Details

Details

UK Writing Competitions (currently 98)

Writers’ Forum Short Story Competition.  There is a new contest in each issue of this writers’ mag.  All types of stories are accepted, from horror to romance, with a length of between 1,000 and 3,000 words.
    Closing: Monthly.  Entries arriving too late for one comp go into the next.
    Prizes: £300, £150, £100 in each issue.
    Entry Fee: £6, or £3 for subscribers to the magazine.  Critique - £5 (enclose sae if entering by post).
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Writers’ Forum Poetry Competition.  This monthly contest from the glossy magazine Writers’ Forum is for poems of up to 40 lines.
    Closing: Monthly.  Entries arriving too late for one month go forward to the next.
    Prizes: 1st - £100.  Runners-up - A Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable.
    Entry Fee: £5 each, £3 each thereafter.  Includes a free critique (sae required if entering by post).
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Whidbey Writing Competition .  This contest from Whidbey Writers Workshop in the USA is open worldwide and is for fiction, creative non-fiction, poetry and writing for children or young adults.  Up to 1,000 words.  I should point out that they have a rather strange - and if I may say so lazy - way of selecting a winner for this one.  The judge reads submissions until he or she finds one that ‘knocks his/her socks off’.  Never mind that the next one might have divested the judge of his/her pants and woolly vest, the remaining entries are tossed aside without so much as a glance.  However, you can submit you entry again if it isn’t selected (try to get it in early, as entries are read in order of submission).
    Closing: Monthly.
    Prize: $50.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Books to Improve Your Writing Skills  

Cazart Short Story & Flash Fiction Competition.  Well I’ll be ******.  They allow swearing in this one.  However, I don’t suppose expletives alone will be enough to win.  For the short story category, entries should be between 400 and 3,000 words.  Flash fiction can be up to 400 words.
    Closing: 26th of each month.
    Prize (in each category): A cash amount based on the number of entries received.  The winning stories will be published on the Cazart homepage for two months.
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Comp Page: Click Here .

Flash 500 Humorous Verse Competition.  Any kind of humorous verse up to 30 lines is required for this one.
    Closing: 30.3.12, 30.6.12, 30.9.12, 31.12.12.
    Prizes: £150, £100, £50.
    Entry Fee: £3 for the first, £2.50 thereafter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Five Stop Story Competition.  This is for stories of up to 3,000 words on any subject or theme.
    Closing: End of each month.
    Prizes: Monthly - £50.  Top author in league table at end of year - £150.  Winners and runners-up will be published on the website.  They will also be published as an iPad and iPhone ap, whatever that means.
    Entry Fee: £4 each, £7 for two, £8 for three.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Hi
    Before I discovered your website I’d never even thought of trying my luck in a writing competition. My stories were a very private part of my life, I was (and for the most of the time still am) very convinced that they are not good enough for the ‘outside world’.
     I don’t know what made me try - call it a crazy moment of self-confidence - but here I am the October winner of the Cazart short story competition. I haven’t felt so good about myself in months. It might not seem like a big deal to the world but for me it means everything. And it would not have happened if it wasn’t for your wonderful website.
     Thank You very much.                                         -  Dorota Nocun

Cinnamon Press Poetry Collection Award.  Entries for ths one should comprise 10 poems of up to 40 lines.
    Closing: Bi-annually (end of June and November).
    Prize: £100 and your collection published.
    Entry Fee: £16 per batch of ten (includes a free copy of the winners’ anthology).
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Cinnamon Press Short Story Award .  This is for stories of between 2,000 and 4,000 words.
    Closing: Bi-annually (end of June and November).
    Prize: £100 and publication.
    Entry Fee: £16 (includes a free copy of the winners’ anthology).
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Cinnamon Press Novel/Novella Award .  To enter this you submit the first 10,000 words of your novel or novella.
    Closing: Bi-annually (end of June and November).
    Prize: £400 and your novella published.
    Entry Fee: £16.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

WriteOnSite Writing Competition.  This, they say, could be described as literary open mic.  The competition opens at 5.30pm GMT every Saturday, at which point three themes are given.  You choose your theme, pay your entry fee and then write.  You have just 20 minutes to complete your story.  Three entries are then chosen to be read and judged by all the other entrants during the following week.  Only for the brave.
    Closing: Every Saturday.
    Prize: £40.
    Entry Fee: £3.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Telegraph ‘Just Back’ Travel writing Competition.  If you are just back from somewhere a little more interesting than the local park, the Telegraph Online would like the gripping details in up to 500 words.  You can read previous winners on the website.  A ‘voyage’ across the Mersey is one of them - proving that you don’t have to write about anywhere exotic to scoop the prize.
    Closing: Monthly.
    Prize: £200 in the currency of your choice.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

     Thank you, Michael, for bothering to put your website together. Encouraged by your words I sent off a piece to the Daily Telegraph Travel Writing Competition but didn't win. Third time lucky, and after considerable honing and editing, I have just been informed by the deputy editor that my piece will be published this Saturday (17th July) and I have won £200.
     I am now inspired to go on to bigger things.
     Thanks again.                                                      -  Liz Cleere

Bloomsbury 247tales Competition.  Here is a contest from the publishers of Harry Potter for tales of up to 247 words written by children between the ages of 8 and 16.
    Closing: Monthly.
    Prize: £75 worth of Bloomsbury children’s books, publication on the website and a framed copy of your story.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Hi Michael,
     Just wanted to say thanks for working so hard on your fantastic site. It must take up loads of your time and energy to keep updating it with such enthusiasm and humour! I found it last year, and entered the Global Short Story competition. Although I didn't win, I was shortlisted for the August comp.  I then submitted a short story to the Bridge House Anthology which aimed to raise money for the Born Free Foundation. I remember you saying something like there is no prize money, but it will help your CV if you can say you are published in a book with Richard Adams, author of Watership Down, and a foreword by Virginia McKenna.
     Well guess what - I am! Well, in June anyway. The anthology is a collection of animal stories and is called Gentle Footprints.
     So thanks again, and a plug for charity - all readers of your site are kindly invited to buy a copy!                                             -  Mandy James

The Write Place Novel Competition.  This contest has now been cancelled by the promoters (The Write Place Creative Writing School) following my comments about the alleged value of the prize (publication) and the nature of the publishing firm (Pneuma Springs Publishing) supplying it.  Although the promoters are blaming me for ruining a worthwhile competition, I consider the cancellation to be their acceptance that my comments were spot on.
    Pneuma Springs Publishing offers services which are deemed by the book trade to be vanity publishing.  If anyone is unclear about the meaning and implications of this term, they should read the free Occasional Paper on Vanity Publishing by the Society of Authors: Click Here.

                         The Rules, the T&Cs, the Fine Print
When you submit a story or poem to a competition, you are entering into a contract with the promoter.  Make sure you know the terms.  It may be, for instance, that you are granting the promoter the right to publish your work without payment even if you don’t win.  This is often the price you pay for entering a contest with no entry fee.  If it bothers you, don’t participate.  But before you get sniffy about that 450-word story set in the sedate world of turnip farming, ask yourself this: Would I really be able to sell it to anyone else?  Publication, even without payment, might not be a bad thing if it gets you a healthy crop of readers.  And if it’s in a newspaper or magazine that carries some prestige ... well, there are plenty of struggling writers who would gift wrap and hand over their very souls for the privilege of being able to put that in their cv.  Only you can decide if it’s worth it.

