Hello Writers!
I’m back with another fresh batch of writing opportunities to add to your calendar. From this edition onward, each event listing will now include the entry fee, so you can plan your submissions budget at a glance without having to hunt through the guidelines yourself. I hope it makes the newsletter even more useful to you!
This week: 16 opportunities | April and May deadlines only | Prizes up to $20,000
This edition is entirely focused on April and May 2026 deadlines, which means some of these opportunities are closer than they might first appear. So it’s worth having a read today rather than bookmarking this for later. Whether you have a polished flash fiction piece ready to go or a half-finished short story that just needs a nudge to the finish line, there’s something here with your name on it. I’ve found competitions spanning micro-fiction, personal essay, short story, poetry, and even a wonderfully unusual contest asking you to write on behalf of all humanity. Yes, really.
Quote of the week:
Everything in life is writable about if you have the outgoing guts to do it, and the imagination to improvise. The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.
– Sylvia Plath
Wergle Flomp Humor Poetry Contest
Deadline: 1 April 2026
The Wergle Flomp Humor Poetry Contest is organised by Winning Writers. Now in its 25th year, the contest seeks the best humor poems written in English and accepts both published and unpublished work from writers of all ages worldwide. Entries must be original poems of no more than 250 lines. Serious poems will not be judged. One poem per entrant; entries are judged by Jendi Reiter with assistance from Lauren Singer. The top 13 entries are published online.
Entry fee: Free 🆓
Top prize: First: $2,000 (plus a 2-year Duotrope gift certificate and a 5-year Chill Subs Best plan)
Find out more: https://winningwriters.com/our-contests/wergle-flomp-humor-poetry-contest-free
FFF Competition Thirty-Three
Deadline: 23 April 2026
FFF Competition Thirty-Three is organised by Free Flash Fiction, a UK-based online platform dedicated to publishing and celebrating short-form fiction. The competition invites writers worldwide to submit original flash fiction of between 100 and 300 words on any theme, written in English, with no restrictions on genre or style. Entries are judged anonymously by a guest judge from the writing community. Winning and selected entries are published on the Free Flash Fiction website alongside a judges’ report. The competition is open to both emerging and established writers internationally.
Entry fee: £4.95
Top prize: £200 and publication
Find out more: https://freeflashfiction.com/current-competition/
Fieldstone Review: “Wild Spaces” Issue
Deadline: 30 April 2026
The Fieldstone Review is a Canadian literary journal affiliated with the University of Saskatchewan, and it is now accepting submissions for its 2026 themed issue. This year’s theme is “Wild Spaces” - an invitation to explore the idea imaginatively and broadly, from rivers and jungles to interior landscapes such as kitchens, bars, and football stadiums. The journal welcomes original, previously unpublished work in poetry, short fiction, creative nonfiction, and visual art and photography.
Entry fee: Free 🆓
Top prize: $100 cash prize for the best submission, plus publication for all accepted work
Find out more: https://thefieldstonereview.ca/submit
Rhina Espaillat Poetry Award
Deadline: 30 April 2026
The Rhina Espaillat Poetry Award is organised by Plough Quarterly, an American literary and cultural magazine. The awars honours the achievements of the distinguished Dominican-American poet and translator Rhina Polonia Espaillat. The prize is awarded to an original, previously unpublished poem of no more than fifty lines that reflects Espaillat’s hallmark qualities: lyricism, formal attention, empathy, and the ability to find grace in everyday life. Entrants may submit up to three poems. Plough’s poetry editor Jane Clark Scharl will select approximately twenty poems for further consideration before the editorial team reaches a consensus on the winner and two finalists.
