Each month we aim to provide a helpful round-up of writing competitions, fellowships, publication opportunities and more for writers at all stages of their careers.
Deadlines and details do sometimes change, so please check the relevant websites (linked in bold) for all the latest details. For more opportunities and regular updates follow Aerogramme Writers’ Studio on Facebook and Twitter.
Can Serrat Residency
near Barcelona is offering one writer a two-month residency including accommodation, workshop space and food. The residency is open to all writers regardless of nationality or age. Applications open on 1 February and close on 1 March.
Black Warrior Review
publishes poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and art by Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winners alongside up-and-coming writers. Stories and poems appearing in Black Warrior Review have been reprinted in the Pushcart Prize series, Best American Short Stories, Best American Poetry, New Stories from the South, and other anthologies. Submissions close 1 March.
Stella Kupferberg Memorial Short Story Prize
is awarded by Selected Shorts and the 2017 judge is Lauren Groff. The winning entry will receive US$1000 and the work will be performed and recorded live at the Selected Shorts performance at Symphony Space, and will be published on electricliterature.com. The winning writer will also earn free admission to a 10-week course with Gotham Writers Workshop. Closes 1 March
Mississippi Arts Commission
awards fellowships of up to $5000 in several categories each year. Literary arts applications ( screenwriting, playwriting, creative non-fiction) are open until 1 March. Fellowships in fiction and poetry will be next offered in 2018.
Howard Frank Mosher Short Fiction Prize
is run by Vermont-based journal Hunger Mountain. The winner receives US$1000 and publication. Stories may be up to 10,000 words in length and all entries will be considered for publication. Entries to the prize close on 1 March.
Norton Island Residency
is Maine, halfway between Mount Desert National Park and Campobello Island. Norton Island is a remote, rustic wilderness with facilities to accommodate writers and artists. A committee of independent jurors will select 16 writers (from fiction, poetry, drama and non-fiction) for inclusion in the program which runs from 6 to 17 July 2017. If accepted, a $125 residency fee is payable, though a small number of scholarships are available. Applications close on 1 March.
The Common
is a print and digital literary journal published biannually, in the fall and spring. Issues of The Common include short stories, essays, poems, and images that embody a strong sense of place. The next reading period opens on 1 March.
Glastonbury Festival
is seeking experienced poets, wordsmiths, lyricists, spoken word artists, raconteurs, storytellers, stand-up poets and slam champs to perform on its poetry stage. Applications close 3 March.
Thresholds International Short Fiction Feature Writing Competition
is accepting non-fiction feature essays on the short story form, either recommending a short story, collection or anthology, or profiling the life and writing of a short story writer. First prize is £500 and there is no entry fee. Entries close 5 March.
Kenneth Branagh Award for New Drama Writing
is open to unpublished one-act plays from amateur playwrights. The winning writer will receive a £500 prize and The Windsor Fringe will underwrite the staging of the winner and the two runners-up with selected directors. Entries close 5 March.
Bronwen Wallace Award for Emerging Writers
is open to Canadian writers aged under 35. Candidates should submit 5 – 10 pages (up to 2500 words) of previously unpublished fiction. First prize is CA$5000 and there is no entry fee. Entries close 6 March.
BBC National Short Story Award
is one of the most prestigious for a single short story, with the winning author receiving £15,000, and four further shortlisted authors £600 each. The 2017 Award is open to UK residents or nationals, aged 18 or over, who have a history of publication in creative writing. Entries close 6 March.
Room Creative Nonfiction Contest
is open to until 8 March. Room is Canada’s oldest literary journal by and about women. The winner receives CA$500 and publication. The entry fee includes a one-year subscription to the magazine.
Jack Kerouac Writer in Residence Project
provides four residencies a year to writers living anywhere in the world. Each residency consists of approximately a three-month stay in Orlando, Florida, in the cottage where Jack Kerouac wrote his novel Dharma Bums. Utilities and a food stipend of US$800 are included. The Project also offers opportunities for residents to participate in readings, workshops and to interact with the central Florida writing community. Applications for the 2017-2018 residencies close on 12 March and results will be announced in May.
Nelligan Prize for Short Fiction
is offered each year by Colorado State University’s Center for Literary Publishing. The winner receives a US$2000 honorarium and the story is published in the fall/winter issue of Colorado Review. There are no theme restrictions, but stories must be at least 10 pages (or 2500 words) but no more than 50 pages (12,500 words). Entries close 14 March.
Frank McCourt Memoir Prize
is run by The Southampton Review. The judges are seeking personal memoirs that reveal the humor in even the bleakest of situations. Pieces may be up to 6000 words in length. Entries close 15 March.
