20 Pieces of Writing Advice From William Faulkner
Short Story Competitions
Quick links on this page:
- featured short story competitions
- regular short story competitions
- prestigious short story competitions with BIG prizes
- annual short story competitions
- writing competitions for young writers and children
- one-off short story competitions
- other short story competition lists
- other short story publishing opportunities
- closed competitions - a history for reference
- comments
Last updated 12th December 2021
Below are tables listing various short story competitions. Some are based in the UK, some are global. Some contests are of high renown (like the BBC Short Story Award or the Bridport Prize), offering huge prizes, and some are lesser known, but offer great opportunities for newer writers to become published authors. I will try and keep this list up to date, but please check the rules and dates on the different competition websites before entering.
PLEASE NOTE: Most of the competitions listed on this page accept entries from writers living anywhere in the world. The country each competition is run from is listed so you know which global market you are submitting to.
I've kept the information on the writing competition calendar brief, only detailing the important bits, like genre, approximate opening dates, approximate closing dates, word count and, of course, the amount of prize money you can win. You can learn lots more about the rules for each individual competition by visiting the different websites. I have provided links to make this resource as easy to use as possible :)
If you run a short story competition and would like me to add it to the lists below, please contact me and provide the following information:
- How often you will be running the competition (eg, annually, quarterly, one-off)
- The name of your competition
- A link to your website
- The country you run the competition from
- Closing date
- Date you announce winners
- Maximum word count of stories
- Entry fee
- Top prize
- Any other details, including how winning writers' stories will be published and any theme or limitation on style/genre of stories accepted
A note from Henshaw Press, about their listing on this page:
Three months ago, we did a review of our publicity, part of which was asking entrants how they found our competition. About a third of them found us through your website.
So thanks again for your support.
I will also try and add to this list regularly as I hear about more competitions.
If you want to see stats of the growing audience you can reach by being listed here, please see my advertising page, which contains lots of historical statistics.
Please contact me if there is any other information you would like to see on this page, or for any ideas on improvements. Not long after its launch, I updated the page into sections as detailed in the quick links at the top of the page, and put the competitions in alphabetical order. Discontinued competitions now appear in their own list at the bottom of the page for reference only. I hope this makes the lists easier to use.
Also, as the page is getting larger and the lists are getting longer, it is becoming harder for me to maintain. I'll do my best to check all the links regularly, but if you spot any mistakes, outdated information or broken links, please let me know.
I'm fortunate enough to have been published through some of the competitions in the lists below. In these instances, there will be links to the published stories and more detailed information about my direct experiences with the competition in question. See Devil's Crush as an example. There are also similar posts written by other competition winning short story writers.
If you have been published through a short story competition and would be willing to write about your experiences for my website, please see my submission guidelines.
UPDATE: Very short story (flash fiction) competitions previously listed on this page have been moved here onto a dedicated page to improve usability.
UPDATE 2: The list of competitions for young writers has also been moved onto its own dedicated page, again to aid usability.
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Featured Short Story Competitions
Do you run a short story competition? Do you want it featured at the top of this page? If so, get in touch.
Featured Competition 1: Elegant Literature Short Fiction Contest
Elegant Literature is a digital fiction magazine whose mission is to help new talent go pro, award life-changing prize money, and promote fiction writers worldwide. Our short story contest has a prize of $20,000 USD. We also choose the best stories, pay the authors above-professional rates, and publish them in our magazine.
Instead of paying per submission, you pay a $10 monthly membership which gives you unlimited entries to the contest and includes over $250 in exclusive discounts from our partners like Scrivener, ProWritingAid, Novel Factory, and more. The prize value rises as our membership grows, as does our ability to buy more work from talented new authors. We will also be opening genre-specific competitions based on feedback from the community, so you have a direct say in next month's contest!
In addition to monthly $20k competitions, our members can access the Community Workshop, a private critique group to receive feedback on your work from fellow writers.
This is (we think) one of the best fiction competitions for aspiring writers out there! Head on over to ElegantLiterature.com for your chance to win the $20,000 grand prize.
Featured Competition 2: FanStory
At FanStory new writing contests with cash prizes are announced weekly.
You'll Enjoy
- Contests. FanStory run competitions for short stories, flash fiction, poetry, non-fiction and much more. Enter all contests with cash prizes for free with upgraded membership. Contests with cash prizes are announced every week. Click here to view the current listing.
- Feedback. Get detailed feedback for every poem, short story and book chapter that you write including your contest entries. All skill levels welcomed.
- Community. Make connections and friends. Enjoy sharing your writing. Click here for more info.
Contest Highlights:
- Dialogue Only Writing Contest: Write a story using only dialogue. That's write - just dialogue. Have fun with it. This contest has a cash prize.
- Fantasy Writing Contest: Can you write a fantasy story. Let your imagination go. The winner takes away a cash prize.
- Horror Writing Contest: Put your readers on edge or terrorize them for this horror writing contest. Cash Prize!
- Science Fiction Writing: Write a science fiction story. All topics welcomed - just stick with sci fi. Cash prize to the winner.
- Share Your Story: Share a story about your life. Tell about an event that stands out. Cash prize to the winner.
- This Sentence Starts The Story: Write a story that starts with this sentence: You need to calm down. This contest has a cash prize.
- True Story Contest: Share a memory from your life. Share a moment, an object, a feeling, etc. This does not have to be a profound memory, but should allow readers insight into your feelings, observations and/or thoughts. This contest has a cash prize.
- Western Writing Contest: Share a western story. Share your version of the western you'd want to read. Enter for your chance at the cash prize.
These are just a few of the contests. View the full listing here.
Featured Competition 3: Globe Soup
Globe Soup run a variety of writing competitions throughout the year.
Entering one of their competitions gives you lifelong membership to Globe Soup and access to their free mini contests and challenges.
As a member, you can also get extensive feedback on all competition entries by taking part in their feedback exchanges and you can join their online writing groups, take part in writing workshops and even get free publicity for your published/self published books, both on their website and in their email newsletters.
Globe Soup also run 7 Day Story Writing Challenges. These are free events that take place throughout the year, anyone can participate and each challenge has a £500 prize for the winning story. At the start of each challenge Globe Soup organises participants into 12 groups, each group corresponding to a different literary genre. Participants have 7 days to write a story of no more than 2,000 words inspired by the challenge theme and their randomly assigned genre.
You can learn more about all of the above on Globe Soup's website.
Featured Competition 4: To Hull And Back
To Hull And Back is a biennial humorous short story competition that offers 'the greatest literary prize in the known macrocosm'. You can decide for yourself whether that's true or not...
There are 40 prizes (the top prize is £1,200 - total prize pot is £3,860) and all the shortlisted entrants are published in an anthology. In addition to this, the winner's face is featured on the front cover of the book, which is created by a different artist each year. The book is then strapped to the handlebars of a Harley Davidson FLSTFi Fatboy and filmed being ridden to Hull and back.
To my knowledge, To Hull And Back is the only regular short story competition that celebrates humorous writing. If I'm wrong and you know of another contest specifically for comedy writing, please let me know.
I bang on about the To Hull And Back humorous short story competition a lot. That's because it's awesome. (Admittedly, I am biased, but it is – ask anyone.) The top prize is the greatest literary accolade ever offered in the field of literature. (See previous note regarding bias.)
Original. Unusual. Crazy. But lots of fun. You can find out how to enter here.
From 2014 to 2019, the competition was run annually. Since 2021 it has been run biennially (every other year): 2023, 2025, 2027 etc. Submissions for the 2023 contest will open on 1st July 2022.
You can see the most recent winner's video here:
To Hull And Back was listed by Reedsy as one of their best writing contests of 2021.
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Regular Short Story Competitions
The first table lists weekly, monthly, bi-monthly, quarterly and bi-annual short story competitions.
As mentioned above, details of very short story (flash fiction) competitions have now been moved to a dedicated resource. I mention it again here because there were a lot listed in the regular competition lists.
| Competition | Country | Closing Date | Winners Announced | Max Words | Entry Fee | Top Prize |
| Anansi Archive Short Fiction Competition | UK | Quarterly | Quarterly | 3,000 | FREE | £50 |
| Notes on Anansi Archive Competition: Any style / genre - they also run quarterly flash fiction and poetry competitions | ||||||
| Audio Arcadia Short Story Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | £6.50 | See notes |
| Notes on Audio Arcadia Competition: Themed, so check website for current theme - winning stories published in paperback and eBook formats - authors receive a royalty percentage of the net profit from total monthly net sales | ||||||
| Blackwater Press Short Story Contest | UK / USA | Bi-Annual | Bi-Annual | 10,000 | $5 | $150 |
| Notes on Blackwater Press Contest: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current details - top ten stories published in a collection - to find the competition page, look in the 'More' option in the main menu | ||||||
| Chris Fielden's Flash Fiction Writing Challenges | UK | NA | Everyone is a winner | Varies | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Chris's Writing Challenges: Any style or genre but each challenge is themed, so check the link for current challenges - full details now available on a page dedicated to flash fiction competitions | ||||||
| Commaful's Writing Contests | USA | Varies | Varies | Varies | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Commaful's Contest: Any style / genre but themed, so check site for details - winner's story published on Commaful's website, which boasts a reach of over 4M - they run lots of different writing contests regularly, check the link for details | ||||||
| Cranked Anvil Media Short Story Competition | UK | Quarterly | Quarterly | 1,500 | £5 | £150 |
| Notes on Cranked Anvil Competition: Any style / genre - winners published on website and may also be published in an anthology | ||||||
| Dandy Writers' Writing Contests | USA | Monthly | Monthly | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Dandy Writers' Contest: Any style / genre - they run a variety of regular contests for short stories, flash fiction, non-fiction, poetry and more, so check website for full details | ||||||
| Dark Tales Short Story Contest | UK | Varies | Varies | 5,000 | £4 | £100 |
| Notes on Dark Tales Competition: Horror and speculative fiction - all winners and shortlisted entrants published on website and in anthology - very reasonably priced critiques offered too - runs regularly, sometimes as often as monthly | ||||||
| Drapers Guild Short Story Contest | USA | See notes | See notes | no max | $15 | $100 |
| Notes on Drapers Guild Competition: Any style / genre - for every 15 stories submitted, a $100 prize is awarded, so it's a perpetual contest - winners published on the website | ||||||
| Dream of Shadows Short Story Competitions | UK | Bi-Annual | Bi-Annual | 1,500 | £6 | £300 |
| Notes on Dream of Shadows Competitions: Fantasy / horror and themed, so check website for current theme - they run Easter and Halloween competitions | ||||||
| Dream Quest One Writing Contest | USA | Bi-Annual | Bi-Annual | 5 pages | $10 | $500 |
| Notes on Dream Quest One Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in the 'Dare to Dream' section of the website - they also accept nonfiction and creative nonfiction, including essays, diary / journal entries, stage plays and screenwriting | ||||||
| Elegant Literature Short Fiction Contest | Canada | Monthly | Monthly | 2,000 | $10 | $20,000 |
| Notes on Elegant Literature Contest: See the prestigious comps listing below for full details | ||||||
| Fabula Press Short Story Competition | Hong Kong | Bi-Annual | Bi-Annual | 6,000 | $10 | $500 |
| Notes on Fabula Press Competition: Any style / genre - top entries published in anthology - all authors who are published in the anthology (apart from the top prize winners) will be paid an honourarium of $75 | ||||||
| FanStory Writing Contests | USA | Weekly | Weekly | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on FanStory Contests: FanStory run a variety of contests including short story, flash fiction, poetry, non-fiction and many more - some contests have cash prizes (up to $100) and these usually have an entry fee, or you can become a member and enter every contest | ||||||
| Fantastic Books Publishing Writing Competitions | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Fantastic Books Publishing Competitions: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current details - FBS run at least 2 competitions a year, but sometimes run more in support of charities - winners published in anthology - cash prizes up to £100 | ||||||
| Fiction Factory Short Story Competition | UK | Bi-Annual | Bi-Annual | 3,000 | £6 | £300 |
| Notes on Fiction Factory Competition: Any style / genre except children's and YA - you can order an optional critique for £10 when entering - winners published on website and in anthology - they also run a flash fiction comp | ||||||
| Flash Fiction Writers Short Story Contests | USA | Varies | Varies | Varies | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Flash Fiction Writers Group Contest: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current details - regular writing promts with the occasional prize | ||||||
| Glittery Literary Lustrous Long Story Contest | UK | Varies | Varies | 2,000 | £3 | £30 |
| Notes on Glittery Literary Contest: Any style / genre - winners published in Glittery Literary booklet - entry fee is optional | ||||||
| Globe Soup Short Story Competitions | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Globe Soup Competitions: Any style / genre but sometimes themed - they run a lot of competitions including short story, flash fiction, poetry and nonfiction - top prize has been up to £1,500 in the past | ||||||
| Graffiti Writing Magazine Prose Competition | UK | Bi-Annual | Bi-Annual | Varies | £4 | £100 |
| Notes on Graffiti Writing Magazine Competition: Any style / genre but themes vary - winners published in Graffiti Magazine - they don't have a website, so I have linked to their Facebook page where you can find details of how to enter - they also run a poetry competition | ||||||
| Henshaw Press Short Story Competition | UK | Quarterly | Quarterly | 2,000 | £6 | £200 |
| Notes on Henshaw Press Competition: Any style / genre - winners published on the website and offered inclusion in printed anthology, proceeds of which support charity - second prize £100, third prize £50 - optional critique offered at reasonable prices | ||||||
| London Independent Short Story Prize | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on London Independent Story Prize: Any style / genre - runs between 2 and 4 times a year - winners published on LISP website - they also run flash fiction and screenplay competitions | ||||||
| Michael Terence Publishing (MTP) Short Story Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | 3,000 | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on MTP Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in printed anthology - top prize varies, has been up to £1,000 in the past + free access to courses and other goodies - runs twice a year but closing dates vary | ||||||
| New Millennium Awards | USA | Bi-Annually | Bi-Annually | Varies | $20 | $1,000 |
| Notes on New Millennium Awards: Any style / genre - word limit varies, but has been up to 7,500 words in the past - winners in each category receive $1000 and will be published in anthology and online - entry fee includes a copy of the anthology - also run essay, flash fiction, non-fiction and poetry prizes | ||||||
| NYC Midnight Writing Challenges | USA | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on NYC Midnight Challenges: Style & genres vary - MYC Midnight run short story, flash fiction, screenwriting and screenplay competitions - entry fees are around $50 - all entrants receive feedback from the judges | ||||||
| Park Publications (Scribble) | UK | Quarterly | Quarterly | 3,000 | £3, FREE to subscribers | £75 |
| Notes on Park Publications Competitions: Any style / genre - short listed stories published in Scribble magazine and judged by readers - (I've been published in Scribble, so you can read a lot more about it here) - they also sometimes run an annual comp with £100 prize - Scribble is no longer available for overseas subscriptions but submissions and competition entries from overseas are still welcome | ||||||
| Pen Factor Writing Competition | Australia | Varies | Varies | Varies | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Pen Factor Competitions: Any style / genre - winners receive online exposure by being published on The Pen Factor website - each submission must review 3 other submissions, so all authors receive structured feedback on their work - closed in 2016, but reopened in 2019 with new format | ||||||
| Reedsy's Short Story Contest | UK | Weekly | Weekly | Varies | FREE | Varies |
| Notes on Reedsy Contest: Any style / genre but there are 5 new prompts each week so check website for current details - winners published on blog - top prize has been up to $250 in the past - Savannah Cordova won this competition and went on to judge it, you can read about her experiences and what qualities she looks for in a short story here | ||||||
| Secret Attic Short Story Competition | UK | Monthly | Monthly | 1,500 | FREE | £20 |
| Notes on Secret Attic Competition: Any style / genre - prize paid as Amazon voucher - winning stories published in the Secret Attic Booklet and winners receive a free copy | ||||||
| Stringybark Short Story Awards | Australia | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Stringybark Awards: Different genre for each competition, so check website for current details - runs up to 4 times a year - word count limit usually between 1,500 and 1,800 - prizes up to $500 plus publication | ||||||
| ShortStoryStack | USA | Monthly | Monthly | 10,000 | FREE | $100 |
| Notes on ShortStoryStack Competition: Any style / genre - winner also receives 50% of subscription revenue - winners published on website | ||||||
| Swoop Books Creative Writing Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | 3,000 | £5 | £100 |
| Notes on Swoop Books Competition: Any style / genre but their contests are often themed or based on a prompt, so check website for current details - winners published in anthology | ||||||
| Vocal Writing Challenges | USA | Weekly | Weekly | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Vocal Challenges: Themed, so check website for current details - prizes vary, but in the past have been from $1,000 to $20,000 - entry also fees vary, sometimes free, sometimes only open to members etc. | ||||||
| Writers Bureau | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Writer's Bureau Competition: Any style / genre - winning stories published on the WB website - WB run a short story competition, a flash fiction competition and a limerick competition, so at least 3 comps run a year - the link will take you to the competition that is currently running - top prize money is decent, always hundreds of pounds | ||||||
| Writer's Digest Writing Competitions | USA | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Writer's Digest Competitions: They run a wide variety of contests throughout the year, some offering big cash prizes (thousands of dollars) - best to check the website and see which competitions are currently running | ||||||
| Writers' Forum | UK | Monthly | Monthly | 3,000 | £6, £3 for subscribers | £300 |
| Notes on Writers' Forum Competition: Any style / genre - top 3 stories published in Writers' Forum magazine (I've won this competition in the past, so you can read more about it here - more recently, Rhiannon Lewis also won the competition and she's kindly written about her experiences here, including details of the exact process she used to win) | ||||||
| Writers of the Future | USA | Quarterly + Annual | Quarterly + Annual | 17,000 | FREE | $5,000 |
| Notes on Writers of the Future Competition: SF & Fantasy - quarterly prizes + annual prize ($5K is the annual top prize) - amateur only, so if you've published more than 3 stories you're not eligible (published means at industry rates, in select locations - see website for full details) | ||||||
| WriteTime Short Story Competition | UK | Quarterly | Quarterly | 1,500 | £3 | £50 |
| Notes on WriteTime Competition: Any style / genre - entrants must be aged 60 or over - winners published on website and in a printed anthology | ||||||
| Writing Magazine Short Story Competition | UK | Monthly | Monthly | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Writing Magazine Competition: Any style / genre - winners are published in Writing Magazine - WM run a variety of competitions, some open and some for subscribers only, so it's best to check the website to see what competitions are currently open | ||||||
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Prestigious &/or Big Prize Short Story Competitions
The second table lists well renowned and prestigious competitions which offer big cash prizes. Any short story competition with a prize of more than £1,000 ($, € or other currency) is listed here. There are a couple of other big prize awards listed in the Regular Short Story Competitions (it seems pointless to list them twice).