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

Words Magazine Short Story Competitions.  Words Magazine seems to have been around for a long time and for most of that time it’s been running competitions. They close on various dates.  They usually have different themes, but the ones announced for this year have no themes.
    Closing: 30.6.12, 31.12.12.
    Prizes: The winner in each contest takes all the money raised from the entry fees.
    Entry Fee: £3.
    Website: Click Here .

How-To Writing Competition.  This one from How To Books Ltd is for easy-to-read instructional articles.  Ideally these should be between 350 and 500 words.  Longer works will be accepted if the extra length is justified, but you should restrain any tendency to repeat yourself, state the blindingly obvious, go off at tangents and generally get on everyone’s tits.
    Closing: Monthly.
    Prize: £50 or £100.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Dear Michael,
     I love your website and its pertinent personal comments re the comps.
     I entered the Alexander Cordell one some months ago, the mini saga, and was short-listed to win. It was a 600 mile round trip with two toddlers but we had a really wonderful weekend. My husband is self employed and works really long hours so it was great to drag him away and out into the countryside. The people were lovely, the whole event was fascinating, and I was thrilled to get two books and a book token. My little girl age 3 gets excited every time Wales is mentioned on the news now! The greatest thrill was hearing the Director of Visit Wales read out my story so reverently, and with evident enjoyment. The organisers were delighted with the world-wide entries.  I don’t write for money - just as well - but for the love of the medium and the message.
     Keep up the good work!                                         -  Julie Noble

Global Short Story Competition.  This contest, which is supported by the Darlington Arts Centre in County Durham and renowned author Bill Bryson, is for stories of up to 2,000 words on any theme.
    Closing: End of each month.
    Prize: 1st - £100.  Runner-up £25.  After a year the monthly winners will be considered for an annual cash prize.
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Website: Click Here.

Hi there,
     I just want to say a BIG thank you from South Africa for your incredible website. It is so informative and detailed -- and this morning (on Christmas!) I just discovered that I’ve won First Prize for the Mona Schreiber competition - the details of which I found on your BRILLIANT website!  $500!  Thank you again!!
     Sincerely,  Sharon Rina de Villiers

Camp Trip Writing Contest.  This recurring US contest is for camping related articles (minimum 200 words) in which you share your tips, tricks, advice, infomative experience, etc.  Note that your entry may appear on the website, so leave out the illegal stuff (such as what you were smoking round the campfire).
    Closing: When they’ve received 100 entries - so you’d better be quick.  See website for latest count.
    Prizes: $100, $75, $25 - all in Visa Gift Cards.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Flash 500 Competition.  This quarterly flash fiction contest, which offers higher prize money than many similar competitions, is for stories of up to 500 words on any theme.
    Closing : 31.3.12, 30.6.12, 30.9.12, 31.12.12.
    Prizes: 1st - £300 and publication in Words With Jam.  2nd - £100.  3rd - £50.  Highly Commended - A copy of The Writer’s ABC Checklist.
    Entry Fee: £5 each, £8 for two.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Short Sentence Competition.  This one from Harry Potter publisher Bloomsbury in conjunction with Writers’ & Artists’ Yearbook is, as you will not have guessed from the title, for crime stories of up to 1,000 words.  There is a different theme each month.  I assume the contest is called ‘Short Sentence’ because you get a sentence when convicted of committing a crime ... although if the crime is, say, murder, the sentence is not likely to be short.  Hmm, a mystery.
    Closing: Monthly.
    Prizes: Publicaton in the Short Sentence Collection, which will be available for free download from the Bloomsbury website and Amazon amongst others.  As you have probably gathered, there will be no royalties.  You do it for the glory and hope to find some other way of paying the rent.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Dear Michael,
     I just wanted to tell you that I won first prize in the Charnwood Arts' miniWords Poetry Competition (£250), so thank you very much for that!
                                                                               -  Mary Whitsell
Hello Michael
     I've just won the Telegraph's 'Just Back' Travel Writing Competition, which I heard about on your site. Thank you yet again for providing this service to writers.
     It's a good thing I don't have to tell you about all the competitions I entered but didn't win, isn't it?  But all the rejections only make the wins that much sweeter!
                                                                                                  -   Mary Whitsell

WWN Short Story & Poetry Competition.  This fundraiser for the not-for-profit Well Warrington Network is for stories of up to 1,000 words and poems of up to 32 lines.  The theme is Health, Wealth and Happiness.  You can, they say, write about one or all of these concepts.
    Closing: 18.5.12.
    Prizes: £60, £30, £20.
    Entry Fee: £3.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Virginia Warbey Poetry Prize.  This is the seventh of these contests from Chandler’s Ford Writers. Any theme, and once again the line limit is 40.
    Closing: 19.5.12.
    Prizes: £600, £300, £150, 10 x £25.
    Entry Fee: £4.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Printer Inks Poetry Competition.  This is not, as you might imagine, a contest for poems on the subject of printer inks.  Oh no.  It’s a contest for poems on any subject you have an inkling you can turn into a good poem.  Printer Inks is the name of the firm running the show.  For this freebie they are seeking entries of up to 45 lines.
    Closing: 21.5.12.
    Prize: £100.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Welsh Poetry Competition.  Here’s another regular runner, this time from Wales, and if you can write Welsh poetry in English you could be in with a chance of winning ... but only if you manage to keep your entry down to 50 lines or fewer.  To avoid confusion I should perhaps say that Welsh poetry, for the purpose of this contest, is any poetry.  It’s just the contest that’s Welsh.  I expect you realised that anyway, but if I didn’t state the obvious sometimes I’d have nothing to say.  Note that you have to be living to enter, according to the rules, so check your pulse before you begin.
    Closing: 27.5.12.
    Prizes: £300, £150, £75.
    Entry Fee: £4.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

The Page is Printed Writing Competition .  This contest from the Tacchi-Morris Arts Centre in Taunton, Somerset, is for any type of writing of your choice (poetry, short story, prose, script, love letter, confession) which fits on one side of an A4 page.  Now, you may with a bit of careful composition, a microscopic font and a good laser printer be able to cram several thousand words on to one page, but unless you send the result to the Guinness Book of Records it is unlikely anyone will read it.  It’s no use thinking the judges are bound to have a magnifying glass handy.  Much handier will be the waste basket, so if you don’t want your work to end up there, use a normal font size and reasonable margins.
    Closing: 29.5.12.
    Prizes: Adult - £100, £50, £25 in Waterestones vouchers.  Under 16s - 5 x £20 vouchers.
    Entry Fee : Adults - £4.  Under 16 - Free.  The fee covers up to three submissions and includes free entry to the Open Mic Night where winners will be announced.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Hi Michael
     Back in autumn 2007, I took up writing, and your excellent site was a great help in finding competitions to enter. In 2008, my short story came second in the Yeovil Literary Prize and was read on BBC Radio Somerset. In 2010, I won the Words with Jam short story competition. I was also a runner up in nine other competitions along the way. As well as £500 in prize money, I also gained the encouragement I needed to keep writing, and now my debut novel, Earth Girl, will be published by HarperCollins Voyager imprint in August 2012. This is the first book in a trilogy, so I'm taking a break from competitions now, but I wanted to thank you for the help you've given me and other writers.
                                                                              -   Janet Edwards

Canterbury Festival Poet of the Year Competition.  This one from the Canterbury Festival is for poems on any subject and in any style, with a length not exceeding 60 lines.  Shortlisted poets will be asked to read their poems at the Award Evening in Canterbury on October 4, or to nominate someone else to do this.  The poets concerned will receive a free copy of the contest anthology.
    Closing: 31.5.12.
    Prizes: The winner will be named ‘Canterbury Festival Poet of the Year 2012’.  There will be book tokens of unspecified value for the winner and two runners-up, plus a bottle of champagne for the Best Read Poem.  No doubt it will all be jolly good fun and well worth the effort, but I do think they could have offered the winner a trophy of some sort, something to be casually cleaning when one’s friends arrive.
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Comp Page: Click Here .

