Here are some themed calls and contests for writers of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. Some of the calls are: In the Spirit!; the consequence of war and geopolitical violence; sand, salt, blood; solarpunk creatures; family; homeless nation; constellations; abandon love; Frankenstein; and dragonesque (stories from a dragon’s POV). Also see this list for more themed calls; a few deadlines are coming up.
THEMED SUBMISSIONS
Bright Wall/Dark Room: Recovery
They publish essays on films. On the Recovery theme, “we’re looking for stories of people who faced immense challenges and found a way to come out the other side. … Recoveries can be successful, or valiant in the mere attempt. They can be noble, or they can be attempted for all the wrong reasons. There can be little better narrative material than stories of recovery, and we can’t wait to see all the ways you interpret the theme.” See guidelines for examples on addiction narratives, stories of overcoming physical setbacks, wartime experiences, abuse; stories taking on supernatural notes, psychological horror, or those that are abstract, realistic, stylized, or eerie.
Deadline: 6 October 2022
Length: 2,500-4,000 words
Pay: $50
Details here and here.
Merciless Mermaids: Tails from the Deep
This is a fiction and poetry anthology. “We’re sounding the ship’s bell for stories about malevolent and merciless merfolk of all kinds. Give us your mermaids who fought for the wrong reasons, made tough by their circumstances or by their own choices. Show us their schemes and villainous wiles, the fairytales that end in blood. Or laughter. Tempt us with their twisted workings across time and space, colors and creeds.” Also, “Original “dark mermaid” short stories and poetry in the genres of fantasy, science fiction, horror, humor, and romance, appropriate for a “PG-13” audience. Mermaids must be integral to the story. Diverse cultures and non-traditional legends and persons welcomed.”
Deadline: 7 October 2022
Length: Up to 5,000 words
Pay: $0.07/word
Details here.
Wandering Wave Press: Tumbled Tales 1 – Stories that Upend Genre Conventions
This is a fiction anthology. “We’re looking for genre authors who cross boundaries. Authors whose stories twist the tropes to showcase in a cross-genre anthology of stories that entertain, but read fresh and new. Send us the story that you can’t classify: a story that can’t be pigeon-holed into a single subgenre, or that pushes against your genre’s boundaries. We want to showcase authors who write uncommon fiction.” Some examples are: witches in space, romances that flip gender roles, alternate histories set in the near-future, and fairy tales that start after the ‘happily ever after’. Please note, their deadline date has been moved up.
Deadline: 15 October 2022
Length: 1,000-10,000 words
Pay: $25
Details here.
Sasee: In the Spirit!
They want first-person, nonfiction material that is for or about women. Essays, humor, satire, personal experience, and features on topics relating to women are their focus areas. They do not publish fiction or poetry. Their next upcoming theme is ‘In the Spirit!’, to be published in December.
Deadline: 15 October 2022
Length: 500-1,000 words
Pay: Varies
Details here.
Consequence Magazine: Consequences of war and geopolitical violence; translation feature on Korea
This magazine addresses work on the human consequences and realities of war and geopolitical violence. They have a special translation feature on Korea: “This project aims to highlight the ongoing experiences of North and South Koreans as their countries remain inexorably entwined in war. We are looking for translated prose, poetry, and graphic/visual arts that engage with these experiences. Original works may be in any language other than English but should address issues resulting from (or directly related to) what we in the US call the Korean War (a.k.a. the 625 War, a.k.a The Fatherland Liberation War).” They are also open for fiction, nonfiction (interviews, reviews, essays, narrative nonfiction), poetry, translations, and art (including graphic narratives, and photo and video essays) on the general issues that pertain to the magazine’s themes.
Deadline: 15 October 2022
Length: Up to 5,000 words for prose, up to 5 poems
Pay: $40-80 for fiction, nonfiction, and poetry; $20-40 for reviews
Details here.
Fat Coyote Literary Arts: Neurodivergent writers
They want submissions from neurodiverse writers – fiction, nonfiction, poetry, art, photography, and comics.