| Competition | Country | Closing Date | Winners Announced | Max Words | Entry Fee | Top Prize |
| Accenti Writing Contest | Canada | February | May | 2,000 | C$30 | C$1,000 |
| Notes on Accenti Contest: Any style / genre - open to fiction and non-fiction | ||||||
| Aeon Award (speculative fiction) | Ireland | November | December | 10,000 | €8.50 | €1,000 |
| Notes on Aeon Award Competition: Speculative fiction - so fantasy, sci-fi, horror etc. - winning stories published in Albedo One | ||||||
| Aesthetica Creative Writing Award | UK | August | December | 2,000 | £18 | £2,500 |
| Notes on Aesthetica Competition: Any style / genre - winning stories (top 60) published in the Aesthetica Creative Writing Annual - winner also receives management consultation, books and magazine subscriptions - they also accept poetry | ||||||
| Alpine Fellowship Writing Prize | UK | Varies | Varies | 2,500 | FREE | £10,000 |
| Notes on Alpine Fellowship Prize: Any style / genre but sometimes themed, so check website for this year's details - winner and two runners up invited to attend the current symposium - usually closes around March / April | ||||||
| Bath Flash Fiction Award | UK | Tri-Annually | Tri-Annually | 300 | £9 | £1,000 |
| Notes on the Bath Flash Fiction Award: Any style / genre (except children's) - details have been moved to my lists of flash fiction competitions | ||||||
| Bath Short Story Award | UK | April | July | 2,200 | £9 | £1,200 |
| Notes on the Bath Short Story Award: Any style / genre (except children's) - winning stories published on the BSSA website and in print and digital anthology - generous payments for 2nd and 3rd prize too | ||||||
| Bayou Magazine ' James Knudsen Prize for Fiction' | USA | January | February | 7,500 | $20 | $1,000 |
| Notes on the Bayou Magazine Prize: Any style / genre - winner published in Bayou Magazine and given free subscription - all entries considered for publication in the magazine | ||||||
| BBC Short Story Award | UK | March | September | 8,000 | FREE | £15,000 |
| Notes on BBC Competition: Any style / genre - you have to be a published author to enter this, so you need to win another competition first, or be published in a publication of some renown (self-published does NOT count) - winning and short listed stories recorded and broadcast on BBC Radio 4 | ||||||
| Belfast Book Festival MairtÃn Crawford Award | UK | May | Varies | 2,500 | £6 | £1,000 |
| Notes on MairtÃn Crawford Award: Any style / genre - winners also receive a place on a writing retreat | ||||||
| Breakwater Review Fiction Contest | USA | Varies | Varies | Varies | $10 | $1,000 |
| Notes on Breakwater Review Contest: Any style / genre - all finalists considered for publication in the Breakwater Review | ||||||
| Brick Lane Bookshop Short Story Prize | UK | May | October | 5,000 | £10 | £1,000 |
| Notes on Brick Lane Prize: Any style / genre - additional cash prizes for 2nd and 3rd - 12 longlisted stories published in anthology | ||||||
| Bridport Prize | UK | May | November | 5,000 | £12 | £5,000 |
| Notes on Bridport Prize Competition: Any style / genre - winning stories published in anthology - highly prestigious, so lots of competition | ||||||
| Bristol Prize | UK | Varies | Varies | 4,000 | £9 | £1,000 |
| Notes on Bristol Prize Competition: Any style / genre - top 20 stories published in Anthology - they receive thousands of entries, so high competition - submissions deadline is usually around April / May | ||||||
| Cheshire Prize for Literature | UK | January | June | 1,500 | FREE | £2,000 |
| Notes on High Sheriff Prize: Any style / genre - entrants must have lived, worked or studied in Cheshire, Wirral, Warrington or Halton (UK) - winners published in anthology by the University of Chester Press - competition is usually run in 4 year cycle: short stories, poetry, children's literature and then scriptwriting - on occasion they run all 4 categories at once and when this happens the £2,000 prize is divided between the different categories | ||||||
| Christopher Fielden's 'To Hull And Back' Humorous Short Story Competition | UK | June | October | 2,500 | £13/£15 | £1,200 and see notes |
| Notes on the To Hull And Back Competition: Any style / genre, but stories must contain some element of humour - winners published in the To Hull And Back anthology and, in addition to money, the winner will receive the GREATEST writing prize in the known universe (click the link to learn more) - 2nd prize £600, 3rd prize £300 and there are 17 other runner-up cash prizes - there are an additional 20 prizes for longlisted writers, so that's 40 in total - £13 is 'early bird' entry fee for entries received by the end of March - the entry fee goes up to £15 on 1st April - discounts available if you enter more than 1 story - runs biennially - the 8th To Hull And Back competition opens to submissions on 1st July 2022 To Hull And Back was voted as one of the best writing competitions by Reedsy in 2021 | ||||||
| Colorado State University Nelligan Prize | USA | March | Varies | 12,500 | $15 | $2,500 |
| Notes on Nelligan Prize: Any style / genre - winner published in the Colorado Review - all entries considered for publication in the Colorado Review - to find details of the current competition, put 'Nelligan Prize' into the search function on their website | ||||||
| Commonwealth Short Story Prize | UK | November | Varies | 5,000 | FREE | £2,500 / £5,000 - see notes |
| Notes on Commonwealth Short Story Prize: Any style / genre - regional winners receive £2,500 prize, overall winner receives £5,000 prize - winning stories are published in an anthology - usually open for submissions between September and November | ||||||
| Costa Short Story Award | UK | Varies | Varies | 4,000 | FREE | £3,500 |
| Notes on Costa Short Story Award: Any style / genre - runners-up also receive high cash prizes - open to residents of UK and Ireland only - to find competition details, look in the 'Behind the Beans' section of their website | ||||||
| Desperate Literature Short Fiction Prize | Spain | Varies | Varies | 2,000 | €20 | €1,500 |
| Notes on the Desperate Literature Prize: Any style / genre - winners published in an anthology and considered for publication elsewhere - winner gets a stay in the Civitella Ranieri residency - also offers generous runner-up prizes | ||||||
| Elegant Literature Short Fiction Contest | Canada | Monthly | Monthly | 2,000 | $10 | $20,000 |
| Notes on Elegant Literature Contest: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current details - $10 fee allows as many entries as you like within a month - top stories are bought at 10 cents/word and published in the magazine | ||||||
| Fish Publishing Short Story Competition | Ireland | Varies | Varies | 5,000 | €20 | €3,000 |
| Notes on Fish Publishing Competition: Any style / genre - winning stories published in the Fish Anthology - submission deadline is usually around November / December | ||||||
| F(r)iction Lit Writing Contests | USA | Biannually | Biannually | 7,500 | $15 | $1,000 |
| Notes on F(r)iction Lit Competitions: Any style / genre - they also have flash fiction and poetry categories - winners published in F(r)iction | ||||||
| Gemini Magazine Short Story Contest | USA | Varies | Varies | no max | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Gemini Magazine Contest: Any style / genre - winners published on Gemini Magazine website - deadline for submissions is usually around March / April - top prize is usually between $1,000 and $5,000 | ||||||
| Historical Novel Society Short Story Award | UK | November | December | 5,000 | £10 | £10,000 |
| Notes on Historical Novel Society Awards: Any style / genre but with a historical theme, so check website for current details - generous prizes for runners-up - to find the awards, put 'awards' into their website's search function | ||||||
| Manchester Writing Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | 2,500 | Varies | £10,000 |
| Notes on Manchester Writing Competition: Any style / genre - winning stories may be published in journals or on the website - entry fee is usually around the £20 mark | ||||||
| Masters Review Short Story Award for New Writers | USA | Varies | Varies | Varies | $20 | $3,000 |
| Notes on Master Review Award: Any style / genre - winners published on Masters Review website - top 3 winning stories reviewed by major NYC literary agencies - they also run other competitions, like flash fiction | ||||||
| Mogford Prize for Food & Drink Writing | UK | January | April | 2,500 | £15 | £10,000 |
| Notes on Jeremy Mogford Competition: Theme is food and drink - used to run as part of the Sunday Times Oxford Literary Festival but is now run independently - in addition to cash, winner receives an engraved award and a professional audio recording of their story with The Story Player - winners published on website and in a linen-bound mini book - shortlisted entrants invited to party hosted by Jeremy Mogford and each will receive a night's accommodation and all travel expenses including, where necessary, economy flights | ||||||
| Moth Magazine Nature Writing Prize | Ireland | September | October | 4,000 | €15 | €1,000 |
| Notes on Moth Magazine Nature Prize: Any style / genre but themed around nature: check website for full details - in addition to cash, winner receives a week's stay at The Moth Retreat - winning story published in The Moth - also accept non-fiction and poetry | ||||||
| Moth Magazine Short Story Competition | Ireland | June | Autumn | 5,000 | €15 | €3,000 |
| Notes on Moth Magazine Competition: Any style / genre - winning story published in the summer issue of Moth Magazine | ||||||
| New Welsh Review Writing Awards | Wales | Varies | Varies | 30,000 | £12 | £1,000 |
| Notes on New Welsh Review Competition: Any style / genre, but themed so check website for current details (changes each year) - winner published by New Welsh Review - runners up may also be published - only open to residents of the UK and Ireland | ||||||
| Pirate's Alley Faulkner Society - William Wisdom Creative Writing Competition | USA | Varies | Varies | 10,000 | $35 | $1,500 |
| Notes on Pirate's Alley Faulkner Society Competition: Any style / genre - winners might be published | ||||||
| Prism International Short Fiction Contest | Canada | Varies | Varies | Varies | C$45 | C$1,500 |
| Notes on Prism International Contest: Any style / genre - all contest entrants receive a 1 year subscription to Prism International - winners published in the Prism International magazine - Prism also run a creative non-fiction contest, a poetry contest and a variety of other competitions, all with generous top prizes - word limit is usually around 4,000 to 6,000 | ||||||
| Room Magazine Fiction Contest | Canada | Varies | Varies | 3,500 | $49 | $1,000 |
| Notes on Room Magazine Contest: Any style / genre - entries are cheaper for Canadian residents ($35) and all entries include a year's subscription to Room Magazine - winners published in Room Magazine | ||||||
| Royal Society of Literature V.S. Pritchett Memorial Prize | UK | Varies | Varies | 4,000 | £7.50 | £1,000 |
| Notes on V.S. Pritchett Memorial Prize: Any style / genre - open to citizens or residents of the UK, the Republic of Ireland and Commonwealth countries - winners published on RSL website - deadline for submissions is usually around June / July - (author Nick Sweeney has written about his experiences of coming runner-up in this competition - read Nick's advice and an extract of his winning story here) | ||||||
| Ruminate Magazine William Van Dyke Short Story Prize | USA | Varies | Varies | 5,500 | $20 | $1,500 |
| Notes on Ruminate Short Story Contest: Any style / genre - winner and runner up published in Ruminate Magazine - they recommend that you read previous winners to see the preferred style - to find competition details, go to the 'submit' section of the site | ||||||
| Scottish Arts Trust Short Story Competition | UK | February | October | 2,000 | £10 | £1,000 |
| Notes on Scottish Arts Trust Competition: Any style / genre - 2 x generous runner up prizes - publication offered to top 20 stories in biennial anthology - managed by the Scottish Arts Trust | ||||||
| Seán Ó Faoláin Short Story Competition | Ireland | July | September | 3,000 | €18 | € 2,000 |
| Notes on the Seán Ó Faoláin Prize: Any style / genre - winners and runners up published in Southword Literary Journal - winner invited to read their story at the Cork International Short Story Festival in Ireland | ||||||
| ServiceScape Short Story Award | USA | November | December | 5,000 | FREE | $1,000 |
| Notes on ServiceScape Award: Any style / genre - winners published on blog | ||||||
| Sisters in Crime Scarlet Stiletto Awards | Australia | August | November | 5,000 | A$25 | A$1,500 |
| Notes on Scarlet Stiletto Award: Crime - only open to female writers that live in Australia - winning stories may be published - multiple cash prizes | ||||||
| Sixfold Short Story Competition | USA | Varies | Varies | Varies | $5 | $1,000 |
| Notes on Sixfold Competition: Any style or genre - collaborative writing community, writers vote for the stories they want to see published in the journal, so there is no 'editor' - winners published in the journal which is made available in many formats, including print and eBook | ||||||
| Spread The Word Awards | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on the London Short Story Prize: They run a variety of awards - look in the 'our projects' section of their website to find competition details - prizes have been £1,000 in the past (2015 highly commended author in the London Short Story Prize (which was run by Spread The Word), James Woolf, has written about his experiences with this competition on my site - read James's post and an extract of his story here) | ||||||
| Sunday Times EFG Short Story Award | UK | Varies | Varies | 6,000 | FREE | £30,000 |
| Notes on Sunday Times Competition: Any style / genre - offers the largest prize for a single short story that I'm aware of - you can enter from anywhere, but have to have a history of prior publication in creative writing in the UK or Ireland | ||||||
| TCK Publishing Short Story Awards Contest | USA | August | September | 3,000 | $12 | $1,000 |
| Notes on the TCK Publishing Awards: Any style / genre but multiple categories, so check website for full details - winners published on website - no permanent award page, so type 'award' or 'contest' followed by the current year into the search function at the top of the homepage and all the current award details will come up - also accept creative non-fiction and memoirs | ||||||
| Tennessee Williams/New Orleans Literary Festival Fiction Contest | USA | Varies | Varies | Varies | $25 | $1,500 |
| Notes on Tennessee Williams Contest: Any style / genre - in addition to cash prize, winner receives airfare to the Festival and French Quarter accommodation, a VIP festival pass and publication in Louisiana Literature - only open to writers who have not published a fictional book, this includes self-published books | ||||||
| Thanet Writers Short Story Competition | UK | May | November | 5,000 | FREE | £1,000 |
| Notes on Thanet Writers Competition: Any style / genre but entrants must have some sort of link / connection with Thanet - shortlisted entries published in print anthology - longlisted entries receive a payment of £10 and published online - did not run in 2021, but have left listing live for now in case it runs in 2022 | ||||||
| The Bedford Competition | UK | October | Varies | 3,000 | £7.50 | £1,000 |
| Notes on The Bedford Competition: Any style / genre - winning and shortlisted entries published in print and eBook - all profits, after prize money has been awarded, go to charities/projects that help children and adults improve their literary skills | ||||||
| The New Guard Machigonne Fiction Contest | USA | Varies | Varies | 5,000 | $22 | $1,500 |
| Notes on The New Guard Contest: Any style / genre - winners published in The New Guard | ||||||
| The Short Story 'Cambridge Short Story Prize' | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | £1,000 |
| Notes on The Short Story Competition: Any style / genre - winners and shortlisted writers published in an anthology | ||||||
| TNQ Peter Hinchcliffe Fiction Award | Canada | May | September | no max | $40 | $1,000 |
| Notes on The New Quarterly Award: Any style / genre - entry includes a subscription to TNQ magazine - winner published in The New Quarterly - short-listed winners are considered for publication in TNQ (paid at $250) | ||||||
| Tom-Gallon Trust Award | UK | October | ? | 5,000 | FREE | £1,000 |
| Notes on Tom-Gallon Competition: Any genre - you can enter published or unpublished work - winners published on the website | ||||||
| Tom Howard / John H Reid Short Story Contest | USA | April | October | 6,000 | $20 | $3,000 |
| Notes on Howard / Reid Competition: Any style / genre - they accept short stories, essays and other works of prose - 10 winning stories published on the website - they give 2 x $3,000 prizes: one for fiction and one for non-fiction | ||||||
| White Review Short Story Prize | UK | Varies | Varies | 7,000 | £15 | £2,500 |
| Notes on White Review Competition: Any style / genre - you must be resident in the UK or Ireland to enter - winners published in The White Review | ||||||
| Writers' Union of Canada Short Prose Competition | Canada | February | ? | 2,500 | C$29 | C$2,500 |
| Notes on White Review Competition: Any style / genre - you must be resident in Canada to enter | ||||||
| Zoetrope All Story Short Fiction Contest | USA | Varies | Varies | 5,000 | $20 | $1,000 |
| Notes on Zoetrope All Story Competition: Any style / genre - winners considered for representation by a number of well renowned writing agents | ||||||
back to top
Annual Short Story Competitions
The third table lists yearly competitions of different genres offering a wide variety of prizes, some cash, some not. The majority offer publication to the winning writers and runners up.
| Competition | Country | Closing Date | Winners Announced | Max Words | Entry Fee | Top Prize |
| Alice Munro Festival Short Story Competition | Canada | Varies | Varies | Varies | $25 | Varies |
| Notes on Alice Munro Competition: Any style / genre - winning stories maybe published in print and on website - you must be Canadian to enter - top prize has been up to $1,500 in the past | ||||||
| Anthology Magazine Short Story Competition | Ireland | August | October | 1,500 | €15 | €500 |
| Notes on Anthology Magazine Competition: Any style / genre, but themed, so check website for current details - winner published in Anthology Magazine - reduced early-bird fee available | ||||||
| Australasian Association of Writing Programs Emerging Writers' Prize | Australia | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | See notes |
| Notes on AAWP Prize: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current details - entrants must reside in Australasia - winner receives entry to Ubud Writers and Readers Festival, accommodation + A$500 towards flights, membership to Australasian Association of Writing Programs & invited to attend and read at the AAWP conference | ||||||
| Blue Mesa Review Writing Contest | USA | August | October | 6,000 | $12 | $500 |
| Notes on Blue Mesa Review Contest: Any style / genre - first and second place stories published in the Blue Mesa Review - run by the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque | ||||||
| Booksie Short Story Contest | USA | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Booksie Contest: Any style / genre but sometimes themed so check website for full details - winners published on Booksie website - top prize has been up to $1,500 in the past | ||||||
| Boston Review Short Story Contest | USA | Varies | Varies | 5,000 | $20 | Varies |
| Notes on Boston Review Contest: Any style / genre - winners published in Boston Review - top prize has been up to $1,500 in the past | ||||||
| Bridgend Writers' Circle Open Short Story Competition | UK | March | June | 1,800 | £5 | £100 |
| Notes on Bridgend Writers' Circle Competition: Any style / genre - winners published on the BWC website | ||||||
| British Czech and Slovak Association Writing Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | 2,000 | FREE | £400 |
| Notes on BCSA Writing Competition: Fact or fiction - must be writing concerning the links between Britain and the Czech/Slovak Republics - winning and other selected entries will be published in the British Czech and Slovak Review - usually closes around June / July | ||||||
| British Fantasy Society Short Story Comp | UK | June | Varies | 5,000 | £5 | £100 |
| Notes on British Fantasy Society Competition: Fantasy, science fiction, horror, supernatural, fabulation, magic realism, slipstream, etc. - top 3 stories published in BFS Horizons magazine - winners announced at FantasyCon, which is usually held in September / October | ||||||
| Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest | USA | June | ? | no max | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Bulwer-Lytton Competition: Any style / genre - entries must consist of one sentence only, with a suggested max of 50-60 words, but there is no official max - loads of categories with lots of winners - winners paid 'a pittance' | ||||||
| Chalk Circle Writers Short Story Competition | UK | August | November | 2,000 | £6 | £200 |
| Notes on Chalk Circle Writers Competition: Any style / genre - winning stories maybe published on website and in anthology | ||||||
| Charroux Short Fiction Prize | France | August | October | 1,500 | £8 | £200 |
| Notes on Charroux Poetry Prize: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current details - winners published on website | ||||||
| ChipLitFest Short Story Competition | UK | February | March | 5,000 | See notes | £500 |
| Notes on ChipLitFest Competition: Any style / genre - entry fee is £5 for stories up to 2,500 words or £8 up to 5,000 words - top 10 authors will have the opportunity of being featured on the Penny Shorts website | ||||||
| Christopher Fielden's 'To Hull And Back' Short Story Competition | UK | June | October | 2,500 | £13 / £15 | £1,200 and see notes |
| Notes on the To Hull And Back Competition: New BIG 1st prize means the full details for this competition can be seen above in the Prestigious &/or Big Prize Short Story Competitions - runs biennially | ||||||
| Cinnamon Press Writing Competitions | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | See notes |
| Notes on Cinnamon Press Competition: Any style / genre - winners and runners up published in winners' anthology - they run a variety of competitions, best to check the website to see what's currently open - top prize used to be £500, but sometimes its bursaries, mentoring or similar | ||||||
| Comma Press Dinesh Allirajah Prize for Short Fiction | UK | October | May | 6,000 | FREE | £500 |
| Notes on Comma Press Prize: Any style / genre but themed so check website for details - winners published by Comma in an eBook | ||||||
| Conium Review Short Story Competition | USA | Varies | Varies | 7,500 | $15 | $500 |
| Notes on Conium Review Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in the Conium Review - deadline is usually between May and July | ||||||
| Creative Culture South West Short Fiction Competition | UK | January | ? | 4,000 | £5 | £100 |
| Notes on Conium Review Competition: Any style / genre but writers must have a connection to the South West UK (lived there, studied in the region, spent childhood holidays there etc.) - winners published in anthology | ||||||
| Creative Future Writers' Award | UK | Varies | Varies | 2,000 | FREE | Varies |
| Notes on Creative Future Competition: Any style / genre except children's or erotica and themed, so check website for full details - winners published in anthology and receive a development package in addition to cash (cash prize has been up to £100 in the past) - deadline for submissions is usually around May / June - look in the 'what we do' section of their website to find competition details | ||||||
| Creative Writing Matters Competitions | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Creative Writing Matters Competition: Any style / genre - cash prizes are sometimes set amounts, sometimes a % of total entry fees - CWM run a variety of competitions, including flash fiction, short story and novel contests, see website for current details | ||||||
| Crowvus Christmas Ghost Story Competition | Scotland | Varies | Varies | 4,000 | £3 | Varies |
| Notes on Crowvus Competition: Ghost stories - winners published in anthology that's released in December ready for Christmas - also run children's contest - deadline for subs is usually around September / October time | ||||||
| CWA Margery Allingham Short Story Competition | UK | February | May | 3,500 | £12 | £500 |
| Notes on CWA Competition: Mystery or crime - winner also receives 2 free tickets to CrimeFest - winning story published on CWA website - look in 'The Debuts' section of website to find competition details | ||||||
| Cyberworld Publishing 'The Good Life in Galicia' Competition | Galicia, Spain | August | Varies | 4,500 | FREE | €15 |
| Notes on Cyberworld Publishing Competition: Any style / genre but must be about Galicia in a significant way - winners published in anthology | ||||||
| Doris Gooderson Short Story Competition | UK | July | October | 1,200 | £5 | £200 |
| Notes on Doris Gooderson Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in Wrekin Writers anthology and on Wrekin Writers website | ||||||
| Early Works Press Short Story Competition | UK | October | January | 8,000 | £5 or £10 see notes | £200 |
| Notes on Early Works Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in anthology containing 10 to 20 stories, depending on length - £5 entry fee for stories up to 4,000 words in length, £10 over 4,000 and up to 8,000 words in length - they also run other writing competitions, so it's worth checking the site to see what's currently running | ||||||
| Enchanted Forest Publishing Horror Short Story Writing Competition | UK | August | September | 2,000 | £5 | See notes |