Spilling Ink Short Story Prize.  Quarterly e-journal Spilling Ink Review is looking for stories of up to 1,500 words on any theme for their latest fiction contest.   All styles and genres acceptable.
    Closing: 31.5.12.
    Prizes: £500, £250, £125.  Winners and shortlisted writers will be published and will receive a free copy of the annual print anthology.
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Frome Festival Short Story Competition 2012.  Saint Adhelm founded the Somerset town of Frome in AD685 and at length coined that much-misquoted phrase, ‘Frome is where the heart is.’  So went my text for the 2007 contest.  In 2008 I did my ‘Frome, Frome on the range’ gag - and at that point I got a rather sniffy letter from a Frome resident telling me that the name of the town is actually pronounced Froooom.  Frankly I think they just pronounce it like that to confuse visitors.  Makes the locals feel superior even though they sound silly when they say it.  The contest, which is conected to the Frooom Literary Festival, is for stories of between 1,000 and 2,200 words.  Crime writer Peter Lovesey is one of this year’s judges.
    Closing: 31.5.12.
    Prizes: £300, £150, £75.  In addition there are prizes for local writers, i.e. those living within 25 miles of the library and able to pronounce the name of the town to the satisfaction of the mayor.  Winning stories will be read by a top London literary agent and broadcast on radio.
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Pint-sized Plays Writing Competition.  Now in its fifth year, this contest, as the name implies, is for compact plays, that is plays with a running time of between five and ten minutes, and featuring just 2 or 3 characters and only the furniture you’d normally find in a pub (so forget that three-in-a-bed scene you’ve always yearned to write).
    Closing: 31.5.12.
    Prizes: 1st - The coveted Pint Pot award.  2nd - The not-quite-so-coveted Half Pint award.  The winning plays will be performed in pubs throughout Pembrokshire, then at a script slam in Fishguard where the audience can vote for their favourite and, if they are so inclined, throw fish at the rest (prior to being ejected from the premises).  Selected entries will be considered for performance at the Brighton and Edinburgh Fringe festivals and will be recorded for boradcast on internet radio.
    Entry Fee: £5.50.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

    Many thanks for your entertaining and helpful website!  Last year it led me    to win the Wyvern Prize in the Wells Fest of Lit competition.  This was    particularly good news because it came on the day I got home from 7 weeks in hospital.
                                                                               -  Dennis Harkness

Sports Poetry & Prose Competition.  This one from American website Winning Writers is for one-to-two poems, one story or one essay on a sports-related theme.  Each entry may contain up to 6,000 words.  That’s one hell of a poem.
    Closing: 31.5.12.
    Prizes (in each category): 1st - $1,500.  2nd - $500.  Honourable Mentions (5) - $100.  Winners will be published on the website.
    Entry Fee: $15.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

FBFT Sports Writing Competition.  Here is the second of these annual contests from Free Bets, Free Tips.  It is for sports-related articles running, galloping or jumping to no more than 1,500 words.  Your chances of scoring will be increased if your sports writing is ‘original, exciting or somehow out of the ordinary’.
    Closing: 13.5.12.
    Prizes: £50, £30, £20.  Winners will be published on the website.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Ashbourne Festival Poetry Competition.  This one from Derbyshire is for poems of up to 40 lines on the theme of Winning.  The judge will be Derbyshire Lauriate Matt Black.
    Closing: 14.5.12.
    Prizes: £100, £50, £25.  Also: £25 for the best poem from someone living in Derbyshire.  Ten poems will be shortlisted and publishe don the website as well as being exhibited in an Ashbourne Festival Poetry Trail.
    Entry Fee: £3.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Three Bags Full Writing Competition.  This one from the Three Bags Full wool shop in Halifax, Yorkshire, is for stories of between 50 and 1,000 words.  Entries must include at some point the phrase ‘the knock on effect’.  Hmm, that could have repercussions.
    Closing: 14.5.12.
    Prizes: 1st - Half the entry fees up to a maximun of £100.  2nd - A £20 voucher for the Three Bags Full online wool shop.
    Entry Fee: £2.50.  All proceeds after payment of the prize money go to The Knock on Effect project, which supports the families of people with cancer.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

The Nick Darke Award.  This one from the School of Media & Performance at University College Falmouth is for writing for stage, screen and radio.  Entries must have an environmental theme and follow one of the four disciplines: Stage Play (minimum duration 1 hour), Screenplay (minimum 30 minutes), Radio Play (minimum 45 miniutes), Documentary Film (minimum 30 minutes).  To enter you submit an outline (maximum 2,500 words) and 20 sample script pages.
    Closing: 14.5.12.
    Prize: £6,000.
    Entry Fee : None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Frogmore Poetry Prize 2012.  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 know: 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 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 because it ran to 360 lines.  The line limit here is 40.
    Closing: 31.5.12.
    Prize: 1st - 200 guineas.  Classy.  You also get a two-year subscription to The Frogmore Papers .  2nd - 75 guineas and a year’s sub to the Papers.  3rd - 50 guineas and a year’s sub.  Shortlisted poets will receive selected Frogmore Press publications (Frogs.  More Frogs.  Even More Frogs. Frog Recipes.  Stop.  Come back.  I’m joking.  They publish poetry - and none of it about frogs).
    Entry Fee: £3.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Psychiatry Research Poetry Competition.  This contest in aid of  London-based charity The Psychiarty Research Trust is for poems in any style and on any subject running to no more than 50 lines.  Derek Adams, with whom I am unfortunately not acquainted, will be judging.
    Closing: 31.5.12.
    Prizes: £150, £75, £40, 3 x £10.  Winners will be published in Sentinel Champions magazine.
    Entry Fee: £4 each, £7.50 for two, £10.50 for three, £12.50 for four, £14 for five.  A third of net entry fees go to the charity.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Writer’s Toolkit Flash Fiction Competition.  This one from author and writing tutor Sue Johnson is for flash fiction of up to 150 words (not including the title) on the theme of Shoes.  Entries are by post only and should be double-spaced.  Put your name and contact details on a separate sheet, and include an sae if you want your work returned.
    Closing: 31.5.12.
    Prizes: £50, £25, £15.
    Entry Fee: £3 each, £5 for two.
    Entry Address: S. Johnson, 10 Woodward Close, Pershore, Worcs, WR10 1LP.
    Website: Click Here.

