Check out these writing contests for January through September 2026:
One Room, One Hour Contest – Open submissions
One essay on what you encounter. $1,000 for no more than 1,000 words will be awarded to winning entries posted to Substack. Essays accepted through the end of the year. Give it a whirl and see what you see.
New Millennium Writing Awards – January 31, 2026
$1,000 EACH for Best poetry, fiction, nonfiction, flash fiction. All winners published in our anthology and online.
Kentucky Visions Short Story Contest – January 31, 2026
Enter your fiction (up to 7,500 words) for a chance to win $500! Either the setting or the author must have a Kentucky connection.
Grayson Books Chapbook Contest – January 31, 2026
$500 and 50 copies will be awarded to the winner. Submit 16–36 pages poetry, $20 reading fee. J Electronic submissions only. Simultaneous submissions are accepted if we are notified immediately upon acceptance elsewhere. Suzanne Cleary will judge.
Flyway: Journal of Writing & Environment’s Honey Prize – January 31, 2026
Submit your sweet, sticky, humming, stinging environmental and place-based poetry, nonfiction, drama, or fiction under 300 words. $300 honorarium, Iowa honey + publication. $3/entry fee.
Cloudbank Books Contest – February 28, 2026
$500 will be awarded for 1 poem or short prose piece in Cloudbank 20. Submissions accepted through February 28, 2026, via Submittable. The $15 entry fee includes a 2-issue subscription.
Kinsman Quarterly’s Voices of Mixed Heritage – February 28, 2026
Submit essays, fiction, or poetry exploring themes of multicultural or third-culture identity, love, belonging, home life, and pain. We seek heartfelt reflections on living between worlds. Selected works receive up to $500 and publication in Kinsman’s upcoming anthology. No fee.
Selected Shorts’ Stella Kupferberg Memorial Short Story Contest – March 6, 2026
Judged by author Simon Rich, the prize includes $1,000; publication on electricliterature.com; a 10-week course with Gotham Writers Workshop; and 2 tickets to a performance of Selected Shorts featuring your winning story. Max: 750 words. Fee: $25.
Jabberwock Review’s Nancy D. Hargrove Editors’ Prize in Fiction and Poetry – March 15, 2026
Each winner (one for fiction and one for poetry) receives $500 and publication in Jabberwock Review. All entries considered for publication. Entry fee: $15, which includes a 1-year subscription.
Prime Number Magazine Awards for Poetry and Short Fiction – March 31, 2026
$1,000 first prize in each category plus publication. Two runners-up in each category receive $250 plus publication. Reading fee: $15.
TriQuarterly Journal Reginald Gibbons Editor’s Prize for Short Fiction – March 31, 2026
A prize of $1,000 and publication in TriQuarterly for a short story of up to 5,000 words, judged by Juan Martinez. Submit via Submittable with $12 fee by March 31, 2026. All entries considered for publication.
Common Ground Review Annual Poetry Contest – April 15, 2026
First prize $500 and publication, second prize $200, third $100. Publishes honorable mentions. $15 entry, no previously published poems.
SLAB Literary Magazine 2026 Prize in Creative Nonfiction – April 15, 2026
SLAB seeks flash, medium, and traditional-length CNF. First place receives $850 and publication; runner-up receives $500 and publication. Judge: Hattie Fletcher, editor of the monthly True Story magazine. All entries considered for publication. $10 reading fee.
Barry Spacks Poetry Prize – April 30, 2026
Gunpowder Press is accepting book-length manuscripts of 48–100 pages for the 12th annual Barry Spacks Poetry Prize, which honors Barry’s legacy of accessible yet challenging work. The prize is $1,000 + 10 author copies. Entry fee is $20.
Choeofpleirn Press – April 30, 2026
Poetry chapbooks of 40 pages or less by poets who have not yet published a chapbook or a full-length collection. Fee: $20. Finalist receives publication; winner also receives $500.
Bauhan Publishing’s May Sarton New Hampshire Poetry Prize – June 30, 2026
Now in its 16th year, the prize is for a book-length collection, $1,000, and book publication with spring 2026 titles. Entry fee: $30.
Ex Ophidia Press Poetry Prize – September 15, 2026
In memory of Richard-Gabriel Rummonds for book-length manuscripts (48–100 pages). Top prize: $2,000, publication/distribution, 10 author copies. Reading fee: $25.Entrants must reside in North America. Judge: Leslie Adrienne Miller.
One Page Poetry Contest – September 30, 2026
In celebration of the beautiful art of poetry, as long as it fits on 1 page. Entry fee: $25. Prizes include $2,000 for first place, $1,000 for second, $500 for third, and inclusion of the top 100 poems in our yearly anthology.