| Notes on Enchanted Forest Publishing Competition: Horror - winners published in anthology - prize is an eBook copy of the anthology | ||||||
| Erewash Writers' Group Short Story Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Erewash Competition: Any style / genre - winning stories published on the Erewash Writers' Group website - EWG also run a variety of contests, so check the website for all the current details | ||||||
| Evesham Festival of Words Short Story Competition | UK | March | June | 2,500 | £5 | £200 |
| Notes on Evesham Festival Competition: Any style / genre but themed, so check the website for current details - winners published on website | ||||||
| Exeter Writers Short Story Competition | UK | February | June | 3,000 | £7 | £700 |
| Notes on Exeter Writers Competition: Any style / genre - the top 3 stories will be published on the Exeter Writers website | ||||||
| Eyelands International Short Story Contest | Greece | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | See notes |
| Notes on Eyelands Competition: Any style / genre, but check website for current theme - first prize is a holiday in Crete - winners are published in anthology | ||||||
| Fairfield Scribes Anthology Feature Story Contest | USA | May | June | 10,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Fairfield Scribes Contest: Any style / genre but themed so check website for current details - winner is published in anthology and receives an electronic and hard copy of the book - did not run in 2020, but have left listing live in case that was just because of the COVID-19 pandemic | ||||||
| Flash 500 International Short Story Competition | Spain | February | April | 3,000 | £7 | £500 |
| Notes on Firedrake Books Competition: Any style / genre - run from Spain by Lorraine Mace, who is the head judge for Writers' Forum - winners published on website | ||||||
| Fosseway Writers Short Story Competition | UK | October | November | 2,500 | £5 | £50 |
| Notes on Fosseway Writers Competition: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current details - winners published on website | ||||||
| Fowey Festival of Art and Literature Short Story Competition | UK | March | April | 1,500 | £10 | £100 |
| Notes on Fowey Festival Competition: Any style / genre but themed around Daphne DuMaurier (see website for full details) - entries published on the festival website - they also run a comp for children | ||||||
| Frome Festival Competition | UK | May | July | 2,200 | £8 | £400 |
| Notes on Frome Festival Competition: Any style / genre - some stories read on Frome FM (the local radio station) - there are also cash prizes for 2nd and 3rd and for the best local entries | ||||||
| Grindstone Short Story Prize | UK | Varies | Varies | 3,000 | £10 | £500 |
| Notes on Grindstone Prize: Any style / genre - winners and shortlisted entrants published in Grindstone's anthology | ||||||
| Gulf Stream Summer Contest | USA | August | September | 5,000 | $7 | $100 |
| Notes on Gulf Stream Contest: Any style / genre - winners published in Gulf Stream Lit Mag - also accept non-fiction and poetry | ||||||
| Hammond House Publishing International Literary Awards | UK | September | December | 5,000 | £10 | £500 |
| Notes on Hammond House Awards: Any style / genre but themed, so check the website for current theme - winners published worldwide by Hammond House | ||||||
| Hastings Literary Festival Short Story Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Hastings Literary Festival Competition: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current details - top prize has been around £100 in the past | ||||||
| H.E. Bates Short Story Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | 2,000 | £6 | £500 |
| Notes on H E Bates Competition: Competition is run by Northampton Writers Group - comp is themed, so check website for current details | ||||||
| H.G. Wells Short Story Competition | UK | July | September | 5,000 | £10 | See notes |
| Notes on H G Wells Competition: Themed, so check website for current theme - free entry for junior category, £5 for students, £10 for adults - prizes: £1,000 for entrants aged 21 and under; £500 for entrants aged 22 and over - all winners and short listed entrants published in anthology | ||||||
| Highlands & Islands Short Story Association | Scotland | July | October | 2,000 | £5 | Varies |
| Notes on HISSAC Competition: Any style / genre - winning stories published on website - top prize usually around the £200 / £250 mark | ||||||
| Hysteria Writing Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Hysteria Competition: Any style / genre - women entrants only - winners published in anthology | ||||||
| James White Award | Ireland | Varies | Varies | 6,000 | FREE | £200 |
| Notes on the James White Award: Science Fiction - the winner will be published in Interzone, the UK's leading sci-fi magazine | ||||||
| Jane Austen Literacy Foundation Writing Competition | UK / Australia | April | May | 2,000 | Free | See notes |
| Notes on Jane Austen Literacy Foundation Competition: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current information - prize: winning stories turned into an audiobook and globally distributed via Audible - profits from audiobook sales support literacy programmes in India | ||||||
| Knoxville Writers' Guild Writing Contests | TN, USA | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | $100 |
| Notes on KWG Competition: Themes, styles and genres vary as there are multiple categories, so best to visit the site for current details - each category has a 1st prize of $100 - categories for all age groups, so there are opportunities here for younger writers too | ||||||
| La Piccioletta Barca Competition | UK | September | October | 5,000 | $10 | $400 |
| Notes on La Piccioletta Barca: Any style or subject but themed, so check website for current details - also open to poetry - finalists published in competition issue of the La Piccioletta Barca journal | ||||||
| Launceston, Tasmania Literary Award | Tasmania | Varies | Varies | 1,500 | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Launceston Tasmania Competition: Any style / genre - run by The Society of Women Writers, Tasmania but open to male and female entrants residing anywhere in the world - winners published in an anthology - prize has been up to $2,500 in the past, but more recently has been a lot less | ||||||
| Leicester Writes Short Story Prize | UK | Varies | Varies | 3,000 | £7 | Varies |
| Notes on Leicester Writes Prize: Any style / genre - up to 20 winning stories published in anthology - top prize has been up to £125 in the past | ||||||
| Light Bringer Project's Roswell Award | USA | Varies | Varies | Varies | FREE | Varies |
| Notes on Light Bringer Project Award: Science fiction - see website for current details - to find competition details, look in the 'Programs' section of the website | ||||||
| Limnisa Short Story Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Limnisa Competition: Any style / genre - winner receives a week long full board writing holiday in Greece or online personal tutoring sessions - usually closes around March / April | ||||||
| Literary Taxidermy Short Story Competition | USA | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Literary Taxidermy Competition: Any style / genre - the opening and closing lines are chosen from a classic work of literature, the entrant provides the rest, so check website for current details - winners published in anthology - top prize has been up to $1,500 in the past | ||||||
| Living Springs Publishers Baby Boomers Plus | USA | June | Varies | 4,000 | $25 | $500 |
| Notes on Living Springs Publishers BBP Competition: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for details - open to fiction and non-fiction - minimum of fifteen finalists published in book | ||||||
| London Magazine Short Story Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | £10 | £500 |
| Notes on The London Magazine Competition: Any style / genre but no flash fiction - winners and runners up published in the magazine and on the website - this is the UK's oldest cultural journal, first published in 1732 - it is suggested that you read previous copies before submitting | ||||||
| Maria Edgeworth Literary Festival Competition | Ireland | March | April | 2,000 | €5 | €250 |
| Notes on Maria Edgeworth Festival Competition: Any style / genre - also accept poetry - you can find competition details in the 'Literary Festival' section of their website | ||||||
| MJ Meads Short Story Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | 2,500 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on MJ Meads Competition: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current details - winners published on website - prizes vary but are not cash | ||||||
| Mslexia Women's Short Story Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Mslexia Competition: Any style / genre - doesn't always run every year, so check website for current competition details as they run all sorts of different contests | ||||||
| Norwich Writers' Circle Olga Sinclair Prize | UK | July | October | 2,000 | £8 | £400 |
| Notes on Olga Sinclair Prize: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current details - cash prizes for 2nd and 3rd too - winners published in anthology | ||||||
| Nottingham Writers' Studio George Floyd Short Story Competition | UK | August | October | 5,000 | FREE | £250 |
| Notes on Nottingham Writers' Studio Competition: Any style / genre but themed so check website for current details - winner also receives membership to NWS - winners published in anthology in print and eBook formats | ||||||
| Ouen Press Short Story Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | 10,000 | FREE | £300 |
| Notes on Ouen Press Competition: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current theme - 2 x runner up prizes of £100 - winners published in anthology - runs biennially, every other year | ||||||
| Ovacome Writing Competition | UK | September | December | 2,000 | £5 | £250 |
| Notes on Ovacome Competition: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current information - winners published on website - they often have famous judges - to find competition page, look at 'Get Involved' in the main menu | ||||||
| Parracombe Prize | UK | January | March | 2,020 | £5 | £100 |
| Notes on Parracombe Prize: Any style / genre - shortlisted stories published in an anthology, available in paperback and eBook | ||||||
| Poetry on the Lake Short Story Competition | Italy | December | February | 4,500 | £8 / €10 | €250 |
| Notes on Poetry on the Lake Competition: Any style / genre but themed so check website for full details - they also run a poetry competition | ||||||
| R C Sherriff Trust's Elmbridge Literary Competition | UK | February | February | 1,500 | £5 | £250 |
| Notes on R C Sherriff Trust Competition: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current details - winners published in a Chapbook published by Sampson Low - look in the 'Current Projects' section of the website to find competition details | ||||||
| Rejected Manuscripts Short Fiction Competition | Taiwan | December | January | 1,500 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Rejected Manuscripts Competition: Any style / genre but stories must have been previously rejected for publication - winners decided by website visitors - top voted manuscripts published in anthology, authors receive a share of profits | ||||||
| Remastered Words | UK | May | August | 5,000 | FREE | £75 |
| Notes on Remastered Words Competition: Any style but different genres every year, so check website for current genre - prize money may increase if lots of writers enter - winner's story will be produced into an audio short and included in an audio anthology | ||||||
| Retreat West Short Story Prize | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | £10 | £400 |
| Notes on Retreat West Story Prize: Any style / genre except children's - all winning and shortlisted stories published in anthology - they also run a competition for very short fiction, see the flash fiction contests lists for details - usually closes around September / October | ||||||
| San Francisco Writers' Conference Writing Contest | USA | Varies | Varies | 1,500 | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on SF Competition: Any style / genre - top prize has been up to $250 in the past - they also accept non-fiction and poetry - winners published in anthology and / or on SFWC website | ||||||
| SaveAs Writers Writing Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on SaveAs Writers Competition: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current details - winners published in anthology | ||||||
| Segora Short Story Competition | France | June | August | 3,000 | £8 | £300 |
| Notes on Segora Competition: Any style / genre - winners published on the Poetry Prose & Plays website and they publish an anthology every couple of years - they also run a variety of other writing competitions, so check the website for details | ||||||
| Shooter Literary Magazine Short Story Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Shooter Lit Mag Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in Shooter Literary Magazine and online - top prize usually around £500 - they sometimes run poetry competitions too | ||||||
| Short Fiction Literary Journal Short Story Competition | UK | March | June | 5,000 | £9 | £500 |
| Notes on Short Fiction Competition: Any style / genre - all shortlisted entries will be considered for publication in the journal - subsidised entries available, see website for details | ||||||
| SMK Contests | USA | November | Varies | Varies | $5 | $100 |
| Notes on SMK Contests: Any style / genre - they have multiple categories for flash fiction, poetry, short story, non-fiction, novel and more, so check website for full details | ||||||
| Society of Spanish Researchers UK 'Science me a Story' Competition | UK | April | June | 4 pages | FREE | £150 |
| Notes on SRUK Competition: Any style / genre but story must be related to science - they accept fiction and non-fiction submissions - stories can be written in English or Spanish - winning stories published in the online magazine PRINCIPIA and in the literature hub at the University of Liverpool | ||||||
| South African Writers College Short Story Competition | South Africa | April | June | 2,000 | FREE | R 10,000 (£570) |
| Notes on SA Writers Competition: Any style / genre - open to South African writers only - winners published on website - look in the 'Writing Resources' section of the website to find current competition details | ||||||
| Southport Writers' Circle International Short Story Competition | UK | October | December | 2,000 | £3 | £150 |
| Notes on Southport Writers' Circle Competition: Any style / genre - winners published on the website | ||||||
| Staunch Short Story Prize | UK | September | October | 3,500 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Staunch Short Story Prize: A prize for thrillers in which no woman is beaten, stalked, sexually exploited, raped or murdered - winners receive publicity and might be published in anthology | ||||||
| Storgy Short Story Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Storgy Competition: Any style / genre - winners published on the website and in the Storgy Competition Anthology - prizes vary but have been up to £1,000 in the past - contest hasn't run for a while, but they are still open for general submissions so have left listing live | ||||||
| Tamworth Literary Festival's Annual Writing Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | 1,500 | £4 | £100 |
| Notes on Tamworth Lit Fest Competition: Any style or genre - winners published in anthology | ||||||
| The Perito Prize | UK | October | ? | 2,000 | FREE | £500 |
| Notes on The Perito Prize: Any style or genre but themed, so check website for current details - winners published in anthology that supports charity | ||||||
| The Phare WriteWords Short Story Competition | UK | January | February | 3,000 | £8 | £100 |
| Notes on The Phare WriteWords Competition: Any style or genre - also has poetry and flash fiction categories - winners published in anthology | ||||||
| The Short Story Competition | UK | September | December | 5,000 | £8 | £500 |
| Notes on The Short Story Competition: Any style / genre except sci-fi, fantasy or stories for children - winner published on the website | ||||||
| TU Dublin Short Story Competition | Ireland | August | October | 2,000 | FREE | €500 |
| Notes on TU Dublin Competition: Any style or genre - winners published in an anthology - run by the Library, TU Dublin Tallaght Campus, in conjunction with South Dublin County Council and the Red Line Book Festival - the link takes you to the festival website and you need to look in the news section of the homepage to find details of the competition | ||||||
| Twist & Twain Short Story Contest | India | August | Varies | 4,000 | Rs 499 / $9 | Rs 25,000 (approx £280 / $350) |
| Notes on Twist & Twain Contest: Any style / genre - entry for Indian residents is Rs 499, for international entries it is $9 - judged by international authors from US, India and more - winners published in Twist & Twain - generous prizes for runners up | ||||||
| Wasifiri New Writing Prize | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Wasifiri Competition: Any style / genre - winners published on website and possibly in anthology - top prize has been up to £1,000 in the past | ||||||
| Wells Literary Festival Short Story Competition | UK | June | October | 2,000 | £6 | £750 |
| Notes on Wells Literary Festival Competition: Any style / genre - winning stories published on website - now an international competition - generous prizes for 2nd and 3rd place | ||||||
| Wenlock Olympian Society with Wenlock Writers-on-the-Edge Short Story Competition | UK | November | January | 2,500 | £5 | £150 |
| Notes on Wenlock Competition: Any style / genre except poetry, young adult and children's stories - winning story will be read on local radio - to find current competition details, look in the 'Creative' section of their website | ||||||
| Willowdown Books 'RH Cunningham Memorial' Short Story Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Willowdown Books Competition: Any style / genre but themed, so check site for current theme - winners and runners up published in anthology - UK comp but prize is paid in dollars | ||||||
| Words Alike 'Écrire' Competition | Australia | April | Varies | 10,000 | FREE | $30 |
| Notes on Words Alike Competition: Any style / genre but check website for current theme - winning stories published as PDF ebook | ||||||
| Words for the Wounded | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on W4W Competition: Any style / genre - their writing competitions vary every year, so check the website for current details - currently closed but hoping to reopen in 2021 | ||||||
| Write by the Sea Literary Festival Writing Competition (Fiction) | Ireland | June | September | 3,000 | €10 | €250 |
| Notes on Write by the Sea Literary Festival Competition: Any style or genre but themed, so check website for current details - they also have categories for poetry and memoirs and the overall winner from all three categories receives an extra €250 - winners published on website | ||||||
| Writers' & Artists' Yearbook Short Story Competition | UK | February | March | 2,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Writers' & Artists' Yearbook Competition: Any style / genre - themed, so check the website for current theme - run by Bloomsbury Publishing Group - winners published on the website, short listed entries might also be published - winner awarded with a place on an Arvon Foundation residential writing course worth £1,000 | ||||||
| Writers Fest Writing Contest | Canada | Varies | Varies | 1,500 | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Vancouver Writers Fest Competition: Any style / genre - sometimes for adults, sometimes for younger writers - prizes up $300 - check website for current details | ||||||
| Yeovil Literary Prize | UK | April | September | 2,000 | £8 | £600 |
| Notes on Yeovil Literary Prize Competition: Any style / genre - winners might be published in anthology | ||||||
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Writing Competitions for Young Writers & Children
The fourth table on this page used to list writing contests for young writers and children. This list has now been moved to its own dedicated page to improve usability. You can see the new young writer competitions page here.
There are sometimes other opportunities for young writers listed in the one-off competitions lists, or on the Flash Fiction competitions page. You can also find details of scholarships on my non-fiction contest page.
| Competition | Country | Closing Date | Winners Announced | Max Words | Entry Fee | Top Prize |
| Amazing Young Writers Challenge | UK | Always Open | NA | 100 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Amazing Young Writers Challenge: To learn more about this challenge, and to find details of a multitude of other publishing opportunities for young authors, please visit the competition page for young writers | ||||||
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One-Off Short Story Competitions
The fifth table lists one-off short story competitions, which are usually held to commemorate or celebrate a landmark event. As the list grows, I will add current competitions alphabetically at the top.
Contests that have already taken place will be moved to the History of Closed Short Story Competitions below - I think it's nice to keep a history, so I won't delete them.
| Competition | Country | Closing Date | Winners Announced | Max Words | Entry Fee | Top Prize |
| Bardsy Holiday Anthology Contest: The Gifts | USA | 13th December 2021 | 19th December 2021 | 3,000 | FREE | $399 |
| Notes on Bardsy Contest: Holiday stories written by US residents only - also offers other prizes for finalists and winner - winners published in anthology | ||||||
| Rosemary Goodacre Memorial Short Story Competition | UK | 31st March 2022 | June 2022 | 1,500 | £7.50 | £150 |
| Notes on Rosemary Goodacre Competition: Any style or genre but the theme is 'friendship' - the winning stories won't be published, so that writers have the opportunity to be published elsewhere | ||||||
| Those That Breathe Environmental Writing Competition | UK | Monthly during 2021 | Monthly during 2021 | Varies | £4 | See notes |
| Notes on Those That Breathe Competition: Any style or subject, but themed so check website for details - the competition is open from the 1st until the 25th of each month during 2021 - proceeds from entry fees are donated to charities that are trying to make a difference to climate change - winners published on website and in anthology in 2022 - open to short stories, flash fiction, non-fiction and poetry | ||||||
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Other Short Story Competition Lists
There are a few other websites that offer useful short story competition information. They are listed below:
- Aerogramme Writers' Studio
- Almond Press
- Arts Deadline List
- Australian Writers' Competition Resource
- Book Trust
- Cathy's Comps & Calls
- Commonwealth Writers
- Creative Writing Ink
- DL Shirey's The Short List
- Duotrope
- First Writer
- Jerry Jenkins
- Maura Yzmore
- MIR Online
- Neon Books
- NewPages
- Nothing in the Rulebook 2019 list and 2020 list
- Poets and Writers - look in the 'Publish Your Writing' section of their site
- Plymouth Writers Group
- Prize Magic
- Published to Death - focusses on free contests and links to other list providers
- Ralan
- Reedsy
- ShortStops - they list competitions and literary magazines
- Stuart Aken's Writing Contest List
- TCK Publishing
- The Grinder - list of thousands of markets with filters
- UK Writers College
- Writers' HQ
- Writers Reign
- Writing.ie
If you run a list on your website and would like it included here, please get in touch.
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Other Short Story Publishing Opportunities
I've launched pages listing many other publishing opportunities for short stories, flash fiction, poetry, novels and more.
You can find them here:
- Short Story Magazines lists - details of various printed and online magazines around the globe that publish fiction regularly
- Short Story Collection Competitions - a list of contests and awards specifically for short story collections and anthologies
- Flash Fiction Competitions lists - as the short story competitions page was getting so long, I decided to develop a separate resource for flash fiction competitions (awards with a word count limit below 1,000 words) to make the site easier to use
- Book / Novel Writing Competitions lists - details of prizes available for completed books - often, these can lead to decent publishing opportunities for collections of short stories and novels
- Essay Contests and Non-Fiction Writing Competitions lists - this resource includes details of memoir competitions
- Poetry Competitions lists - I started this resource because I receive a lot of enquiries about having poems published
Inkitt's Writing Contest
Inkitt's Writing Contest offers a fantastic opportunity for stories that are 20,000 words or more in length. So it's perfect for longer short stories, novellas, novelettes and novels.
It's free to sign up to Inkitt. You can then submit your stories, making them available to their extensive readership.
The winning stories are selected based on their popularity with Inkitt's readers. You can learn more on my novel and book competition lists.
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Non-Fiction Writing Competitions
This section has now moved to the Essay Contest and Non-Fiction Writing Competitions page.
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A History of Closed Short Story Competitions
For reference, when you're spending hours trying to find a competition doesn't exist anymore, I thought I'd keep this handy history of short story competitions that have closed and writing websites that no longer exist. I hope it's useful.