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 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 or short story, the former having no more than 42 lines, the latter running to no more than 5,000 words.   For those who find 5,000 words too tiring to write there is now a flash fiction category for stories of up to 250 words (if that’s too much, consider becoming a poet).  This year’s judges are Gwyneth Lewis (poems) and Patrick Gale (stories).  Writers from beyond the veil should note that the Bridport rules forbid posthumous entries.  Shame: the awards ceremony would be so much more interesting with a couple of ghosts in attendance.
    Closing: 31.5.12.
    Prizes: In each of the main categories (Short Stories, Poems) - £5,000, £1,000, £500.  There are also ten runners-up prizes of £50.  These are called ‘supplementary prizes’ to make you feel less like an also-ran.  There is in addition a special prize of £100 and a perpetual trophy for the highest placed writer from Dorset.  Prizes in the Flash Fiction category are £1,000, £500, £250, plus three supplementary awards of £25.  The top 13 short stories will be entered for the National Short Story Prize worth £15,000, and the Sunday Times Short Story Award worth £30,000.  The top four poems will be entered for the Forward Prize.  All winners will be invited to an awards ceremony on October 14 at the Bridport Open Book Festival.
    Entry Fees:Poems - £7.  Short Stories - £8.  Flash Fiction - £6.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Segora Vignette Competition.  Not many vignette contests about these days.  This is because hardly anyone knows what a vignette is.  You do, of course, and in fact you probably have a dozen or so already written.  For the rest, I’ll give by way of enlightenment a definition from Collins: ‘A short piece of writing that clearly expresses the typical characteristics of something or someone.’  To this I can add a few helpful words from the email Segora sent me last year: ‘A vignette is a cameo.  It can be insightful, exciting, poignant, amusing ...’  It can be all of those things, but it can’t be more than 300 words.
    Closing: 31.5.12.
    Prizes: 1st - £30.  Highly Commended - £10.  All prizewinning entries will be announced and read at the bilingual LitFest dinner in Saint Clementin, France.
    Entry Fee: £3.50 each, £6 for two, £2 thereafter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Yeovil Literary Prize .  This is the ninth of these international contests from Yeovil, the literary capital of the West Country where even the sheep appreciate poetry.  I once read out some of my verses on a Yeovil sheep farm and the verdict was ‘Baaa!’ - which in sheepspeak means ‘brilliant’  I got some of my best reviews that day.  The contest has three categories: Short Story, Poetry, Novel.  The stories can run to 2,000 words, while the poems should be no more than 40 lines.  Novels have a limit of 15,000 words for the opening chapters and synopsis.
    Closing: 31.5.12.
    Prizes: Short Story - £500, £200, £100.  Poetry - £500, £200, £100.  Novel - £1,000, £250, £100.  In addition there is the Western Gazette Best Local Writer Award someone living in Dorset or Somerset.  It isn’t worth moving down there however as the prize is only £100 plus a trophy.
    Entry Fee: Short Story - £5.  Poetry - £5 each, £8 for two, £10 for three.  Novel - £10 each.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Segora Short Story Competition.  This is the fifth of these contests from Poetry Prose and Plays, which is based in France.  Stories should be between 1,500 and 3,000 words.
    Closing: 31.5.12.
    Prizes: £150, £50, £30.  All prizewinning entries will be announced and read at the bilingual LitFest dinner in Saint Clementin, France.
    Entry Fee: £5, £10.50 for two, £15 for three.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

TXTLit Micro Story Competition.  For this contest you need a mobile phone.  Well, everyone’s got one, haven’t they?  No.  There’s still one person in the UK who hasn’t.  Me.  I don’t like phones of any sort.  I have one that plugs into the wall but I never answer it when it rings.  I think: ‘They’ll ring again if it’s important.’  They seldom do, and if they do I never answer it and they never ring again - which proves they were just time-wasters.  Now, I may seem to be rambling a bit here, but hey, what do you know, this turns out to be relevant because you mustn’t ramble in this competition.  Limit your stories to 154 characters (letters and spaces, not people), and while you’re about it, refrain from using abbreviated TXT gibberish, as this is not welcome.  At last - someone is fighting back on behalf of the English language!  There is a different theme each month.
    Closing: 31.5.12.
    Prize: £50.
    Entry Fee: £1 plus the normal cost of sending a text message (no use asking me what that is).
    Website: Click Here.

Wirral Festival of Firsts Poetry Competition.  This is the second of these contests from the Wirral Festival of Firsts, an arts festival which is held on Hoylake’s mile-long promenade in July.  This year, they say, they are ‘delighted to have three wonderful, enthusiastic judges.’  The fourth is a miserable sod who doesn’t give a toss (I’m, joking, I’m joking).  As well as the Open category there is a category for Humorous Poetry and one for Under 16s.  In all cases entries should stretch to no more than 40 lines.
    Closing: 1.6.12.
    Prizes: Open - £100, 2x£50.  Humourous - £100, 2x£50.  Under 16 - Book vouchers to the value of £50, £25, £25.
    Entry Fee: Adult - £3.  Under 16 - free.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

    Dear Mr Michael
    I discovered your website back in November, then, in January, finally had the guts to enter the Whidbey Writers’ Competition, with the 'lazy' way of judging entries: stopping reading once they found 'the one'. The January theme was Villains, and, guess what, I won.
    Thank goody-goody gumdrops for Prizemagic.
    Keep Smiling
         - Hannie Duncombe (The youngest ever Student Choice winner, at 13, thanks to you.)

Bank Street Writers International Playwriting Competition.  This one from Banks Street Writers of Bolton is for one act plays lasting approximately 20 minutes.  You can set your story in any period but if chosen it will be performed in modern dress, so that scene you have in mind with two knights jousting is probably not going to work (especially as they won’t have any horses).
    Closing: 1.6.12.
    Prizes: £75, £50, £25.  Winning entries will be given an evening performance in the autumn. 
    Entry Fee: £3 for the first, £2 each thereafter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

The Times Stephen Spender Prize for Poetry Translation.  How many readers aged 14 and under does The Times have, I wonder?  And how many of these translate poetry in their spare time instead of, say, playing computer games that are well good?  Not a vast number, I would have thought, and yet the contest has a category for this group.  That’s probably why the promoters put it on the Internet: there’d be no entries otherwise.  Luckily, adults may also have a go.  To enter, find a poem written by some foreigner and translate it into English.  Then send it in together with a commentary and the original poem.  But first, ask yourself this: Is there really such a shortage of home-produced poetry that we need to ship it in like melons from countries that don’t even speak the lingo?
    Closing: 1.6.12.
    Prizes: Adults - £1,000, £750, £500.  18 and Under - £250, £150, £100.  14 and under - £100.  Selected winning entries will be publishd in The Times.  All winners ‘and any others the judges wish to select’ will be published in a commemorative booklet.
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Words With Jam First Page Competition.  This one from the Words With Jam website is for ‘the most gripping, read-on-able’ first page in any genre, running to no more than 400 words.
    Closing: 8.6.12.
    Prizes: £500, £100, £50.
    Entry Fee: £6 each, £10 for two.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Stringybark Seven Deadly Sins Short Story Award.  This one from Oz is for stories of up to 1,500 words relating to one of the Seven Deadly Sins.  These are the traditional Deadly Sins, not the modern ones which include going online without a firewall, writing someone a letter when you could have sent them a txt, and keeping the most intimate details of your life to yourself instead of putting them on Facebook.
    Closing: 10.6.12.
    Prizes: 1st - A$350, a certificate, publication electronically or in hardcopy, and a copy of the book.  2nd - A$150, a certificate, publication and a copy of the book.  3rd - A$75, a certificate, publication and a copy of the book.
    Entry Fee: A$9.95 each, A$18.90 for two, A$26.85 for three ... the list goes on but I’ve lost the will to continue.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Hi Michael
     Just to say thanks to your website. I have won, not one, but two prizes! Having never entered a travel writing competition in my life before, I entered the Justback competition with the Telegraph, and won after a few attempts - working out what the travel editors liked.  I then came second in the British Guild of Travel Writers competition. Great site - keep up the good work.
                                                                                      -  Helen Moat

