Details

Details

UK Writing Competitions (currently 49)

Scribble Quarterly Short Story Competition .  This quarterly contest from Scribble magazine is for stories in any genre and on any subject, running to no more than 3,000 words.  Winners are chosen by the magazine’s readers.
    Closing: Quarterly.
    Prizes: £75, £25, £15.
    Entry Fee: £3.
    Comp Page: Scribble SSC.

Flash 500 Competition.  Here’s a quarterly flash fiction contest which offers higher prize money than many similar competitions. It is for stories of up to 500 words on any theme.
    Closing: Quarterly (end of March, June, September, December).
    Prizes: 1st - £300.  2nd - £200.  3rd - £100.  Winners will be published on the website.
    Entry Fee: £5 each, £8 for two.
    Comp Page: Flash 500 Story.

                         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.

Wetherby Festival Comedy Poem Competition.  The shortlist for this fun freebie from Yorkshire will be judged by Ian McMillan, the Bard of Barnsley.  To enter you submit a video of your poem or just the text.
    Closing: 15.9.24.
    Prizes: £25 of book tokens for each winner in the four categories.
    Entry Fee: None - free entry.
    Comp Page: Wetherby Festival Poetry

Dinesh Allirajah Prize.  Here’s a return of the annual freebie from Comma Press and the University of Lancashire.  Entries should be stories of between 2,000 and 7,500 words.  The theme this year is The Unspoken.
    Closing: 22.9.24.
    Prize: £500.  Shortlisted entries will be featured in an ebook anthology.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: DA Prize

Troubadour Poetry Prize.  A poem of up to 45 lines could give you grounds for celebration in this annual competition from Coffee House Poetry of London.  This year’s contest will be judged by Jane Yeh and Glyn Maxwell.
    Closing: 23.9.24.
    Prizes: £2,000, £1,000, £500.
    Entry Fee: £6.
    Comp Page: Coffee House.

Togetherness Poetry Challenge.  The theme for this one is, as the name implies, Togetherness.  There is a 45 line limit.  All submitted poems will be published online.  A selection from these will appear in an anthology.  You can if you wish use an image to illustrate your poem.
    Closing: 24.9.24.
    Prizes: £500, £100 x 5.
    Entry Fee: None - free entry.
    Comp Page: Togetherness

Writers’ College Short Story Competition.  It didn’t have to be this way, but that’s the theme of the annual short story contest from The Writers’ College in New Zealand.  You have up to 3,000 words (minimum 1,400) to explain why it was this way and, presumably, what could have been done to prevent it.   As to what the ‘it’ is, there is no guidance.  I’m thinking about two naturalists looking at a flightless bird and shaking their heads.  To be eligible to enter you need to be 16 or over and unpublished or published no more than three times. Stories can be in any genre, although they say literary fiction tends to do best with the judges.
    Closing: 30.9.24.
    Prizes: $1,000, $500, $250. The top three winners receive editorial comments on their work.
    Entry Fee : None - free entry.
    Comp Page: Writers College Story

Pure Travel Writing Competition.  ‘My greatest journey’ is the theme for this international freebie from Pure Travel  As the name indicates, it is  for travel writing articles.  These should run to over 500 words.
    Closing: 30.9.24.
    Prize: $500 and publication on the website.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter (up to three items).
    Comp Page : Pure Travel

Dear Michael,
     Thank you for maintaining your informative and witty list of writing competitions.
     I entered loads of them last year and got precisely nowhere, but I ploughed on regardless and have just won second prize (£100) in the Flash 500 Humour Verse contest, which would suggest that your friend Percy Vere might be onto something.
                                                                             -  Melanie Branton

