My Novel

My Novel

UK Poetry Competitions (currently (18)

Red Shed Open Poetry Competition.  Here’s a return visit from the annual contest run by Currock Press of Wakefield.  Sponsored by the Mocca Moocho cafe it is for poems of up to 40 lines on any subject.  Be aware that the rules contain some formatting instructions.
    Closing: 27.3.26.
    Prizes: 1st - £100.  2nd - £50.  Shortlisted - £20.  Wakefield Postcode: £25.
    Entry Fee: £3 for the first, £2 thereafter.
    Comp Page: Red Shed.

Letter Review Prizes.  Here’s a repeat of the contest from the USA with three categories: Poetry (all kinds, up to 70 lines), Short Fiction (up to 5,000 words) and Unpublished Books (first 5,000 words of a novel, novella, nonfiction or collection of short stories, or 15 pages of poetry).  In the Unpublished Books category, self-published books are eligible.
    Closing: 29.3.26 (5am).
    Prizes: A share of the $1,000 prize pool in each category.  Poetry and Short Fiction winners will be published, while Unpublished Book winners can choose to have an extract published and receive a letter of recommendation from the judges.  Winners in the first three categories will also be considered for submission to the Pushcart Prize and other anthologies.
    Entry Fee: Short Fiction - $25.  Poetry - $20.  Book - $30.
    Comp Page: Letter Review Prizes

The Caterpillar Poetry Prize.  Before you clutter up your mind with ideas for poems about caterpillars, let me point out that the name of this annual contest is not intended to indicate the official subject, although if you wish to go that way, you are free to do so.  The only stipulations are that your poem must be suitable for children aged 7 to 11, and it must be written by someone aged over 16..  It can be any length and may have any number of legs, including none.  The Caterpillar, incidentally, is a children’s magazine based in Southern Ireland.
    Closing: 31.3.26.
    Prizes: 1st - 1,000 euros and a week at the Moth Retreat in Ireland.  2nd - 500 euros.  3rd - 250 euors.  Winners will be published in the Irish Times online.
    Entry Fee: 16 euros.
    Comp Page: Catmag Poetry.

Dear Michael
   I discovered your excellent site a few months back and entered some of the poetry competitions. I have in all my long years never received a payment for anything I have written, but I today received an email from Cooldog Publications to say I have won second prize in their E-mag Poetry Competition! £50! What a great way to start the new year.
   I just had to write and say thanks to you for the trouble you have taken with your site and how much I appreciate the sense of humour that underpins it.
  This has given me a terrific boost.
                                                                                -  Carol Browne

Fish Poetry Prize.  Poems of up to 60 line in any style are invited for this annual international contest from Fish Publishing based in southern Ireland.   Billy Collins will again be judging.
    Closing: 31.3.26.
    Prizes: 1st - 1,000 euros.   2nd - 300 euros plus a Fish writing course.  3rd - 300 euros.  Ten poems will be published in the Fish Anthology 2026.  The writers will each receive five free copies and will be invited to read at the launch ceremony at the West Cork Literary Festival in July 2026.
    Entry Fee: 16 euros, for the first, 11 euros thereafter.
    Comp Page: Fish Poetry.

Binsted Poetry Prize.  The South Downs Poetry Festival is coming round again and as usual it features a competition for poems on any subject.  With a line limit of 40, this is open to all poets aged over 16.
    Closing: 31.3.26.
    Prizes: 1st - £250.  2nd - £150.  3rd - £50.  Winners and highly commended entries will be published in the Binsted Prize Anthology.
    Entry Fee: £5 for the first, £4 thereafter.
    Comp Page: Binsted Poetry.

Rialto Nature & Place Poetry Competition.  Any aspect of nature and place is the theme of this annual contest from The Rialto magazine in association with the RSPB, Birdlife International, the Cambridge Conservation Initiative and the University of Leeds Poetry Centre.  Poems of up to 40 lines are required.  The judge is Mona Arshi.
    Closing: 1.4.26.
    Prizes: £1,000, £500, £250.
    Entry Fee: £7 for the first, £4 thereafter.
    Comp Page: Rialto N&P.

Artemesia Arts Poetry Competition 2026 .  Poems on any theme and in any form are required for this one, and the line limit is 40.  Poet Malika Booker, a leeturer at Manchester Metropolitan University, will be judging.
    Closing: 4.4.26.
    Prizes: £200, £80, £80.  Winners and certain others will be published in an anthology and will receive a free copy.
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Comp Page: Artemesia

Brotherton Poetry Prize 2026.  To enter this one from Leeds University you submit a portfolio of up to five poems.  Your entry should run to no more than 200 lines excluding titles.  The contest is open to unpublished poets worldwide.
    Closing: 8.4.26.
    Prizes:  1st - £1,000 and the chance to develop your writing with Poetry@Leeds.  Runners-up (4) - £200.  Winners will be published in an anthology.  Poet Laureate Simon Armitage will be one of the judges.
    Entry Fee: £15 per portfolio.
    Comp Page: Brotherton

