JFK Profile in Courage Essay Contest

JFK Essay ContestProfile in Courage Essay Contest

Deadline: Postmarked by January 4, 2018

Eligibility: Grades 9-12

Entry Fee: None

Topic: Describe and analyze an act of political courage by a U.S. elected official who served during or after 1917, the year John F. Kennedy was born. Include an analysis of the obstacles, risks, and consequences associated with the act. The essay may concern an issue at the local, state, national, or international level.

Requirements:

  • 700 – 1,000 words
  • At least 5 varied sources such as government documents, letters, newspaper articles, books, and/or personal interviews
  • Demonstrate an understanding of political courage as described by John F. Kennedy in PROFILES OF COURAGE.
  • Include registration form
  • Bibliography with proper citations

Role of Nominating Teacher:

  • Provide students with support and advice during the writing of their essay.
  • Make suggestions for improvement before essays are submitted to the contest.
  • Review essays for syntax, grammatical, typographical and spelling errors and ensure the essay meets the contest requirements listed above.

Award: Ceremony at John F. Kennedy Presidential Library in Boston.

Website: jfklibrary.org

Poetry Society of America Student Award

PSA Student AwardLouise Louis / Emily F. Bourne PSA Student Award

Deadline: December 22, 2017
Eligibility: Grades 9-12
Entry Fee: $5 if submitted by student. $20 for an unlimited number if submitted by teacher. Checks made payable to Poetry Society of America. (Membership not required).
Award: One of the most prestigious awards available to poets. $250.
Submit: One unpublished poem
2018 Judges: Meena Alexander, Daniel Borzutzky, Eduardo C. Corral, Donika Kelly, Dorianne Laux, Lynn Melnick, Dean Rader, Paisley Rekdal, Maggie Smith, Jillian Weise, and Mark Wunderlich.
Previous Winners: See winning poems here.
Website:  poetrysociety.org

About:

Endowed under the wills of Louise Louis Whitbread and Ruth M. Bourne, this prize is awarded for the best unpublished poem by a student in grades 9 through 12 from the United States. Teachers or administrators may submit an unlimited number of their students’ poems, one submission per student.

Instructions:

•  Only one entry per student.
•  Previous PSA winners cannot be re-submitted.
•  Previously published work cannot be submitted.
•  No translations.
•  No poems by multiple authors.
•  Entry must have 1 cover page and 2 collated copies of your poem.

Cover Page:

Name
Address
Email (if available)
Phone
Name of the Award
Title and First Line of first poem in submission
Your name should not appear anywhere else besides this cover sheet.

Cover Sheet Template: It’s not a requirement, but you might find it helpful to use our cover sheet template.

Mailing Address:

Poetry Society of America
Annual Award Submission
15 Gramercy Park
New York, NY 10003

Rider University 38th Annual HS Writing Contest

Rider University HS Writing Contest

HS Writing Contest

Deadline: December 15, 2017
Eligibility:  Grades 9-12
Entry Fee: None
Award: $100 and possible publication in Venture Magazine
How to Enter: Guidelines
Judge: Dr. Roberta Clipper
Previous Winners: 37th Annual Contest Winners
Website: rider.edu

SUBMIT:

  • ESSAY: Personal essay, labeled ESSAY, any topic. Max 5 double-spaced pages.
  • FICTION: Short story, labeled FICTION. Max 5 double-spaced pages.
  • POETRY: One poem. Max 50 lines.

RULES:

  1. Type on the entry:
    Your Name and address
    Grade
    Teacher’s Name
    School Name and address
  2. Include a letter from a teacher stating that the work is original and by you.
  3. Entries must be typed.  Stories and essays must be double-spaced. Please give your story, essay and or poem a title.
  4. Only one entry per category will be considered.  Choose your best writing and send only one.
  5. Mail your entry postmarked no later than December 15, 2017 to:
    Dr. Roberta Clipper
    English Department
    Rider University
    2083 Lawrenceville Road
    Lawrenceville, NJ  08648

Entries cannot be returned.  Winners will be announced by May 2018. Include a self-addressed stamped envelope if you wish to receive a list of winners. GOOD LUCK!