| Competition | Country | Closing Date | Winners Announced | Max Words | Entry Fee | Top Prize |
| 87 Bedford Short Story Contest | USA | August | September | 8,000 | $10 | $150 |
| Notes on 87 Bedford Contest: Any style / genre - winners published on website and in 87 Bedford Literary Journal - honorary mentions considered for publication in journal and receive payment - prizes increase by $3 an entry after 20 submissions have been received, so potential for higher prizes - CLOSED, not run since 2016 | ||||||
| 1,000 Prompts, 1,000 Dollars Writing Contest | USA | 22nd December 2013 | 12th January 2014 | 1,500 | FREE | $500 |
| Notes on 1,000 Prompts Competition: Any style or genre, but themed from 10 prompts, see website for more info - open to US and UK writers only - prize money paid as Amazon gift card - CLOSED | ||||||
| ABC Tales 100 Years On Competition | UK | 1st June 2014 | 16th June 2014 | 2,500 | £5 | See notes |
| Notes on Almond Press Competition: Any style or genre, but must be about or include a mention of the 1st World War - prize is 50/50 split of proceeds; half of the money from entries will be split between the prose and the poetry categories, and the other half will go to funding ABCtales - judged by Francisco Vilhena who is on Granta Magazine editorial team - CLOSED | ||||||
| Aftermath 'The End of Our World' Contest | Holland | August | October | 5,000 | FREE | $1,000 |
| Notes on Aftermath Contest: Any style / genre but check website for theme - winners published online - NOT RUN SINCE 2018, so removed listing during 2020 update | ||||||
| Ageless Authors Writing Contest | USA | Varies | Varies | 3,500 | $20 | $500 |
| Notes on Ageless Authors Contest: Any style / genre but sometimes themed, so check website for current contest details - entrants must be aged 50 years or older - winning stories published in anthology - NOT RUN SINCE 2019, so removed listing in 2021 update | ||||||
| Allen Raine Short Story Competition | Wales | September | November | 7,500 | £5 | £200 |
| Notes on Allen Raine Competition: Any style / genre - entries can be written in Welsh or English - winners maybe published on the website - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED 2016 | ||||||
| Almond Press Short Story Contest | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | FREE | Varies |
| Notes on Almond Press Competition: Themed, so check website for current details - winners and shortlisted entries published in a collection - CLOSED, not run since 2015 so removed from lists | ||||||
| Almond Press 'Broken Worlds' Dystopian Short Story Competition | UK | 1st May 2014 | ? | 5,000 | FREE | £100 |
| Notes on Almond Press Competition: Fiction, dystopia, dark humour, post-apocalyptic minds - CLOSED | ||||||
| Alsina Short Story Competitions | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | FREE | £50 |
| Notes on Alsina Competition: Styles, genres and themes vary - they also run flash fiction contests - winning stories translated and recorded in multiple languages and distributed electronically through an app - HAVEN'T PUBLISHED anything for a year, so removed listing 2019 | ||||||
| Anderbo RRofihe Trophy Short Story Contest | USA | October | ? | 5,000 | FREE | $500 |
| Notes on Anderbo Competition: Any style / genre - winners published on website - CONTEST NOT RUN SINCE 2015, so removed listing in 2017 | ||||||
| Apostrophe Books - Fiction Fast-Track | UK | Bi-Monthly | B-Monthly | no max | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Fiction Fast-Track Competition: Any genre - novels and collections of short stories (fiction only) - winners voted for by readers - winner published as an eBook and sold through 130 digital retailers by Apostrophe Books - all profits split 50/50 with the author - this competition offers a unique prize which is perfect for any writer with a completed novel or short story collection - as the competition is run by writers, winners are treated very fairly CLOSED IN 2014 | ||||||
| Arkbound Writing Competition | UK | November | December | 1,000 | £3 | £100 |
| Notes on Arkbound Competition: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current details - LISTING MOVED TO FLASH COMPS LIST | ||||||
| Artificium Short Story Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | 8,000 | £5/£6 | £300 |
| Notes on Artificium Short Story Competition: Any style / genre - entry fee £5 for UK residents, £6 for non-UK - winners published in Artificium journal - competition usually run twice a year, but sometimes more often - WEBSITE disappeared 2018 | ||||||
| Arts Quarter Prize | UK | Bi-Annual | Bi-Annual | 4,000 | £12 | £750 |
| Notes on Arts Quarter Prize: Any style or genre - winners published in anthology - second prize £250 and additional prizes (up to 5) of professional critiques from Christopher Fielden's writing services - formerly known as the Teignmouth Prize, name changed to avoid confusion with the Teignmouth Poetry Festival - CLOSED 2020 | ||||||
| Asham Award | UK | Biennial | Biennial | ? | ? | £1,000 |
| Notes on the Asham Award: Any style / genre - the competition is only open to women who live in the UK - run every other year - attracts up to 950 entries, so competition is tough - winners published alongside well known female writers in a collection - WEBSITE disappeared in 2018, so removed from lists | ||||||
| Askance Publishing Short Story Competition | UK | May | September | no max | £15 | £300 |
| Notes on Askance Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in digital eBook - COMPETITION NOT RUN SINCE 2015, so listing removed in 2017 | ||||||
| Association of Christian Writers Writing Competitions | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | £3 | See notes |
| Notes on ACW Competitions: They run a variety of competitions (flash fiction, short story and poetry), so check website for current details - winners published in Christian Writers (circulation 700) - prize is £25 book token - CLOSED, but they still run the occasional one-off contest | ||||||
| Association of Christian Writers (ACW) Writing for Children Competition | UK | 30th September 2019 | October | See notes | £3 | £25 |
| Notes on ACW Competition: Stories for children - this is a comp for authors who write for children, not a children's writing comp - three age categories: 0-5 years, 500 words; 5-8 years, 1,000 words; 9-12 years, 1,500 words - 3 x prizes paid in book tokens, one for each category - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Atlantis Short Story Competition | USA | Varies | Varies | 2,500 | $10 | $300 |
| Notes on Atlantis Competition: Any style / genre - every entry receives insightful feedback which is excellent - winners receive full critiques in addition to prize money - NOT RUN SINCE 2018, so removed listing during 2021 update | ||||||
| Australasian Association of Writing Programs Short Story Prize | Australia | Varies | Varies | 3,000 | A$20 | See notes |
| Notes on AAWP Prize: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for details - winner receives ticket to the Australian Short Story Festival (ASSF), accommodation and economy airfares - winner invited to read at AAWP conference - Meniscus consider winner's work for publication - NO LONGER MENTIONED ON WEBSITE, so removed listing 2020 | ||||||
| Barbara Pym Centenary Short Story Competition | UK | May 2013 | September 2013 | 2,200 | £7 or $10 | £150 |
| Notes on Barbara Pym Competition: Stories written in the style and manner of English novelist Barbara Pym - winning stories published on the Barbara Pym Society website - CLOSED | ||||||
| Bardsy Short Story Contests | USA | Varies | Varies | 3,000 | FREE | $345 |
| Notes on Bardsy Contests: Any style / genre but themes vary so check website for current details - in addition to cash, the winner receives a free six-month membership in their Writers' Program - CONTEST NO LONGER MENTIONED ON WEBSITE, so removed listing in 2021 update | ||||||
| Bardy's NaNoWriMo Prep Contest | USA | 25th October 2021 | 5th November 2021 | 3,000 | FREE | $299 |
| Notes on Bardy's Contest: Any style or subject but theme is: write a short story now that's worthy of adapting into a novel later - winners showcased on website - top prize includes Bardsy Elite membership for 6 months (worth $480) - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Bare Fiction Magazine Prize | UK | October | March | 3,000 | £8 | £500 |
| Notes on Bare Fiction Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in Bare Fiction Magazine and on their website - they also run a flash fiction competition - subscribers to the magazine have reduced entry fees - NOT RUN SINCE 2018, so removed listing 2020 | ||||||
| Bartleby Snopes Dialogue Only Writing Contest | USA | September | October | 2,000 | $10 | $300 and see notes |
| Notes on Bartleby Snopes Competition: Any style / genre, but dialogue only, so no narration at all - if more than 50 people enter, prize pot goes up by $3 per entry (last top prize awarded was over $1,000) - winners published on website and in the Bartleby Snopes literary magazine - CLOSED 2016, magazine no longer being published | ||||||
| Being Feminist Motherhood Short Story Competition | Egypt | September | ? | 3,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Being Feminist Competition: Any style / genre, but themed around motherhood - no cash prize, but winners published in book - CLOSED 2015 | ||||||
| Benjamin Franklin House Literary Prize | UK | October | ? | 1,500 | FREE | £750 |
| Notes on Benjamin Franklin Prize: Fiction or non-fiction interpretations of a Benjamin Franklin quote, check the website for the current quote - go to the 'education' section of the site - entrants must be between 18 and 25 years of age - winners published on The Telegraph website - NOT RUN SINCE 2018, so removed listing 2020 | ||||||
| Ben's Heroes Trust Super Amazing Short Story Competition | UK | November | ? | 500 | FREE | £35 Book Token |
| Notes on Ben's Heroes Trust Competition: Any style / genre but themed so check website for current theme - 2 categories: 7 to 9 year olds and 10 to 11 year olds - winning stories published in news letter - COMPETITION NO LONGER MENTIONED ON WEBSITE, so removed listing in 2017 | ||||||
| Bet Tuppi's Ancient Near Eastern Historical Fiction Prize | UK | 4th April 2021 | 4th May 2021 | 1,500 | £1 | £50 |
| Notes on Bet Tuppi's Prize: For historical fiction set in the ancient Near East - winner's published on website - any profits from running the competition will be donated to BISI - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Big Issue in the North | UK | August | September | 2,000 | £5 | See notes |
| Notes on Big Issue in the North Competition: The Big Issue in the North Magazine. Winner also Invited to read story at The Short Issue reading in Manchester in September. Winner also interviewed - a news item on the story and you will appear on the Dead Ink website. And finally, the winner will receive career planning and tuition from Wes Brown, a novelist, critic and co-ordinator of the National Association of Writers in Education - NO LONGER RUNNING | ||||||
| Birdcatcher Books Short Story Award | Australia | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Birdcatcher Books Award: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current details - winners published on website and in anthology - prizes in Australian dollars - CLOSED 2019 | ||||||
| Biscuit Publishing Short Story Competition | UK | Jan | March | 5,000 | £10 | £1,500 |
| Notes on Biscuit Publishing Competition: Any style / genre - top 10 stories published in anthology. Over 400 entries in 2011 - closed in 2013 | ||||||
| Bloody Scotland Short Story Competition | Scotland | July | September | 3,000 | £10 | £1,000 |
| Notes on Bloody Scotland Competition: Crime - winner receives cash prize, free entry to Bloody Scotland's Crime Writing Festival and a bottle of Deanston whisky - winners published in an eBook anthology - CLOSED, last run in 2015 | ||||||
| Book Box Thanksgiving Story Competition | India | 21st September 2015 | 26th September 2015 | 350 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Book Box Competition: Themed around food, family and gratitude - for child writers, check website for more details - winning story will be made into an animated video with same language subtitles CLOSED | ||||||
| Bookers Corner Writing Competition | UK | Monthly | Monthly | 2,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Bookers Corner Competition: Any style / genre but sometimes themed, so check website for current details - free entry, subject to change - winners published on website and possibly in anthology - CLOSED, website disappeared, removed from lists 2018 | ||||||
| Booksie Young Writer Short Story Contest | USA | February | March | 5,000 | FREE | $300 |
| Notes on Booksie Contest: Any style / genre - entrants must be high school students aged between 13 and 18 - winners published on Booksie website, which receives over 1,000,000 reader visits per month - NOT RUN since 2017, so removed link 2019 | ||||||
| Bridgend Writers' Circle Short Story Competition | Wales | 30th November 2014 | January 2015 | 2,000 | £5 | See notes |
| Notes on Bridgend Writers' Circle Competition: Any style / genre, but themed around 'bridges' - winner receives a 4 day writing course at Ty Newydd worth £500 - winners published in anthology and on website - CLOSED, was a one-off, but now run regular comp so see annual comps list above | ||||||
| Brighton COW Competition - NO LONGER RUNNING | UK | Quarterly | Quarterly | 3,000 | £4 | £100 |
| Notes on Brighton COW Competition: Any style / genre - top 10 stories published on website + recorded for radio (I've been published through this competition in the past, so you can read a lot more about it here) - unfortunately the website was removed from the internet early in 2012 | ||||||
| Brighton Prize | UK | Varies | Varies | 2,000 | £8 | £500 |
| Notes on Brighton Prize: Any style / genre - 2 runner up prizes of £100 - winners invited to read their stories at an event - winners published by Rattle Tales - usually closes around June / July - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED 2019 | ||||||
| Brisk Publishing 'Brisk Chance' Writing Competition | USA | Bi-Annually | Bi-Annually | 10,000 | $20 | $1,000 |
| Notes on Brisk Publishing Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in print and eBook - website disappeared 2015 | ||||||
| Brit Writers' Awards | UK | March | ? | 5,000 | See notes | £10,000 |
| Notes on Brit Writers Awards: Any style / genre - competition for short stories, novels, music, pretty much anything - you have to join (£10.95) and then enter stuff - unfortunately I've received a couple messages from other writers raising concerns about the Brit Writers Awards, for more details see the comments section on this page - THE WEBSITE DISAPPEARED IN 2015 | ||||||
| Brittle Star Short Story Competition | UK | March | May | 2,000 | £4 | £250 |
| Notes on Brittle Star Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in Brittle Star Magazine - CLOSED 2014 | ||||||
| Budleigh Salterton Literary Festival Creative Writing Competition | UK | 31st July 2017 | September | 2,000 | FREE | £1,000 |
| Notes on Budleigh Salterton Competition: Any style or genre but theme is 'Being There' CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Caladria Short Story Competition | UK | Bi-Annual | Bi-Annual | 3,000 | FREE | £25* |
| Notes on Caladria Competition: Fantasy - £25 prize in Amazon vouchers - winners published in Fab Fables ezine - CLOSED | ||||||
| Calderdale Ted Hughes Writing Competition | UK | July | October | 3,000 | £4 | £300 |
| Notes on Calderdale Competition: Any style / genre - winning stories published on website, winners announced at the Calderdale Word of Mouth Festival - CLOSED 2015 | ||||||
| Canadian Authors Association National Capital Writing Contest | Canada | February | ? | 2,500 | C$10 | C$500 |
| Notes on NCWC Competition: Any style / genre - only open to open to members of CAA-NCR and/or residents of the National Capital Region - at the bottom of the page that this entry links to there are links to many other writing contests - CONTEST NO LONGER RUNNING | ||||||
| Candy Jar Book's South Wales Short Story Competition | Wales | August | ? | 3,000 | £2 | Kindle Fire |
| Notes on Candy Jar Books Competition: Any style / genre - open to unpublished authors in the UK only - winners published in an anthology - CLOSED 2014 | ||||||
| Cardiff Review Short Story Award | Wales | May | September | 5,000 | £2 | £150 |
| Notes on Cardiff Review Award: Any style / genre - winners published in the Cardiff Review - CLOSED, not run since 2016 so removed from lists Jan 2018 | ||||||
| Cartridge People's Short Story Competition | UK | 1st November 2021 | November 2021 | 1,500 | FREE | £1,000 |
| Notes on Cartridge People Competition: Any style / genre - only accepting entries from over 18's based in the UK - 5 printer pack runner-up prizes - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| CBC Books Canada Writes Prize | Canada | November | ? | 1,500 | $25 | C$6,000 |
| Notes on CBC Books Competition: Any style / genre - you have to be Canadian to enter - 4 x runner up prizes of $1,000 - winner published in Air Canada's enRoute Magazine and on website - DETAILS DISAPPEARED FROM WEBSITE 2016 | ||||||
| Chained Hearts Monthly Erotica Story Contest | USA | Monthly | Monthly | 10,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Chained Heart Competition: Erotica with a monthly theme so check website for current details - top prize is up to $150 depending on twitter engagement (check website for full details) - winners published in a compilation - HASN'T RUN FOR 6 MONTHS, so removed listing in 2021 update | ||||||
| Chapter Checkers Short Story Competition | UK | Monthly | Monthly | 1,000 | £1.99 | See notes |
| Notes on Chapter Checkers Competition: Any style / genre - winner is published on the website and receives a free short story critique for a story up to a max of 1,000 words - all writers that enter receive some brief feedback on their work CLOSED June 2015 | ||||||
| Chapter One Promotions | UK | September | April | 2,500 | £10 | £2,500 |
| Notes on Chapter One annual Competition: Any style / genre - winners and runners up all published in an anthology - lots of different types of competitions run every year, so check the website - I was a runner up in this competition in 2012 and they were supposed to release an anthology called 'Primed' with my story in it at the beginning of 2013, but they've stopped responding to my emails and letters - the lack of professionalism I've encountered from Chapter One Promotions is very disappointing - I don't like to bad mouth anyone in the writing community, but feel I have to warn others of this before they enter the competition, as I've found it very frustrating - I'm still hopeful that they will release the anthology, but research shows this is an ongoing problem - you can read more on Dan Purdoe's blog (Dan won the 2010 competition) - Recently, one of my website users got in touch with me and said this: "I was published in an anthology a few years ago, and it took two years to receive the book. The quality of the publication is abysmal. (Don't get me started on the font, print quality etc) I feel it's a book which will only be purchased by the families of the authors who are published in it and, at £10 a pop, only if their families love them very much. I am just gutted as I consider this to be a good story I have utterly wasted." - If you have encountered problems with Chapter One Promotions, please let me know - In September 2013 I received a proof of my story to OK, 1 YEAR after they said they'd send it, so maybe the anthology will eventually be released... In 2014 the website disappeared - I've heard nothing from them since | ||||||
| Chapter One Promotions Children's Story Competition | UK | October | January | 1,000 | £6 | £150 |
| Website disappeared in 2014 Notes on Chapter One Children's Competition: Any style / genre - four different age group categories: 7-9, 10-12, 13-15, 16-18 - winners and runners up published in anthology - please see the notes in the main listing for Chapter One Promotions before entering their competition!! | ||||||
| Child Writes Competition | Australia | August | September | 800 | A$15 | See notes |
| Notes on Child Writes Competition: Story suitable for a child's picture book - competition only open to Australian primary-school aged child writers and illustrators - the competition administrators are looking for the best story and the best illustrator, the two are then paired up to produce a picture book which will be published by Boogie Books and the writer and illustrator will receive royalties on all sales - COMPETITION NO LONGER MENTIONED ON WEBSITE, so removed listing 2017 | ||||||
| Children's Society Writing Competition | UK | 31st August 2018 | October 2018 | 2,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Children's Society Competition: Any style or genre but themed around the awkward age of 16 and 17 - winning stories published on website - winner receives literary agent advice, feedback and writing gifts - CLOSED 2018, was a one-off | ||||||
| Chilling Tales for Dark Nights Writing Competition | USA | Monthly | Monthly | 5,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Chilling Tales for Dark Nights Competition: Horror - maximum word count usually 5,000, but can vary - winners have their stories produced by professional audio/narration team and are made available on the website - all entries are considered for publication in our print/eBook anthologies, they're hoping to introduce cash prizes in addition to this in the future - CLOSED 2016 | ||||||
| Choc Lit Short Story Competition | UK | February | Easter | 1,500 | £3 | £200 |
| Notes on Choc Lit Competition: Theme is chocolate related but check the website for more details - choccy treats in addition to prize money - winner published on website - CLOSED | ||||||
| Chudley Phoenix Short Story Competition | UK | January | April | 1,500 | £5 | £250 |
| Notes on Chudley Phoenix Competition: Any style / genre - winning stories published on website - CLOSED 2014 | ||||||
| Church of Ireland World War One Short Story Competition | Ireland | 24th October 2014 | ? | 3,500 | FREE | €1,000 |
| Notes on Church of Ireland Competition: Any style / genre, but stories must be about the impact of WW1 in any part of Ireland, see website for full details - entrants must be between 15 and 21 years old - top 8 stories might be published - CLOSED | ||||||
| Claret Press MNDA Short Story Competition | UK | June | Autumn | 5,000 | £6 | £250 |
| Notes on Claret Press Competition: Any style / genre but inspired by physical or mental illness - winners published in anthology - cash prizes for 2nd and 3rd - profits support the Motor Neurone Disease Association - NOT RUN SINCE 2018 so removed listing 2019 | ||||||
| Corncott Writing Competition | UK | August | September | 750 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Corncott Writing Competition: Has a 'What do you love about Cornwall' theme - really a micro-fiction competition due to low maximum word count. Winner receives a free holiday in a Cornish cottage plus the possibility of being published in a local Cornish Magazine CLOSED | ||||||
| Cowley Literary Award & Short Story Competition | Australia | June | August | 1,000 | A$25 | A$5,000 |
| Notes on the Cowley Literary Award: Any style / genre - 1 runner up prize of A$1,000 - award takes fiction AND non-fiction submissions, the best entry of either type could win - winners might be published on the website - WEBSITE CONTAINS NO CONTENT 2016 | ||||||
| Creative Competitor Writing Competitions | France | Various | Various | Various | Various | Various |
| Notes on Creative Competitor Competitions: These guys run, on average, 2 different writing competitions a month. Comps include short stories, poetry and more. I can't really keep on top of listing all the changes, so the best bet is to visit the website and see what they have running which might appeal to you - WEBSITE NOT updated for a year, so removed listing 2019 | ||||||
| Creative Writing Institute Short Story Contest | USA | August | October | 2,000 | $5 | $200 |
| Notes on Creative Writing Institute Contest: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current details - winner receives $200 OR a free, privately tutored writing course - winners published in anthology - CLOSED 2017 | ||||||
| Creative Writing Life Competition | UK | Monthly | Monthly | 5,000 | FREE | £20 |
| Notes on CWL Competition: Any style / genre - winner's published in CWL magazine - also accept poetry and flash fiction - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED 2020 | ||||||
| Crediton Festival Short Story Competition | UK | April | June | 1,000 | £3 | £30 |
| Notes on Credition Competition: Any style / genre, but themed, so check website for current details - prizes paid in cash of book tokens - winners published on the website - for under 18s or 18 year olds that are still in fulltime education - NOT RUN SINCE 2017, so removed listing 2020 | ||||||
| Crediton Short Story Competition | UK | April | June | 3,000 | £5 | £75 |
| Notes on Crediton Competition: Any style / genre, but themed, so check website - winner also receives a night's stay in an award winning pub - winners published in Riptide - (2015 winner, Shirley Muir, has written about her experiences on my site - read Shirley's post and her winning story) - NOT RUN SINCE 2017, so removed link 2020 | ||||||
| Crimson Cloak Publishing Writing Competition | USA | 31st January 2017 | February 2017 | 3,000 | $10 | $150 |
| Notes on Crimson Cloak Competition: Fantasy but Crimson Cloak invite writers of all genres to give it a go as originality is appreciated - top prize may increase if lots of entries are received - winners published on website - may become a regular competition if enough entries are received - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Cro Magnon Short Story Competition 2015 | UK | 31st September 2015 | October 2015 | 3,000 | £5 | £100 |
| Notes on Cro Magnon Competition: Themed around primitive humanity, see website for details - winning story and 'best of the rest' published on website CLOSED | ||||||
| Crooked Quill Magazine Short Story Competition | UK | 15th February 2016 | March | 750 | FREE | £20 |
| Notes on Crooked Quill Competition: Any style or genre but theme is 'beginnings and time' - 1st prize is a £20 Amazon voucher - winners published in The Crooked Quill literary magazine - ONE OFF, NOW CLOSED | ||||||
| Curry Mallet Children's Short Story Competition | UK | June | September | 500 | £3 | £35 |