Fossway Writers Poetry Competition 2026 .  Here’s one for poems of up to 40 lines on the theme of ‘Ghost’.
    Closing: 18.4.26.
    Prizes:  £50, £30, £20.
    Entry Fee: £3 for the first, £2  each thereafter.
    Comp Page: Fossway Poetry

Ware Poets Open Poetry Competition.  Ware Poets of Hertfordshire are running their annual international contest again, and as before it is for poems of up to 50 lines on any subject.  There is a separate category for sonnets.  The prize money in the main category has been increased significantly this year.  Winning poems will be published in the 2026 anthology, with a free copy going to each writer.  The best poem will be entered for the Forward Prize.  Prize-winning and Commended poets will be invited to read their poem at an informal prize-giving event at Southern Maltings Arts Centre in Ware.
    Closing: 30.4.26.
    Prizes: £1,000, £500, £200.  Ware Sonnet Prize - £200.  Local Prize - £200.
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Comp Page: Ware Poets

Alpine Fellowship Poetry Prize.  The Alpine Fellowship is a charity project of the German-based ‘Argosophia Stiftung’, which holds a symposium every year.  The contest, like the charity, is international.  The prize is awarded annually for the best piece of poetry on the set theme.  This year’s theme is Joy.  Maximum word count: 500.
    Closing: 1.5.26.
    Prizes: £3,000, £1,000, £1000.
    Entry Fee: £10.
    Comp Page: Alpine Poetry Prize.

Creative Future Competition.  The Creative Future Awards for underrepresented writers over 18 is back again.  There are three categories: Poetry of up to 50 lines, Fiction up to 2,000 words, and Creative Non-fiction up to 2,000 words.  The theme this year is ‘Material’ (‘a creative prompt,’ they say, ‘not a requirement’).
    Closing: Online - 5.5.26.  Postal- 6.5.26.
    Prizes: (Poetry) 1st - £75, a Chapter and Verse Mentorship, manuscript assessment and a year’s Being A Writer membership, plus a Faber Academy online masterclass.  2nd - £50 plus other writing-relatesd items.  3rd - £25 plus other Writing-related items.  There are also prizes for fourth place and runners-up.  (Fiction): 1st - £75, a Curtis Brown mentorship and agent meeting, one year’s Being A Writer membership, Faber Academy Writing a Novel course,  a year’s membership of the Society of Authors.  2nd - £50 plus writing-related items.  3rd - £25 plus other items.  There are also prizes for fourth place and runners-up. (Creative Non-fiction): 1st - £75 plus mentoring and manuscript assessment, plus Faber Academy’s Memoir and Life Writing course.  2nd - £50, manuscript assessment and an online writing course from Writing Magazine, plus Society of Authors membership.  3rd - £25 plus manuscript assessment and coaching, and a copy of the W&A Yearbook.  There are also prizes for Highly Commended and Commended.  In addition to the main category prizes there are ‘Joint prizes’, presumably so you can smoke away the blues after not winning the top prize ... oh, hang on, it seems these prizes are something extra that all winners get jointly.  Winners will be published in an anthology.
    Entry Fee: Free to enter, or pay what you can.
    Comp Page: Creative Future Award

Wirral Poetry Festival Open Poetry Competition.  Poems of up to 40 lines are invited for this long-running contest from the Wirral where Vikings once settled (before being moved on by the council following complaints of antisocial behaviour).
    Closing: 29.5.26.
    Prizes: Open - £250, 4 x £25.  Liverpool City Region - £100, 2 x £25.
    Entry Fee: £4 each, £10 for three, £15 for five
    Comp Page: Wirral Poetry

Hi Michael,
     Thanks for a very useful website. Since finding the contact details on your site, I've won the Txtlit competition twice, and the Write Invite competition four times. With the prize money I'm now entering other competitions. Thanks for keeping us writers posted!
     Best regards, Uta Coutts

Bridport Prize.  This famous international competition from the Bridport Arts Centre is one of the most prestigious writing contests in the British literary calendar.  Everyone in the trade whose mind is not addled by drugs has heard of it, and they will be impressed if you can claim to have won it.  The good news is that winning it is easy.  All you have to do is submit the best poem, short story or flash fiction, the poem having no more than 42 lines, the short story running to no more than 5,000 words.  For those who find 5,000 words too tiring to write, the flash fiction category is ideal as it has a word limit of only 250 (if that’s too much, consider becoming a poet).
    Closing: 31.5.26.
    Prizes: Short Stories, Poems (in each category) - £5,000, £1,000, £500, and ten @ £100.  Flash Fiction - £1,000, £500, £250, and five @ £100.  Winning entries will be published in an anthology.
    Entry Fees:  Poem - £13.  Short Story - £15.  Flash Fiction - £12.
    Comp Page: Bridport Prize.