25th Annual Letters About Literature Contest

Letters About LIterature

Deadlines: Find your state here.
NJ Deadline: Saturday, December 9, 2017
Eligibility:  Grades 4–12
Entry Fee: None
Award: Regional & National Honors
Submit: Personal essay in the form of a letter to an author, living or dead. See guidelines.
How to Enter: Guidelines
Previous Winners: Click here for national and state-level winners
Website: Letters About Literature

Letters About Literature is a reading and writing contest for students in grades 4-12. Students are asked to read a book, poem or speech and write to the author (living or dead) about how the book affected them personally. Letters are judged on state and national levels. Tens of thousands of students from across the country enter Letters About Literature each year. If you are in grades 4-12, you are eligible to enter the Letters About Literature reading and writing contest.

The 2017-18 Letters About Literature contest for young readers is made possible by a generous grant from the Dollar General Literacy Foundation, with additional support from gifts to the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress, which promotes the contest through its affiliate Centers for the Book, state libraries and other organizations.

Continue reading “25th Annual Letters About Literature Contest”

Scholastic Writing Awards

Scholastic Writing Awards

Regional Deadlines: Click for deadlines.
NJ Writing Deadline: Extended to December 7, 2017
NJ Art Deadline: January 3, 2018
Eligibility: Public, private, or home-school students in the U.S., Canada, or American schools abroad enrolled in grades 7–12
Entry Fee: $5/regular submission. $20/ Senior Writing Portfolio
Award: Regional, National Awards and Scholarship Opportunities
Categories: For a full list of category descriptions, click HERE.
SignupCreate an account
Previous Winners: Scholastic online galleries
Original work only: See website for copyright and plagiarism FAQ
Blind Judging: Submissions may not contain your name or personal information.
Judging Criteria: Originality, technical skill and personal voice.
Website: ArtandWriting.org

Writing Categories:

POETRY: Set of 1-5 poems with combined line count of 20 – 200 lines
FICTION: 1,000 – 3,000 words
FLASH FICTION: 1,000 words max.
PERSONAL ESSAY/MEMOIR: 500 – 3,000 words
CRITICAL or PERSUASIVE ESSAY: 500 – 3,000 words (cite sources)
JOURNALISM: 500 – 3,000 words
DRAMATIC SCRIPT: 500 – 3,000 words.
NOVEL WRITING: Excerpt up to 3,000 words plus 250 word summary.
SCI/FI or FANTASY: 500 – 3,000 words
HUMOR: 500 – 3,000 words.
SENIOR PORTFOLIO: Seniors only: 8 distinct works that demonstrate versatility as a writer and diversity in writing technique and styles, plus writer’s statement. See website for further details.

Manuscript Details:

  • No names on manuscripts or work will be disqualified
  • Put the title at the top of the first page only
  • No names of real people
  • Parent, teacher & student signatures required on entry form
  • Do not double submit to different categories unless the 2nd submission is for the senior portfolio

Steps to Submit Work for NJ Region Only:

  1. Work must be uploaded before December 7, 2017 in order to obtain your teacher’s signature on the entry form (Ms. James, Ms. Gabb or your English teacher).
  2. Once your work has been uploaded, download your entry form and print it out.
  3. Have the form signed by your parent, your teacher and yourself.
  4. Mail the form via the U.S. Post Office (see address below). You may enclose a check or pay online. The fee is $5 per individual submission and $20 per Senior Writing Portfolio.
  5. Make the check payable to: NEWARK PUBLIC LIBRARY. (Checks made payable to the Scholastic Awards or Scholastic cannot be cashed and the student’s application will not be accepted. One check may be written for multiple submissions). Scholastic also accepts payment via Either form of payment is acceptable, but entry forms must be physically mailed.
  6. DEADLINE – Forms and fees must be POSTMARKED by December 7, 2017.
  7. DO NOT mail your manuscripts. Those are uploaded electronically. DO mail signed entry forms and checks to:

Attn: Maisy Card
Newark Public Library
O. Box 630
Newark, NJ 07101-0630

Gregory Djanikian Scholars Program

Gregory Djanikian ScholarsThe Adroit Journal annually recognizes
six emerging student or non-student poets as
Gregory Djanikian Scholars.