Calibre Essay Prize
is one of the world’s leading prizes for a new essay and it is now worth a total of AUD$7500 (US$5600). The organisers are seeking essays of between 3000 and 7000 words on any non-fiction subject. The prize is open to anyone in the world who is writing in English. The closing date is 15 March
Missouri Review
is looking for stories, poems, short audio documentaries and humour pieces for its 2017 Miller Audio Prize. A US$1000 prize will be awarded to the winner in each category. Closes 15 March.
Asymptote
is an international journal dedicated to literary translation. Submissions are currently open for a special feature on ‘Literature from Banned Countries’ (ie Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen). If selected for publication, the work will run either in Asymptote’s Translation Tuesday showcase at The Guardian or in its April 2017 quarterly edition (or both). Closes 15 March.
Bridge & Tunnel Books
is currently seeking submissions for three anthologies: Farmhouse Poetry closing on 6 March, and Write Up Your Street Challenge and Voices of Industry both closing on 15 March.
Tobias Wolff Award for Fiction
offers a prize of US$1000 and the winner and many runners-up will be published in the Spring 2018 print edition of Bellingham Review. Entries close 15 March.
Lamplight
is a quarterly magazine of dark fiction. The next reading period opens on 15 March contributors receive US$150 for short stories and $50 for flash fiction.
Dangerous Creations: Real-life Frankenstein Stories
is daring writers (as Mary Shelley was dared in Geneva) to write original and groundbreaking stories in the spirit of Frankenstein – but nonfiction. First prize is US$10,000 and publication and there are two $2500 prizes and publication for runners-up. All essays will be considered for publication in the winter 2018 issue of Creative Nonfiction magazine. Entries close 20 March.
Mslexia Women’s Short Story Competition
is open to stories between 300 and 3000 words and can be on any subject. The winner receives £2000 (US$2500) plus two optional extras: a week’s writing retreat at Gladstone’s Library and a day with a Virago editor. Women writers from all countries are eligible to enter. Closes 20 March.
Oxford American
is offering a nine-month fellowship to one talented writer. The selected fellow will receive a $10,000 living stipend, housing and an editorial apprenticeship with the Oxford American. Applications close 30 March.
Ireland Funds Monaco Residential Bursaries
have been established to enable literary and academic writers born or living in Ireland to pursue a current project during a one-month residency at The Princess Grace Irish Library in Monaco. Recipients receive flights, accommodation, a weekly subsistence payment and a €1300 honorarium. The next application deadline is 30 March.
Masters Review
is accepting submissions for its printed anthology. The anthology is open to fiction and narrative nonfiction from emerging writers worldwide who have not yet published a novel-length work. The selected writers will each receive US$500, publication, and distribution to over 50 editors and agents.Submissions close 31 March.
Caterpillar Poetry Prize
is open to poems written for children aged 7 to 11. The poem can be on any subject and there is no line limit. Entries close 31 March.
Hugo House
in Seattle aims to provide an inspiring and creative place where writers and readers of all levels share an appreciation for well-written words. Its writer-in-residence program offers private writing offices and a monthly stipend for a period of nine months. Applicants should have a specific artistic project they are working on during their residency (e.g., developing a manuscript for publication) and should have a special interest in helping writers become better writers and fostering an appreciation of the craft. Applications close 31 March.
Betty Fedora
is a feminist crime fiction magazine. It publishes short crime stories, book reviews, and literary/cultural commentary with feminist sensibility. Fiction submissions are open until 31 March.
Puerto del Sol
now in its 47th year of publication, is the journal of the English Department at New Mexico State University. It welcomes submissions of poetry, fiction, non-fiction, translations, artwork and criticism, as well as any interesting combinations thereof. Puerto del Sol’s current reading period closes on 31 March.
Scribe Publications
is an independent publisher based in Australia. It publishes “narrative and literary nonfiction on important topics, and the best of local, international, and translated fiction.” Scribe is considering unsolicited submissions until 31 March.
Post Road Magazine
publishes twice yearly and accepts unsolicited poetry, fiction, nonfiction, short plays and monologues, and visual art submissions. Submissions for the winter issue close on 31 March.
Wellstone Center in the Redwoods
r offers four writing fellowships per year, as well as week-long writing residencies and an emerging writers resideny. The Center is located in the Santa Cruz Mountains in California, four miles from the Pacific Ocean. The next application deadline is 1 April.
Southampton Review
is dedicated to “discovering new voices and visions while savoring long-standing favorites.” Some of the established writers it has published include Billy Collins, Meg Wolitzer, Frank McCourt and David Rakoff. Submissions close on 1 April.
Ninth Letter
is accepting submissions of fiction, non-fiction, and poetry for a special online edition to be published in Summer 2017. This issue will feature work that evokes margins or the marginal. Closes 1 April.
FAB Prize
is a new award launched by Faber & Faber and the Andlyn Literary Agency. It aims to find talented Black, Asian or Minority Ethnic (BAME) writers and illustrators for children. The prize is only open to UK and Ireland residents. Closes 6 April.
