Writing competitions are an incredible opportunity to get your work in front of industry professionals so in this week’s blog post I’ve curated a list of contests that you may want to consider as part of your author journey.
While it can be nerve-wracking to submit your work, the benefits far outweigh any discomfort helping you understand where you need to improve, who the competition is, and what the publishing industry is looking for. If you win, there’s often a cash prize along with the prestige and confidence that comes from an award.
In fact you may (or may not) know that my own author career started as a result of winning a writing competition in 2016 which led to a 3-book deal.
So if you’re serious about your writing and being published, check out my round up of upcoming writing competitions, many of which have submissions open now.
As many of you are from all around the world, the majority of these are open to international entries but please do check the terms and conditions carefully!
1. The 2021 Exeter Novel Prize
Prize: First prize - £500
Entry fee: £18 (or £100 with appraisal)
Deadline: 11.59pm on 1 January 2022
About: The competition is open to everyone, living anywhere in the world, published, self-published or yet to be published, who does not have representation by a literary agent, and who does not receive a contract from a commercial publisher by the closing date.
2. Unleash Prize 2022 Book Prize
Prize: $1,000 advance and standard contract option to publish with Unleash Press
Entry fee: $35
Deadline: 5 January 2022
About: Unleash Press are looking for submissions for novels, short story collections, and creative nonfiction manuscripts.
3. The Emirates LitFest Writing Prize
Prize: a one-hour one to one with each of the judges for feedback, and writing career advice.
Entry fee: AED 200
Deadline: 12 December 2021
About: Part of the Emirates Literature Festival, this competition is for fictional entries in English by GCC residents and should include a 400-word synopsis of the book and the first 2,000 words of the almost completed manuscript.
Prize: £10,000
Entry fee: £18
Deadline: 28 January 2022
About: The Manchester Fiction Prize asks for a short story of up to 2,500 words in length. Stories submitted should be new work, not previously published elsewhere. The Prize is open internationally to those aged 16 or over.
Prize: 1st : £1000, 2nd: £500, 3rd: £250
Entry fee: £9
Deadline: TBA 2022
About: an annual international short-story writing competition open to all published and unpublished, UK and non-UK based writers.
Prize: £3000
Entry fee: TBA
Deadline: Submissions open on 1 December 2021
About: The Bath Novel Award is an international prize for emerging novelists and is open worldwide to unpublished, self-published and independently published writers. To enter, submit your first 5,000 words plus one page synopsis of novels for adults or young adults
Prize: 1st : £1000, 2nd: £250, 3rd: £100
Entry fee: £25
Deadline: Submissions open February 2022
About: The First Novel Prize aims to discover a powerful new voice in fiction writing, across the English language world. Prizes are available for unpublished or independently published novelists. The submission should be over 50,000 words and of an adult genre.
Prize: $1000
Entry Fee: $16
Deadline: 1 January 2022
About: The contest is open to all writers in English except current or former students or employees of The University of Southern Mississippi. Fiction and non-fiction entries should be 1000-8000 words; poetry entries should be three to five poems totaling ten pages or less.
Prize: a full fellowship (airfare stipend, tuition, and housing included) to the 2022 DISQUIET International Program in Lisbon, Portugal. Genre winners will receive a $500 cash prize in addition to publication.
Deadline: January 24, 2022
Entry fee: $15
About: The 2022 DISQUIET Prize is open for submissions in fiction, poetry, and non-fiction.
Prize: 1st: €1,000, 2nd: Online writing course + €200, 3rd: €200
Deadline: 31 January 2022
Fee: €18
About: This contest is an opportunity to have your memoir published. Qian Julie Wang, author of her memoir Beautiful Country, will select 10 short memoirs to be published in the Fish Anthology 2022, which will be launched during the West Cork Literary Festival, July ’22.
Which competition will you enter?
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