Hammond House International Writing Competitions.  This annual offering from Hammond House Publishing at University Centre Grimsby is for short stories of between 1,000 and 5,000 words, poems of up to 40 lines, scripts (theatre, radio, short film or TV) of up to 10 pages (approx. 10 minutes duration), and Songwriting in the form of just lyrics or complete songs.  In all categories the theme is Time.
    Closing: 30.9.24.
    Prizes: Short Story - £1,000, £100, £50.  Poetry - £250, £50, £25.  Script - £500.  Songwriting - £100 in each sub-category, plus the song will be played at the 2025 Literary Festival and released worldwide on the Hammond House record label.  All shortlisted entries in the Story and Poetry categories will be published in the anthology, as will the scriptwriting winners.  There will be a televised awards ceremony (so get your politically correct, virtue signalling acceptance speech ready - and don't forget to thank the train/taxi driver, etc, without whom you wouldn’t be there).
    Entry Fee: £10.
    Comp Page: HH Lit Prize

Tom Howard/Margaret Reid Poetry Prize.  This regular visitor from the USA has now become two competitions in one: the Tom Howard Prize and the Margaret Reid Prize.  The former is for poems in any style, while the latter is for traditional verse as defined on the competition page.  In both cases the line limit is a very generous (some might say extravagant) 250.
    Closing: 30.9.24.
    Prizes: Tom Howard Prize (any style) - $3,500 + gift certificate.  Margaret Reid Prize (traditional verse) - $3,500 + gift certificate.  In addition there will be ten Honourable Mention awards of $300.  The Dishonourable Mention awards have been dropped this year following several suicides.  I wrote that last bit on April 1st.
    Entry Fee: $22 per submission (one submission can contain up to 3 poems).
    Comp Page: TH & MR Poetry.

Plaza Poetry Prize.  You have just 20 lines to impress the judge in this contest from Plaza Prizes Ltd.
    Closing: 30.9.24.
    Prizes: £1,000, £300, £100.  The ten shortlisted entries will be published in an anthology.
    Entry Fee: £10 for the first, £5 thereafter.
    Comp Page: Plaza Poetry 20

Irish Writers Centre Novel Fair 2024.  This international contest from southern Ireland has been described by an Irish newspaper as Dragon’s Den for writers.  The aim is to introduce up-and-coming novelists to publishers and literary agents.  Many top publishers and agents from Ireland and the UK have attended the Fair in the past, so this could be the opportunity you’ve been waiting for - or not.  To be eligible, you must not have had a novel published under an ISBN, and of course you must be able to attend the two-day fair in person or remotely in February 2025.  If this sounds attractive and you are prepared to gamble a pretty thick wad of currency, submit up to 5 chapters (approx. 10,000 words) of your novel plus a synopsis of up to 300 words.  Any genre.  If shortlisted, you will need to submit the full manuscript within 5 days of notification (minimum word count 50,000).
    Closing : 30.9.24.  Opens for submissions 1.9.24.
    Prizes: Twelve shortlisted entrants will be invited to take part in the fair and will have the chance to present the synopsis of their novel, the finished novel and their biographical details to leading publishers and agents.  Two weeks before the fair the chosen writers will be invited to a half-day  How-to-Pitch-Your Novel workshop.
    Entry Fee: 55 euros.
    Comp Page: Novel Fair

Bridport Memoir Award.  Initially for this annual memoir contest, which is part of the famous Bridport Prize, you submit 5,000 to 8.000 words of your memoir plus a 300-word overview, this latter forming the opening pages of your entry (full instructions are given in the Rules).  If longlisted you will be expected to boost the word count to 15,000, and if shortlisted the total amount rises to 30,000 .  These amounts do not include the overview.
    Closing: 30.9.24.
    Prizes: 1st - £1,500 plus a year’s mentoring from The Literary Consultancy, plus a consultation with literary agents A.M. Heath, plus other items.  2nd - £750 and other writing-related items.  Highly Commended (3) - £150 plus other writing-related items.
    Entry Fee: £24.
   Comp Page: Bridport Memoir

The Henshaw Short Story Competition.  This is the latest of these quarterly international contests from Henshaw Press of Northampton.  It is for stories running to no more than 2,000 words on any subject by writers aged over 16.
    Closing: 30.9.24.
    Prizes: £200, £100, £50.  Winners will be offered publication in the anthology.
    Entry Fee: £6.  Optional critique: £14.  All profits will be used to buy books for a chosen school.
    Comp Page: Henshaw Story.