Deadline: December 15, 2017
Eligibility: Anyone, student or non-student, who has NOT published a full-length collection of poetry
Entry Fee: $9
Award: $100 & portfolio publication in The Adroit Journal
Submit: Up to 6 poems, 10 page max
Guidelines: Simultaneous and previously published submissions acceptable if stated in cover letter. See details.
Questions: editors@theadroitjournal.org
Website: theadroitjournal.org

Gregory Djanikian was born in Alexandria, Egypt, and came to the United States when he was eight years old. He has published six poetry collections, the latest of which is Dear Gravity (CMU Press, 2014). His poetry appears in American Poetry ReviewBest American PoetryBoulevardPoetrySouthern Review, and TriQuarterly, among others. Until retiring, he was the longstanding Director of Creative Writing at the University of Pennsylvania, where he still teaches poetry workshops.

Greg’s insight and instruction has greatly enriched both the Adroit Journal as well as its staff of emerging writers. We’d like to recognize and encourage the gift of such support by offering it ourselves, to six writers in need of affirmation and support. In honor of Greg’s contribution to emerging student and non-student writers at Penn and around the world, we hope to recognize talent from around the world and open them to a long future in writing. 

ABOUT THE SCHOLARSHIPS

We will be annually recognizing six emerging student or non-student poets as Gregory Djanikian Scholars. All emerging writers who have not published full-length collections are eligible (regardless of age, geographic location, or educational status), and are encouraged to submit.

Gregory Djanikian Scholars receive $100 and publication of their portfolios of poems in a future issue of the Adroit Journal. Finalists will be awarded copies of Greg’s latest collection, Dear Gravity, and a list of semifinalists determined by the editors will be released with results.

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

Submissions may include up to six poems (maximum of ten pages single-spaced). Simultaneous submissions, previously published submissions, and submissions recognized by outside organizations are accepted, provided that a) a full catalogue of publication history for enclosed poems is included in the submission and b) at least one poem in the submission remains unpublished. Submitters should reach out promptly via email (editors@theadroitjournal.org) if work acknowledged as unpublished in the cover letter is accepted elsewhere.

Writers are welcome to additionally submit enclosed work to the Adroit Prizes as well as through our general submission portal. However, each writer may not send more than one entry per year for the Gregory Djanikian Scholars designation.

As mentioned above, all emerging writers who have not published full-length collections are eligible (regardless of age, geographic location, or educational status), and Gregory Djanikian Scholars will receive $100 and publication in a future issue of the Adroit Journal. Additionally, finalists will be awarded copies of Greg’s latest collection, Dear Gravity, and a list of semifinalists determined by the editors will be released with results.

To accommodate this while offering free online issues, we have set a non-refundable submission fee of $9. If you require financial assistance, you may submit a fee waiver by downloading this form and following the instructions. Due to fee waivers’ processing time, fee waivers will only be accepted until one week before the deadline (postmarked).

CLICK HERE TO SUBMIT.

Please direct any questions to editors@theadroitjournal.org

“Jersey Shorts” Student Fiction Contest

Jersy shorts student fiction contestA New Contest for Student Fiction

Eligibility: NJ Students Grades 9-12

Prize:

  • Governor’s Award
  • A special performance of their work read by professional actors.

Submission:

  • Students must submit two pieces of fiction.
  • Maximum 1500-word piece on any subject of their choosing
  • Maximum 750-word piece of “Flash Fiction” on the subject of the Annual Prompt (see below)

Prompt:

In the space of 750 words or less, give us the complete life of a character. The challenge here is to present to us an individual, unique and distinctive, while also giving us a sense of that person’s entire existence, whether that existence was in the service of others, or with a philosophy of utter selfishness, or with an impact no one could have foreseen. Maybe this character’s life presents a lesson for others to live by (or resist). Surprise us with details about this fictional life, keeping in mind that the most surprising details are the ones we embarrassingly admit are too, too true.