The Fiction Shelf  Writing Competition.  Here’s a freebie for stories or poems of up to 500 words on the theme of One Day.
    Closing: 14.6.12.
    Prize: £20 book token.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Eyelands 2nd International Short Story Competition .  This international contest from Greece is for unpublished stories of up to 2,500 words in any genre.  Your story must somehow refer to Greece.  E.g. I checked my bank balance and discovered to my horror that I’d gone Greek.  Actually, it’s probably not a good idea to make humorous or any other references to Greece’s current problems. They do admit on the website that there are ‘some financial issues’, but they also say they are not looking for reportage or a chronicle of events in Greece.  Okay, we take the hint.  Entries must be in English, but if you happen to speak Greek, you’ll be able to discover what the Eyelands website is all about.  The rest of us can only wonder, as the contest page alone is in English.  Late News: Gregory Papadoyiannis tells me more pages have been added in English.  These contain some of last year’s stories and interviews with the winners.  Select ‘Short Stories’ from the Storyland menu (top of comp page).
    Closing: 15.6.12.
    Prizes: 1st - A 7-day holiday on the island of Crete (includes air travel from England, they say, so if you live in Australia, tough), plus publication in an anthology.  2nd & 3rd - Publication in the anthology plus a Greek handmade ceramic.  There are in addition four Honourable Mention prizes comprising a certificate and a special gift.
    Entry Fee: 10 euros.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

CheerReader Summer Story Competition.  Here’s a contest from a cheery new(ish) writers’ group based in Portugal.  It is for humorous or witty stories on any subject, running to no more than 1,500 words.
    Closing: 15.6.12.
    Prize: 100 euros.  The winner and commended entries will be published on the website.
    Entry Fee: 5 euros.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

SLQ Poetry Competition .  This one from Sentinel Literary Quarterly is for poems of up to 50 lines on any subject and in any style
    Closing: 20.6.12.
    Prizes: £150, £75, £50 and 3 x £10.
    Entry Fee: £3 each, £11 for four, £12 for five. Winners will be published in Sentinel Champions magazine.
    Comp Page : Click Here.

SLQ Short Story Competition .  Here’s anothe rone from Sentinel Literary Quarterly.  It is for stories of up to 1,500 words on any subject.
    Closing: 20.6.12.
    Prizes: £150, £75, £50 and 3 x £10.  Winners will be published in Sentinel Champions magazine.
    Entry Fee: £4 each, £10 for three, £12 for four.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

                                  One less Pedestrian ...
Hi
     Just to let you know rather belatedly that I entered a number of prose competitions last year – all from your web site and had great fun trying a varied menu of different word lengths and genres. I won $500 in an essay writing competition in the Pedestrian magazine - entering despite your scathing comments. I got the money and bought a lovely new bike. The magazine then went bust so my entry wasn’t published - so yet to see my name in print but I have the bike so hey ho.
                                                                                                       -  Rosemary Barry

Erewash Writers’ Group Short Story Competition.  This is the first open-to-all contest from Erewash Writers who gather together somewhere in Long Eaton, Derbyshire.  It is for stories running to no more than 1,500 words.  Be warned that if your story contains extreme violence, sexual abuse or pornography it will be disqualified and your entry fee will be retained (presumably to pay for the judge to have counselling).  So none of that soap opera stuff.  The contest is open to all ages.
    Closing: 27.6.12.
    Prizes: £60, £30, £15.  When you enter you can nominate a UK charity or voluntary group to receive a donation (currently £30) from the promoters.
    Entry Fee: £3 for one, £5 for two, £2.50 thereafter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Glengoyne Bloody Scotland Short Story Competition.  This one from Glengoyne Highland Single Malt is part of Scotland’s inaugural international crime writing Festival, Bloody Scotland, which takes place in September in Stirling.  It is for crime stories of up to 3,000 words.  Stories must incorporate the theme or wording, ‘worth the wait’.
    Closing: 29.6.12.
    Prize: A bespoke hand-engraved Glencairn Crystal Decanter filled with an exceptionally rare 35-year-old Glengoyne Highland Single Malt.  Now, if you are not in the know you are probably sneering at this but it seems it’s worth a cool £2,000.  That is unfortunate because it means it’s too expensive to drink.  You have to leave it on the sideboard with a note saying how much it’s worth.  Fortunately you also get a week-long residential Arvon writing course, a weekend pass for the Festival and your entry featured as the lead story in an eBook collection published by blasted Heath, the hated local printer.  Sorry, my mistake: it seems the publisher is Blasted Heath, a respected digital imprint.
    Entry Fee: £10.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Manchester Cathedral International Interfaith Poetry Competition.  Not surprisingly, poems on a religious theme are required for this annual contest.  They can be up to 40 lines and may concern any faith.  This does not mean your faith in your football team or your faith in your ability, when drunk, to sing like Tom Jones, even if this faith is possessed of a religious fervour.  Poems, it says on the entry form, should appeal to those who would not necessarily describe themselves as religious.  Tricky.
    Closing: 29.6.12.
    Prizes: £450, £250, £150.
    Entry Fee: £4.50 for the first, £2 thereafter.
    Comp Page: Click Here (then download pdf entry form for this year’s details).

Print Express Children’s Story Competition.  Print Express has run a number of free-to-enter writing competitions and this one for children aged 13 or under is the latest.  There is no set theme, but entries should not be longer than 500 words.
    Closing: 30.6.12.
    Prize: £150 in Amazon vouchers.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.  Only one entry per person.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Thynks Publications Christmas Celebrations Poetry Competition.  This one from Midlands-based Thynks Publications is, as the title suggests, for Christmas Celebrations poems.   Yes, I know it’s a bit early for Christmas - it doesn’t normally start until September - but I suppose they want to get the winners sorted out and the cards printed in good time so they can go away somewhere and avoid the whole tedious Yuletide business.  The only thing that stops me doing the same is the mince pies.  Oh dear, I seem to have veered off the track.  You must curtail the poetic celebrations when you’ve produced 14 lines.
    Closing: 30.6.12.
    Prizes: £100, £50, £25.  The three winners will each receive ten postcards with their poem printed on them.
    Entry Fee: £3.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Margaret Reid Poetry Prize.  This regular visitor from the USA is for traditional verse, traditional being defined as any poem that employs regular metre and/or rhyme, or is written in a recognised poetic form.  More detail is given on the contest  page.
    Closing: 30.6.12.
    Prizes: 1st - $3,000.  2nd - $1,000.  3rd - $400.  4th - $250.  In addition there will be some runners-up prizes of $150.  These have been renamed Most Highly Commended Awards to eliminate any implications of failure and thus cut down the suicide rate amongst over-sensitive poets.
    Entry Fee: $8 for every 25 lines.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

