EVERY writer starts their professional journey somewhere, and writing contests can be one great way to step out into the literary world in style. Awards that confer publication offer a powerful means of getting your work into the hands of interested editors who are ready to trumpet your praises and share your winning submission. Often a first award or grant begets more such success. Above all, contests can validate the care and dedication you’ve put into your craft and demonstrate that what you have to say resounds with readers. But if you’ve never submitted to a contest before, the process can be intimidating, and with scores of contests to choose from, it’s sometimes hard to know where to begin. The following contests have proven track records of supporting emerging writers, whether by offering worthy homes for short works of poetry and prose, publishing first books, or furnishing resources to help careers blossom—and some might even provide the inspiration for your first prizewinning piece. Consider them all as you chart your course toward the literary stars.
Contests honoring individual poems, short stories, and essays are a time-honored way of placing first works in literary magazines. Forexpand what literature can do and be by supporting the early careers of the most energizing new talent. Among such contests are those run by the , a print and digital publication dedicated to bolstering new voices. Every year it offers five contests, each awarding at least $1,000 and publication: the , the , the , and the biannual . Winners of the short story and novel excerpt awards also receive consultations with literary agents as part of their prize. This is one more way the contest aims to foster writers’ careers, “providing exposure that they otherwise might not have had if they didn’t submit to our contests,” says Chelsea Wales, a spokesperson for the journal. The tactic works: Several past winners have gone on to be represented by the agent they met as part of the contest. The ’s next deadlines are June 1 for fiction under 1,500 words, August 28 for short fiction, December 1 for novel excerpts, and December 31 for the chapbook contest, which is open to both fiction and nonfiction writers.