More Information: wtnj.org/jersey-shorts

Deadline: December 1, 2017

NJ Youth Poet Laureate Contest

NJ Youth Poet LaureateEligibility: NJ students grade 9-12

Prize:
• Inclusion of five poems in the National Youth Poet Laureate Program Northeast Region Anthology
• Entry into the National Regional Contest, the winner of which receives a “book deal,” an anthology of their work.
• Consideration for the National Youth Poet Laureate Award
• A New Jersey Governor’s Award
• A special performance of the New Jersey Youth Poet Laureate winners.
• Additional opportunities to perform throughout the year as ambassadors of the NJ Youth Poet Laureate Program.

Submit:
• Works of poetry, rap, and spoken word.
• 5 poems, including a poem on the theme: “Mind Your Elders,” about senior citizens.

MORE INFORMATION:
• Creative Writing News: blogs.newarka.edu/creativewritingclass/
• Ms. James at tjames@newarka.edu
• Writers’ Theatre of New Jersey: wtnj.org/nj-youth-poet-laureate

Deadline: December 1, 2017

Princeton Poetry Prize

Princeton Poetry PrizeDeadline: November 27, 2017
Eligibility: High school juniors
Entry Fee: Free
Submit: Up to 3 poems
Awards:  1st Prize: $500; 2nd Prize: $250; 3rd Prize: $100.
Previous Winner: Gunsafe” by Joseph Felkers
Judge: Princeton University Creative Writing Faculty
Website:  arts.princeton.edu

Leonard L. Milberg ’53 High School Poetry Prize 

The contest recognizes outstanding work by student writers in the 11th grade. The jury consists of members of the Princeton University Creative Writing faculty such as Michael Dickman, Yiyun Li, Paul Muldoon, James Richardson, Tracy K. Smith, Susan Wheeler, and Monica Youn. Find guidelines here.

Online submissions are now being accepted for the 2018 contest — apply below. The application deadline is midnight EST on Monday, November 27, 2017.

A note for high school teachers:

Thank you for your interest in the Leonard L. Milberg ’53 High School Poetry Prize. While we encourage the inclusion of poetry in the high school English curriculum, we ask you to please refrain from using the contest as an occasion to require all your students to submit a poem as a homework assignment. If you read the poems from the past student winners, you’ll see that they all carry a sense of urgency and necessity that is difficult to conjure when a student is obliged to submit a poem. Ideally, we hope motivated students will choose to enter the contest, and that they’ll come to see the writing and sharing of their poems as a joy rather than an obligation.

We’d also like to recommend the following poetry anthologies:

Poem-a-Day: 365 Poems for Every Occasion, edited by Tamar Brazis
20th Century Pleasures, edited by Robert Hass
The Best of the Best American Poetry, edited by Robert Pinsky

Bennington Young Writers Awards

Bennington Young Writers AwardsThe Bennington Young Writers Awards are offered annually by Bennington College—whose literary legacy includes seven Pulitzer Prize winners, three U.S. poet laureates, the youngest Man Booker Prize winner, a MacArthur “Genius,” countless New York Times bestsellers, and one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people.

DEADLINE: November 1.

WHO CAN SUBMIT: Students in the 10th, 11th, and 12th grades.

WHAT TO SUBMIT: Students may enter in ONE of the following categories: poetry (a group of three poems), fiction (a short story or one-act play), or nonfiction (a personal or academic essay). All entries must be original work and sponsored by a high school teacher. Short stories and nonfiction must be fewer than 1500 words.

JUDGES: Judges include Bennington College faculty and students.

AWARDS: First-place winners in each category are awarded a prize of $500; second-place winners receive $250. The annual competition runs from early September to November 1 with winning entries posted after April 15.

HOW TO SUBMIT: You may submit online or by mail (mailed entries must be accompanied by a submission form, available from your English teacher or by downloading here.) We welcome entries from international students—in order to submit online, please enter N/A in place of the CEEB code for your high school if it doesn’t have one.

DEADLINE: Submission deadline: November 1.

Last year, more than 2,300 students submitted poetry, fiction, and nonfiction to the Young Writers Awards competition. We congratulate all entrants on their extraordinary submissions, and are pleased to share past winning entries.

MORE INFORMATION: For more information about the Young Writers and other programs at Bennington College, please contact us by email at admissions@bennington.edu or phone at 800-833-6845. Visit the website to see past winners.