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

Wildfire Words Single Poem Competition.  All forms of poetry up to 50 lines are required for this annual contest from Wildfire Words.  The theme this year is ‘The Beginning of the End’
    Closing: 30.9.24.
    Prizes: £350, £150, £75.  Runners-up (3) - £25,
    Entry Fee: £4.
    Comp Page:  Wilfire Words.

Moth Nature Writing Prize. This annual contest from Irish magazine The Moth is for nature writing of up to 4,000 words.  I should perhaps mention for the uninitiated that the magazine is not devoted to the subject of moths, fascinating though these creatures may be.  It is an arts and literature magazine.  But you can write about moths if you wish as there is no set theme.  The contest is open worldwide.
    Closing: 30.9.24.
    Prizes: 1st - 1,000 euros.  The winner also gets a week at Circle of Misse in France.  Runners-up - 500 euros, 250 euros.  Winning entries will be published online.
    Entry Fee: 15 euros.
    Comp Page: Moth Nature Writing.

Crowvus Christmas Ghost Story.  This is the eighth of these annual ghost story contests from Scottish independent publisher Crowvus.  Spooky tales of up to 4,000 words are required.
    Closing: 30.9.24.
    Prizes: £100, £75, £50.  Shortlisted writers will receive a free copy of the anthology.
    Entry Fee: £3 for one, £5 for two (two being the maximum permitted).
    Comp Page: Crowvus Story

Bath Flash Fiction Award .  This recurring international contest from Bristol is for short fiction of up to 300 words.  There is no set theme.  You are probably wondering about the contest’s name: why Bath?  Well, it’s like this: I have no idea.
    Closing: 6.10.24.
    Prizes: £1,000, £300, £100, 2 x £30.
    Entry Fee: £9 for one, £15 for two, £18 for three.  There are reductions for early entries up to 11.8.24.
    Comp Page: Bath Flash.

Waltham Forest Poetry Competition.  Here’s a contest from Waltham Forest in London.  It is open to poets worldwide.  The theme is FRIENDSHIP, and you can interpret this in any way you choose - as long as you confine your musings to no more than 40 lines.
    Closing: 14.10.24.
    Prizes: £400, £200, £100.  Funniest Poem - £100.  Local Prize - £50, £30, £20.  Young Poets - £50, £30, £20.  Young Poets local - £50, £30, £20.   Funniest Poem (on the main theme) - £100.  Winners will be published on the website.
    Entry Fee: £3 for the first, £1 thereafter (up to 6 poems).  Young poets (under 18) - Free.
    Comp Page: Waltham Poetry

The Caledonia Novel Award 2024.  This annual international competition from Edinburgh is open to unpublished and self-published novelists.  It is for stories of at least 50,000 words in any adult or young adult genre.  To enter, you email the first 20 pages of your novel (lines to be double-spaced) followed by a 200 word synopsis.  If longlisted you will be expected to submit the full manuscript by 8.12.24.  Alice Lutyens from the Curtis Brown literary agency will be judging,
    Closing: 15.10.24.
    Prizes: 1st - £1,500 and an exclusive award designed by Edinburgh artist Lucy Roscoe.  Highly Commended - £500.  There is in addition a special prize for the best entry from the British Isles and Ireland, comprising a place on a writing course at Moniack Mhor Creative Writing Centre.  This is in the Scottish Highlands, possibly 14 miles from the nearest pub.  There will be no trains and quite likely no road.  You will therefore complete your journey on a donkey, accompanied by native guides and sherpas.  Or maybe not.  Maybe you will glide up to the door in a taxi and have no hardships or challenges to write about in your diary.  That would be a pity in my view.
    Entry Fee: £28.
    Comp Page: Cal Novel Award.