Entry fee: $7 (free for current Plough Quarterly subscribers)
Top prize: $2,000 and publication
Find out more: https://www.plough.com/en/contact-us/rhina-espaillat-poetry-award
Tadpole Press 100-Word Writing Contest
Deadline: 30 April 2026
The 100-Word Writing Contest is an international micro-fiction competition organised by Tadpole Press, a US-based independent publisher, and sponsored by Duotrope. The contest challenges writers to tell a complete, compelling story in 100 words or fewer, in any genre, with no set theme. Tadpole Press looks for work that is creative, uplifting, and nonviolent: entries should capture a new angle on experience, break through stereotypes, and find delight or inspiration in the unexpected. The competition is open to writers of all ages, genders, and nationalities. Entries are judged by a panel led by Tadpole Press founder Amber Byers.
Entry fee: $15
Top prize: $1,000 USD + a 2-year Duotrope gift certificate ($100 value)
Find out more: https://www.tadpolepress.com/100-word-writing-contest
WOW! Q3 2026 Creative Nonfiction Essay Contest
Deadline: 30 April 2026
This quarterly competition is organised by WOW! Women on Writing, a long-running online platform dedicated to supporting writers through contests, publication, and educational resources. The Q3 2026 round is open now and accepts personal essays based on real-life experiences across any topic and in any style - from personal essay and memoir to lyric or hybrid essay forms - as long as the work is truthful, literary, and original. Submissions must be previously unpublished, written in English, and between 200 and 1,000 words. The contest is open internationally to writers of all backgrounds. The competition is capped at 300 entries, so early submission is advised.
Entry fee: $12 (an entry with editorial critique is available for $25)
Top prize: $500, publication, interview on the WOW! blog, and one item from CreateWriteNow’s Store
Find out more: https://www.wow-womenonwriting.com/contest.php#EssayContest
Molly Keane Creative Writing Award
Deadline: 1 May 2026
The Molly Keane Creative Writing Award is an annual national competition organised by the Arts Office of Waterford City & County Council in Ireland, run since 1998 in celebration of the life and work of the late novelist and playwright Molly Keane. The competition is open to any writer resident on the island of Ireland and invites submissions of a previously unpublished short story of up to 2,000 words on any subject. Entries that have received awards in other competitions are ineligible. Submissions must not be under simultaneous consideration elsewhere.
Entry fee: Free 🆓
Top prize: €500
Find out more: https://waterfordcouncil.ie/molly-keane-creative-writing-award-2026/
Tom Howard/John H. Reid Fiction & Essay Contest
Deadline: 1 May 2026
The Tom Howard/John H. Reid Fiction & Essay Contest is a long-running annual competition organised by Winning Writers. Now in its 34th year, the contest accepts short works of fiction and nonfiction prose on any theme up to 6,000 words each. Both published and unpublished work from writers of all ages worldwide is welcome. The contest is judged by Tamra Badgett.
Entry fee: $25 per entry
Top prize: Fiction $3,500; Essay $3,500 (both top prizes also include a 2-year Duotrope gift certificate)
Find out more: https://winningwriters.com/our-contests/tom-howard-john-h-reid-fiction-essay-contest
Waterston Desert Writing Prize
Deadline: 1 May 2026
The Waterston Desert Writing Prize is organised by the High Desert Museum, a nonprofit cultural institution in Bend, Oregon, USA, and was established in 2014 in recognition of author and poet Ellen Waterston’s deep connection to desert landscapes. The prize celebrates literary creative nonfiction that reflects artistic sensitivity to place and what the organisers call “desert literacy” - work in which deserts are both subject and setting. Writers must submit a project proposal, a biographical statement, and a prose writing sample of up to 10 double-spaced pages (published or unpublished). The prize is open internationally to nonfiction writers at all career stages. Award recipients are asked to attend a reading and reception at the High Desert Museum in Bend, Oregon, in September 2026.
Entry fee: Free 🆓
Top prize: $3,000 cash award, a residency at PLAYA in Summer Lake, Oregon, and travel support to attend a reading and reception at the High Desert Museum.