NJCTE HS Writing Contest

NJCTE HS Writing ContestNew Jersey Council of Teachers of English (NJCTE) 2018 High School Writing Contest

Deadline: December 16, 2017 at 11:59pm EST.
Eligibility: NJ Students Grades 0-12
Entry Fee: None
2018 Categories:
~Poetry (one poem, 50-line max.) –FREE CHOICE
~Short story (5-page max. double-spaced) – FREE CHOICE
~Personal essay* (5-page max., double-spaced) – RESPOND TO
Personal Essay Prompt: Awakenings (see below)
Awards: Gold, Silver & Bronze Medal Awards. Gold Medalists receive Governor’s Awards
Website: njcte.com/hs-writing-contest/

Personal Essay Writing Prompt: Awakenings

Write a personal essay or narrative about an experience of race, ethnicity, class, religion or gender enlightenment that was significant for you.

We would like you to steer away from general to more personal experiences and observations. For example, you may choose to write about particular toys that were or were not given to you because of your gender, the expectations of important individuals in your life, decisions about where to sit in the cafeteria or what classes to take, conflicts over what information to share or not share in school, decisions about where to go and if you should go to college; the possibilities are wide ranging.

This prompt may bring to your attention a preconception previously unnamed, but it may also enable you to speak about your strengths and joys, about what unites us instead of what divides us.

How to enter:

Visit our web-site at njcte.com and follow the instructions provided. You must be a New Jersey high school student to enter.

To Avoid Disqualification:

  1. Each student may submit a maximum of one entry in each category (i.e. only one poem, one short story and one essay).
  2. Each teacher may submit up to ten entries for their students in each genre. Surplus entries will be disqualified in order of submission date.
  3. The file submitted must be anonymous. Files with student name, school or class on them will be disqualified.

Awards:

  • Genre Winners (poetry, short story, personal essay): Gold, Silver and Bronze Medals.
  • Gold medalists are eligible for the Governor’s Awards in Arts Education (GAAE).
  • School/District Winners:
    Honorable Mention: Top scoring students
    From schools with qualifying entries from at least 10 different students sponsored by at least three different teachers
  • Certificates of Merit – Top scoring students
    From schools which submit qualifying entries from at least three different students

Winners will be notified on or after March 15, 2018. Questions: njctewritingcontest@outlook.com

Gold, silver, and bronze poets have read at the Dodge Poetry Festival in 2014 and 2016.

National YoungArts

YoungArts Writing
Deadline: October 13, 2017 at 11:59pm EST (New York Time). No grace period of uploading of materials.
Eligibility: Ages 15-18, Grades 10 – 12 as of 12/1/17.  US citizens or permanent residents only.
Entry Fee:  $35 per category
Awards: See below
Categories: Visual, literary, design and performing arts categories include Cinematic Arts, Dance, Design Arts, Jazz, Music, Photography, Theater, Visual Arts, Voice, and Writing.  Writing  categories include Creative Nonfiction, Novel, Play or Script, Poetry, Short Story or Spoken Word. Visit: youngarts.org/disciplines for more information.
Writing Guidelines: youngarts.org/writing
Website: youngarts.org/

AWARDS:

  • Up to $10,000 monetary award (total awarded each year is over $500,000)
  • Exclusive eligibility for recognition as a U.S. Presidential Scholar in the Arts
  • Master classes with world-renowned artists
  • Access to scholarships, career opportunities and professional contacts

The National YoungArts Foundation identifies and nurtures the most accomplished young artists in the visual, literary, design and performing arts and assists them at critical junctures in their educational and professional development. YoungArts aspires to create a community of alumni that provides a lifetime of encouragement, opportunity and support.

The National YoungArts Foundation (YoungArts) was established in 1981 by Lin and Ted Arison. YoungArts’ signature program is an application-based award for emerging artists ages 15–18 or in grades 10–12 from across the United States. Selected from a pool of more than an average of 11,000 applications (in 2015, the organization received a record-breaking number of more than 12,000 applications), YoungArts Winners receive valuable support, including financial awards of up to $10,000, professional development and educational experiences working with renowned mentors—such as Mikhail Baryshnikov, Sarah Brightman, Plácido Domingo, Frank Gehry, Jeff Koons, Wynton Marsalis, Rebecca Walker and Carrie Mae Weems—and performance and exhibition opportunities at some of the nation’s leading cultural institutions.