Frogmore Poetry Prize.  This annual contest is run by Frogmore Press which was founded in 1983 in the Frogmore tearooms in Folkestone.  Well, what else can you do in Folkestone?  I’ll tell you what: you can fall in the sea - a feat I managed at the age of 8.  Will I ever forget that day?  Unlikely, for I had the misfortune to be rescued by my two sisters.  ‘No, no - let me drown!’ I cried.  ‘I’ll never be able to face my mates again.’  But I had the ice cream money in my pocket and so my pleas were ignored.  I later wrote a poem about the shame of it all but it would have been too long for this contest as it ran to 360 lines.  The line limit here is 40.
    Closing: 31.5.26.
    Prize: 1st - 250 guineas.  Classy.  You also get a two-year subscription to The Frogmore Papers.  2nd - 75 guineas and a year’s subscription.  3rd - 50 guineas and a year’s subscription.  Shortlisted poets also get copies of selected Frogmore Press publications, plus publicaion in the mag.
    Entry Fee: £4.
    Comp Page: Frogmore PP

Canterbury Poet of the Year Competition.  Here’s a repeat of the annual international contest from SaveAs Writers of Canterbury in Kent.  It is for poems of up to 60 lines on any subject and in any form,
    Closing: 1.6.26.
    Prizes: £300, £150, £75.  Longlisted poems will be published in a printed anthology.
    Entry Fee: £5,
    Comp Page: Canterbury Poet of the Year

Wells Festival of Literature Competitions.  Here we have a return of the famous Wells Litfest and its various competitions: Poetry, Short Story, Book for Children, Young Poets.  I should mention before we go any further that we are talking about Wells in Somerset, not Wells in Norfolk which also has an annual litfest (I wouldn’t want you turning up at the wrong event to receive your prize or to berate the judges for not awarding you anything).  Anyway, back to business.  For the Poetry you are allowed up to 40 lines, while the Short Stories should be between 1,000 and 2,000 words.  For the Book for Children, which must be suitable for youngsters aged 7+ (includes YA), you need to submit the first three chapters (or the first 30 pages, this being the maximum), plus a synopsis of up to 2 pages.   If shortlisted, you may be asked to submit the complete manuscript.  The Young Poets category, for budding bards aged between 16 and 22, requires poems of no more than 40 lines.
    Closing: Adults - 30.6.26.  Young Poets - 31.7.26.  Opens for entries 1.4.26 (no, really, I’m not fooling!).
    Prizes: Poetry - £1,000, £500, £250.  Short Story, Book for Children (in each category) - £750, £300, £200.  Young Poets - £200, £150, £100.  Additional prizes: Local Prize for poetry, short story - £100 in each category.  Book for Children Local Prize - £100.
    Entry Fee : Adult categories - £8.  Young Poets - £3.
    Comp Page: Wells Litfest.

Winchester Poetry Prize.  Back with a bang like a shot from a Winchester rifle is this annual contest from the Winchester Poetry Festival.  It is for poems of up to 40 lines.  As usual it is open globally.  This year acclaimed Poet Julia Copus will be judging.
    Closing: 31.7.26.
    Prizes: £1,000, £500, £250.  Winners will be announced live at a special prize-giving ceremony as part of Winchester Poetry Day on October 10, 2026.  All longlisted poems will appear in an anthology which will be available on the day.  There is also a prize for the best poem written by a Hampshire-based poet.
    Entry Fee: £7 for the first, £5 thereafter.
    Comp Page: Winchester Poetry

Hi Michael
     I spent a year or so reading all those comments on your website from people who, since consulting your list, seem have won just about every competition going. I read it and thought it must be too good to be true – but worth a try. Then, on my third submission, I have actually gone and won the Yeovil Literary Prize for Poetry. I am absolutely over the moon, unable to believe it, etc.  Thank you so much.
                                                                                   -  Andy Miller

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Notes: Unless otherwise stated in the rules, poetry should be single-spaced.  It is sometimes the case that your name shouldn’t appear on the manuscript. Check the rules.  If you put your name on there after being told not to, you’re out.  Don’t use coloured paper or fancy fonts.  The colour and pizzazz to make you stand out from the crowd should be in the words.  Plain white A4 80gsm paper is the stuff to use, with plain black typing or print.  My preferred font for poetry manuscripts printed on an inkjet or laser printer is Gill Sans in 12 point (13 if I’m not pressed for space).  This gives a clear, dark print that’s easy to read.  Although publishers and agents sometimes demand the feeble Courier font, which comes out on my printers like something produced by a typewriter with an antique ribbon, I’ve never known competition organisers to express any preference.  But as always, check the rules.  Finally, write on one side of the sheet only - unless asked to put your address, etc, on the back.
 

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Disclaimer

   
For other types of writing contests see the full list on my Writing Comps page.