2020 high school essay writing contest
Hosted by: The Adroit Journal Eligibility: Open to all high school, college, and university students from around the world. Deadline: April 1, pm PT. Hosted by: Bill of Rights Institute Eligibility: All United States citizens or legal residents who are students who no older than 19 and no younger than 14 as of the end of the Contest Period, who 1 attend school in the United States, one of its territories or districts, or an American Armed Forces School Abroad, and 2 are in grades 8 attending public, private, religious, or charter schools, 3 are enrolled in a GED or correspondence school program, or 4 are attending a home school program. Hosted by: Wow! Hosted by: Poets. Hosted by: Polyphony Lit Eligibility: Instead of submitting directly to the awards, works that are accepted to publication are considered.
37 Free Writing Contests: Legitimate Competitions With Cash Prizes
Some legitimate contests do charge small entry fees, but often a fee can be a red flag for a scam, so those might be the ones you want to stay away from. Besides, there are plenty of free writing contests that encourage and inspire boundless creativity with real cash prizes and career-advancing opportunities!
Since it can be hard for a writer to know where to find them, we did the legwork for you. We found 37 reputable, well-reviewed, free writing contests for poets, fiction writers, essayists and more.
Ready to share your novel or personal essay with the world? Here are some fiction and nonfiction writing contests worth considering. Whatever your feelings about L. Submissions must be short stories or novelettes up to 17, words in the genre of science fiction or fantasy, and new and amateur writers are welcome to apply. Deadlines: Quarterly on March 31, June 30 and September This boutique publishing firm offers cash prizes and promotional packages to winning authors. Submit a novel of 7, words or more in any fiction genre no fanfic, short stories or poetry.
Disclosure: Inkitt is an advertising partner of The Write Life. We hold our advertisers to high standards and vetted this contest just like the others on this list. You may submit an unpublished manuscript of short stories, two or more novellas or a combination of novellas and short stories. Your total word count should be between and typed pages. Deadline: Annual submissions must be postmarked between May 1 through June Since , this biennial literary award has honored mid-career writers who have recently published their third, fourth or fifth work of fiction.
Francis College campus in Brooklyn, NY to deliver a talk about their work or teach a mini fiction workshop to St. Francis students. Deadline: Biennially; the deadline for is TBA. Submit any novel or collection of short stories published or scheduled to be published in the calendar year. One of the best-loved small presses in the creative writing world, Graywolf Press hosts a variety of contests for both established and up-and-coming writers.
Graywolf also offers smaller fiction and nonfiction prizes, with genres rotating by year; was a nonfiction year, so fiction is up in Deadline: Contest is held annually with rotating genres; the deadline is TBA. Deadline: Biennially. The next contest will be held in , and submissions will be accepted between May 1 and May You may submit up to two manuscripts. Eligible authors should submit a work of fiction, such as a novel or short story collection, published in the calendar year.
Galleys for publication within the year are also accepted. Honoring the best work of fiction published by an American author in a single calendar year, this award has been given to the likes of John Updike, Philip Roth and Ann Patchett. Novels, novellas, and collections of short stories are all eligible. Plus, there are no submission fees or application forms to deal with; just mail five copies of your book or bound proofs to the organization to be considered.
Deadline: Annually on October 31 for books published that calendar year. This contest is a little different, because it requires you to already have published a short story in a literary journal or cultural website. Short stories of up to 12, words are eligible and must be published in the calendar year preceding the year in which the award is given. Additionally, keep this in mind: Submissions are only eligible if submitted by an editor.
Authors may not submit their own work. Deadline: Contest is open annually between June and November. Plus, winners receive their prize at a ceremony in Cleveland. Submissions must be published in the prior year so books published in are eligible for the award. Deadline: Annual submission window is September 1 through December Deadline: Annually in the last quarter of the year; the deadline is TBA.
Submissions may be adult or YA novels. Deadline: Annually; January 15, is the most current deadline. Essays of up to 5, characters roughly 1, words will be accepted, and you can tackle just about any topic you want. Deadline: Annually in the first quarter of the year; the deadline for is TBA. ServiceScape, a platform matching freelance writers, editors, and graphic designers with clients i. The winner will also have their story featured on the ServiceScape blog, which sees thousands of readers each month.
Works must not have been published elsewhere. Award winners are required to submit a word biography, recent photo and a short note thanking the Woods family for their generosity and support. The contest is open to Canadian college and university students, and essays should be 2, words or less in length.
For young writers ages , these cool contests also serve as mini workshops. Prose offers weekly challenges meant to spark your creativity; many are just for fun, but look for the weekly numbered challenges posted by Prose rather than community members or sponsors for a chance to win money.
The contest alternates annually between fiction novel or short story collection and nonfiction memoir, essay collection, narrative nonfiction. In , it will go to a work of nonfiction of at least 25, words; will be nonfiction.
What does community mean to you? Whether your take on community is an ant or nudist colony, all topics are welcome. The U. Born in , the Society of Spanish Researchers invites talented and original writers to write a word blurb for a hypothetical novel. This might sound really easy, but your blurb has to quickly hook readers and make them want to read more.
Virginia Commonwealth University sponsors this award that honors an outstanding debut novel published in the preceding calendar year. While you may have published previous books in a different form, the submission must be your first published book marketed as a novel. Curious about opportunities for poets? Your stanzas — rhyming or not — could be worth a fair amount of money in these poetry competitions. Original board and picture books for children aged are eligible, provided they feature contemporary African American characters and culture and focus on character development, self esteem, community, and other aspects of positive childhood development.