PRESIDENTIAL SCHOLAR NOMINATIONS: Additionally, YoungArts Winners are eligible for nomination as a U.S. Presidential Scholar in the Arts, one of the nation’s highest honors for high school students who exemplify academic and artistic excellence. U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts receive a Presidential Medal at the White House and perform and exhibit at the Kennedy Center and the Smithsonian.

YoungArts ALUMNI: YoungArts alumni who have gone on to become leaders in their fields include actresses Viola Davis, Anna Gunn, Zuzanna Szadkowski and Kerry Washington; Broadway stars Raúl Esparza, Billy Porter, Andrew Rannells and Tony Yazbeck; recording artists Josh Groban, Judith Hill and Chris Young; Metropolitan Opera star Eric Owens; musicians Terence Blanchard, Gerald Clayton and Jennifer Koh; choreographers Camille A. Brown and Desmond Richardson; visual artists Daniel Arsham and Hernan Bas; internationally acclaimed multimedia artist Doug Aitken; television writer, producer, and director Jenji Kohan; New York Times bestselling author Sam Lipsyte; and Academy Award-winning filmmaker Doug Blush

How to Submit: On-line application and submission of an audition or portfolio. NO references or academic transcripts are required. There is a $35 (non-refundable) application fee per category. Fee waivers are available. Applicants may submit in more than one discipline or category within a discipline. Please refer to the discipline and category guidelines for details.

Teen Ink National Essay Contest

Teen Ink Essay ContestIf you were Mayor of your town, what issue would you address and how?

Share your vision of the future of your community in this essay writing contest. A national online and monthly tabloid print magazine, TEEN INK has been written by and for teens since 1989.

Deadline: November 30
Eligibility: Ages 13 – 19
Prize: $500 & opportunity to interview congressional candidate David Kim.  2nd & 3rd Place: $100.
Submit: Submit essay of 1,000 words or less to the Teen Ink Opinion Section.
Topic: If you were Mayor of your town, what would you address and how?  2nd & 3rd Place: $100.
Note: Do not include last names or names of schools or towns.
Website: TeenInk.com
Guidelines: Teen Ink Essay Contest

Literal Latté Essay Award

Literal Latté Essay Award

Essay AwardDeadline: September 30
Eligibility: Previously unpublished essays
Entry Fee: $10 for 1 essay or $15 for 2 essays
Prize: $1,000
Submit: 10,000 word max, any topic.
Previous Winner: Lia Woodall
Website: literal-latte.com
Guidelines: literal-latte.com/contests/essay-awards

  • First Prize $1000
  • Second Prize $300
  • Third Prize $200

Literal Latte now accepts online submissions via Submittable. Click the button below to visit their Submittable page. See guidelines for cover page instructions.

Online Submissions – Click here.

Snail-Mail Submissions Mail to:

Literal Latté Awards
200 East 10th Street, Suite 240
New York, NY 10003
(212) 260-5532

Contact Us

Timothy Corsellis Poetry Prize

Poetry PrizeDeadline: Thursday, September 14, 2017
Entry Fee: None
Eligibility: Poets worldwide aged 14-25
Prize: Publication on Poetry Society website and £100 book tokens.
Submit: A response poem to one or more of the WWII poets mentioned below. Include a brief commentary explaining how your poem responds to the poet’s life or work.
Judge: Poet Wendy Cope
Website: http://ypn.poetrysociety.org.uk/
Guidelines: http://ypn.poetrysociety.org.uk/workshop/the-timothy-corsellis-prize-2017/

Timothy Corsellis Poetry Prize 2017

Timothy Corsellis was a young poet and pilot killed in 1941. The Prize was set up in his name, with the support of his family, to encourage more people to read the powerful but lesser-known poets of the Second World War.

The Timothy Corsellis Poetry Prize asks you to respond to the life and/or work of a small selection of Second World War poets, including Keith Douglas, Sidney Keyes, Alun Lewis, John Jarmain, Henry Reed, Anna Akhmatova, Gertrud Kolmar and Timothy Corsellis.