Eyelands Book Awards.  This is the seventh of these international book award contests from literary magazine Eyelands and Strange Days Books in Greece.  There are two main categories: Published Book and Unpublished Book.  Acceptable genres are Poetry Collection, Novella, Short Story Collection, Novel, Children’s Book, Historical Fiction, Memoir, Graphic Novel.
    Closing: 20.10.24 (midnight PST).
    Prizes: Unpublished Book Grand Prize - Translation into Greek and publication by Strange Days Books, plus a special handmade ceramic.  Published Book Grand Prize - a 5-day holiday in Athens, a special handmade ceramic.  Writers’ Choice (as voted for by other prizewinners) - a 5-day stay in Athens.  Runners-up (10) - A special handmade ceramic and a book.  A poem or short story from each prizewinner will be translated and published in an anthology, with every prizewinner receiving a free copy.  All winners and finalists receive a certificate, ideal for hanging on the wall where your visitors are sure to see it (i.e. next to the drinks cabinet or the television).
    Entry Fee: 30 euros up to September 1st, then 40 euros.  Free for writers from Ukraine.
    Comp Page: Eyelands Comp

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

Cheltenham Poetry Festival Competition.  This is the Cheltenham Poetry Festival’s second annual  international poetry competition.  Entries can be up to 50 lines.
    Closing: 20.10.24.
    Prizes: £300, £100, £50.  The first prize winner will be offered a guest slot at the 2025 Festival, either online or in person.
    Entry Fee: £4 each, £10 for three, £15 for five.
    Comp Page: Cheltenham Poetry

Iota Shot Pamphlet Awards.   To enter this annual contest from Templar Poetry of Matlock in Derbyshire you submit between 16 and 25 pages of poetry.
    Closing : 21.10.24.
    Prizes: Up to two pamphlets will be published under a standard publishing agreement which will include the option to submit a full collection for later publication.  Winning authors will receive support to promote their work at live events.
    Entry Fee: £20.
    Comp Page: Iota Shot Award

Bath Novella-in-Flash Award.  This recurring international contest from Bristol is for novellas made up of separate flash fictions of under 1,000 words each.  The total length of the novella should be between 6,000 and 18,000 words.
    Closing: 31.10.24.
    Prizes: £300, £100, £100.  The winning entry and two runners-up will be published as individual novellas.  All entries will be considered for publication.  Each published author receives five copies.
    Entry Fee: £16.
    Comp Page: Bath Novella in Flash

Poetry Society National Poetry Competition.  In 1983 Carol Ann Duffy won this contest, and 26 years later she became the Poet Laureate.  So if you’re hoping to become an overnight sensation, this is probably not the ideal starting point.  But there are compensations.  The top cash award is one of the best in the business, and the second prize isn’t bad either.  Your poem should run to no more than 40 lines.  The contest is open to poets from around the world ... as long as they can write in English.
    Closing: 31.10.24.
    Prizes: £5,000, £2,000, £1,000.  Commended prizes - £500.
    Entry Fee: £8 for the first, £5 thereafter.
    Comp Page: PSNPC

Bedford Writing Competition.  This annual not-for-profit contest from Bedfordshire, home of the famous Shuttleworth Collection (old aeroplanes and cars) is for stories of up to 3,000 words and poems running to no more than 40 lines.
    Closing: 31.10.24.
    Prizes in each category (Poetry, Short Story): £1,500, £300, £200.  In addition there are special prizes for young writers and Bedford residents.  Shortlisted and winning entries will be published in an anthology (e-book and hardcopy).
    Entry Fee: £8.50 each, £17 for three.  Full-time students: £6 each, £12 for three.
    Comp Page: BWC.

Trio International Poetry Competition.  Trio Uganda is running this contest to raise money for books and other scholastic materials for a school being built by the impoverished community of Agaria Island in Uganda.  Poems, which should run to no more than 40 lines, can be on any subject.
    Closing: 31.10.24.
    Prizes: £1,000, £300, £100, 4 x £25.
    Entry Fee: £5 for one £8 for two, £10 for three.
    Comp Page: Trio Poetry

ALCS Tom-Gallon Trust Award.  If you have had at least one short story accepted for publication, you can enter this contest from the Society of Authors.  It is for published or unpublished tales of up to 5,000 words.
    Closing: 31.10.24.
    Prizes: 1st - £2,000.  Runner-up - £1,000.  Shortlisted (up to 4) - £500.  Prizes will be presented at the annual Society of Authors awards ceremony in 2025.
    Entry Fee: None - free entry.
    Comp Page: Tom-Gallon

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.)