Don and Gee Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting
are an international screenwriting competition awards up to five fellowships of US$35,000 each year. The regular entry deadline for the 2017 competition is 10 April.
Elizabeth Jolley Short Story Prize
is one of Australia’s most lucrative prizes for an original short story. The competitions is open to writers worldwide and the combined prize money totals AUD$12,500 (US$9400). Entries close 10 April.
Normal School
is a bi-annual journal based at California State University at Fresno featuring nonfiction, fiction, poetry, criticism and journalism. It is particularly interested in essays that challenge established norms for the genre or that don’t seem to fit in easy categories of classification. The current reading period ends on 15 April.
Event Magazine’s Non-Fiction Contest
is open to creative non-fiction up to 5000 words in length. There is a total of US$1500 on offer in prize money in addition to the regular publication payment. The entry fee includes a one-year subscription. Entries close 15 April.
Harpur Palate
is literary journal published bi-annually by the Department of English at Binghamton University. It publishes poetry, fiction, and creative non-fiction from all over the world, including work by well-known authors including Sherman Alexie, Gary Fincke, Peter Sears, Alex Lemon, Maura Stanton, and Rebecca Morgan Frank. Submissions for the summer issue close on 15 April.
Passages North
the annual literary journal sponsored by Northern Michigan University, has published short fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction since 1979. Submissions for issue 39 are open until 15 April.
BBC Young Writers’ Award
will be judged in 2017 by Alice Levine, Holly Bourne and Nikesh Shukla, The competition is open to all young people aged 14 to 18, who live in the UK. To enter young writers must submit a story of up to 1000 words on any topic that shows real imagination and creativity. Closes 21 April.
A3 Review
is seeking contributions under 150 words on the theme ‘Dinners’. The editors are seeking prose, poetry, graphic stories, photography, paintings, drawings, and other visual and word-based creations. Closes 22 April.
Granta
is one of the world’s most prestigious literary magazines. Granta will be accepting unsolicited nonfiction fiction submissions from 24 April until 24 May. There are no strict word limits, though most prose submissions are between 3000 and 6000 words and the editors advise they are unlikely to read more than 10,000 words of any submission.
Fiyah
is a quarterly speculative fiction magazine that features stories by and about people of the African Diaspora. It is currently accepting submissions for its ‘Sundown Town’ issue. Closes 30 April.
New South
seeks to publish high-quality work, regardless of genre, form, or regional ties. Submissions for issue 10.1, due for publication in January 2018, close on 30 April.
Willow Springs
publishes each spring and fall. Fiction submissions are open until 30 April and nonfiction is accepted year-round. Willow Springs pays contributors $100 per published long-form prose piece, $40 for short prose (up to three stories, each under 750 words, can be included per submission), and $20 per published poem (up to 6 can be included per submission).
Tom Howard/John H. Reid Short Story Contest
is open to original short stories and essays on any theme. The winner in each category receives US$1500 and there are a total of 10 minor prizes of $100. Entries should be maximum of 6000 words. Closes 30 April.
Strange Horizons
is an online magazine publishing science fiction, fantasy and horror from both established and emerging writers. Fiction submissions may be up to 10,000 words, though under 5,000 preferred. Payment is 8 cents per word.
Vending Machine Press
is currently accepting submissions of poetry, flash fiction, memoir, essays, nonfiction and ‘rants’.
Wrong Quarterly
is a London-based literary magazine showcasing prose from both British and international writers. Its aim is to provide an inclusive platform for emerging writers worldwide. The Wrong Quarterly accepts fiction up to 10,000.
Lunch Ticket
is a biannual journal published by the MFA community of Antioch University of Los Angeles. Submissions of fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, writing for young people and visual art for its summer/fall 2017 issue close on 30 April.
Wasafiri
is Britain’s premier magazine for international contemporary writing. Published quarterly, it has established a distinctive reputation for promoting work by new and established voices across the globe. Articles, essays, fiction and interviews should be less than 6000 words.
SmokeLong Quarterly
is dedicated to bringing the best flash fiction to the web on a quarterly basis, whether written by widely published authors or those new to the craft. Unsolicited submissions are considered year round.
American Short Fiction
accepts unsolicited submissions year round and there are no fixed guidelines as to content or length. Submissions to the magazine must be original and previously unpublished. ASF considers work that has appeared online (including on blogs and Facebook) to be previously published.
Guernica
welcomes submissions from writers and visual artists at all stages of their careers. Guernica provides a modest honoraria for most poetry, fiction, multimedia and longform nonfiction pieces, including essays, memoir, interviews, profiles, and reportage.
BOMB Magazine
is offering free subscriptions to currently enrolled MFA students. Register to receive two years of free access to the digital editions of the quarterly magazine.