| Notes on Curry Mallet Children's Competition: Any style / genre but themed so check the website for current details - 2 categories: under 11s and 12-16 - 3 winning stories receive feedback from a published author - NOT RUN SINCE 2015, so removed listing in 2017 | ||||||
| Curry Mallet Short Story Competition | UK | September | ? | 2,500 | £5 | £100 |
| Notes on the Curry Mallet Competition: Any style / genre - themed, so check website for current theme - winning story published on the website | ||||||
| Cwrtnewydd Scribblers' Short Story Competition | Wales | July | August | 1,500 | £3 | £40 |
| Notes on Cwrtnewydd Scribblers' Competition: Any style / genre - entry is £3 but for an extra 3 quid you can get a critique - CLOSED 2015 | ||||||
| Dark Places Short Story Competition | UK | Triannual | Triannual | 5,000 | £1.25 | Various |
| Notes on Dark Places Competition: Sci-Fi & Fantasy - free critique for all entrants - winners published in e-magazine through Amazon - first prize varies, second prize is a subscription to Grammarly - also available free in PDF format on the Dark Places website - you can read the first issue here - CLOSED 2015 | ||||||
| Darker Times Fiction Short Story Competition | UK | Monthly | Monthly | 5,000 | £5 | See notes |
| Notes on Darker Times Competition: 'Darker times' theme - while they focus the competition on horror stories, they also accept entries linked to the theme of 'darker times' in other ways, encouraging writers to be as creative as possible - the winner receives a percentage of the money raised by entry fees (minimum of £15) plus their short story will be published in one of the Darker Times Horror Anthologies, released as an ebook through Amazon - runners up and honourable mentions also published - CLOSED 2014 | ||||||
| Davy Byrnes Short Story Award | Ireland | February | June | 15,000 | €10 | €15,000 |
| Notes on the Davey Byrnes Award: Any style / genre - 5 runner up prizes of €1,000 - runs every 5 years (last run 2014) - open to Irish citizens and to writers who are resident or were born in the thirty-two counties - winners published in anthology by The Stinging Fly - HASN'T RUN FOR 6 YEARS, so removed listing during 2020 update | ||||||
| Deddington Junior Writing Competition | UK | March | June | 500 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Deddington Writing Competition: Any style / genre but themed, so check website - 3 categories: 3 to 6, 7 to 9 and 10 to 13 - winners receive professional feedback about their work and 'prizes' (the website does not state what the prizes are) - you can also find out more on their separate competition website - NO LONGER MENTIONED ON WEBSITE, so removed listing 2020 | ||||||
| Desi Writers' Lounge Short Story Competition | Pakistan | August | September | 5,000 | FREE | 50,000 PKR |
| Notes on the DWL Competition: Any style / genre - top prize is 50,000 Pakistani Rupee which is approximately $475 USD or £350 GBP - winners published on website and may also be published in Desi Writers' magazine 'Papercuts' - NOT RUN SINCE 2017, so removed from lists 2019 | ||||||
| Desperate Literature Short Fiction Prize | Spain | 14th February 2018 | 16th March 2018 | 200 | €20 | €1,000 |
| Notes on Desperate Literature Prize: Any style / genre - winner also receives a week long residency in a 15th Century Italian castle - winners published in 3 x lit mags and a bilingual anthology - winning stories read at Desperate Literature in Madrid and Shakespeare & Company in Paris - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Deux-Sèvres Short Story Competition | France | May | June | 1,500 | £4 | £25 |
| Notes on the Deux-Sèvres Competition: Any style / genre - winners published on This French Life, Deux-Sevres Life, Galgo News and Podenco Post - DOESN'T SEEM TO BE RUNNING ANYMORE | ||||||
| Dragon & Owl Publishing Pithy Pages For Erudite Readers Contest | USA | Bi-Annually | Bi-Annually | 7,000 | $20 | See notes |
| Notes on Dragon & Owl Publishing Competition: Any style / genre - entry fees, up to a maximum of $5000, will be shared between winners as cash prizes in the following way: First Prize receives 50%, Second Prize 15%, Third Prize 10%, Honourable Mention five prizes of 5% - so the top prize could be $2,500 - CLOSED 2014 | ||||||
| Dragonfly Tea Short Story Competition | UK | July | October | 500 | FREE | £50 |
| Notes on Dragonfly Tea Competition: Any style / genre but themed so check website for current details - three age groups: 4-7, 8-11, 12-15 - prize is a £50 book voucher + £100 for the winner's school - NOT RUN SINCE 2018, so removed listing in 2020 | ||||||
| Dragonfly Tea Short Story Competition | UK | July | October | 3,000 | FREE | £1,500 |
| Notes on Dragonfly Tea Competition: Any style / genre but themed so check website for current details - open to UK residents only - run in association with Henley Literary Festival - hover on the 'blog' option in the main menu to find the competitions - NOT RUN SINCE 2018, so removed listing in 2020 | ||||||
| Dylan Thomas Birthplace International Short Story Competition | Wales | Varies | Varies | See notes | See notes | £500 |
| Notes on Dylan Thomas Birthplace Competition: Any style / genre but themed so check website for full details - 2 categories: under 19s and under 15s - entry fees for under 19s £6, under 15s £3 - word limit for under 19s 2,500, under 15s 500 - top prize for under 19s £500, under 15s £150 - winners published on the website and in a collection - all entrants receive a year's free membership of the Dylan Thomas Society - they don't always link to the competition from the homepage or main navigation (?? don't ask me...) so here is a link to the last comp for reference - NOT RUN SINCE 2018, so removed listing 2020 | ||||||
| Eco Arts Literature Award | NC, USA | August | January | 5,000 | $30 | $1,000 |
| Notes on Eco Arts Award: Any style / genre - winners published on website - LAST RUN 2014, removed listing 2017 as website has not been updated since 2014 | ||||||
| Edit Crowd Short Story Competition | UK | Quarterly | Quarterly | 8,000 | FREE | £25 |
| Notes on Edit Crowd Competition: Any style / genre - winners published on the website - CLOSED, website disappeared during 2018 | ||||||
| Egyptian Writers International Writing Competition | Egypt | February | April | 3,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Egyptian Writers Competition: Any style / genre - no monetary prize, but winners are announced on MarwaRakha.com, receive certificates, have their stories reviewed in magazines, and have their work translated into Arabic to be published in a book in Egypt - CLOSED | ||||||
| e-Literate-World 'Cut A Long Story Short' Competition | Australia | Quarterly | Quarterly | 5,000 | A$8 | See notes |
| Notes on e-Literate-World Competition: Any style / genre, unless specified otherwise for that month (no children's) - monetary prizes depend on number of entries - placed entries will be published via Kindle eBook and made available on Amazon - this competition has recently changed name, previously it was called My Mate Kindle - Website disappeared 2016 | ||||||
| EllenorLions Hospices Short Story Competition | UK | November | January | 1,500 | £5 | £100 |
| Notes on EllenorLions Competition: Any style / genre - theme is 'survival' in support of the hospice staff undertaking the Arctic Survival Challenge next year - link above takes you to The Write Place where the competition is hosted, but you can learn more about the charity here - CLOSED 2014 | ||||||
| England's Future History Short Story Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | 3,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on England's Future History Competition: Any style / genre but set in England's future - all accepted (winning) stories become part of the website's timeline, so are published on the site - AT START OF 2019, note on site said 'We're on a bit of a break but will be back later in 2017' so removed from lists | ||||||
| Enizagam Literary Contest for Fiction | USA | March | April | 4,000 | $20 | $1,000 |
| Notes on Enizagam Contest: Any style / genre - winners published in Enizagam Journal and nominated for Pushcart Prize - HASN'T RUN SINCE 2019, so removed listing during 2022 update | ||||||
| Equestrian Fiction Finder Short Story Competition | UK | Monthly | Monthly | 1,000 | £3 | £30 |
| Notes on EFF Competition: themed, so check website to see current theme - the 3 winners are published on the website - Hasn't been running since August 2012 | ||||||
| Essay Mama Christmas Writing Contest | USA | 25th December 2014 | 5th January 2015 | 4,000 | See notes | $450 |
| Notes on Essay Mama Competition: Any style / genre, but themed around Christmas - to enter, you must like their Facebook page and share the competition link - 15 winning stories published in a printed book - CLOSED 2015 | ||||||
| Ether Books Writing Competitions | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | FREE | None |
| Notes on Ether Books Competitions: Associated with Raging Aardvark Publishing - they run a variety of contests throughout the year, so check the website for current competitions and themes - winners published in anthology - all entries have the possibility of being published by Ether Books - CLOSED 2016 | ||||||
| Fairytalez Writing Competitions | Denmark / USA | Varies | Varies | 5,000 | FREE | $200 |
| Notes on Fairytalez Competitions: Themed, so check website for current details - top prize paid as an Amazon gift voucher - NO COMPS RUN SINCE 2019, so removed listing during 2022 update | ||||||
| Fantasy Book Review Short Story Competitions | UK | September | November | 5,000 | FREE | Apple iPad |
| Notes on Fantasy Book Review Competition: Fantasy theme - winning stories possibly published. Every entry receives a free ebook - no longer running | ||||||
| Ferrytaleawards Short Story Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | 2,500 | £10 | £100 |
| Notes on Ferry Tale Awards: Any style or genre - entry fee is either £10, or you can buy a copy of the Ferrytaleawards on Amazon, write a short review and gain entry that way instead - 10 winning stories published in Ferrytaleawards book - CLOSED in 2014 | ||||||
| Festival of Literature for Young People (FLY) Writing Competition 2016 | UK | 21st May 2016 | 21st June 2016 | 500 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on FLY Competition: Any style or genre - open to 11-18 year olds and judged in two age categories: 11-14 and 15-18 - top prize in each category is a Kindle Fire - winners published on the FLY and Ink Sweat & Tears websites - run by the University of East Anglia - CLOSED 2016 | ||||||
| Fiction Desk Flash Fiction Prize | UK | May | July | 1,000 | £5 | £300 |
| Notes on Fiction Desk Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in the Fiction Desk anthology - CLOSED 2016 and reopened 2017, now listed on the flash fiction comps page | ||||||
| Fiction Desk Ghost Story Competition | UK | January | March | 7,000 | £8 | £500 |
| Notes on Fiction Desk Ghost Story Competition: Ghost stories - winners published in the Fiction Desk anthology - second prize £250, third prize £100 - CLOSED, they stopped running competitions late in 2018 | ||||||
| Fiction Desk Newcomer's Short Story Prize | UK | May | July | 7,000 | £8 | £500 |
| Notes on Fiction Desk Newcomer's Prize Competition: Any style / genre - open to writers who have not been published on Fiction Desk and have not published a novel or short story collection in printed form - (author Mike Scott Thomson has been written about being published by The Fiction Desk - read Mike's advice and story here) - CLOSED, they stopped running competitions late in 2018 | ||||||
| Fictuary Short Story Contest | USA | Monthly | Monthly | 4,000 | FREE | $50 |
| Notes on Fictuary Competition: Any style / genre - in addition to the cash prize, winner receives paid social media promotion, bio page and is featured in Fictuary email newsletter - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED 2016 | ||||||
| Field of Words Writing Competitions | Australia | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Field of Words Competitions: Any style / genre - now open to Australian AND international residents over 18 only - they run a variety of competitions throughout the year, including short story, flash fiction, memoir and ghost story, so check website for current details - winners published on Field of Words website - top prizes up to A$750 - CLOSED, website disappeared 2019 | ||||||
| Finchley Literary Festival Short Story Competition | UK | 31st May 2016 | 26th June 2016 | 1,000 | £5 | £100 |
| Notes on Finchley Literary Festival Competition: Any style or genre - winners published on the Greenacre Writers website - CLOSED 2016 | ||||||
| Firedrake Books Short Story Competition | USA | April | May | 3,500 | $10 | $100* |
| Notes on Firedrake Books Competition: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current details - 20 cash prizes in total, all of which will increase in value as more people enter, so see website for full details - winners published in anthology - NO LONGER MENTIONED ON WEBSITE, so removed lisiting during 2020 update | ||||||
| First Writer International Short Story Contest | UK | April | ? | 3,000 | £6.50 | £200 |
| Notes on First Writer Contest: Any style / genre - winners published in First Writer Magazine - CLOSED in 2017, after running for 13 years from 2004 | ||||||
| Five Minute Fiction Christmas Short Story Competition | UK | November | ? | 1,500 | £2 | See notes |
| Notes on 5 Minute Fiction Competition: Christmas theme - winners published on the website - prizes range from a visit to a writer's retreat to Amazon vouchers - visit the website for full details of prizes as there are all sorts - you can also submit stories up to 2,000 words in length of any genre (except erotica) for consideration for publication on the website - CLOSED 2013 | ||||||
| Five on the Fifth Short Fiction Contest | USA | August | October | 4,000 | $6.50 | $150 |
| Notes on Five on the Fifth Contest: Any style / genre - winners published in online literary magazine - cash prizes & publication for 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th place winners - Not run since 2016 so removed from lists 2018 | ||||||
| Five Stop Story | UK | Quarterly | Quarterly | 3,000 | £4 | £100 |
| Notes on Five Stop Story Competition: Any style / genre - top 20 stories published on website every quarter, and on the Five Stop Story iPhone and iPad application. £150 for annual winner - changed from a monthly competition to a quarterly competition at the beginning of 2013 - CLOSED in 2014 | ||||||
| Frank O'Connor International Short Story Award | Ireland | March | ? | no max | FREE | €35,000 |
| Notes on Frank O'Connor Competition: Any style / genre - this is for published short story collections ONLY, so not a competition for the newer writer - you have to have had your collection of short stories published by a publisher, NOT self published - still I thought it worth listing so that when your amazing collection of short stories is snapped up and published in the very near future, you know to enter the comp! Prize money seems to increase each year, so keep an eye on the current prize offered -DISCONTINUED 2015 | ||||||
| Freeditorial's Annual Long-Short Story Contest | USA | Biannual | Biannual | 40,000 | FREE | $15,000 |
| Notes on Freeditorial's Competition: Any style / genre - all entrants published on website and stories with the greatest number of downloads win - runs twice a year - CLOSED, disappeared from website so removed listing 2018 | ||||||
| Friends of Manning's Pit Saki Short Story Competition | UK | 30th June 2021 | 30th October 2021 | 3,000 | £5 | £500 |
| Notes on Friends of Manning's Pit Competition: Any style / genre but the aim is to raise awareness of Saki's (H H Munro) writing, so submissions require a spark of originality or wit, and something relevant to the countryside and its wildlife - winners published on website - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Funny Pearls Short Story Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | FREE | Varies |
| Notes on Funny Pearls Competition: Humour - winners published on website - they run short story and flash fiction competitions, so check website for current details - top prize has been up to £250 in the past - COMPETITION NO LONGER MENTIONED ON WEBSITE, so removed listing in 2020 update | ||||||
| Galtellì Literary Prize | Sardinia, Italy | June | August | 5,000 | FREE | €1,000 |
| Notes on Galtellì Prize : A novel is selected to inspire and stimulate writers and a different genre is used every year, so check website for current details - 1st to 6th place winners all receive up to €1,000 in travel costs to Sardinia (1st place receives an additional €1,000 in prize money) - winners published in anthology - NOT RUN SINCE 2015, so removed listing 2017 | ||||||
| Galtellì Literary Prize | Sardinia, Italy | April | May | 5,000 | FREE | €1,000 |
| Notes on Galtellì Prize : A novel is selected to inspire and stimulate writers and a different genre is used every time the prize is run, so check website for current details - winners receive up to €1,000 in travel costs to Sardinia to attend awards ceremony (1st place receives an additional €1,000 in prize money) - winners published in anthology - runs every other year: 2015, 2017, 2019 etc. NEW WEBSITE disappeared during 2018 | ||||||
| Giving Them Wings Prize | South Africa | Bi-Annual | Bi-Annual | 2,000 | $3 | $500 |
| Notes on Giving Them Wings Prize: Any style / genre - winners featured in anthology - they also accept poetry - to find details of the competition, go to the 'Donate' section of their website - PRIZE NO LONGER MENTIONED ON WEBSITE, so retired listing during 2022 update | ||||||
| GKBCinc International Short Story Competition | UK | Bi-Annually | Bi-Annually | 2,000 | FREE | £100 |
| Notes on GKBCinc Short Story Competition: Any style / genre - themed, so check website for current theme - the winner and 9 runners up from each comp published in an annual anthology (so each anthology contains 20 stories) - winners also published on the website - CLOSED 2014 | ||||||
| Glimmer Train | OR, USA | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | up to $3,000 (see notes) |
| Notes on Glimmer Train Competition: Any style / genre - Glimmer Train run various competitions throughout the year, with prizes varying from around $600 to about $3,000 - entry fees range from FREE to around the $20 mark, depending on the competition - winners are published in the Glimmer Train Literary Journal, which is a highly respected US publication read by many literary agents and publishers - sadly, Glimmer Train will be closing in 2019, submissions are open until mid-May and the final issue will be published towards the end of the year - CLOSED 2019 | ||||||
| Global Short Stories Competition | UK | Monthly | Monthly | 2,000 | £5 | £100 |
| Notes on Global Short Stories Competition: Any style / genre - winning stories published on the website - competition supported by Bill Bryson - CLOSED in 2014 | ||||||
| GoArchitect Architecture of Power Short Story Award | USA | Varies | Varies | 1,500 | $25 | $500 |
| Notes on GoArchitect Award: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for full details - sometimes run monthly, sometimes quarterly, depending on number of entries - winners published on website - NOW RUNNING DESIGN COMPS, so removed listing during 2020 update | ||||||
| Golfwell's Golf Story Writing Competition | New Zealand | December | February | 700 | FREE | $300 |
| Notes on Golfwell's Competition: Any style / genre but themed around golf - winners published on the website - they accept fiction and non-fiction entries - prize paid in USD - CLOSED 2016, now running regular flash fiction comp, see flash fiction lists | ||||||
| Grace Dieu Writers' Circle Short Story Comp | UK | February | Summer | 2,000 | £6 | £500 |
| Notes on Grace Dieu Competition: Any style / genre - winners published on website - CLOSED 2015 DUE TO LACK OF ENTRIES | ||||||
| Grain Writing Contest | Canada | April | August | 2,500 | C$40 | C$1,000 |
| Notes on Grain Writing Contest: Any style / genre - entry for Canadians is C$35, international entries are C$40, but every entrant receives a 1 year (4 issue) subscription to the magazine - CONTEST NO LONGER RUNNING, BUT THEY DO STILL ACCEPT GENERAL FICTION SUBMISSIONS | ||||||
| Green Lady Award for Fiction | UK | November | ? | 3,000 | £5 | £50 |
| Notes on Green Lady Competition: Any style / genre - themed, so check the website for the current theme - winners published in anthology - WEBSITE NO LONGERR EXISTS | ||||||
| Greenwich Writers 'Bump in the Night' Ghost Story Competition | UK | 15th September 2016 | 30th September 2016 | 3,000 | £5 | See notes |
| Notes on Greenwich Writers Competition: Ghost stories - top prize is 'something spooky' plus the winner is published in an anthology and the Greenwich Writers' newsletter - CLOSED | ||||||
| Grindstone Short Fiction Competition | UK | Quarterly | Quarterly | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Grindstone Competition: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current details - winners published on the Grindstone website - CLOSED, now concentrating on annual comp instead - see lists above | ||||||
| Hamilton's Literary Festival gritLIT Writing Competition | Canada | July | ? | 3,000 | C$20 | C$200 |
| Notes on gritLIT Writing Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in the gritLIT literary chapbook - winner invited to read their story at LiT LiVe Reading Series and the gritLIT literary festival - WEBSITE APPEARS TO BE BROKEN, so removed listing 2017 | ||||||
| Happy London Press Hi2020 Short Story Competition | UK | 20th July 2020 | October 2020 | 1,500 | £6 | See notes |
| Notes on Happy London Press Competition: Any style / genre but check website for topics - 20 winners interviewed on radio - selected winners have their stories read on radio, posted on podcast and may have their stories published by media partners - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Harry Bowling Flash Fiction Prize | UK | September | March | 750 | £5 | £100 |
| Notes on Harry Bowling Flash Fiction Prize: Any style / genre, but entries must have an urban setting - winners published on the Harry Bowling Prize and MBA websites - sponsored by Headline and administered by MBA Literary Agents - runs every two years - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED 2016 | ||||||
| Hay on Wye Short Story Contest | Wales | July | December | 2,000 | £6 | £400 |
| Notes on Hay-on-Wye Competition: Any style / genre - old site seems to be down (http://hayshortstory.com/Hay-Short-Story-Home.html) but there is some info on the new link I've provided. Unsure if this is still running, hence it appears on this list... | ||||||
| Headway in West Kent Short Story Competition | UK | 18th September 2015 | October 2015 | 500 | £3 | £50* |
| Notes on Headway Competition: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current details - prize paid in Waterstone's vouchers - winning story will be published in the Kent & Sussex Courier - run in support of Headway charity, which helps people with brain injuries CLOSED | ||||||
| Historic House Short Story Competition | UK | September 2014 | November 2014 | 2,500 | FREE | £150 |
| Notes on Historic House Competition: Any style / genre, but stories must be set in a historic house - winner also receives a tour and afternoon tea with the owners of Levens Hall in Cumbria and membership to the Historic Houses Association - winners published in eBook anthology - CLOSED | ||||||
| Holland House Books / Lost World Press Flash Fiction Competition | UK | 30th October 2013 | September 2013 | 750 | FREE | £20 |
| Notes on Holland House / Lost World Press Competition: Speculative (lost worlds, sci-fi, parallel/alternative, parody, steam/clockpunk, Atlantis re-found, things that go bump in the night, alternative universes, timeslip, parodies and parallels) - prizes paid in Amazon vouchers - CLOSED | ||||||
| Homestart-Bridgwater Short Story Prize | UK | February | April | 2,200 | £7 | £500 |
| Notes on Homestart-Bridgwater Prize: Any style / genre - winning stories read out at a prize giving event and published on the website - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED 2016 | ||||||
| Hourglass Literary Magazine Writing Contest | Bosnia | May | September | 7,000 | $15 | $1,000 |
| Notes on Hourglass Contest: Any style / genre - winners published in Hourglass Literary Magazine - NOT RUN since 2017, so removed listing 2019 | ||||||
| Hour of Writes Weekly Writing Competition | UK | Weekly | Weekly | 2,000 | £3 | £50* |
| Notes on Hour of Writes Competition: Any style / genre, but themed, so check website for current theme - prize money based on number of entry fees, minimum usually £50 - winners published on website I removed this listing in 2018 after I started receiving complaints about the website, EG: Hour of Writes is listed on your website as a weekly competition but it appears to have stopped without announcement and some competition results are nearly three months in arrears. This website has never been well run but over the last few months it's been getting ever more erratic without the owner having the courtesy to properly inform anybody of what's going on and ignoring users' questions. If you look at the HOW web page you can see a new competition hasn't been posted since about April. Anyway, as you run a great website I often use I thought I'd give you a heads up. | ||||||
| Humanaagerie Anthology from Eibonvale Press | UK | 31st May 2018 | June | 4,000 | FREE | £10 |
| Notes on Humanaagerie Anthology: For 'liminal' work; pieces that would be classed as 'Slipstream'; work that has a speculative or surreal element - edited by Sarah Doyle and Allen Ashley - selected works will be published in the Humanaagerie anthology CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Ibiza Quills Compilation | Ibiza | October | November | 2,500 | €12 | €100 |
| Notes on Ibiza Quills Compilation: Any style / genre but themed around Ibiza - 12 euro fee allows 2 entries and includes membership to the Ibiza Quills Creative Hub, who host events and workshops - members can also become a reviewer for the website - NOT RUN FOR 2 YEARS, so removed listing during 2021 update | ||||||
| Iceland Writers' Retreat Short Story Competition | Iceland | 25th January 2015 | ? | 500 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Iceland Writers' Retreat Competition: Any style / genre, but themed so see website - winner receives writing retreat package at Iceland writers' retreat in April including hotel, tours and food, but you have to pay for your own airfare - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Ifanca Hélène James Short Story Competition | Wales | July | October | 2,200 | £4 | £100 |
