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Congratulations to Gail Thomas, Helga Gruendler-Schierloh, Joan Leotta, Stephen Weinstock, Nick Korolev, Annie Dawid, Lesléa Newman, Phylis Campbell Dryden, Anna Scotti, Janet Ruth Heller (featured poem: "Obsession"), Evelyn Krieger, Lance Johnson, Lana Rafaela Cindric (featured poem: "Lives"), Rick Lupert, R.T.
Castleberry, and Ellaraine Lockie.
Learn about our subscribers' achievements and see links to samples of their work.
Have news? Please email it to jendi@winningwriters.com.
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 Deadline: January 31
Autumn House Press is now taking submissions for our annual Rising Writer Contest. The Rising Writer Contest is for a first full-length book of poetry by an author 33 years old or younger. Autumn House believes in supporting the work of younger, less-established writers who will become the voices of an emerging generation. The judge for this year's contest is RICHARD SIKEN.
See our complete contest guidelines.
Congratulations to last year's winner: Cameron Barnett's The Drowning Boy's Guide to Water (selected by Ada Limón). Please enjoy this sample poem.
When the Mute Swans Return
If you ask me, every spring should be spent
on the Seneca. The casual swirl
of wet fingers in the hard yawn of March,
knuckling your way through the cloudy slough
your tousled likeness tonguing the surface,
the shape of you clapping in on itself,
everything slipping away in ripples.
What else would happen pulling at water?
When the mute swans return, a huff of leaves
escapes the nearby tree; the fledgling wind
refuses the home of your lungs. Only
the Finger Lakes catch its breath—a hiccup.
Sometimes the spring lakes feign themselves as clouds;
the mute swans—to fly—pull at the water.
by Cameron Barnett from his collection, The Drowning Boy's Guide to Water (winner of the inaugural Rising Writer Contest)
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Entries must be received by January 31
Submissions are now being accepted for the eighth William Saroyan International Prize for Writing. This award, given by Stanford University Libraries in partnership with the William Saroyan Foundation, recognizes newly published works of fiction and nonfiction with a $5,000 award for the winner in each category.
The prize is designed to encourage new or emerging writers and honor the Saroyan literary legacy of originality, vitality, and stylistic innovation. For entry forms and more information on the prize, visit the Saroyan Prize website.
Congratulations to our 2016 Fiction Winner T. Geronimo Johnson, author of Welcome to Braggsville, and our 2016 Nonfiction Winner Lori Jakiela, author of Belief Is Its Own Kind of Truth, Maybe. See our complete list of 2016 winners and finalists.
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Regular Deadline: February 1, 2018
Final Deadline: February 20, 2018
BlueCat Screenplay Competition, now in its 20th year, is currently accepting submissions for its 2018 competition!
BlueCat accepts features, pilots, and short screenplays.
WRITTEN ANALYSIS FOR ALL ENTRANTS
**Submit your script by February 1st and receive your written analysis by March 1st.**
BlueCat remains committed to the undiscovered writer, and will continue its tradition of providing written analysis on every script submitted at no additional charge.
SCREENPLAY CONTEST AWARDS
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Feature Screenplay Winner $10,000. Four Feature Finalists will receive $1,000 each.
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Short Script Winner $5,000. Four Shorts Finalists will receive $500 each.
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Pilot (Hour) Winner $5,000. Four Hour Pilot Finalists will receive $500 each.
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Pilot (Half-hour) Winner $5,000. Four Half-hour Pilot Finalists will receive $500 each.
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The Fellini Award $1,000. Best feature screenplay by a writer living outside the U.S.
Click to submit to BlueCat.
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Deadline: February 26
Seeking altered states might be one of the oldest human hobbies—for better and for worse—and we're looking for stories that capture the widest possible range of experiences and voices. Whether you (or someone else) were tipsy or wasted, soooooooo drunk or just a little high—on life, or love, or power, or something else—we want to hear your story about being under the influence.
As always, we're interested in stories that are more than mere anecdotes, and we love work that incorporates an element of research and/or makes a connection to a larger story or theme. We welcome personal stories as well as profiles, and above all, we are looking for narratives—true stories, rich with scene, character, detail, and a distinctive voice—that offer a fresh interpretation or unique insight into the theme.