Novel Opening Competition.  For this annual contest from the Flash 500 website you submit the first chapter of your novel, or just the first 3,000 words if the chapter is longer.  Add to this a one-page synopsis of up to 750 words outlining the rest of the story.
    Closing: 31.10.24.
    Prizes : £500, £200.
    Entry Fee: £10 for one, £18 for two, £26 for three.
    Comp Page: F500novel.

Scribble Short Story Competition.  Scribble magazine’s annual story competition is for tales of up to 3,000 words.  This year the theme is ‘GOING BACK.’
   Closing: 1.11.24.
    Prizes: £100, £50, £25.
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Comp Page: Scribble Story.

F(r)iction Writing Competition.  This international contest from the USA has three categories: Short Story (1,001 to 7,500 words), Poetry (up to three pages per poem), and Flash Fiction (up to 1,000 words).
    Closing: 1.11.24.
    Prizes: Short Story - $1,000.  Flash Fiction - £300.  Poetry - $300.
    Entry Fees: Short Story - $15.  Poetry and Flash Fiction - single entry $10, three-pack $12.
    Comp Page: F(r)iction Comps

Edward Thomas Poetry Competition 2025.  The Edward Thomas Fellowship is running another of its annual poetry contests.  As usual, entries are limited to 40 lines, and there is no set theme.  Prize-winning poet Jane Draycott will be judging.
    Closing: 3.11.24.
    Prizes: £250, £100, £100.
    Entry Fee: £3 each (maximum three entries).
    Comp Page: ETF Poetry.

Creative Writing Ink Short Story Prize.  Creative Writing Ink of London is again running this contest for stories of up to 3,000 words on any theme.  Entry is open worldwide.
    Closing: 15.11.24 (4pm).
    Prize: £1,000, an online writing course of the winner’s choice and publication on the website.  Runners-up (2) - £200 each.
    Entry Fee: £9r.
    Comp Page : CWI Story

Bath Children's Novel Award.  This annual international contest, which is open to unpublished and self-published emerging authors, is for novels and chapter books of any length (but see recommendations) aimed at children or young adults.  It is also for picture books. To enter a novel or chapter book, you send the first 5,000 words plus a one-page synopsis.  For picture books, you submit up to three complete stories in the same document with short summaries of each story (without pictures).
     Closing: 30.11.24.
     Prizes: 1st - £5,000 and a Minerva trophy.  The writer of the most promising longlisted novel will receive an online place on Edit Your Novel the Professional Way from co-sponsors Professional Writing Academy and Cornerstones Literary Consultancy.  Shortlisted entrants will receive feedback on their work.
     Entry Fee: £29.99 (for picture books, this covers up to three stories in the same document).
     Comp Page: BCN Award.

Paul Cave Prize for Literature.  Here’s a repeat of the new contest from Tim Saunders Publications of Southampton.  It is for novellas running to no more than 10,000 words, short stories of up to 1,000 words, flash fiction up to 300 words and poems of no more than 30 lines.
    Closing: 30.11.24.
    Prizes: Novella - £150.  Short story - £75.  Flash Fiction - £35.  Poem - £35.  Winners will receive a free copy of the anthology.
    Entry Fees: Novella - £26 for one, £42 for two.  Short story - £13 for one, £20 for two.  Poem/Flash Fiction - up to 3 for £10, up to 8 for £20.
    Comp Page: Paul Cave Prize

Gregory O’Donoghue International Poetry Competition.  This annual contest from the Munster Literature Centre in Cork, Ireland, is for poems of up to 40 lines in English on any subject.
    Closing : 30.11.24.  Opens for entries 1.9.24.
    Prizes: 1st - 2,000 euros, featured reading at the Cork International Poetry Festival (with 4-night hotel stay and full board), plus publication in the Southword journal and featured in the Southword Poetry Podcast.  2nd - 500 euros and publication in Southword.  3rd - 250 euros and publication in Southword.  Runners-up (10) - 50 euros and publication in Southword
    Entry Fee: 7 euros each, 30 euros for five.
    Comp Page: Greg OD Poetry.