Find out more: https://thewaterstondesertwritingprize.submittable.com/submit
The Mo Siewcharran Prize 2026
Deadline: 2 May 2026
The Mo Siewcharran Prize 2026 is organised by Bookouture, a Hachette UK digital-first imprint. The prize was launched to discover and nurture unpublished fiction writers from under-represented ethnic backgrounds.The 2026 edition invites submissions in commercial fiction within the sub-genres of psychological thriller or romance (including romantic comedy, romantasy, and historical romance). Entrants must be unagented, previously unpublished, aged 18 or over, resident in the UK, and identify as Black, Asian, mixed heritage, and/or of multiple ethnic background. Submissions consist of a synopsis of up to 700 words and the first 10,000 words of the novel-in-progress. Self-published writers are eligible provided they are willing to remove the relevant work from sale if offered a publishing contract.
Entry fee: Free 🆓
Top prize: £2,500, a 1,000-word editorial feedback report, a one-hour editorial session with a senior Bookouture editor, an introductory literary agent meeting, an interactive session with the Bookouture team, a hamper of books, and consideration at Bookouture’s acquisitions meeting.
Find out more: https://www.thefuturebookshelf.co.uk/tfb-blog/2026/01/07/bookouture-to-host-the-mo-siewcharran-prize-2026/
Dear Aliens – A Writing Contest for Humans
Deadline: 15 May 2026
Dear Aliens is a one-of-a-kind creative writing contes. Its premise is wonderfully strange: the aliens are coming, and they have asked humanity for a single written document - the one thing they will read before they arrive. What that document should be is entirely up to the writer: a history of humanity, a family introduction, a short story, a joke, a description of a sunset anything goes, as long as the writer believes it would be a worthy piece of writing for extraterrestrial eyes. Submissions must be under 1,000 words, written in English, and, in a refreshingly retro touch, must be physically mailed in. The contest is free to enter, limited to one submission per person, and open internationally.
Entry fee: Free 🆓 (postage costs only)
Top prize: $2,000
Find out more: https://www.dearaliens.net/
RTÉ Radio 1 Short Story Competition in Honour of Francis MacManus
Deadline: 15 May 2026
The RTÉ Short Story Competition in Honour of Francis MacManus is one of Ireland’s most prestigious and long-running literary prizes. Set up in 1986, the competition recognises and rewards new Irish fiction writing for radio. Entries, which may be written in Irish or English, must be original, previously unpublished short stories. The story must not be under consideration elsewhere during the judging period and must be suitable for broadcast to a general audience. Eligibility is restricted to writers aged 18 or over who are either resident on the island of Ireland or, if living abroad, hold an Irish passport. Only one entry per person is permitted. All ten shortlisted stories are recorded and broadcast on RTÉ Radio 1. The winning story will be announced at an awards ceremony in autumn 2026.
Entry fee: Free 🆓
Top prize: €5,000
Find out more: https://www.rte.ie/radio/radio1/rte-short-story-competition/
ABR Elizabeth Jolley Short Story Prize
Deadline: 18 May 2026
The ABR Elizabeth Jolley Short Story Prize is an annual international competition organised by Australian Book Review, one of Australia’s leading literary magazines. The prize is open to writers worldwide and invites submissions of a single original short story of between 2,000 and 5,000 words, written in English and on any subject or in any style. Stories must be previously unpublished and must not have been broadcast or won awards elsewhere. The three shortlisted stories are published in Australian Book Review and on the magazine’s website. Non-subscribers who enter will receive four months of free digital access to ABR.
Entry fee: $30 for non-subscribers; $20 for current ABR subscribers
Top prize: $6,000 and publication
Find out more: https://www.australianbookreview.com.au/prizes-programs/elizabeth-jolley-story-prize/current-prize
M.F.K. Fisher Emerging Writers Contest
Deadline: 25 May 2026
The M.F.K. Fisher Emerging Writers Contest is organised by the M.F.K. Fisher Foundation, a US nonprofit dedicated to preserving the legacy of influential food and travel writer M.F.K. Fisher. Now in its seventh year, the contest invites writers to submit original, unpublished essays or short stories responding to the 2026 theme of “Fire,”. There are three entry categories: Adults (18+, up to 750 words), Youth (ages 13–17, 300–500 words), and Children (ages 8–12, 300–500 words). The contest is open to writers worldwide and is judged by a distinguished panel including food writer Ruth Reichl and author Luke Barr.