If we're being honest, we're also especially hoping for some happy (or at least lighthearted, if not downright funny) stories—a mix of uppers and downers, as it were.
CNF editors will award $1,000 for best essay and $500 for runner-up. All essays submitted will be considered for publication.
See our complete guidelines.
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IT'S ON YOU
For this contest, write a creative, compelling, well-crafted story between 1,000 and 5,000 words long in which one or more pieces of clothing play an important role. NOTE: Jewelry does not count as clothing for this contest, so crowns are not allowed but hats are okay.
Deadline: 11:59 PM Eastern US time, FRIDAY, March 2, 2018.
One entry per author. There is no fee for entering this contest. Winners receive between US$60 and US$220, and publication.
GENRE NOTE: Any genre except children's fiction, exploitative sex, or over-the-top gross-out horror is fine. We will also never accept parodies of another author's specific fictional character(s) or world(s). No exceptions!
Click for details and instructions on submitting your story. To be informed when new contests are launched, subscribe to our free, short, monthly newsletter. On The Premises magazine is recognized in Duotrope, Writer's Market, Ralan.com, and other short story marketing resources.
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Deadline: April 15
Now in its 25th year, all Dancing Poetry Festival prize winners will receive a prize certificate suitable for framing, a ticket to the 2018 Dancing Poetry Festival in the Florence Gould Theater at the California Palace of the Legion of Honor, San Francisco, and an invitation to read their prizewinning poem at the festival.
 Three Grand Prizes will receive $100 each plus their poems will be danced and filmed. Many smaller prizes. Each Grand Prize winner will be invited onstage for photo ops with the dancers and a bow in the limelight.
Please look at photos of our Dancing Poetry Festivals to see the vast diversity of poetry and dance we present each year. For poetry, we look for something new and different including new twists to old themes, different looks at common situations, and innovative concepts for dynamic, thought-provoking entertainment. We look forward to reading your submissions. See the complete contest rules and please enjoy "Shinrin-Yoku: Forest Bathing"
by Shirley McPhillips, a 2017 Grand Prize winner.
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Deadline: May 21
They say it's where you hang your hat; it's where the heart is; it's where they have to take you in. But what does home mean for communities and individuals facing rising temperatures and extreme weather; wealth disparity and resource scarcity; and the forces of globalization and nationalism? What does it mean to belong somewhere? For the winter 2019 issue of Creative Nonfiction magazine, we're looking for true stories about finding—or, perhaps, coming to terms with losing—your place in the world.
As always, we're interested in stories that are more than mere anecdotes, and we love work that incorporates an element of research and/or makes a connection to a larger story or theme. We welcome personal stories as well as profiles, and above all, we are looking for narratives—true stories, rich with scene, character, detail, and a distinctive voice—that offer a fresh interpretation or unique insight into the theme.
All essays submitted will be considered for publication; this is a paying market.
See our complete guidelines.
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Deadline: July 16
For the spring 2019 issue of Creative Nonfiction magazine, we're looking for true stories about doing it. Whether you're straight, gay, or other; alone, in a couple, or in a crowd; doing it for the first time or the last, or not doing it at all, we want to hear your story.
As always, we're interested in stories that are more than mere anecdotes, and we love work that incorporates an element of research and/or makes a connection to a larger story or theme. We welcome personal stories as well as profiles, and above all, we are looking for narratives—true stories, rich with scene, character, detail, and a distinctive voice—that offer a fresh interpretation or unique insight into the theme.
Please note: for this issue, we are interested primarily (and perhaps even exclusively) in stories of consensual and/or victimless sex. Also note, we are not seeking erotica. No photos, please.
Creative Nonfiction editors will award $1,000 for Best Essay and $500 for runner-up. All essays will be considered for publication.
See our complete guidelines.
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Finishing up your manuscript? Putting those last touches on your thesis or dissertation? Submitting application essays to your dream school? Can't figure out where to put the dialogue in your magnum opus? These writing projects can take a lot out of a person. Sometimes the work is so dense and the topics so subjective that it's difficult to see a clear end in sight. Sometimes the solution is as simple as lending another pair of eyes to those stuck points.