‘She’s the One’ Writing Competition.  International Woman’s Day is upon us again, I’m afraid, and here’s a contest from My World Publishing that aims to celebrate the achievements of women throughout history.  Why is there no International Man’s day?  (A rhetorical question, ladies - please don’t inundate me with explanatory emails.)  To enter, write some poetry, prose or a letter about the women (or woman) who inspire you and/or have changed your world.  Could be somebody famous like Jordan or someone who lives in your neighbourhood.  However, I don’t think the judges want to know about the woman who stole your husband.  Be positive.  Your entry should run to no more than 350 words.
    Closing: 30.6.12.
    Prizes: Winning entries will be published in an anthology.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Dear Michael
     Just to say a big ‘Thank You’ for your work on the website. I have been selected for publication in the Mirador competition which ran last year and have been awarded 3rd place in the Stringybark Speculative Fiction competition. To be published twice is like a dream for me, which the information found on your site made possible. Thanks again.
                                                                                    -   Pat Davies

Writers Bureau Short Story Competition.  This one from correspondence college Writers Bureau is for stories of up to 2,000 words.  Iain Pattison will be judging.
    Closing: 30.6.12.
    Prizes: £500, £300, £200, £100.  Winners will be published on the website and the top story will appear in print in Freelance Market News.
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Writers’ Village Story Contest Summer 2012.  Any type of story is welcome here ... as long as it doesn’t run to more than 3,000 words.  The judge will be John Yeoman who has a lot of letters after his name.  He will give particular weight to, amongst other things, a story’s power to move the reader.  This does not mean boring the reader to such an extent that he or she screams and exits the room in disgust.  Something more positive is required.
    Closing: 30.6.12.
    Prizes: £400, £100, £50.  The five shortlisted entrants receive a free entry to the next contest.  Every contestant will receive a ‘helpful’ critique.
    Entry Fee: £10.
    Comp Page : Click Here.

Meridian Writing - Summer Short Story Competition .  This regular visitor is for stories on any theme, running to no more than 3,000 words.
    Closing: 30.6.12.
    Prizes: £100, £50, £25.  In addition all winners receive a £10 Firstwriter.com voucher.
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Hi Michael
     Just another Thank You. I have just had notification that my story got selected for the anthology following The Sheriff’s Prize for Literature competition. I went along to the awards night and had fun watching Tony Robinson reading out some of the best entries. To be asked to put my story into the anthology was the icing on the cake!
     Thanks again for the great site.
                                                                                      - Pat Davies

Unbound Press Flash Fiction Award.  To make sure your chances here are not just a flash in the pan, curb your efforts at 500 words.  All styles and genres are welcome.
    Closing: 30.6.12.
    Prizes: £500, £250, £125.  Plus, for each prizewinner and the shortlistees, publication and a free copy of the annual print anthology.
    Entry Fee: £5 each, £10 for three.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

British Thyroid Foundation Crime Writing Competition.  If you’d kill to get your hands on tickets to the Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Opening Party in Harrogate on July 19, here’s your chance to do just that, while at the same time helping a worthy cause.  Just write and send in a crime story of up to 2,000 words on the theme: Go For The Throat.  Entries must be on white A4 paper in 12-point Ariel type, with double line-spacing.
    Closing: 30.6.12.
    Prize: A pair of tickets to the Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year and Festival Opening Party.
    Entry Fee: £3 (cheques payable to The British Thyroid Foundation).  All proceeds go to the BTF charity.
    Comp Page: Click Here.
    Entry Address: BTF, 2nd Floor, 3 Devonshire Place, Harrogate, HG1 4AA.

WritersReign Short Story Competition.  This annual contest from Essex writers’ group WritersReign is for stories of between 1,000 and 1,500 words.   Even though they are based in Essex, they do not want stories containing gratuitous sex.  Violence is also out.
    Closing: 30.6.12.
    Prizes: £100, £50, £25, plus runners-up 3x£10.
    Entry Fee: £3.50 each, £10 for two.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Play on Words Competition.  This one from the Scottish Community Drama Association is for one act plays with at least two characters and a performance time of between 25 and 50 minutes.
    Closing: 30.6.12.
    Prizes: £250, £150, £100.  Winning plays will be performed at the Play on Words gala evening in November.
    Entry Fee: £25 (members of SCDA - £20).
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Keats-Shelley Prize 2012.  This annual international contest from the Keats-Shelley Memorial Association is for poems of up to 40 lines on the theme of Gold, and essays of up to 3,000 words on any aspect of the lives of John Keats, PB Shelley, Mary Shelley or Lord Byron.  You can download a file containing details, but this is something of a disappointment as it only repeats what is on the competition page.  I was expecting some fancy animation, say a picture of a crypt from which bones emerged to form themselves into a skeleton that says, 'Hi, I'm Mary Shelley - why not write an essay about me?'  Instead it’s just a photo of a poster bearing a lot of text and a picture of some chap (probably a poet) looking throughtful.  Alas, the text doesn't give details of the prizes.  It merely repeats that they will amount to £3,000.
    Closing: 30.6.12.
    Prizes: There is a total of £3,000 to be divided in unspecified ways amongst an unspecified number of winners.
    Entry Fee: Nothing vague about this.  It's £5 a go.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Sportswriter Competition 2012.  This one from the SportsWriter website is for fiction or non-fiction, prose or poetry which relates to sport in some way.  The maximum length is 2,000 words.
    Closing: 1.7.12.
    Prizes: £250, £75, £25.
    Entry Fee: £3 (£1 from this goes to the Cyclists Fighting Cancer charity).
    Comp Page: Click Here .

Calderdale Open Short Story Competition.  This is for stories of up to 3,000 words on any theme.
    Closing: 6.7.12.
    Prizes: £300, £100, £50.  Prizes will be awared at the Calderdale Word of Mouth Festival on October.
    Entry Fee: £4.
    Comp Page: Click Here (entry form available to download on the T&Cs page).

Elmet Poetry Prize.  This is for poems of up to 40 lines on the theme of Stages.  Kathleen Jamie will be judging.
    Closing: 6.7.12.
    Prizes: £300, £100, £50.  There is also a prize for the best poem from a poet living in Yorkshire. Prizes will bew awarded at the Ted Hughes Festival 2012 in October.
    Entry Fee: £4.
    Comp Page: Click Here (entry form can be downloaded via the T&Cs page).

Ted Hughes Young Poets Award.  This annual contest for youngsters between six and eighteen is for poems of up to 40 lines.  The theme this yeat is Stages.  There are three age categories: 6-10, 11-14, 15-18.  Andrew McMillan will be judging.
    Closing: 6.7.12.
    Prizes (in each age category): £100, £50.  Prizes will be awarded at the Ted Hughes Festival 2012 in October.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here (entry form can be downloaded via the T&Cs page).