Cafe Writers Open Poetry Competition.  This annual contest from Cafe Writers of Norwich (where the Man in the Moon was keen to go, according to a report I read as a child) is for poems of up to 40 lines.
    Closing: 30.11.24.
    Prizes: £1,000, £300, £200.  Runners-up (5) - £50.  Norfolk Prize (for a permanent Norfolk resident) - £100.
    Entry Fee: £5 each, £13 for three, £4 each thereafter.
    Comp Page: Cafe Poetry.

St Martins/Minotaur/MWA First Crime Novel Competition.  If you happen to have, or can arrange to have in the near future, an unpublished debut novel featuring a serious crime, it could be just what The Mystery Writers of America in conjunction with St Martins Minotaur Books are looking for in this freebie annual international contest.  Just be sure your story runs to a minimum of 60,000 words.  To be eligible, you must not have had a novel published in any genre (self-published doesn’t count, although you can’t enter a self-published story).
    Closing: 15.12.24 (11.59pm EST).
    Prize: A standard publishing contract with a $10,000 advance.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: MWA Minotaur.

Moth Poetry Prize. This annual contest from Irish magazine The Moth is for poems of any length and on any subject.  I should perhaps mention that the magazine is not devoted to the subject of moths, fascinating though these may be.  It is an arts and literature magazine.  Presumably the name is a reference to the way artists and writers are attracted to the light of recognition only to beat their wings in vain against an invisible barrier until finally, broken and defeated, they slide down to the windowsill of despair.  You’d think the magazine people could have come up with something a bit more cheerful than that, wouldn’t you?
    Closing: 31.12.24.
    Prizes: 1st - 6,000 euros.  Runners-up (3) - 1,000 euros.  Commended (8) - 250 euros.
    Entry Fee: 15 euros.
    Comp Page: Moth Poetry Comp.

Exeter Novel Competition.  To enter this annual contest from Creative Writing Matters of Exeter you submit a total of 10,000 words, this being the opening section of your unpublished novel and a synopsis.  All genres are welcome including Middle Grade children’s (9 to 12 years), Young Adult and New Adult.  Hellie Ogden, head of the book department at WME Agency’s London office will be the final judge.
    Closing: 1.1.25.
    Prizes: 1st - £1,000 plus a trophy.  Runners-up (5) - £100 and a paperweight.  There will be an Awards Ceremony in Exeter in April.
    Entry Fee: £20.
    Comp Page: Exeter Novel

Poems on the Move Competition.  Poems of up to 14 lines that fit onto an A4 page are required for this international contest from the Channel Islands ... or rather one of them: Guernsey.  Twenty-one poems will be chosen to feature on the Guernsey buses, and the top 9 of these will be exhibited at Guernsey Airport and then at other sites all over the island.
    Closing: 15.1.25.  Opens for entries 15.9.24.
    Prizes: Open category: 1st - £1,000, £500, £250.  Channel Islands; 1st - £250, £50, £30.  Young Poets: 1st - £250, £50, £30.
   Entry Fees: Open and Channel Islands categories - £4 each,  Young Poets - Free.
    Comp Page: Guernsey Poetry

Parracombe Short Story Prize 2024 .  This contest from Paracombe Community Trust in the hills of Exmoor National Park is for stories of up to 2,024 words on any subject.
    Closing: 31.1.25 (opens for entries on 1.11.24).
    Prizes: £150, £50, £25, £25.
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Comp Page: Parracombe Story

Baen Memorial Short Story Award.  This intrnational freebie from American science fiction publisher Baen Books is for realistic science-based near-future space exploration stories soaring to no more than 8,000 words.  There are Do and Don’t lists that you would do well to peruse before entering if you want your chances to lift off (e.g. no fantastical elements, no galactic empires, no UFO abductions).
    Closing: 1.2.25 (12.01am U.S. Pacific Time).  Opens for submissions on 1.10.24.
    Prizes: 1st - Publication as the feature story on the Baen Books website at industry standard rates, an engraved award thingy, free entry into the 2025 International Space Development Conference, and a year’s membership of the (American) National Space Society.  Runners-up will receive free entry into the aforementioned Space Development Conference and a year’s membership of the National Space Society.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter (one per person).
    Comp Page: Baen Award.