Don't pull out more hair—give yourself a break! I'll help ease your typing tension so you can show that writer's block who's boss. Email Lauren Singer at SingerLaur@gmail.com or call 347-675-4877 for professional copyediting, proofreading, and general assistance with your current project. I have many years of experience, a bundle of great references, and am currently a staff judge at Winning Writers. Let's tackle those big ideas together!
"When I needed help with my chapbook manuscript, Lauren was candid, professional, and insightful. She was a pleasure to work with and I will definitely be hiring her for editing in the future."
-Catherine Weiss
"If you need fresh eyes and solid creative insight, Lauren is absolutely the person to call."
-Stephanie Huey
"Lauren regularly edited for me. Her comments and corrects were thoughtful, thorough, and holistic. She also frequently went above and beyond and offered style suggestions and additional ways to structure my approach."
-Roxanne Astra Slate
"Lauren takes the time while editing, to both consider the one-day reader and the voice of the author."
-Tara Jean Bernier
See Lauren's six quick writing tips.
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Swallow by Jendi Reiter - Signed, Limited Edition
"The first thing that strikes the reader about Jendi Reiter's Swallow is, naturally, the unusual cover illustration, which appears at once to be a multi-eyed cherub (the proper Old Testament kind), a brace of clothespins, a flock of nightmare birds, sewing needles, bent nails, and a heart-shaped crown of thorns. While one may have a difficult time explaining all of this, one need only know that this image by Richard C. Jackson is the best visual realization of the horror, madness, blood, and beauty that infuse Reiter's work: Like something out of a fever dream, it just makes perfect sense."
–JoSelle Vanderhooft, The Pedestal Magazine
This chapbook is a limited edition. Request your signed copy from jendi@winningwriters.com. Available now for $8 plus postage.
Please enjoy this sample poem:
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Some contests are best suited to writers at the early stages of their careers. Others are better for writers with numerous prizes and publications to their credit. Here is this month's selection of Spotlight Contests for your consideration:
Emerging Writers
NFSPS Edna Meudt/Florence Kahn Memorial Awards. The National Federation of State Poetry Societies will award two prizes of $500 apiece for manuscripts of 10 previously unpublished poems, written by undergraduate students enrolled in accredited US colleges or universities. The two winning manuscripts will be published as perfect-bound 6"x9" chapbooks and marketed through Amazon.com. In addition, winners receive 75 free copies of their chapbook, a one-year membership in NFSPS and an NFSPS-affiliated state poetry society, complimentary registration and a $300 travel stipend to attend the NFSPS Annual Convention. Due January 31.
Intermediate Writers
Graywolf Press Nonfiction Prize. This major literary publisher will award $12,000 and publication for the best full-length manuscript of creative nonfiction by a US resident not yet established in the genre. Sample of manuscript-in-progress should be a minimum of 100 double-spaced pages (25,000 words). Due January 31.
Advanced Writers
Harold Morton Landon Translation Award. The Academy of American Poets will award $1,000 for the best book of poetry translated from any language into English and published in the US during the previous calendar year. Translator must be a living US citizen or resident who has resided in the United States for the past decade. Due February 15.
See more Spotlight Contests for emerging, intermediate, and advanced writers within The Best Free Literary Contests database.
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Julian Peters writes, "This adaptation of a WWI poem by the Italian poet Giuseppe Ungaretti was sensitively translated by Marco Sonzogni and Ross Woods. The comic is the product of an ongoing collaboration with Sonzogni and Woods, and with the New Zealand Centre for Literary Translation at Victoria University in Wellington."
Kindly reprinted by permission of Julian Peters. See more at Mr. Peters' website.
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Problems of Lineage and Magic
Decolonization isn't so much about ethnic ownership of spirituality, as it is about accountability for the fact that white people violently disrupted POCs' ability to practice their own traditions, and then we turned around and adopted those traditions as exotic and authentic. [read more]
Jendi Reiter is the editor of Winning Writers. Follow her on Twitter at @JendiReiter.
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