This post was originally published at Novelicious.com and is now at WritingTipsOasis.com. WritingTipsOasis.com acquired Novelicious.com in June 2022.
If you’re a new writer, a writing student, or you’re a little nervous about submitting your work, entering writing competitions can be a fantastic way to gain submission experience and boost your confidence. Even better? You might win! Sure, taking the leap from writing for yourself to sharing your work can be a scary one, but it’s also incredibly rewarding. If furthering your career as an author was one of your 2015 resolutions, here are six writing competitions you can enter before the end of the year. Good luck!
1. Mslexia’s Women’s Novel Competition 2015
To enter, submit the first 5,000 words of your completed novel, which must total at least 50,000 words. The manuscript can be for adults (and young adults) in any genre by previously unpublished women novelists.
Deadline: September 21 2015
Entry fee: £25
Prize: £5,000
2. The Sunday Times Short Story Award 2016
The prize is for stories up to 6,000 words in length and boasts the most valuable prize for a single short story in the world. Stories can be either unpublished or published. If published, the work must have first appeared after 1 January 2015.
Deadline: September 24 2015
Entry fee: £0
Prize: £30,000
3. Manchester Writing Competition: The Manchester Fiction Prize
A whopping £10,000 prize for the best short story of up to 2,500 words. Open internationally to new and established writers aged 16 or over (no upper age limit).
Deadline: September 25 2015
Entry fee: £17.50
Prize: £10,000.
4. Boston Review’s Aura Estrada Short Story Contest 2016
The Aura Estrada Short Story Contest is for pieces up to 5,000 words and all entries must be previously unpublished. Any author writing in English is eligible, regardless of citizenship or publication history.
Deadline: October 1 2015
Entry fee: $20
Prize: $1,500
5. The Galley Beggar Press Short Story Prize 2015 / 2016
The prize aims to sponsor nothing more and nothing less than exceptionally good stories. Submissions must be no longer than 6,000 words and can be on any theme.
Deadline: November 15 2015
Entry fee: £10
Prize: £500, or year-long editorial support from the directors of Galley Beggar Press.
6. The Times Children’s Fiction Competition
To enter this competition you must have written a completed full-length novel suitable for children aged somewhere between 7 and 18 years. By full-length the organisers suggest a minimum of 30,000 words and ask that manuscripts do not exceed 80,000 words in length.
Deadline: December 18 2015
Entry fee: £15
Prize: £10,000, plus representation from a top children’s literary agent.
Check back next newsletter for more writing competitions and opportunities!