Segora Open Poetry Competition.  This one from French-based Poetry, Prose and Plays is for poems of up to 40 lines.
    Closing: 7.7.12.
    Prize: £150, £50, £30.  All prizewinning entries will be announced and read at the bilingual LitFest dinner in Saint Clementin, France.
    Entry Fee: £3.50 each, £6 for two, £2 each thereafter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Hi Michael,
     I know that plenty of other writers have said this, but a big thank you for compiling your competition listings. I rely on your website for finding out about upcoming contests. It gives me all the information I am after as well as making me laugh. I found out about the Trowell competition through you and came second this year, after winning in 2009. I have forwarded your link to many other writer friends. Keep up the good work.
                                                   -  Andrew Campbell-Kearsey (Brighton)

Doris Gooderson Short Story Competition.  Here’s another annual contest, this time from Wrekin Writers of Shropshire.  Stories can be on any subject but must not exceed 1,200 words.
    Closing: 9.7.12.
    Prizes: £150, £70, £40.
    Entry Fee: £3 for one, £5 for two, £8 for three, £10 for four.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Jerwood Gridshell Prize.  This one from Weald and Downland Open Air Museum, which is located in Singleton near Chichester, is for stories of up to 2,000 words which relate directly to an aspect of the collection of the museum and are set between 1200 and 1900.  If you are unable to visit the museum for inspiration, there is a wealth of useful info on the website.
    Closing : 20.7.12.
    Prizes: 1st - £1,000 and publication in Sussex Life.  2nd and 3rd (sponsored by the University of Chichester) - £250 and publication in Museum Magazine.
    Entry Fee: £7.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

H.G.Wells Short Story Competition.  This one from the H.G.Wells Festival is for stories of between 2,000 and 6,000 words in any genre.  The theme is The Sea.  It seems handwritten entries, although not compulsory, could have an advantage as the judges award 10% of the marks for good handwriting.  How quaint.  I thought those days were over.  It’s also advantageous to be under 26, because you can then enter for nothing while at the same time quailifying for a much bigger prize.
    Closing: 22.7.12.
    Prizes : Uner 26 - £1,000.  Over 26 - £250.
    Entry Fee: £5, although if you are under 26, it’s free.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Seán Ó Faoláin International Short Story Competition.  This annual contest from the Munster Literature Centre in Ireland is for unpublished stories of up to 3,000 words on any subject.  The Munster Literature Centre, incidentally, is named after the town in southern Ireland where it is located, not the old American TV sitcom about a bunch of friendly monsters.  At least, I assume that’s the case.  I must admit I’ve never been there.
    Closing: 31.7.12.
    Prizes: 1st - 2,000 euros plus a week’s residency at Anam Cara Writer’s and Artist’s Retreat.  2nd - 500 euros.  Runners-up (4) - 120 euros.  Winners will be published in the literary journal Southword.
    Entry Fee: 15 euros.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

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

Sussex Playwrights’ Club 2012 Competition.  This annual contest is for 90 minute stage plays on the theme of Past, Present and Future.  Forget the cast of thousands: you are llimited to six.
    Closing: 31.7.12.
    Prizes: £200, £100, £50.
    Entry Fee: £7.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Stylist Magazine Crime Fiction  Competition.  To enter this one from Stylist magazine and publisher Faber & Faber you submit the first 6,000 words of a crime novel featuring a female protagonist.  Also required: a 300-word outline plus a 250-word biography of the central character.  Ruth Rendell with be one of the judges.
    Closing: 12.7.12.
    Prizes: 1st - Publication of the novel and an advance of £5,000.   Runner-up - A three-month writing course of your choice with the Faber Academy.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Dreamquest One Poetry and Writing Contest.  The requirement for this US contest is for poems of up to 30 lines and short stories of up to five pages, any style or theme.
    Closing: 31.7.12.
    Prizes: Stories - $500, $250, $100.   Poetry - $250, $125, $50.  Winners will be published on the website.
    Entry Fee: Stories - $10 postal, $12 electronic.  Poetry - $5 postal, $7 electronic.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Spilling Ink Speculative Fiction Prize.  This contest from quarterly e-journal Spilling Ink Review is for speculative fiction of up to 2,200 words.  By ‘speculative’ they mean utopian and dystopian fiction, fantasy, sci-fi, supernatural, horror, superhero fiction, Bangsian fantasy (don’t ask me!), and much more.
    Closing: 31.7.12.
    Prizes: £500, £250, £125.  Winners and shortlisted writers will be published and will receive a free copy of the annual print anthology
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Comp Page: Click Here .

Thynks Publications Postcard Poetry Competition.  This one from the Midlands is for poems that will go on a postcard.  You are limited to 24 lines, but for the theme you are limited only by your imagination.
    Closing: 31.7.12.
    Prizes: £100, £50, £25.  Each winners will have their poem printed on a postcard and receive ten free copies.
    Entry Fee: £3.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Writers Abroad Anthology 2012.  If you are an ex-pat or former ex-pat or any writer living outside the country of your birth, here’s your chance to help a worthy cause while at the same time seeing your work printed in a book with a foreward by a bestselling author.  What do you mean, ‘What’s in it for me?’  I’ve just told you: you get the warm glow that comes from helping others, and if that leaves you cold, there’s the boasting rights you get from being in the book.  Money isn’t everything ... unless the bailiffs are knocking on your door.   Submissions can be short stories, non-fiction pieces or poetry, and they should be on the general theme of Relationships Around The World (‘An encounter or alliance, a connection or kinship, love or liaison written from an ex-pat viewpoint.’).  Fiction can run to 1,700 words while non-fiction is limited to 1,000 words.  Poems should by no more than 30 lines.
    Closing: 31.7.12.
    Prize: Publication in the book Foreign Encounters, with a forward by novelist Julia Gregson.  There will be a print edition and, later, an e-book.  The book profits will be donated to the Books Abroad charity.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

‘What I Love About Cornwall’ Writing Competition.  No prizes for guessing the theme of this one.  It only remains for me to say that your story should be between 500 and 750 words.
    Closing: 1.8.12.
    Prize: A week’s stay in a holiday cottage in Cornwall.  The winning entry will be published in the 2013 Cornish Traditional Cottages brochure.  Suitable entries may be selected for publication in Cornwall Living magazine.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter (only one per person).
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Writefrance Competition.  This latest contest from Writefrance is for fiction/non-fiction with or without a French accent (normally France is obligatory, but this time it’s optional due to the nature of the theme).  Entries should be capable of being interpreted as related, however imaginatively, to the anthology title ‘Sea Never Dry’ (which comes, I’m told, from the name of a fishing boat seen on a beach in Ghana).  The approximate word limit is 4,000.
    Closing: 1.8.12.
    Prizes (1st x 2) - Publication in the latest Writefrance book Sea Never Dry, a commemorative engraved model boat (a permanent reminder of your success) and five copies of the book (published by Minimalist Books), plus a copy of the next two editions.
    Entry Fee: £8 for an unlimited number of entries by the same author (£12.50 if you want a copy of the anthology).
    Comp Page: Click Here .

Biographers’ Club Tony Lothian Prize 2012.  This annual contest is open only to  uncommissioned first-time writers working on a biography.  If you qualify, submit a proposal of no more than 20 pages, including a synopsis and 10-page sample chapter.
    Closing: 1.8.12.
    Prize: £2,000.
    Entry Fee: £10.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

SaveAs Writers - Dickens’ Bicententary Competition.  This one from the SaveAs Writers’Group of Canterbury is for poems of up to 50 lines and stories of up to 3,000 words inspired by any character from a Charles Dickens novel.
    Closing: 15.8.12.
    Prizes : £30, £20, £15.
    Entry Fees: Poems - £2.  Stories - £3.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Millwheel Writers Poetry Competition 2012.  This one from Millwheel Writers in Castlerea in the Republic of Ireland is in aid of the Roscommon Women’s Network.  It is for poems of up to 40 lines.
    Closing: 31.8.12 (7pm).
    Prizes : 300 euros, 150 euros, 50 euros.
    Entry Fee: 4 euros each, 10 euros for three.
    Comp Page: Click Here .