In addition, copies of the winning book are distributed to 1, members of the Academy of American Poets. Deadline: Annual submission window is January 1 through May Deadline: July 1, ; books or first books of poetry must be published between July 1, , and June 30, Deadline : Submissions are accepted between September 1 and November 1 of each year. Writers of all ages from eligible countries can submit an original, humorous poem with lines or less, and it must be an English.
Looking for more opportunities to submit your work? Here are a few great sites to keep an eye on for writing contests.
A number of the contests found on our list came highly recommended by this site, which compiles some of the best free literary contests out there. Along with a wide range of recommended contests for writers of all stripes, Winning Writers also lists some contests and services to avoid — which is just as useful! They also offer a handful of contests themselves , including the North Street Book Prize. An ecosystem for authors and publishing professionals, Reedsy prides itself on providing help at every stage of your publishing journey — it even curates writing contests.
This listing contains affiliate links. The original version of this story was written by Kelly Gurnett. We're a team of writers and editors here to help you create, connect and earn. To read more about us, visit The Write Life's About page. The Write Life thewritelife. I have a short story of my stolen childhood.. Its a memoir.. It has touched a lot of ppl nd its very deep.. A lot of ppl who have read it has gained goose bumps nd a lot of others has related a lot to it.. I have councillors stating I should get it published as its very helpful to thoughts who have been through similar..
I write a lot about life nd the deeper I go with my words the more ppl feel it.. I have had a few ppl state they felt like it was happening to them the words stand out so much.. It would be a great honor if u could pls give me some advice on where or how to start.. If u could pls email me I will be an honour. At FanStory. With the membership fee you can enter all of our contests at no charge. We provide a contest where you get paid either way, so long as you make the cut.
Check out thewritersarena. Appreciate this list, my writing goal for this year- well, one of them, is to seek new writing and publishing opportunities and challenges. Thank you.
This is well time for me and I am excited. I love to write as well! Its not childish and stupid.
Princeton University Poetry Contest for High School Students three poems), fiction (a short story or one-act play), or nonfiction (a personal or academic essay). Discover the best writing contests of — including short story contests, essay contests, poetry contests, and many more (free) writing competitions!
In a world where J. Here, I compiled a list of 33 writing contests for teens. Genres include: fiction, poetry, nonfiction, screenplays, and plays. But speaking from personal experience, you never know unless you try. Rejections will pile up for young authors, but so will acceptances accompanied by whoops and fist pumps.
Some legitimate contests do charge small entry fees, but often a fee can be a red flag for a scam, so those might be the ones you want to stay away from.
Regardless where you are on your writing journey—from wannabe to bestseller—you can benefit from entering contests. Because the right contest can tell you: Where you stand How you measure up against the competition What you still need to learn Not to mention, you could… [Continue reading below].
Children’s Writing Competitions
Jump to navigation. To that end, here are some opportunities for your students where they can submit their stories, articles, and essays, including a few sponsored by IEW. Write the World: As swaths of the world face the days and weeks ahead in physical isolation, the power of poetry is still available to us. This month, give us the world re-made whole, conjuring poetry into stanzas, meter, or free verse; or with an original piece of spoken word poetry performed aloud. Prizes include cash awards! Deadline: April 21,
The Best Writing Contests of 2020
Where young writers can find print and online literary magazines to read, places to publish their own works, and legitimate contests. For specific submission guidelines, visit the publication's website. Ages can include elementary, teen, or early college. This is an ad-free resource: publications and writing contests listed here have not paid to be included. This guide is maintained by Editor Denise Hill, a teacher who loves to encourage young writers. Safety Matters! This is a select list of contests from reputable sources. There are many contests that charge fees, but for this resource, I have sought contests which mean to recognize and encourage young writers and do not charge reading or entry fees. Of those listed that do charge a fee, some provide a publication subscription in return as they are trying to gain new readers; that seems fair and the publishers are up front about it. Please avoid contests that tell you you've won and then want you to purchase expensive copies of the book in which you have been published.
Show expired contests. Manage a competition?
Other High School. There are tons of writing contests for high school students, which can award everything from medals to cash prizes to scholarships if you win.
33 Writing Contests for Teens (Publication & Cash)
Please read our list of writing competitions for children. The contests are checked and updated each month. We are happy to feature writing challenges open to primary age children, secondary age pupils, and young adults in the UK. If you would like your competition featured here, please contact us. We have also compiled a list of recommended creative writing manuals and writing workshop activity guides suitable for use with KS1, KS2, KS3 and KS4 at the bottom of this page. Below is a collection of books recommended to inspire children to write — whether it be creative writing, nonfiction or poetry. To see the latest price, hover over the book cover image. Descriptosaurus by Alison Wilcox A fantastic resource for children and pupils aged which helps the writer build up descriptions using increasingly sophisticated prompts. Great as a starting point for original ideas. How to Write your Best Story Ever! This writing guide is very thorough, but also very accessible and great fun.
NewPages Young Writers Guide
Interested candidates can apply for the competition until 31st May The Admission Writer is organizing the competition to provide scholarships for outstanding students to pursue their further studies. The candidates should meet the given criteria for the Essay Writing Competition for Students Three authors from the winning essays will get cash prizes. Additionally, the best papers will be published on the official website and on social media.