The site is also running a Young Critics Prize for short essays of 500-1,500 words exploring which three poets are most likely to be read in twenty years’ time, and why. If you’re looking for inspiration, why not read last year’s winning essay, ‘I wandered lonely as a war-poet: Locating the individual in the unimaginable’ by Henry Wong.

The judges for both Prizes will be celebrated poet Wendy Cope; Professor Fran Brearton (for the War Poets Association), a leading authority on war poetry and Director of the Seamus Heaney Centre in Belfast; Llewela Selfridge on behalf of the Imperial War Museum in London; and Judith Palmer, Director of The Poetry Society. Continue reading “Timothy Corsellis Poetry Prize”

Prairie Schooner Creative Nonfiction Contest

Creative Nonfiction ContestDeadline: August 1, 2017
Entry Fee: $20 (includes copy of Spring 2018 issue)
Prize: $250 & publication in the Prairie Schooner
Submit: Any type of creative nonfiction essay up to 5,000 words & cover letter
JudgeEsme Weijun Wang
Website: http://prairieschooner.unl.edu/
Guidelines
: https://prairieschooner.submittable.com/submit/12826/creative-nonfiction-essay-contest

Prairie Schooner’s Summer Creative Nonfiction Contest is open to all types of creative nonfiction essays up to 5,000 words. The $20 entry fee includes a copy of the Spring 2018 issue of Prairie Schooner, in which the winning essay will appear. The winner will receive $250 and publication in our Spring 2018 issue. Additionally, The magazine often publishes contest finalists, like Boyer Rickel’s “Morgan: A Lyric” and Emily Geminder’s “Coming To: A Lexicology of Fainting.”

Entries will consist of THREE parts: a cover letter, the essay manuscript, and the entry fee:
  1. Cover Letter: In the cover letter, include the submission’s title and your contact information, including e-mail address, phone number, and mailing address. Your name and contact info must not appear anywhere within the manuscript itself (double-check headers and footers!).
  2. Essay Manuscript: The contest is open to all types of creative nonfiction essays up to 5,000 words. We’re interested in reading imaginative essays of general interest. (Scholarly articles requiring footnote references should be submitted to journals of literary scholarship.) Manuscripts should be double-spaced and use a standard font, and, again, the submitter’s name and contact info should not appear within the manuscript itself.
  3. Entry Fee: Each submission must be accompanied by the $20.00 fee, which includes a copy of the Spring 2017 issue of Prairie Schooner, in which the winning essay will appear. Multiple submissions are welcome and encouraged, but a separate entry fee must accompany each submission.
JUDGE’S ADVICE from Esme Weijun Wang :

“Write beautifully, write intelligently, and write like your heart is on fire. I want to feel like all three of those things are happening.”  Esme Weijun Wang is a novelist and essayist. Her debut novel, THE BORDER OF PARADISE, was named a Best Book of 2016 by NPR and one of the 25 Best novels of 2016 by ELECTRIC LITERATURE. She is the recipient of the Graywolf Nonfiction Prize for her forthcoming essay collection, THE COLLECTED SCHIZOPHRENIAS; her work has appeared in THE BELIEVER, HAZLITT, ELLE, CATAPULT, and EATER. She can be found at esmewang.com and on Twitter @esmewang.

PAST WINNERS:

2016: E.M. Tran

2015: Laura Elizabeth Woollett

2014: Aurvi Sharma

2013: Melissa Febos

Narrative Story Contest

Narrative Story ContestDeadline: July 31, 2017
Entry Fee: $25
Prize: $2,500 & consideration for publication in Narrative
Submit: short shorts, short stories, essays, memoirs, photo essays, graphic stories, literary nonfiction, excerpts from longer works of both fiction and nonfiction no longer than 15,000 words.
Judges: Narrative Editors
Website: http://www.narrativemagazine.com

Spring 2017 Story Contest

The Narrative story is open to all fiction and nonfiction writers. Entries must be previously unpublished, no longer than 15,000 words, and must not have been previously chosen as a winner, finalist, or honorable mention in another contest.