Farnham Flash Fiction Competition.  Here’s a regular runner from the Farnham Literary Festival in Surrey.  As per last year it is for stories of up to 500 words on any subject.
    Closing : 1.2.25.
    Prizes: £100, £25, £25.  Selected longlisted stories will be published in the competition anthology.
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Comp Page: Farnham Flash

New Media Writing Prize.  Behold - another freebie!  Fiction or non-fiction written specifically for reading/viewing on electronic devices is required for this one which is facilitated and sponsored by Bournemouth University Higher Education Corporation Faculty of Media and Communications ... and various other organisations as listed on the website.  Interactivity is vital.  You can combine various digital media elements such as words, images and video clips, and I personally think that if you can include a comments section where bitter underachievers can slag off your efforts out of sheer spite, so much the better.  Short story, novel, poem, documentary, etc, are all acceptable.
    Closing: 1.2.25 (Noon).
    Prizes:  Chris Meade Memorial UK New Media Writing Prize - £1,000.  Opening Up Award - £500.  Digital Journalism Award - yet to be determined.  IDN for Social Good Award - £500.  Student Award - yet to be determined.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: NMWP

Parsec SF/Fantasy/Horror Short Story Competition.  Here’s another freebie from Parsec in America.  It is, as it says on the tin, for science fiction, fantasy or horror stories.  Entries should be no longer than 3,500 words.  The theme is ‘AI Mythology.‘  You should try to incorporate both concepts into your entry.  This,’ say the promoters, ‘can be conveyed in the setting, plot, characters, dialogue ... but it must be integral to the story.’  Parsec, incidentally, is Pittsburgh’s premier science fiction & fantasy organisation.
    Closing: 31.3.25 (11:59pm EST).  Opens 1.1.25.
    Prizes: 1st - $200 and publication in the Confluence program book (and before you ask, Confluence is some sort of annual science fiction get-together).  2nd - $100.  3rd - $50.  Best Youth Story - $50.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.  Open worldwide.  One entry per person.
    Comp Page: Parsec S/F Story

Black Orchid Novella Award.  This is the 19th of these annual mystery story contests from The Wolfepack (the official Nero Wolfe Literary Society) in the USA.  It is open worldwide.  To enter, you submit an original detective story of between 15,000 and 20,000 words in the traditional deductive style exemplified by Rex Stout’s Nero Wolfe series.  Your story should contain no sex or violence and, presumably, no fat-shaming.
    Closing: 31.5.25.
    Prize: $1,000 and publication in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Nero Wolfe Novella

To Hull and Back Humorous Writing Contest.  Would it surprise you to know that this one comes from Hull?  Well here’s the real surprise: it doesn’t.  It has its origina in Bristol.  Furthermore, the prize doesn't involve a trip to Hull.  But don’t worry: to ease your disppointment a copy of the anthology containing your winning entry will be taken to Hull on a Harley Davidson motorbike.  I assume there will be a video of that great event for you to enjoy.
    Closing: 30.6.25.
    Prizes: £1,000, £200, £100.  Highly Commended (3) - £70.  Shortlisted (14) - £35.  Winners and shortlistees will be published in a print anthology as well as a Kindle book.
    Entry Fee: £10.
    Comp Page: Hull & Back.

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.

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

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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 Verse, Songs, Etc (sample)
     
                           This is the Prizemagic website
                            Email comps@prizemagic.co.uk
                           Copyright:  Michael Shenton  2024

                                                           Poem: Being a Writer

                             Romantic Poetry by Michael Shenton (sample)