| Notes on Ifanca Competition: Any style / genre - winners published on the website - CLOSED 2015 | ||||||
| Inclusive Works International Short Story Competition | Holland | August | ? | See notes | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Inclusive Works Competition: Children's - entrants must be resident in the Netherlands - winners published as illustrated books in English and Dutch by Clavis publishers - stories can be written in English or Dutch - 2 categories; stories for 1 to 3 year olds with a 600 word limit; stories for 4 to 6 year olds with a 900 word limit - Not run since 2016 so removed from lists Jan 2018 | ||||||
| Indelible Chaos Short Story Competition | India | Bi-Monthly | Bi-Monthly | 15,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Indelible Chaos Competition: Different competitions with different styles and themes run on a bi-monthly basis - prize is publication in a bi-annual anthology - CLOSED 2016 | ||||||
| Independent Authors of Wales Network Writing Competition | Wales | October | December | 2,500 | FREE* | See notes |
| Notes on IWAN Competition: Any style / genre but themed so check website for current details - entry is free, but you have to be a member - no cash prize, but 12 winners are published on the blog and in an anthology - WEBSITE NOT UPDATED FOR A YEAR, so removed from lists Jan 2018 | ||||||
| Inexsilio (The Exiles) - The Lost Country Short Story Competition | USA | August | ? | 5,000* | FREE | $50 |
| Notes on The Exiles Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in The Lost Country Journal - sometimes run bi-annually - 5,000 words is a soft limit, the editors don't want to receive novels, if they receive an excellent 6,000 word story they will consider publishing it - it is recommended that entrants read their manifesto prior to submitting - WEBSITE NOT UPDATED SINCE 2015, so removed listing 2017 | ||||||
| Info 4 Writers Short Story Competition | UK | Monthly | Monthly | 2,700 | FREE | £15 |
| Notes on Info 4 Writers Competition: Any style / genre but themed so check website for current details - winners published on website - WEBSITE disappeared during 2018 | ||||||
| Inkhead Short Story Competition | UK | April | June | 1,000 | £5 | £100 |
| Notes on Inkhead Competition: Any style / genre - five story titles given on the site for you to choose from - four different age group categories: 7-9, 10-12, 13-14, 15-16 - winners published in anthology which is released in the October following the competition - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED 2016 | ||||||
| InkTears Short Story Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | 3,500 | £7.50 | £1,000 |
| Notes on InkTears Competition: Any style / genre - winners and runners up published on website and also offered the possibility of having a collection of their short stories published through Ink Tears (I've been published through this competition and you can read more about my experiences here) - on occasion they also run a flash fiction contest with a £250 prize - CLOSED 2019 | ||||||
| Inspired By Writing Short Story Competition | UK | Bi-Annually | Bi-Annually | 2,500 | See notes | £1,250 |
| Notes on IBW Competition: Any style / genre - early entry fee of £7, then it goes up to £12 - stories published on website and in anthology - REMOVED FROM LISTS 2017 WARNING: I've received a few queries about this competition as users are experiencing some issues. The Inspired by Writing website has now disappeared. They have taken money from entrants and not refunded them without seeing the competition through to completion. If this business resurfaces, be very wary of entering the competition - it seems to be run in an unprofessional manner. Here is an update I received from Inspired By Writing in March 2017 (about a month before the website disappeared): We have had an extremely hectic period over the Christmas break on the run up to the February 28th. Unfortunately our original date got pushed back due to our judging panel being changed and not finding the right people to fill these positions prior to their professional calendars being altered and then after having to compensate for suitable replacements. As most of you should know we have now had our original investors back out of the competition, leaving us in a somewhat sticky position on the run up to February. This is no fault of our own but our ambitions for back to back competitions is now going to have to be put on hold and more importantly, you need to be our first priority. In saying this we have two alternatives we had to think about. Either give all the entrants a full refund or we stick at our search to get other suitable members to fulfil an agreement which was unfortunately not filled by our previous investors. After long deliberating with other colleagues we have decided to move it one last date to the April 30th 2017. If we do not achieve our winner's announcements by then all entries will receive a full refund into their paypal account that they originally entered with. I will finish with a full apology from everybody here at Inspired by Writing for the delay in the announcements. We wasn't anticipating this on our run up to our first competition but it has educated us in a situation which will not happen again in the future. | ||||||
| Irish Arts & Writers Festival Writing Competition | USA | September | October | 5,000 | $15 | $1,000 |
| Notes on Irish Arts & Writers Competition: Any style / genre - winners published on website - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED 2019 | ||||||
| Irish Imbas Books Celtic Mythology Short Story Competition | New Zealand | December | February | 4,000 | US$7 | US$500 |
| Notes on Irish Imbas Books Competition: Any style / genre but themed so check website for details - winners published in Irish Imbas Celtic Mythology Collection - 2nd prize $250; 3rd prize $100 - NOT RUN SINCE 2018, so removed listing during 2020 update | ||||||
| ITT Short Story Competition | Ireland | 13th August 2018 | 11th October 2018 | 2,000 | FREE | €500 |
| Notes on ITT Competition: Any style or genre - 10 shortlisted stories published in an anthology - run by the Institute of Technology Tallaght, with South Dublin County Council and the Red Line Book Festival - started life as a one-off, now running annually -runs most years, but is dependant on funding, so may not run every year, hence listed as a one-off - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Jane Austen 200 Short Story Competition | UK | 28th February 2017 | May 2017 | 2017 | £5 | £1,000 |
| Notes on Jane Austen 200 Competition: Any style or genre, inspired by a Jane Austen quote, see website for full details - Hosted by Hampshire Cultural Trust and Jane Austen's House Museum - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Juliet B Madison 'DI Lyle' Short Story Competition | UK | 1st July 2015 | 4th July 2015 | 6,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on DI Lyle Competition: Crime - winner receives signed copy of DI Lyle book of their choice - winners published on website - every entry (provided there aren't too many) will be included in an ebook anthology to raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Junior Authors Short Story Contest | Canada | June | October | 1,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Junior Authors Competition: Any style / genre - winning story in each category is published on the website - 6 age groups: 9-10, 11-12, 13-14, 15-16, 17-18, 19-21 (you must be a student to enter) - CLOSED 2015 | ||||||
| Just 100 Words Writing Competition | USA | Daily | Daily | 100 | $5 | $50 |
| Notes on Just 100 Words Competition: Any style / genre - winners announced within 24 hours and published on the website - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED 2016 | ||||||
| KalliKids Short Story Competition | UK | June | June | 600 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on KalliKids Competition: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current theme - open to 4 age categories (school years 3,4,5 and 6) - winner in each age category will have their story published in a printed book and e-book - schools with the highest number of entrants per category receive a creative writing class - all entries published on the KalliKids website - COMPETITION NO LONGER MENTIONED ON WEBSITE, so listing removed 2017 | ||||||
| Katie, Inc. Short Story Contest | UK | See notes | See notes | 2,000 | £5 | £50 |
| Notes on Katie, Inc. Contest: Any style / genre - run as often as once a month (a winner is selected each time 10 entries are received) - winners published in a yearly anthology - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED 2016 | ||||||
| King Author Short Story Prize | UK | March | April | 2,000 | £3.50 | £100 |
| Notes on King Author Competition: Any style / genre - winning entries published in an anthology - CLOSED 2014 | ||||||
| Kingston Writing School International Short Story Competition | UK | June | November | 5,000 | £10 | £3,000 |
| Notes on Kingston Writing School Competition: Style genre varies, sometimes it's fiction, sometimes it's non-fiction - check website for current details - CLOSED 2017 | ||||||
| Kite Journal Annual Short Story Contest | Ukraine | June | September | 10,000 | $10 | $1,000 |
| Notes on Kite Journal Competition: Any style / genre - all entrants receive a one-year digital subscription to The Kite Journal and a digital copy of the Special Edition issue - entrants receive free critiques of submitted work - website taken down in 2013 so no longer running | ||||||
| Kosta's Olive Tree Writing Competition | UK | September | November | 1,500 | £4 | £70 |
| Notes on Kosta's Olive Tree Competition: Any style / genre but themed so check the website for current details - winners published on the website - Vasiliki, who runs the competition, lost her son Kosta in Northern Syria where he died fighting against ISIS, so profits generated by the contest are donated to charities in Costa's name, these include Rebuild, a registered charity for rebuilding war zones in an ecologically friendly way, Combatstress, a UK charity that helps ex-military personnel with PTSD and charitable causes that help Yezidi women and girls who are rescued from ISIS - NOT RUN since 2017, so removed from lists 2019 | ||||||
| Kristell Ink Flash Fiction Competition | UK | August 2013 | September 2013 | 500 | FREE | £20 |
| Notes on Kristell Ink Competition: Fantasy/science fiction/steampunk - a subgenre story involving something with a feline feel - prizes paid in Amazon vouchers - judged by Adam Dalton (Gollancz author) and Mark Lawrence (Harper Voyager author) as well as Alex Shepherd, a well respected reviewer from the website Fantasy Faction - winners published on the website - CLOSED | ||||||
| Kurious Arts Short Story Competition | UK | December | March | 2,000 | £5 | £500 |
| Notes on Kurious Arts Competition: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for full details - winners published in anthology - LOST FUNDING in 2020, so closed but may return if new sponsor can be found | ||||||
| Labello Press Gem Street: Dystopia Short Story Competition | Ireland | July | September | 3,500 | €7 | €500 |
| Notes on Labello Press Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in anthology - particularly interested in stories from anyone who feels marginalised, ostracised and discriminated against due to the way of the world today - COMPETITION NO LONGER MENTIONED ON WEBSITE, so removed from lists Jan 2018 | ||||||
| Lady in the Loft Writing Competition | UK | Quarterly | Quarterly | 2,000 | FREE | £10 |
| Notes on Lady in the Loft Competition: Any style / genre - themed, so check website for current theme - prize money is awarded in WHSmith vouchers, 1st prize £10, 2nd and 3rd prizes £5 - winners published on the website and in an anthology - you can learn more about the anthology and see the cover art on the Lady in the Loft Blog - CLOSED 2015 | ||||||
| Leaf Books Writing Competitions | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Leaf Books Competitions: Various competitions, from diary competitions to horror competitions to the infamous Tiny Weeny writing comp - prizes and entry fees vary - best to visit the website and see what comps they are currently running -Leaf ceased trading in 2014 | ||||||
| Legendary Women, Inc. Literary Contest | USA | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Legendary Women Inc Contest: Any style / genre - themed, so check website for current theme - all stories must feature a female protagonist - winner will have an author interview published - winner and 2 runners up will be published on the website - NOT RUN SINCE 2016, so removed from lists Jan 2018 | ||||||
| Less Than 100 Words | UK | Weekly | Weekly | 99 | FREE* | See notes |
| Notes on Less Than 100 Words Competition: Any style / genre, but different prompt each week, so check website for current prompt - winners published on the website - entry free, but a £1 or £2 entry fee to be introduced soon - small cash prize given, but amount not stated - CLOSED APRIL 2016 | ||||||
| Lightship Publishing Short Story Competition | UK | June | ? | 5,000 | £12 | £1,000 |
| Notes on the Lightship Publishing Competition: Any style / genre - winning story and 9 runners up published in anthology - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED 2016 | ||||||
| Literary Juice Flash Fiction Contest | IN, USA | June | ? | 500 | $6 | $200 |
| Notes on Literary Juice Contest: Any style / genre - winner and runner up published in Literary Juice magazine - COMPETITION NO LONGER MENTIONED ON WEBSITE, SO ASSUME IT'S NOT RUNNING ANYMORE | ||||||
| LiteraTea Spring Short Story Contest | USA | 5th July 2020 | July | 3,000 | FREE | $345 |
| Notes on LiteraTea Contest: Any style / genre but themed around community - in addition to cash, the winner receives a free six-month membership in LiteraTea's Advanced Writers' Program - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Little House Short Story Competition (Previously called Laurel House) | Wales | December | ? | 2,000 | £5 | £100 |
| Notes on Little House Competition: Any style / genre - the 5 runners up receive a 400 word critique, winner receives full critique (I've won this competition in the past, so you can read a lot more about it here) - they also run a 200 word micro fiction contest with a £50 pound prize - no longer running | ||||||
| Living Springs Publishers Sightseer Saga | USA | June | July | 4,000 | $25 | $500 |
| Notes on Living Springs Publishers SS Competition: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current details - minimum of top fifteen finalists published in books - CLOSED | ||||||
| Livingston Arts Center 'New Deal' Writing Competition | USA | April | May | 10,000 | $5 | $200 |
| Notes on Livingstone Arts Center Competition: Any style / genre, but stories must be inspired by a picture, so check website for current details - winners published in Artsphere magazine and on the website - WEBSITE BECAME A SPAMMY LOOKING LOANS SITE in 2019, so removed listing | ||||||
| Longworth Editors Annual Short Story Competition | UK | March | ? | 2,000 | £10 | £250 |
| Notes on The Longworth Editors Competition: Any style / genre - themed, so check the LE website for current theme - every entrant receives a small amount of feedback from the judges - winning stories published on the website - SITE NO LONGER THERE | ||||||
| Love on the Road Short Story Competition 2013 | USA | March 2013 | 2013 | 5,000 | $10 | $200 |
| Notes on Love on the Road Competition: Themed around travel and love - 12 winning stories published in an anthology - CLOSED | ||||||
| Love on the Road Short Story Competition 2014 | USA | 31st July 2014 | 2014 | 5,000 | $10 | $200 |
| Notes on Love on the Road Competition: Themed around travel and love - 12 winning stories published in an anthology - CLOSED | ||||||
| Magic Oxygen Literary Competition | UK | December | February | 4,000 | £5 | £1,000 |
| Notes on the Magic Oxygen Competition: Any style / genre - winners and shortlisted entries published in anthology - Tracey and Simon, the competition organisers, plant a tree for every entry received (each entrant receives GPS coordinates to their tree so they can go and visit it if they wish!) and are also funding the build of a classroom at a school in Kenya - (short story author Christie Cluett was shortlisted and published by Magic Oxygen - read Christie's story and learn about her experiences here) - CLOSED 2019 | ||||||
| Mane Chance Children's Writing Competition | UK | July | July | 1,500 | £5/£2 | £50 |
| Notes on Mane Chance Competition: Any style / genre themed around animals - winners will be published on Mane Chance website, in Surrey Occasions and a newspaper, the title of which is TBC - 3 categories: under 10 (£2 entry), 11 to 14 (£5 entry) and 15 to 18 (£5 entry) - there is also an adult category which you can find in the annual competition list above - CLOSED 2016 | ||||||
| Mane Chance Writing Competition | UK | July | July | 1,500 | £5 | £100 |
| Notes on Mane Chance Competition: Any style / genre but themed around animals - winners will be published on Mane Chance website, in Surrey Occasions and a newspaper, the title of which is TBC - this competition is for adults, you can find details of the Mane Chance children's competition below - CLOSED 2016 | ||||||
| MBS Publishing Short Story Competitions | Scotland | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Up to £300 |
| Notes on MBS Publishing Competitions: Style / genre / theme vary - flash fiction, short story and competitions for students run regularly (sometimes monthly) - entry from £2 to £5 - top prizes from £50 to £300 - all winners published in anthology - check website for current details - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED 2016 | ||||||
| Meridian Writing Short Story Competition | UK | Quarterly | Quarterly | 3,000 | £5 | £100 |
| Notes on Meridian Writing Competition: Any style / genre - winners published on the website - unfortunately, after 4 years of running their quarterly competition, the Meridian Writing Competition closed in 2013 | ||||||
| Milton Keynes Speakeasy Short Story Competition | UK | October | ? | 2,100 | £4 | £125 |
| Notes on Milton Keynes Speakeasy Competition: Any style / genre - CLOSED 2014 | ||||||
| MKGNAO Prize for writing in an animal language | UK | 31st December 2016 | 1st February 2017 | 1,000 | FREE | £10 |
| Notes on MKGNAO Competition: Any style or genre - winner published on Speaking Animal website - in addition to cash prize, winner also receives a voucher for butcher's shop or a vegan alternative - CLOSED, was a one-off contest | ||||||
| Mo-Joe Story Competition | UK | August | September | 300 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Mo-Joe Competition: For children aged 4 to 11 years - write a story about Grandma Mo and Siamese Joe (see website for full details) - prize is a framed print of Grandma Mo and Siamese Joe and publication on the website - NO WINNER ANNOUNCED IN 2019, so removed listing 2020 | ||||||
| Momaya Press Short Story Competition | UK/USA | April | August | 3,000 | £11 / $15 | £110 / $150 |
| Notes on Momaya Press Competition: Any style / genre - themed, so check website for current theme - 3 winners, 7 runners up and some short listed entries published in the Momaya Press Review - CLOSED IN 2020, after running for 17 years | ||||||
| MONO SCARS International Short Story Competition | UK | 3rd December 2021 | December | 3,000 | £6 | £300 |
| Notes on MONO Competition: Any style or genre but theme is scars - winning entry will be published in the April edition of MONO - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Multi Story Competition | UK | Bi-Monthly | Bi-Monthly | Varies | £5 | £300 |
| Notes on Multi Story Competition: Any style / genre - length of entry varies, so check the website - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED 2016 | ||||||
| My Daily Story Competition | USA | Bi-Monthly | Bi-Monthly | 3,000 | $10 | $50 |
| Notes on My Daily Story Competition: Any style / genre - also accept non-fiction and will consider poetry and blog posts - entry fee includes full edit and critique of your story AND you can submit up to 3 stories for the 1 fee, so that's a really good offer! - winners published on the website - website disappeared in 2014 | ||||||
| National Association of Writers' Group | UK | October | December | 2,000 | £5 | £250 |
| Notes on National Association of Writers' Group Competition: Stories for adults - link also contains details of lots of other short story competitions - website disappeared in 2014 | ||||||
| National Galleries of Scotland Inspired? Get Writing! Creative Writing Competition | Scotland | January | April | 1,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on National Galleries of Scotland Competition: Any style / genre - write a poem or piece of prose inspired by one of the works in the collections of the National Galleries of Scotland - winners published in the Scotsman newspaper, runners-up and winners receive free entry into National Gallery of Scotland exhibitions and highly commended, runners-up and winners have work read at public reading and are all published in an anthology - CLOSED 2014 | ||||||
| Needle in the Hay Writing Awards | Australia | Weekly / Monthly | Weekly / Monthly | 200 to 2,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Needle in the Hay Competitions: Any style / genre - LOADS of different competitions, run weekly and monthly all year round for different story lengths with varying prize amounts - best to check the website and see what is currently running - short listed stories published on the website and then a rotating panel of judges vote for winner - prizes vary from cash (up to A$400) to critiques - WEBSITE NOT UPDATED FOR MONTHS, so removed listing in 2020 update | ||||||
| New Writer Short Story Competition | UK | November | March | 3,000 | £5 | £300 |
| Notes on New Writer Competition: Any style / genre (not children's) - winners published in the magazine - website disappeared in 2014 | ||||||
| Nigeria Health Care Project 25th Anniversary Short Story Competition | UK | 30th June 2017 | 1st October 2017 | 3,000 | £5 | £100 |
| Notes on Nigeria Health Care Competition: Any style or genre, but for 18 to 30 year olds only - all 15 shortlisted writers receive a free copy of Chibundu Onuzo's Welcome to Lagos - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Nine Voices 50 Word Story Competition | UK | 31st October 2016 | November 2016 | 50 | FREE | £25 |
| Notes on 9 Voices Competition: Any style or genre but based on a picture so check out the blog for full details - winners published on the website CLOSED, was a one-off but may run again | ||||||
| Ninevoices' Short Story Competition | UK | 28th September 2019 | December 2019 | 1,500 | £5 | £250 |
| Notes on Ninevoices' Competition: Any style / genre but theme is 'summer' - entrants must have earned less than £300 from their fiction writing during 2018 - winner published on website - runner up prize £50 - CLOSED, was a one-off but may run again | ||||||
| Nine Voices Short Story Competition | UK | 31st May 2015 | July 2015 | 2,000 | £5 | £100 |
| Notes on Nine Voices Competition: Any style / genre - proceeds from the competition go to Polymyalgia Rheumatica & Giant Cell Arteritis charity CLOSED, was a one-off but may run again | ||||||
| Nottingham Short Story Competition | UK | April | ? | 2,500 | £10 | £1,000 |
| Notes on Nottingham Short Story Competition: Any style / genre - 3 winners and 15 short listed stories published in anthology. 3 winners also receive critiques - website taken down in 2013 | ||||||
| Nottingham Writers' Club Short Story Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | 2,000 | £5 | £200 |
| Notes on Nottingham Writers' Club Competition: Themed, so check website for current theme - winners published on the NWC website - NOT RUN SINCE 2018, so removed listing during 2021 update | ||||||
| Nouvelles Magazine Short Stories From Pere Lachaise | France | Tri-Annually | Tri-Annually | 2,000 | €10 | See notes |
| Notes on Pere Lachaise Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in English and French in Nouvelles Magazine - if enough entries are received, a book maybe published too - CLOSED 2016 | ||||||
| Odd Voice Out 'Not So Normal Narrators' Competition | UK | 31st August 2019 | October 2019 | 5,000 | £4 | £200 |
| Notes on Odd Voice Out Competition: Any style / genre, but themed, so check website for full details - winners published in anthology - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Offside Stories Writing Competition | UK | 14th July 2014 | 2014 | 1,000 | £8 | £100 |
| Notes on Offside Stories Competition: Themed around football - accept short stories, flash fiction, poetry and football chants as entries - you can enter 3 stories for the £8 fee - winners in each category receive a minimum prize of £100 - winners and shortlisted entrants published in anthology - CLOSED | ||||||
| Oh Zoe! Rising Talent Award | UK | March | April | 1,500 | FREE | £500 |
| Notes on Oh Zoe! Award: Children's picture book (words only, not pictures) - winner receives cash prize plus a range of development courses and services - all winners and shortlisted entries offered the opportunity to have their book illustrated and published by Oh Zoe! - NO LONGER mentioned on website, so removed listing 2019 | ||||||
| Omnestream Out of Frame Anthologies Competition | USA | 31st August 2017 | Oct 7th 2017 | 4,000 | $5 | See notes |
| Notes on Omnestream Competition: Suspense, horror, mystery and crime - no cash prize, but every submission receives feedback - winners published in the Out of Frame Anthologies CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| One Teen Story Short Story Contest | NY, USA | June | ? | 4,000 | FREE | $500 |
| Notes on One Teen Story Competition: Any style / genre - winner published in One Teen Story magazine - in addition to the cash prize, the winner receives 25 copies of the magazine and a 28" x 20" poster of the OTS magazine's front cover - honourable mentions in 3 categories: 14-15, 16-17, and 18-19-year-olds - CLOSED 2014, but still accepting general submissions | ||||||
| Oriel Davies Open Writing Competition | Wales | November | December | 1,000 | £3 | £50 |
| Notes on Oriel Davies Competition: Any style / genre but themed so check website for current details - prize paid as a voucher to be spent at the Oriel Davies Gallery - winners published on the website and read to an audience at an event in February - NO MENTION OF COMPETITION ON SITE ANYMORE, so removed listing 2017 | ||||||
| Oval Magazine Short Story Competition | USA | Varies | Varies | 5,000 | $2 | $5 |