Entry fee: $50 for adults; free for children and youth
Top prize: $250 for first place in each category; an additional $250 for the overall grand prize winner
Find out more: https://mfkfisher.org/2026-writers-contest
WOW! Spring 2026 Flash Fiction Contest
Deadline: 31 May 2026
The WOW! Spring 2026 Flash Fiction Contest is a quarterly competition organised by WOW! Women on Writing. The spring round is now open and accepts original flash fiction on any theme and in any genre provided it is previously unpublished and written in English. The contest is open internationally to writers of all backgrounds and is capped at 300 entries. This season’s guest judge is Dr. Noah Charney.
Entry fee: $10 (an entry with editorial critique is available for $20)
Top prize: $600, a spot in Reedsy’s How to Write a Novel Course ($499 value), a 12-month Reedsy Learning Membership ($249 value), a $25 Amazon gift certificate, publication, and an interview on the WOW! blog;
Find out more: https://www.wow-womenonwriting.com/contest.php#FlashFictionContest
The Jonathan and Barbara Silver Foundation Grant for Writing on Sculpture
Deadline: 31 May 2026
The Grant for Writing on Sculpture is organised by the Jonathan and Barbara Silver Foundation, a US nonprofit that supports both sculptors and writers whose work deepens public understanding of sculpture. The 2026 grant is specifically for writers generating original, rigorous work on the history, aesthetics, purposes, or situation of sculpture. Eligible types of writing include art criticism, art history, memoir, psychoanalytical study, philosophical meditation, and literary study. The grant is restricted to US citizens who have had at least one piece of writing published in the last five years.
Entry fee: Free 🆓
Top prize: $20,000
Find out more: https://jonathanandbarbarasilverfoundation.org/grants/
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🧠 Remember: Always do your own research and carefully read submission guidelines before sharing your work!
📖 Creative Writing Book of the Week
Still Writing: The Perils and Pleasures of a Creative Life by Dani Shapiro
If you've ever sat down to write and felt the familiar pull of doubt, distraction, or the nagging sense that you're somehow doing it wrong - this book is for you. Part craft guide, part memoir, part pep talk, Still Writing is Dani Shapiro at her most honest and generous. She doesn't promise that writing gets easier. She promises it's worth it anyway. A book to keep on your desk and return to whenever you need reminding why you do this.
Explore other great books about creative writing and publishing on our website: The Best Books on Writing: Essential Guides for Creative Writers
And that’s all for this week! I hope you’ve spotted at least one opportunity that’s made you reach for your notebook, or finally open that draft you’ve been meaning to come back to. Remember, a near deadline isn’t a reason to panic; sometimes a little urgency is exactly what a piece of writing needs to get finished.
A few reminders as you get your submissions ready:
Always read the full guidelines carefully before entering. Word counts, eligibility rules, and formatting requirements really do matter.
Don’t let entry fees put you off without looking closely; many of the best opportunities this week are completely free to enter.
Don’t let the fear of rejection hold you back. Every submission is an act of courage, and every writer you admire has a collection of rejection letters to prove it.
Always do your own research before entering. Carefully read the terms and conditions for each event!
If you know a fellow writer who’d enjoy these roundups, please do pass this edition along. The more the merrier - we’re all in this together!
Happy writing,
Victoria
🗓️ Know of any other interesting writing events?
Consider submitting it to our curated calendar through this submission form. You can also post a comment below, or send me a message via Substack. Let me know if there is anything you’d like to feature in next week’s edition of the newsletter.
☕ Support my work: If you find these updates useful, you can show your support by subscribing or donating a coffee.
🧠 Remember: Always do your own research and carefully read submission guidelines before sharing your work!
Thank you. 🙏😎❤️
Thank you so much for curating this list! :)