Narrative winners and finalists have gone on to win Whiting Awards, the Pulitzer Prize, the Pushcart Prize, and the Atlantic prize, and have appeared in collections such as The Best American Short Stories, The Best American Nonrequired Reading, and many others. View the recent awards won by Narrative authors.

 Narrative seeks work with a strong narrative drive, with characters readers can respond to, and with effects of language, situation, and insight that are intense and total. They look for works that have the ambition of enlarging our view of ourselves and the world.

Click here to submit your work.

Awards: First Prize is $2,500, Second Prize is $1,000, Third Prize is $500, and up to ten finalists will receive $100 each. All entries will be considered for publication.

All contest entries are eligible for the $4,000 Narrative Prize and for acceptance as a Story of the Week.

Notification:  Winners and finalists will be announced to the public by August 31, 2017. All writers who enter will be notified by email of the judges’ decisions, which will be final. The judges reserve the option to declare ties and to designate and award only as many winners and/or finalists as are appropriate to the quality of contest entries and of work represented in the magazine.

Submission Guidelines: Please read the Submission Guidelines for manuscript formatting and other information.

Other Submission Categories: In addition to this contest, please review Narrative’s other Submission Categories for areas that may interest you.

Click here to submit your work.

Robert & Adele Schiff Awards in Poetry & Prose

awards poetry prose cincinnati reviewDeadline: July 15, 11:59 p.m. EST.
Entry Fee: $20
Prize: $1,000 & publication in Cincinnati Review
Poetry Submission: Up to 8 pages
Prose Submission: Up to 40 pages of fiction or creative nonfiction
Poetry Judge: Don Bogen
Prose Judge: Michael Griffith
Managing Editor: Lisa Ampleman
Email: editors@cincinnatireview.com
Website: http://www.cincinnatireview.com/blog/contests/robert-and-adele-schiff-prizes-in-poetry-and-prose

Fairy Tale Review Awards

Fairy Tale Review AwardsDeadline: July 15, 2017
Entry Fee: $10
Prize: $1,000 & publication.
Submit: Prose up to 6,000 words. Poetry up to 5 poems or 10 pages.
Poetry Judge: Aimee Nezhukumatathil
Prose Judge: Helen Oyeyemi
Email: ftreditorial@gmail.com
Website: http://www.fairytalereview.com

Poetry & Prose Awards

Two prizes of $1,000 each and publication in Fairy Tale Review are given annually for a group of poems and a work of fiction or creative nonfiction influenced by fairy tales. Aimee Nezhukumatathil will judge in poetry and Helen Oyeyemi will judge in prose. Submit up to five poems totaling no more than 10 pages or up to 6,000 words of fiction or nonfiction with a $10 entry fee by July 15. All entries are considered for publication. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Fairy Tale Review, Awards in Poetry and Prose, c/o Kate Bernheimer, University of Arizona, English Department, Tucson, AZ 85721. Kate Bernheimer, Editor.

LA Review Awards

LA Review AwardsLA Review Bi-annual Awards: Summer 2017

Deadline: June 30, 2017
Entry Fee: $20
Prize: $1,000 & publication
E-mail: editor@losangelesreview.org
Website: http://losangelesreview.org/awards/

Short Fiction Award:
  • 2,500 word max
  • Judge: Bryan Hurt
Flash Fiction Award:
  • 500 word max
  • Judge: Siel Ju
Creative Nonfiction Award:
  • 1500 word max
  • Judge Chelsey Clammer
Poetry Award:
  • 50 line max
  • Judge:  t’ai freedom ford
 Guidelines:
  • Prizes include a $1000 honorarium and publication via LAR Online and in the best-of annual print edition of The Los Angeles Review, issue no. 22, set to be released in spring 2018.
  • Submissions for each contest are accepted via Submittable only. Entry fee is $20 USD.
  • Contests close for entries on June 30, 2017.
  • Simultaneous submissions are accepted, but please notify us immediately via Submittable if the work is accepted elsewhere.
  • Only previously unpublished writing will be considered. Entries are not considered for general inclusion in The Los Angeles Review.
  • In the cover letter field of each submission, include author’s name, mailing address, email address, and telephone number. Do NOT include this information in the submitted file.
  • The winners will be announced in fall 2017.
  • Please direct questions to editor@losangelesreview.org