| Notes on Oval Magazine Competition: Any style / genre - winners published on website and in magazine - magazine is published in October - CLOSED 2016 | ||||||
| Oxford Festival of the Arts Stories: By & For Children | UK | 2nd May 2016 | May | 1,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Oxford Festival of Arts Competition: Any style or genre, but entries must be by or for children - winners invited to read their stories during an event at Oxford Festival of the Arts in June 2016 - CLOSED 2016 | ||||||
| Palmnates Writing Prize | South Africa | Monthly | Monthly | 2,000 | FREE | $200 |
| Notes on Palmnates Prize: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for full details - winners and minimum of 7 runners-up will be published in a Kindle anthology - WEBSITE disappeared during 2018 | ||||||
| Pen & Ink Designs Spring Writing Competition | UK | May | ? | 4,000 | £4 | £25 |
| Notes on Pen & Ink Designs Competition: Any style / genre - winner and 10 best entries published in a short story collection - CLOSED 2014 due to lack of entries | ||||||
| Petersfield Bookshop 'Ghosts in the Bookshop' Competition | UK | 30th November 2018 | 15th December 2018 | See notes | FREE | £100 |
| Notes on Petersfield Bookshop Competition: Ghost stories set in a bookshop - winning stories read at event - no word limit but stories must take less than 20 minutes to read aloud CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Pink Pen Short Story Competition | UK | Quarterly | Quarterly | 2,000 | £4.50 | £100 |
| Notes on Pink Pen Competition: Doesn't seem to be running anymore. Any style / genre - winners published on website and in ebook anthology - maximum of 100 entries, so competition might close early if 100 entries are received | ||||||
| Playboy Magazine College Fiction Contest | USA | February | ? | 5,000 | $5* | $3,000 |
| Notes on Playboy Contest: Any style / genre - entrants must be a college student over 18 years of age - no entry fee for Playboy subscribers - winner published in Playboy, 2nd prize $300, 3rd prize $150, 2nd and 3rd receive free subscription to Playboy for a year - CLOSED 2015 | ||||||
| Playing Bingo Short Story Competition | UK | February | March | 3,000 | FREE | £300 |
| Notes on the Bingo Competition: Any style / genre, but theme is about Bingo. Winners and short listed stories published on the site and in an anthology - CLOSED 2014 | ||||||
| Play With Death Short Story Competition | Vietnam | 20th February 2015 | March 2015 | 10,000 | FREE | $50 |
| Notes on Play With Death Competition: Any style / genre, but must be REALLY scary - winners published in eBook | ||||||
| Plymouth Writers Group Open Writing Competition | UK | January | ? | 2,000 | £5 | £250 |
| Notes on the PWG Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in anthology and on website - HASN'T RUN for a year, so removed from lists 2019 | ||||||
| Poetic Republic Short Story Prize | UK | April | ? | 3,000 | £12 | £2,000 |
| Notes on Poetic Republic Prize: Any style / genre - winners and shortlisted entries published in eBook - participants read each other's work and effectively judge the competition, see link for details - SITE NOT UPDATED SINCE 2015, so removed listing 2017 | ||||||
| Portable Story Series Competition | USA | Tri-Annually | Tri-Annually | 4,500 | $10 | See notes |
| Notes on PSS Competition: Any style / genre - top prize is $250 or 75% of submission fees (whichever is greater) and winning story professionally recorded (valued at $5500) and made available on the website as a free download - each contest supports 3 charitable organisations - NOT RUN SINCE 2017, so removed listing 2019 | ||||||
| Prarie Fire Press Short Fiction Contest | Canada | November | ? | 10,000 | C$32 | C$1,250 |
| Notes on Prarie Fire Contest: Any style / genre - entry includes 1 year subscription to Prarie Fire magazine - winners published in the magazine and paid for publication - CLOSED THEIR CONTESTS IN 2019 :-( | ||||||
| Print Express Children's Short Story Competition | UK | 31st March 2017 | 14th April 2017 | 500 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Print Express Competition: Any style or genre - top prize is £50 in book tokens and £175 in book tokens for the winner's school - open to children between 5 and 13 (two age brackets - 5 to 9 and 10 to 13) - winners published on the website - this is a one-off competition - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Print Express Flash Fiction Competition | UK | 31st July 2016 | 5th August 2016 | 150 | FREE | £100* |
| Notes on Print Express Competition: Any style or genre - prize paid in Amazon vouchers - winner published on website - ONE-OFF CLOSED 2016 | ||||||
| Print What Matters 'Write Christmas' Competition | UK | November | December | 200 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Print What Matters Competition: Any style / genre but themed around Christmas - open to children aged between 4 and 11 - winner receives a stocking filled with £50 worth of goodies and winner's primary school receives £1,500 - top 50 entries published in an e-book - NOT RUN since 2016, so removed listing 2019 | ||||||
| Prole Books Prolitzer Prize Short Story Comp | UK | October | December | 2,500 | £4 | £200 |
| Notes on Prole Books Prolitzer Competition: Any style / genre (I think - guide says 'writing that is accessible to all while not sacrificing quality') - winner published on website and possible publication through Prole - CLOSED, not run since 2016 so removed from lists 2018 | ||||||
| Reader's Digest 100-Word-Story Competition | UK | February | March | 100 | FREE | £1,000 |
| Notes on Reader's Digest Competition: Any style / genre but entries must be exactly 100 words in length - the full details of this contest have been moved to a dedicated resource for very short story competitions - DISAPPEARED during 2018 | ||||||
| Reader's Digest 100-Word-Story Competition | UK | February | March | 100 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Reader's Digest Competition: Any style / genre but entries must be exactly 100 words in length - 2 age groups: under 12s and 12-18 year olds - winner in each group wins a Samsung Galaxy S2 Tablet, a Samsung Gear S watch and money for their school - NO LONGER MENTIONED ON WEBSITE, so removed listing 2019 | ||||||
| Red Tuque Books Inc Short Story Competition | Canada | December | March | 5,000 | C$15 | C$500 |
| Notes on Red Tuque Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in anthology - CLOSED 2017 | ||||||
| Renay Allen's Woman vs. Muse Writing Competition | Australia | April | May | 2,500 | A$10 | A$100 |
| Notes on Renay Allen's Competition: Any style / genre - themed, so check website for current theme - all proceeds go to charity MS Queensland - NOT RUN SINCE 2014 | ||||||
| Rochdale Literature Festival Bite-sized Enlightenment | UK | 19th September 2015 | October 2015 | 500 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Rochdale Literature Festival Competition: Any style / genre - winners get to perform their story alongside acclaimed flash fiction writer, David Gaffney CLOSED | ||||||
| Rubery Short Story Competition | UK | October | ? | 3,000 | £7.50 | £600 |
| Notes on Rubery Competition: Any style / genre - winners and shortlisted stories published in an anthology - 2nd prize £150, 3rd prize £50 - STOPPED RUNNING 2015 | ||||||
| Ruler's Wit Dark and Light Competition | UK | 31st July 2021 | August 2021 | 3,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Ruler's Wit Competition: Any style or subject, but themed around dark and light - prize is a free copy-edit (up to 5,000 words); a free session with a writing mentor; a free 500-word marketing/blog post; a free cover design - winners publication in an anthology published in paperback and eBook formats - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| RWL Short Story Competition | UK | Quarterly | Quarterly | 10,000 | FREE | £100 |
| Notes on RWL Competition: Any style / genre - winners published on website - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED in 2019 | ||||||
| Ryedale Book Festival Short Story Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | 8,000 | FREE | £250 |
| Notes on Ryedale Book Festival Competition: Any style / genre - ten winning stories published in print and ebook formats by Blackthorn Press - NOT RUN SINCE 2018, so removed listing in 2020 update | ||||||
| Sash Writing Competition | UK | 10th October 2014 | Early 2015 | 3,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Sash Writing Competition: Any genre, but theme is 'Homeless' - prize is an Arvon 5 day residential writing course - entry is free, but donations to the charity running the competition would be welcomed - winners might be published in an anthology - CLOSED, was a one off | ||||||
| SaveAs Writers "The Bigger Picture - Reflections on the Great War" Writing Competition | UK | 23rd August 2014 | October 2014 | 3,000 | £3 | £50 |
| Notes on SaveAs Writers Competition: Themed around the first world war - winners published in pamphlet - CLOSED | ||||||
| Scare the Dickens Out of Us Short Story Contest | TX, USA | October | December | 5,000 | $20 | $1,000 |
| Notes on Scare the Dickens Out of Us Competition: Ghost stories only - nice cash prizes and trophies, but no publication for winners - the competition is run as a fundraiser for the Dr. Eugene Clark Library in Lockhart, Texas - sadly, this comp closed in 2013 | ||||||
| Scriggler BNBS Crime Thriller Short Story Competition | UK | 31st January 2015 | 28th February 2015 | 7,500 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Scriggler Britain's Next Best Seller Competition: Crime thriller - 10 to 12 winning entries published in an anthology - no monetary prize - proceeds of anthology go to charity | ||||||
| SEAM Short Story Jam Competition | USA | Monthly | Monthly | no max stated | FREE | $100 |
| Notes on SEAM Competition: Any style / genre - choice of themes, see website for more details - CLOSED 2015 | ||||||
| Secant Publishing 'The Year's Best Dog Stories' | USA | 1st May 2021 | 21st June 2021 | 3,000 | $10 | $500 |
| Notes on Secant Publishing Competition: Any style / genre but theme is communication between dogs and humans - winners published in an anthology by Secant Publishing, in coordination with contest sponsor The Greyhound-An Indie Bookstore, in Berlin, Maryland - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Selfpublishing.ie Winter Warmer Writing Competition | Ireland | December | January | 1,250 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Selfpublsihing.ie Competition: Any style / genre - themed, check website for current theme - winner receives a place at Listowel Writers' Week Workshop, 2nd and 3rd place receive Amazon vouchers - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED 2016 | ||||||
| Sentinel Literary Short Story Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Sentinel Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in Sentinel Literary Magazine - their short story competition is currently under review, but the poetry competition they run is still operating - SHORT STORY COMP NO LONGER RUNNING, so removed listing in 2020 update | ||||||
| Severance Publications Writing Competitions | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | FREE | £50 |
| Notes on Severance Publications Competition: Any style / genre but each competition has a different theme, so check website for current details - winners published in anthologies - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED 2019 | ||||||
| Shade of Loud Short Story Competition | UK | January | March | 1,500 | £5 | £250 |
| Notes on Far From the Madding Crowd Competition: Any style / genre - themed, so check website for current theme - CLOSED 2014 | ||||||
| Short Story Land Writing Contest | USA | Biannually | Biannually | 4,500 | $19 | $500 |
| Notes on Short Story Land Contest: Any style / genre - multiple cash prizes - winners published on website and in an anthology by Myakka Press - CLOSED 2020 | ||||||
| Short Story Project Competition | Israel | Varies | Varies | 2,500 | $17 | $5,000 |
| Notes on Short Story Project Competition: Any style or genre but themed so check website for current details - runs 2 or 3 times a year, so entry times vary - winners published on website - NOT RUN SINCE 2018, so removed listing from website during 2020 update | ||||||
| Sleek City Press Winter Fiction Prize | Canada | 7th December 2021 | 15th January 2022 | 5,000 | $7 | See notes |
| Notes on Sleek City Press Prize: Any style or subject, but prompt is 'double life' - top prize is full editorial mark-up plus co-piloting on up to 20,000 words of portfolio - cash prizes for second and third - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Small but Mighty Writers Competition for 7 to 11 year olds | UK | Quarterly | Quarterly | 1,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Small but Mighty Writers Competition: Any style / genre but sometimes themed so check website for current details - entrants must be 7 to 11 years old - winner receives a bundle of writing goodies and is published on the website, along with runners up - NOT RUN since 2017, so deleted listing 2019 | ||||||
| Small but Mighty Writers Competition for 12 to 15 year olds | UK | Quarterly | Quarterly | 1,500 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Small but Mighty Writers Competition: Any style / genre but sometimes themed so check website for current details - entrants must be 12 to 15 years old - winner receives a bundle of writing goodies and is published on the website, along with runners up - deadlines are 1st of January, April, July, October - results on 14th of each month - NOT RUN since 2017, so deleted listing 2019 | ||||||
| Solopress Story Writing Contest | UK | Feb 2013 | March 2013 | no max | see notes | £500 |
| Notes on Solopress Competition: Any style / genre - 500 word minimum, no maximum - the £500 prize is paid in Amazon vouchers, not cash - rather than an entry fee, you have to like them on Facebook, subscribe to their blog and link to their site from your blog (where you also have to publish your story) - CLOSED | ||||||
| Solution Loans Short Story Competition | UK | Biannually | Biannually | Varies | FREE | £200 |
| Notes on Solution Loans Competition: Any style / genre, but themed, so check website for current details - winners published on the Solution Loans website - started off as an annual competition, but due to the success of the inaugural contest, is now running twice a year When this competition launched, I received a few concerns on Twitter. Some writers were worried that Solution Loans were exploiting writers for free content. I wrote to Solution Loans about these concerns and received this response: The idea to sponsor a Short Story competition actually came from one of our employees who is a keen writer, and regularly enters competitions in her spare time. We thought it was a great idea, so offered to support it. Finance can be a pretty dull area so we're always looking for new ideas and ways to link to our Solution Loans brand. It's just a form of sponsorship really – a bit like Costa and Bailey's sponsoring book awards! Yes, there are prizes - £200 for the winner and 3 x £50 for runners up. Only the four winning entries will be published on the website, and if a writer has a concern about that then I'm sure we could have a separate discussion. There's no question about us gaining free content. We already employ a number of freelance writers to produce our blog and social media posts. Hopefully aspiring writers will see it as an opportunity to have their work recognised and published and win a cash prize. Alex Silverman, Competition Co-Ordinator I understand the concerns of the writers who queried the legitimacy of this contest. However, having worked in digital marketing, I also understand what Solution Loans are doing. I've done the same things for clients in the past. As the competition is legitimate, and Solution Loans were good enough to prepare the response above, I will be continuing to list the contest on my website. Winning writers receive cash prizes, so I don't believe they are being exploited - they are being paid for their stories. I hope this resolves any concerns, but if not, please feel free to contact me NOT RUN FOR A YEAR, so removed listing during 2020 update | ||||||
| Sophie King Prize | UK | January | March | 2,500 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on The Sophie King Competition: Romantic fiction only - the winning story will be recorded professionally and broadcast via an audio player on the Sophie King website - the winner also receives a £50 voucher for an online shop called the Handpicked Collection and a silver plated jug - no longer running | ||||||
| Sons of Joy Short Story Competition | USA | Monthly | Monthly | 1,000 | FREE | $100 |
| Notes on Sons of Joy Competition: Any style / genre - themed about food, check website for current theme - prize paid as Visa giftcard - winners published on the website - CLOSED | ||||||
| Southampton University Green Stories Competition | UK | 19th April 2018 | June 2018 | 3,500 | FREE | £200 |
| Notes on Southampton Uni Competition: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for full details - winning stories published in anthology and distributed via organisations interested in sustainability CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Southern Pacific Review Short Story Competition | South America | March | April | no max | FREE | $100 |
| Notes on SPR's Competition: Any style / genre - entries accepted in English or Spanish - winning entries published in the Southern Pacific Review - CLOSED 2017 after 6 years of publication | ||||||
| SouthWestFest Annual Writing Competition | UK | June | June | 500 | £3 | £50 |
| Notes on SouthWestFest Competition: Any style / genre but themed so check website for current theme - winners published on website, recorded for radio/podcast and included in a curated art exhibition at Abbey Centre, London - shortlisted entries will be invited to exhibit at the art exhibition and may be chosen for recording opportunities - also accept poetry and scripts - NO LONGER MENTIONED ON WEBSITE, so removed listing 2017 | ||||||
| Speakando European Literary Competition | Italy | May | June | 1,840 | £10 | Up to €1,000 |
| Notes on Speakando Competition: Any style / genre but themed so check website for current theme - prize is dependent on number of entries, so might be less - winners published on website - NOT RUN SINCE 2015, so removed listing 2017 | ||||||
| Spinetinglers Short Story Competition | N Ireland | Monthly | Monthly | 5,000 | FREE | £100 |
| Notes on Spinetinglers Competition: Themed, so check website for current theme - 2nd prize £50, 3rd, 4th and 5th prizes of £25 - each monthly winner published in yearly anthology - NOT RUN SINCE 2015, so removed from site 2017 | ||||||
| Stirling Health Food Store 'I Love Nature' Competition | Scotland | 4th October 2015 | 17th October 2015 | See notes | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Stirling Health Food Competition: Any style / genre - 3 age groups: 7 – 10 years old 500 words max; 11 – 14 years old 750 words max; 15 – 18 years old 1,000 words max - winners receive an animal themed prize that supports the RSPB and the SSPCA CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Stirling Robyns Publishing Short Story Competition | UK/USA | Quarterly | Quarterly | 5,000 | $3 | $100 |
| Notes on Stirling Robyns Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in anthology and on website - winner also receives a free reading of their novel/novella/poetry chapbook - not run since 2017, so removed listing 2019 | ||||||
| Storgy's 'Shallow Creek' Competition | UK | 31st August 2018 | September | 5,000 | £10 | £500 |
| Notes on Shallow Creek: Prompt competition - entrants emailed a character, location (within Shallow Creek) and item that needs to be used in story, see link for full details - winners published in Shallow Creek Anthology - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Story Planner Monthly Writing Competition | UK | Monthly | Monthly | 1,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Story Planner Competition: Any style / genre but for a novel or short story outline or summary - winners receive writing books and free subscription to the site - CLOSED MAY 2016 | ||||||
| Streetcake Experimental Writing Prize | UK | 14th June 2019 | Summer 2019 | 2,500 | £1 | See notes |
| Notes on Streetcake Prize: Any style or subject - two age bands (18-21 and 22-26) - winners receive personalised mentoring sessions - other prizes include personalised feedback and book bundles - winners published online and in a hardcopy anthology - also accept poems - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Stringybark Dog Eat Dog Short Story Award | Australia | 16th July 2017 | 26th September 2017 | 1,500 | $12 | $450 |
| Notes on Stringybark Award: Any style or genre, but inspired by cliches, so check website for full details - winners published in anthology - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Stringybark Stories Seven Deadly Sins Short Story Award | Australia | 23rd April 2017 | 11th July 2017 | 1,500 | $12 | $450 |
| Notes on Stringybark Award: Any style or genre but themed around the 7 deadly sins - winners and highly commended stories published - Notes on Stringybark Award: Any style or genre but themed around the 7 deadly sins - winners and highly commended stories published - CLOSED 2017, was a one-off | ||||||
| Subtopian Magazine Short Story Competition | USA | May 30th 2014 | ? | 1,000 | $10 | $100 |
| Notes on Subtopian Competition: Any style / genre, but stories must be written in the first person and be on the topic of a Dystopian future - 20 winning stories published in anthology and performed live on stage in Portland - winners will receive a digital copy of the performance - if successful, this will become a regular short story competition CLOSED | ||||||
| Swansea & District Writers' Circle Short Story Competition | Wales | Varies | Varies | 2,500 | £6 | £150 |
| Notes on Swansea & District Writers' Circle Competition: Any style or genre but themed, so check website for current details - winners published in eAnthology - top prize includes 1 year's free membership of Swansea Writers' Circle - NO MENTION OF COMPETITION ON WEBSITE, so removed listing 2017 | ||||||
| Swanezine Short Story Competition | UK | August | September | 1,000 | FREE | £30 |
| Notes on Swazine Competition: Any style or genre - UK residents only, 2 entries per author. This is a new competition, launched in 2012. Shortlisted stories will be published on the website - CLOSED 2014 | ||||||
| Swansea Writers WW1 Short Story Competition | Wales | 16th June 2014 | July 2014 | 2,500 | £5 | £100 |
| Notes on Swansea Writers WW1 Competition: Stories must be about the first world war - winners published in an anthology CLOSED | ||||||
| Sweek's Writing Competitions | Holland | Varies | Varies | Varies | FREE | Varies |
| Notes on Sweek's Competition: Any style / genre - Sweek run a wide variety of regular writing competitions, so it's best to check the website to see what's currently running - ONLY RUN FLASH FICTION NOW, so moved listing to flash comps page | ||||||
| Sweek's Write Your 2017 Competition | Holland | 31st January 2017 | 9th February 2017 | No max | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Sweek's Competition: Any style or genre - winners receive Samsung Galaxy Tab and various plus multiple giftcards up to $75 in value - winners published on website - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Swift Satire Festival Battle of the Books Competition | Ireland | July | July | 1,000 | €5 | €500 |
| Notes on Swazine Competition: Any style or genre but themed, so check website for current theme (humour is not essential, but will probably help!) - winners maybe published - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED 2016 | ||||||
| Tacchi-Morris Arts Centre 'The Page Is Printed' Creative Writing Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | 1 side of A4 | £5 | £100 |
| Notes on Tacchi-Morris Competition: Any style or genre - see the 'what's on' section of the website - short stories, poetry, or any type of creative writing but entries must be no longer than 1 side of A4 - entry fee includes a ticket to the evening event - lots of cash prizes in addition to winner - NO LONGER MENTIONED ON WEBSITE, so removed listing in 2021 update | ||||||
| Talent River Shortz Competition | UK | September | ? | 5,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Talent River Competition: Any style or genre - winner receives a £250 Amazon voucher - winner selected by public vote - winners published on website - look in the 'About' section of the website under 'Writing' to find the details - SITE ABANDONED 2014 | ||||||
| Tales of Eltham Short Story Competition | UK | 21st February 2014 | 23rd April 2014 | 300 | FREE | £15 |
| Notes on Tales of Eltham Competition: Any style / genre but stories must be set in Eltham, London SE9, UK - winners published on the website CLOSED | ||||||
| Tarbert Book Festival Writing Competition | Scotland | 30th June 2016 | October | 500 | £5 | See notes |
| Notes on Tarbert Book Festival Competition: Any style or genre, but theme is 'West Coast Wonders' - top prize is a week's course at Moniack Mhor - all shortlisted entrants receive a critique and a festival pass - may become an annual competition in the future - ONE-OFF CLOSED 2016 | ||||||
| Tartan Treasures 'Dear Diary' competition | Scotland | 20th February 2015 | ? | See notes | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Tartan Treasures Competition: Themed, see website for details - 2 categories; under 16's, max words 400, prize Kindle Fire HD Tablet; over 16's, max words 800, prize Dinner and B&B for 2 at the Carnoustie Golf Hotel | ||||||
| Theatre Cloud 'Tell A Tale' Competition | UK | 19th November 2016 | 24th November 2016 | 500 | FREE | £300 |
| Notes on Theatre Cloud Competition: Any style or genre but themed so check website for details - all shortlisted stories performed by an actor, recorded and made available online - CLOSED, was a one-off competition | ||||||
| The Bedford Competition's Rainbow Short Story Prize | UK | 31st October 2020 | December 2020 | 3,000 | £6 | £500 |
| Notes on The Bedford Competition's Rainbow Prize: Any style / genre but for writers aged 70+ years - all proceeds donated to charities helping COVID-19 victims - winning stories published in paperback and Kindle formats - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| The Blend Future Visions Award | Australia | Varies | Varies | 7,000 | Varies | $500 |