Unbound Press Nonfiction Award.  Just about any kind of writing that isn’t fiction is welcome here (they speak of a broad spectrum of possibilities).  Limit your entries to 2,200 words.
    Closing: 31.8.12.
    Prizes : £500, £250, £125.  Plus, for each prizewinner and the shortlistees, publication and a free copy of the annual print anthology.
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Thynks Publications Story for Children Competition.  Your aim in this latest offering from Thynks Publications is to write a story of up to 5,000 words for children aged between five and eight.
    Closing: 31.8.12.
    Prizes: 1st - £100 plus small paperback book publication.  2nd - £50 plus web publication.  3rd - £25 plus web publication.
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

The High Sheriff’s Cheshire Prize for Literature.  This annual contest, which is open only to writers with some connection to Cheshire, is for an original and unpublished story running to no more than 1,500 words.  It is administered by the University of Chester’s Department of English  and funded by Bank of America.  To be eligible you must have been born, work or have worked, live or have lived, study or have studied, in Cheshire.  If you lived there for just a fortnight while on holiday in Stockport, I’m afraid this doesn’t count, although you might be in line for a medal of some sort.
    Closing: 1.9.12.
    Prizes: 1st - £2,000.  Additional prize money of £750 will be awarded and the best entries will be published.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here (then download pdf doc for 2012 comp).

Observer /Anthony Burgess Prize for Arts Journalism.  This is for an unpublished piece of writing on brand new work in arts, running to no more than 1,500 words.  Entries can be interviews or profiles, articles on new artistic movements or ventures, or reviews of books, concerts, ballet, plays, films, etc.
    Closing: 15.9.12.
    Prize: £2,000 plus publication in the Observer.
    Entry Fee: £10.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Spilling Ink Queer Fiction Prize.  This one from quarterly e-journal Spilling Ink Review is for fiction produced by or for the LGBT community.  In case you have led a sheltered and conventional life, I’ll just mention that LGBT stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender.
    Closing: 30.9.12.
    Prizes: £500, £250, £125.  Winners and shortlisted writers will be published and will receive a free copy of the annual print anthology.
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Hello Michael
     Thanks to your wonderful website I entered two short stories for the recent 'Writefrance' competition which (to my great surprise) I won!  £100 prize money and publication in a collection of winners’ stories in the new year.  Furthermore my second story was also chosen for a publication prize.  What a boost!  I'm now scribbling away and trawling through the other competitions in the hopes of repeating my success!
     Many Thanks
                                                                       -  Kerry Chiron. France

The Prolitzer Prize 2012.  If you’ve failed to win the Pulitzer Prize yet again, you might like to have a go at this one from Prole Books of Wales, as there will be fewer entries.  It is for fiction and creative non-fiction that ‘challenges, engages and entertains’.  There is a 2,000 word limit for entries.
    Closing: 1.10.12.
    Prizes : £130, 2 x £30.  Winners will be published in an anthology.
    Entry Fee: £4 for the first, £3 thereafter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Unbound Press Poetry Award.  Entries for this annual contest should not exceed 40 lines.  All forms and genres are welcome.
    Closing: 31.10.12.
    Prizes: £500, £250, £125.  Plus, for each prizewinner and the shortlistees, publication and a free copy of the annual print anthology.
    Entry Fee: £5 each, £10 for three.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Unbound Press Best Novel Award.  For this you submit up to 10,000 words of a novel in any genre, but beware: if shortlisted you will be asked to hand over the completed story ... which could be embarrassing if you haven’t written it.
    Closing: 30.11.12.
    Prizes: £1,000, £500, £250.
    Entry Fee: £25.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Atlantis Short Story Competition.  This contest from the USA is for stories of up to 2,500 words on any theme.
    Closing : 30.11.12.
    Prizes: $300, $100, $50.  Plus in-depth feedback for the top 15 entries.
    Entry Fee: $10.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

IBP Writing Competition.  Here’s a contest in aid of the Ifakara Bakery Project, a worthy cause that helps people in a remote area of Tanzania.  Supported by Park Publications, it is for stories of up to 1,500 words and poems of up to 40 lines on the theme of Hope and Dreams.
    Closing: 30.11.12.
    Prizes: £150, £75, £25.  Winners and selected shortlistees will be published by Park Publications in an anthology.
    Entry Fee: £2.50 each, £4 for two.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Thanks so much for your fantastic website which I discovered a few months ago.  I recently found out I have won 2nd prize in the Legend Writing Flash Fiction competition - 100 words only.  I am so happy!  The prize was £30 but the feeling of pride is priceless.
                                                                                  -  Karren Francis

L. Ron Hubbard’s Writers of the Future Competition.  This US contest is open worldwide and is for short stories of up to 17,000 words.  They should be science fiction, fantasy or horror with fantastic elements.
    Closing: Quarterly.
    Prizes: $1,000, $750, $500.
    Entry Fee: None.
    Website: Click Here.

Scribble Quarterly Short Story Competitions. This is run by short story magazine Scribble.  It is for stories on any subject, up to 3,000 words.
    Closing: Ongoing.
    Prizes: £75, £25, £15.
    Entry Fee: £3.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Envoi International Poetry Competition.  This one, from the well-known though small magazine Envoi , is for poems up to 40 lines.
    Closing: 20th February each year.
    Prize: Poetry books to the value of £150, £100, £50.
    Entry Fee: £3.00 per poem or 5 for £12.00.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Hi Michael,
     I won the Prima magazine contest you advertised - I was in the November 2008 issue. Better yet, the prize was not a pair of pink garden shears emboldened with the Prima logo (as you suggested), or even a polyester nightie, but £200 and a year’s subscription to the mag. It might not have given me worldwide fame but it’s encouraged me to continue writing. And since that I’ve placed a short story in the Sunday Express magazine, a venue that ‘rarely accepts unsolictated fiction,’ have had other stories accepted by various websites and an American anthology, and have completed my first novel.
                                                                               -  Louise Beech

>>>>>>>>>>>>>   Books for Writers - Improve your Skills   <<<<<<<<<<<<<

Special Offer: Ink Club is offering a free compatible ink cartridge (post £2.99) for Epson or Canon printers, plus big savings on all original & compatible cartridges.

*********************************************************************************
Notes: Unless otherwise stated in the rules, all poetry should be single-spaced.  The rest should be double-spaced (which is to say, double spacing between the lines, not the words!).  It is sometimes the case that your name shouldn’t appear on the manuscript.  Again, 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, and don’t send your manuscript done up like the Queen’s dinner menu with a fancy gold-tooled leather cover.  These things merely announce that you have no confidence in your submission or, worse, that you think the judges are shallow enough to judge on appearance rather than content.  Plain white A4 80gsm paper is the stuff to use, with plain black typing or print.  Write on one side of the sheet only (unless asked to put your address on the back).

            Before you start writing, allow me to introduce you to an old friend

                                       The Typo Goblin

            I am the Typo Goblin, my heart is made of flint,
            My role in life is simply this: to keep you out of print.
            I sneak into your manuscript and do my fiendish work,
           Adding errors guaranteed to make you look a berk.
           And then I cast the ‘Careless’ spell: you say, ‘Ah, what the heck!’
           And pop your script into the post without that final check.
           At length some hapless editor receives your golden wit,
           And after reading fifty words he writes it off as ... unpublishable.

                                                                            - Michael Shenton

Finally, as you sift through the remnants of your shattered dreams and wonder if it’s worth going on ... www.samaritans.co.uk/

                                    
My Humorous            This is the Prizemagic website                   Poem:
       Verse                 Email comps@prizemagic.co.uk               Being a
    & Songs            Copyright:  Michael Shenton  2012              Writer