poetry Competition is a monthly contest for poems of up to 40 lines. Closing: Monthly. Entries arriving too late (after the 15th) 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: writers-forum.com/poetrycomp.html.
• Screenwriting: Canada-based Wildsound run monthly screenwriting competitions.
• Scriptwriting: hollywoodscriptexpress.com/screenplay_contests.html, scriptfactory.co.uk/go/Default.html, writesofluid.co.uk/screenwriting-competitions.html, and thespiannet.com/writing_contests.shtml.
• Short stories: BookTrust has a wonderful list of over 50 short story competitions.
• Short stories: Christopher Fielden has a great list of multi-national short story competitions.
• Short stories: @ShortStoryCompHQ has great list of flash fiction and short story competitions on shortstorycompetitionhq.com/directory.
• Short stories: The Writers’ Forum Short Story Competition is a monthly no-theme contest for stories between 1,000 and 3,000 words. Closing: Monthly. Entries arriving too late (after the 15th) for one month go forward to the next. Prizes: £350, £150, £100 and publication in Writers’ Forum magazine (and possible anthology). Entry Fee: £3 per story for subscribers, £6 each non-subscribers. £5 extra for a critique (sae required if entering by post). Comp Page: http://writers-forum.com/storycomp.html.
• Short stories: Writers Reign‘s short stories competitions page lists by deadline date.
• Short stories: other sites include Poetry Kit (“shorts & other comps”) and Words Magazine.
• Short story collections: apostrophebooks.com/fictionfasttrack.

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