| Notes on The Blend Award: Any style or genre - winner published in The Blend journal - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED 2020 | ||||||
| The Caterpillar Story for Children Prize | Ireland | September | December | 1,500 | €12 | €1,000 |
| Notes on Caterpillar Prize: Any style / genre but story must be written by an adult for children aged 7-11 - winners published by The Caterpillar - they sometimes run a poetry prize instead of short story prize - HASN'T RUN SINCE 2019, so removed listing during 2022 update | ||||||
| The Cult Of Me Short Fiction Contest | Iceland | Monthly | Monthly | 500 | FREE | £50 |
| Notes on The Cult Of Me Contest: Any style / genre but inspired by a different image each month, so check website for current picture - prizes paid via PayPal or as an Amazon voucher - winners published on the website - CLOSED MAY 2016 | ||||||
| The Once and Future Moon Anthology from Eibonvale Press | UK | 30th April 2019 | Summer | 5,000 | FREE | £10 |
| Notes on The Once and Future Moon Anthology: Award-winning editor Allen Ashley says: "I am pleased to announce that I am editing a brand new fiction anthology called The Once and Future Moon for Eibonvale Press. I am looking for unpublished science fiction and science fantasy stories involving the Moon. Must relate to Luna – not Jovian moons, Martian moons, etc. Sorry, no flash and no poetry." - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| The Maine Review Writing Contest | ME, USA | September | November | 1,500 | $10 | $150 |
| Notes on The Maine Review Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in The Maine Review and all submissions also considered for publication - COMPETITION NO LONGER MENTIONED ON WEBSITE, so removed listing 2017 | ||||||
| The Missing Slate New Voices Fiction Writing Competition 2014 | Pakistan | 1st July 2014 | August 2014 | 10,000 | $10 | $150 |
| Notes on Missing Slate Competition: Any style / genre - winner and runners up published in print anthology - if enough people enter, the prize money will increase - although the magazine originated in Pakistan, the editorial staff are sprawled across five continents and have published poetry and fiction from over 50 countries including work from Pulitzer winner (and Booker Prize 2013 shortlisted writer) Jhumpa Lahiri, Musharraf Ali Farooqi, Mohsin Hamid, Moniza Alvi, Kamila Shamsie, Anis Shivani, Luke Kennard, S.J. Fowler, Jeet Thayil, Sidin Vadukut, Tishani Doshi, Shikha Malaviya, Anuradha Roy, Ravi Shankar, among others CLOSED | ||||||
| The Monkey Collective's Monkey Collection | UK | Quarterly | Quarterly | 5,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on The Monkey Collective Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in short story collection and get a royalty on sales - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED 2019 | ||||||
| The Print Express Haiku Competition | UK | 31st October 2016 | 4th November 2016 | N/A | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Print Express Competition: Family friendly haikus - top prize is £100 Amazon voucher - CLOSED, was a one-off competition | ||||||
| The Red Line Short Story Competition | UK | Bi-Monthly | Bi-Monthly | 3,500 | FREE | £50 |
| Notes on The Red Line Competition: Any style / genre - themed, so check the website for the current theme - winners and short listed entries published on the website CLOSED 2016 | ||||||
| The Squat Pen Rests Short Story Writing Competition | UK | Quarterly (ish) | See notes | 2,000 | £3 | £50 |
| Notes on The Squat Pen Rests Competition: Any style / genre but each competition has prompt, so check website for current details - shortlisted writers read at live short story performance event held in Swindon, UK, where the winner is selected by the audience - in addition to cash, winner receives a mug emblazoned with 'Writing Champion of the World' (or similar) - all finalists' stories published on the competition website and receive a runners-up mug - not run since Jan 2018 so removed listing 2019 | ||||||
| The Steyning Festival Short Story Prize 2018 | UK | 11th March 2018 | May 2018 | 2,500 | £5 | £200 |
| Notes on Steyning Festival Prize: Any style / genre - entrants must live or have lived in East or West Sussex - winners published on West Sussex Writers website - trophy awarded to winner - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| The Trafalgar Way Short Story Contest | UK | 6th November 2018 | January 2019 | See notes | FREE | £500 |
| Notes on Trafalgar Way Contest : Any style or genre but themed, so check website for full details - 3 age categories: ages 7-11, 500 words, top prize £100; ages 12-16, 1,000 words, top prize £250; ages 17-21, 2,500 words, top prize £500 - prize presentations take place on HMS Victory - winners published in book - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| The Woolf Short Story Competition | Switzerland | December | February | 2,000 | 20 CHF | 150 CHF |
| Notes on The Woolf Competition: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current details - 3 winning entries win a cash prize and publication in The Woolf- sometimes run a poetry competition instead of short story - NOT RUN SINCE 2017, so removed listing 2019 | ||||||
| The World's Greatest Writing Competition | Australia | 9th November 2013 | 10th November 2013 | no max stated | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on TWGWC Competition: Any style / genre - re the prize, I'm told all entrants will be able to gain some benefit either in the form of financial benefit and/or exposure to TWGWC's global audience - may become a regular comp - CLOSED | ||||||
| The Woven TalePress Hampton's Competition | USA | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | See notes |
| Notes on The Woven Tale Press Competition: Any style / genre - top prize is a retreat in the Hamptons, NY - top 3 stories published in print and eBook - runs every year, but one year is short story, the next poetry (2020 poetry, 2021 short story etc.) - COMPETITION NO LONGER MENTIONED ON WEBSITE, so removed listing in 2021 update | ||||||
| The Write Place | UK | August | ? | 1,500 | £4.50 | £100 |
| Notes on The Write Place Competition: Any style / genre - winning stories published on website | ||||||
| The Writing Competition | UK | Quarterly | Quarterly | 500 | £4 | £100 |
| Notes on The Writing Competition: Any style / genre - winners published on the website - website disappeared 2015 | ||||||
| The Writing District Competition | USA | Monthly | Monthly | 3,000 | FREE | $50 |
| Notes on The Writing District Competition: Any style / genre - winners published on website - NOT RUN FOR OVER 6 MONTHS, so removed listing during 2020 update | ||||||
| The Writing World Short Story Competition | UK | See notes | See notes | 3,000 | £5 | £100 |
| Notes on The Writing World Competition: Any style / genre but themed, so check website for current details - runs every month for a 6 month period between October and March - winners published in eBook anthology - Doesn't seem to be running anymore, so removed listing 2019 | ||||||
| Thinkerbeat 'Shorties' Writing Competition | USA | Quarterly | Quarterly | 3,000 | $4 | $125 |
| Notes on Thinkerbeat Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in anthology at the end of the year - entry includes a free copy of the previous year's anthology - 2nd prize $50; 3rd prize $25 - if enough people enter, prizes will be given to runners up CLOSED 2016 | ||||||
| This Very Breath Flash Fiction Competition | USA | see notes | see notes | 750 | $3 | $50 |
| Notes on This Very Breath Competition: Any style or genre - competition closes after 100 entries have been received - winners published in This Very Breath Journal - may become regular if first one is a success - Website disappeared 2016 | ||||||
| Thresholds International Short Story Forum | UK | February | April | 2,000 | ? | £250 |
| Notes on Thresholds Competition: Any style / genre - CLOSED | ||||||
| Tenby Arts Festival | Wales | July | September | 1,500 | £4 | £150 |
| Notes on Tenby Arts Festival Competition: Any style / genre - NO MENTION OF COMPETITION ON WEBSITE ANYMORE, so removed listing 2017 | ||||||
| Totally 4 Women Short Story Competition | UK | Monthly | Monthly | Varies | FREE | Varies |
| Notes on T4S Competition: Any style / genre - themed, so check website for current theme - men and women are welcome to enter - winners published on the website - WEBSITE NOW REDIRECTS TO HENPICKED.NET (??) | ||||||
| Tryon Arts & Crafts School 'The Apparitionist' National Ghost Story Competition | USA | August | October | 5,500 | $10 | $200 |
| Notes on Tryon Arts & Crafts Competition: Ghost stories - winners published on website and their stories will be performed at the Black and White Gallery Show on Halloween - open to US residents only - NOT RUN SINCE 2018, so removed listing 2020 | ||||||
| UK Short Story Competition | UK | August | October | 2,500 | £12 | £1,000 |
| Notes on UK Short Story Competition: Any style / genre except children's or erotica - 2nd prize £500, 3rd prize £250, 27 x runner-up prizes £50 - top 30 stories published in a book which has 10,000 copies distributed throughout the UK - CLOSED, website disappeared 2017 | ||||||
| Umm Kulthum Short Story Competition | Egypt | 1st January 2015 | ? | 2,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Umm Kulthum Competition: Any style or genre - winners published in a book - entries in Arabic only - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Under the Hood 'Hooded Monster' Contest | USA | 31st August 2020 | 30th September 2020 | 10,000 | FREE | $100 |
| Notes on Under the Hood Contest: For stories about facing down a monster and overcoming it - winners published on website and reviewed on YouTube - for US residents only - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| University College London 'Changing The Human Brain' Writing Competition | UK | 15th September 2013 | ? | 1,500 | FREE | ? |
| Notes on UCL Competition: Themed: the brain - more details to follow - CLOSED | ||||||
| Valentine's Day Ideas Romantic Story Contest | USA | February | ? | 3,000 | FREE | $1,000 |
| Notes on Valentine's Day Ideas Competition: Romance and love stories - 9 runner's up prizes - winning stories published on the website and in an eBook - NO LONGER RUNNING | ||||||
| Vanda 'n' Linda's Write Space Short Story Competition | UK | Bi-Annually | Bi-Annually | 2,000 | £6 | £250 |
| Notes on Write Space Competition: Any style / genre - winners published on website - they also run other free contests throughout the year, so best to check website for current details - CLOSED 2018 | ||||||
| Waiheke Island Literary Festival The Collinson's Short Story Competition | New Zealand | September | November | 2,000 | NZ$20 | See notes |
| Notes on Waiheke Island Literary Festival Collinson's Competition: Themed, so check website for current details - the top prize (worth NZ$475) is a place on a creative writing course by The Creative Hub, Auckland's waterfront writing centre, either in class or online - NOT RUN SINCE 2015, so removed listing 2017 | ||||||
| Wakefield District Sight Aid Short Story Competition | UK | 31st August 2016 | 27th September 2016 | 2,000 | £5 | £100 |
| Notes on Wakefield District Sight Aid Competition: Any style or genre - winning stories published on website - any money raised from the competition will be used to help visually impaired people - CLOSED | ||||||
| Wanderway Short Story Travel Writer's Competition | USA / Malta | December | January | 5,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Wanderway Competition: Any style / genre but themed so check website for current details - prize is a 'travel essentials package' which consists of lots of travel kit donated by outdoor gear companies - if they wish to, the winner can sell their story for publication on the Wanderway website - NO LONGER MENTIONED ON WEBSITE, so removed listing Jan 2018 | ||||||
| Webook Writing Competition | UK | Varie | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Webook Competition: Themes, lengths, styles, genres and prizes vary - check website for current requirements - CLOSED, now a novel competition, so see novel comps lists for details, might reopen short story contest in future, will update if that happens | ||||||
| West Country Writers' Association Short Story Competition | UK | December | ? | 1,200 | £5 | £50 |
| Notes WCWA Competition: Any style / genre - entrants must have had no more than 2 short stories professionally published, or read on the radio - the winning story will be published on the WCWA website - CLOSED | ||||||
| Westgate Literary Festival Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Westgate Literary Festival Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in a festival anthology - often have different age categories - WEBSITE HASN'T BEEN UPDATED FOR 2 YEARS, so removed listing during 2021 update | ||||||
| West Sussex Writers National Short Story Competition | UK | March | July | 3,000 | £5 | £250 |
| Notes West Sussex Writers Competition: Any style / genre (not children's) - NOT RUN SINCE 2015, so removed listing 2017 | ||||||
| WGM Atlantic Young Writers' Short Story Competition | UK | 20th June 2020 | 15th July 2020 | See notes | FREE | £75 |
| Notes on WGM Atlantic Competition: Any style / genre but themed around favourite animals - for children aged between 5 and 12 - 2 categories: 5-8 (500 word limit) and 9-12 (750 word limit) - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Willesden Herald Short Story Competition | UK | August | ? | 7,500 | £5 | See notes |
| Notes Willesden Herald Competition: Any style / genre - winner receives the Willesden Herald Mug and a bottle of champagne - after 150 entries have been received, all fees go into a prize fund that will be divided among the ten winning authors - winners published in an anthology - NOT RUN since 2017, so removed listing 2019 | ||||||
| Willesden Herald Short Story Competition | UK | December | ? | 7,500 | £3 | £300 |
| Notes on Willesden Herald Competition: Any style / genre - the ten short-listed stories will be published in "New Short Stories #" - an anthology by Pretend Genius Press - CLOSED 2014 and REOPENED 2016, so see lists above | ||||||
| Wimbledon Bookfest Young Writers' Competition | UK | April | ? | 500 | FREE | iPad |
| Notes on Wimbledon Bookfest Competition: Themed, so check website for current details - winners published in 'Bookfest Book of Stories' anthology - various categories for different age groups - NOT RUN since 2017, so removed listing 2019 | ||||||
| Winchester Writers' Festival Short Story Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Winchester Writers' Competitions: Style and genre vary - Winchester Writers', associated with the University of Winchester, run 10 (yep, you read that right - ten) different writing contests - check the website for full details - did not run in 2019, planning to run again in 2020 - NOT RUN SINCE 2018, so removed listing during 2021 update | ||||||
| Winning Writers Sports Fiction & Essay Contest | MA, USA | May | ? | 6,000 | $15 | $1,000 |
| Notes on Winning Writers Competition: Any style / genre, but must have a sporting theme - winners published on the Winning Writers website - CLOSED 2014 | ||||||
| Wise Writer Award Short Story Contest | Brazil | June | July | 2,500 | $13 | $2,000 |
| Notes on WWA Award: Any style / genre - winners published on website - during 2020 update I noticed that no winners have been announced in 2019, even though that was promised back in November, so have emailed them to see what is going on and removed listing until I hear back from them | ||||||
| Wollongong Writers Festival Short Story Prize | Australia | October | November | 2,500 | $15 | A$1000 |
| Notes on Wollongong Writers Prize: Any style / genre, but themed, so check website for current details - winner published in Mascara Literary Review - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED 2021 | ||||||
| Word Hut Short Story Competition | UK | Quarterly | Quarterly | 1,000 | £4 | £70 |
| Notes on Word Hut Competition: Any style / genre - winners published on the Word Hut website - also see the meet the writer and writers' showcase sections of the website as these can offer great exposure to new authors (I've been published by Word Hut, you can read more about the competition here) - CLOSED 2016 | ||||||
| Word Periscope's Wordsmiths Competition | UK | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Word Periscope Competition: Any style / genre but check website for current theme - top prize has been up to £1,500 in the past - winners published online - CLOSED 2021, they now run a flash fiction competition instead called 'The Periscope Prize' on a new website | ||||||
| Words & Women 'About' Writing Commission | UK | 26th September 2014 | ? | See notes | £12 | See notes |
| Notes on Words & Women Competition: Any style or genre, but only open to women living in East England - story must explore the life of women and their relationship to place in East England - prize is worth £950 - £1,400, paying authors to write and be mentored by Words & Women - writers submit a proposal, a CV and a writing sample, best to check website for more details - CLOSED | ||||||
| Words & Women Short Prose Competition | UK | November | January | 2,200 | £10 | See notes |
| Notes on Words & Women Competition: Any style / genre - 2 categories; 1st is women living or working in East England with a top prize of £600; 2nd is for women living in the UK aged over 40 and has a top prize of £1,000 - winners and shortlisted entries published in an anthology, published in partnership with Unthank Books in Norwich - currently on a break, but hoping to get funding to continue - NOT RUN SINCE 2018, so removed listing in 2020 | ||||||
| Words Just Words Science Fiction Short Story Competition | UK | May | July | 3,500 | £3.50 | £50 |
| Notes on Words Just Words Competition: Science Fiction - winners published in printed anthology - CLOSED 2013 | ||||||
| Words Mag Short Story Competition | UK | Bi-Annually | Bi-Annually | 2,000 | Varies | Varies |
| Notes on Words Mag Competition: Any style / genre - all winning and commended short stories are published in Words Magazine and online anthologies - entry fee varies, but is often free - prizes up to £75 - WEBSITE HACKED, so removed listing 2020 | ||||||
| Words on the Waves WOW! Award | Ireland | November | February | 3,000 | €15 | €750 |
| Notes on WOW! Competition: Any style / genre - winners published in WOW! anthology - Words on the Waves is affiliated with Words on the Street publishers - LAST RUN 2015, so removed listing 2017 | ||||||
| Words with Jam Short Story Competition | UK | November | February | 2,500 | £6 | £500 |
| Notes on Words with Jam Competition: Any style / genre - run by Triskele Books - they also run other writing competitions, so check the website for full details - NOT RUN SINCE 2017, so removed listing in 2020 update | ||||||
| World City Stories Short Story Competition | Ireland | 30th Sept 2015 | Oct 2015 | 3,500 | FREE | €100 |
| Notes on WCS Competition: Any style / genre, but story must be set in a city - winners published on the website - this competition may become a regular comp depending on popularity - CURRENTLY CLOSED | ||||||
| Worlds Adrift Creative Writing Contest - See Your Work In-Game | UK | 9th February 2016 | ? | 500 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Worlds Adrift Contest: Any style / genre - winner's work will feature in the game 'Worlds Adrift' as a piece of discoverable lore - ONE-OFF, CLOSED 2016 | ||||||
| Write a Story for Children | UK | March | May | 2,000 | £3 | £2,000 |
| Notes on Write a Story for Children Competition: Children's - CLOSED 2015 | ||||||
| Writer's Notebook Short Story Competition | UK | Monthly | Monthly | 1,500 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Writer's Notebook Competition: Themed, check website for current theme - winners published in an anthology at the end of the year - CLOSED, website has not been updated since 2015 so removed from lists | ||||||
| Writers' Reign | UK | May | July | 1,500 | £3.50 | £100 |
| Notes on Writers' Reign Competition: Themed, so check their website for current theme - winning stories published on Writers' Reign website - 2 entries for £6 - NO LONGER MENTIONED ON WEBSITE, so removed listing Jan 2018 | ||||||
| Writers Type Short Story Competition | USA | Monthly | Monthly | 6,000 | $10 | $25 |
| Notes on Writers Type Competition: Any style / genre - prize awarded as an electronic gift card - each monthly winner and runner up is automatically entered into the yearly part of the competition which has a prize of a $225 gift card - winners published on the website - they also run a 'flash fiction' and 'first chapter' competition, check the website for more details - CLOSED 2016 | ||||||
| Writers' Village | UK | Bi-Annually | Bi-Annually | 3,000 | £15 | £1,000 |
| Notes on Writers' Village Competition: Any style / genre - all entries receive critique or tips on how to improve their writing, so you get feedback from the judges which is excellent - 2nd prize now £500, third prize of £250 and there are 15 runner up prizes of £50 - winners and runners up published on the website (I have been published through this competition - read more about it here) - Suspended in 2016 but might come back | ||||||
| Writers' Village | UK | Bi-Annually | Bi-Annually | 3,000 | £15 | £1,000 |
| Notes on Writers' Village Competition: Any style / genre - this competition is run bi-annually, so for more details see the Writers' Village listing in the regular competitions list (I have been published through this competition - read more about it here) - Suspended in 2016 but might come back | ||||||
| Writer's Workout Writer's Games Competition | USA | April | June | Varies | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Writer's Games Competition: Any style / genre, but themed, so check website for current prompts - winner receives free social media consultation ($75 value), free copy of Games Anthology and an interview on Writer's Workout website - all entrants receive critiques - winners are published in the Games Anthology, all proceeds go to charity - WEBSITE NOT UPDATED FOR OVER A YEAR, so removed from lists Jan 2018 | ||||||
| WriterWriter's International Short Story Competition | UK | Quarterly | Quarterly | 7,500 | $4 | $75 |
| Notes on WriterWriter's Competition: Alternates genres between sci-fi, fantasy, and horror so check website for current details - winner author interview published on personalised author page on website - winners published on our website - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED IN 2019, so removed listing in 2020 update | ||||||
| Writing Magazine 'Iceland Writers' Retreat Northern Lights Competition' | England / Iceland | 3rd January 2016 | February 2016 | 500 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Iceland Writers' Competition: Any style / genre - winners receive a writing retreat in Iceland with all flights and accommodation paid for, worth £1,500 - flights only available from UK airports - ONE-OFF COMPETITION, CLOSED 2016 | ||||||
| Writing Times Children's Writing Competition | UK | Quarterly | Quarterly | 1,500 | FREE | A book |
| Notes on Writing Times Children's Competition: Any style / genre but themed so check website for current details - prize is any book up to £10 in value - winners published in the Writing Times - also a prize for drawing - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED, so removed from lists Jan 2018 | ||||||
| Writing Times Short Story Writing Competition | UK | December | March | 7,000 | £3 | £50 |
| Notes on Writing Times Competition: Any style / genre but check website for current theme - winner published in the Writing Times along with a feature about the author - WEBSITE DISAPPEARED, so removed listing Jan 2018 | ||||||
| Writing Times Senior's Writing Competition | UK | Quarterly | Quarterly | 1,500 | £1.50 | A book |
| Notes on Writing Times Senior's Competition: Any style / genre but themed so check website for current details - prize is any book up to £10 in value - winners published in the Writing Times - CLOSED, website disappeared 2017 | ||||||
| Writing Writers Christmas Chaos | UK | December | January | 2,500 | £3 | £100 |
| Notes on Writing Writers Competition: Any style / genre but themed around Christmas - winner published on website - CANCELLED because judge pulled out | ||||||
| Wundor Short Fiction Contest | UK | February | March | 45,000 | £10 | £500 |
| Notes on Wundor Editions Competition: Any style / genre - 5,000 words minimum, 45,000 words maximum - novellas and collections of short stories also considered - winners published on website and strongly considered for publication in print - BECAME PHOTO COMPETITION, removed listing Jan 2018 | ||||||
| XPRIZE Sci-Fi Anthology Short Story Contest | USA | 25th August 2017 | 29th September 2017 | 4,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on XPRIZE Contest: Sci-fi - winning stories published on website - winner receives all-expense paid trip for two worth $10,000 which includes flights, hotels, $1,500 spending money and more, so see website for full details CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| Year of Listening Competition | Scotland | 28th October 2016 | 11th November 2016 | 500 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Year of Listening Competition: Any style or genre but themed around 'What does listening mean to you?' - top prize is an MP3 player - winner is published on the website and in printed publications - CLOSED | ||||||
| Yoga Tribe Short Story Competition | Austria | March | April | 8,000 | € 15 | €500 |
| Notes on Yoga Tribe Competition: Any style / genre, but themed around yoga - prize is either cash or a yoga teacher training scholarship - CLOSED 2015 | ||||||
| Youth 4 Tomorrow Horror Writing Contest | Portugal | 31st December 2014 | January 2015 | 5,000 | FREE | See notes |
| Notes on Youth 4 Tomorrow Competition: Horror - open to people aged up to 35 living in Portugal - you can submit in English or Portuguese - winners receive an award and are published in English and Portuguese in a digital anthology - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
| YSCI-FI Cyberpunk Short Story Competition | UK | 31st October 2017 | 1st December 2017 | 7,500 | FREE | $150 |
| Notes on YSCI-FI Competition: Sci-Fi subgenre Cyberpunk - winner receives cash and custom artwork for their story - CLOSED, was a one-off | ||||||
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By Christopher Fielden
20 Pieces of Writing Advice From William Faulkner
Source: https://www.christopherfielden.com/short-story-tips-and-writing-advice/short-story-competitions.php
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