Deadline: 15 October 2022
Length: Up to 3 poems; up to 6,000 words for prose
Pay: $1/line, or $30-70, for poetry; $0.03/word, or $30-120, for prose
Details here.
(Submissions are also open for Mighty – An Anthology of Disabled Superheroes, stories about and by people at the intersection of disability and other identities traditionally excluded from publishing. Pay is CAD0.08/word for stories of 500 to 3,500 words. The deadline is 14 November 2022. Details here.)
Sliced Up Press: Sand, Salt, Blood Anthology
This is a sea-based horror fiction and poetry anthology. “We’re looking for horror stories set on, in or around the sea, including coastal areas and islands, as long as the sea plays a key part….What’s lurking down there? What happens when that comes to the surface? What about isolated communities on small islands, or dock workers loading and unloading ships? Although the editor likes stories with sirens, mermaids, and other sea creatures, think beyond that too… consider the creepy and eerie, too…”
Deadline: 16 October 2022, or until filled
Length: 2,000-4,000 words for fiction, poems of any length
Pay: $0.01/word for fiction, $25 for poems
Details here.
(– Submissions will open 10th-16th October 2022 for Seaside Gothic – they publish fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and art in the seaside gothic genre, and pay £0.01/word, up to 1,000 words. Details here.
— Submissions are also open for Manor of Frights fiction anthology from Horroraddicts.net. “Imagine a Victorian house where every room is cursed with a frightful existence. …a collection of tales all set in different rooms of the same house.” Length guidelines are 2,000-3,500 words, pay is $10, and the deadline is 31 October 2022. Details here.)
World Weaver Press: Solarpunk Creatures
This is a fiction anthology. They want “inclusive storytelling that centers nonhuman characters and positive multispecies interactions. Whether the setting is urban or rural or a space station, we’re looking for stories and artwork that put human-nonhuman or even nonhuman-nonhuman relations in the spotlight. We encourage creators to imagine nonhuman main characters, and we welcome narratives that acknowledge the agency of multispecies actors, both in the worldbuilding and in the plot. Because this is a solarpunk anthology, stories that acknowledge the realities of climate change and address those challenges through uplifting possibilities will have the best chance.
We’re defining “creature” broadly, so let us see your depictions of wild animals as well as domesticated ones, of intelligent fungi or plastic-eating bacteria, of lakes and rivers granted personhood.” Deadline: 31 October 2022
Length: Up to 7,000 words
Pay: $0.03/word
Details here.
Black Beacon Books: The Second Black Beacon Book of Mystery
This is a mystery fiction anthology. They want “evocative settings, intriguing characters, and most importantly, a clever puzzle complete with clues, red herrings, foreshadowing, and twists. Your protagonist can be a police detective, private investigator, journalist, or a new take on Miss Marple, just so long as he or she is at the heart of the narrative and ends up cracking the case.” They do not want supernatural tales. Submissions can be in English or French. They also accept reprints.
Deadline: 31 October 2022
Length: 3,000-9,000 words
Pay: €20
Details here.
War Monkey Publications: From the Yonder Volume IV
This is a horror, short-story and poetry collection of regional legends and tall tales from around the world. “The stories must be based upon a regional/cultural legend or tall-tale from any location or culture in the World. “Regional” can be a specific place (Loch Ness) or a larger region (Bigfoot in the Pacific Northwest). … The subject of the story can be based on any legend, so long as it has a horrific flavor. Ghosts, hauntings, alien abductions, monsters, demons, spirits, witches, etc, all are acceptable, as long as the subject is based on an actual legend or tall-tale. We want an original story involving the legend. Don’t rehash the legend itself or write an essay on the tall-tale.” Also read the list of things they do not want.
Deadline: 31 October 2022
Length: 1,000-7,500 words for fiction
Pay: $10 for stories, $5 for poems
Details here.
Zoetic Press: Family
They want poetry, fiction, essays, and art. Their upcoming deadline is for the Family theme. (They are also accepting work on the Food theme, with a deadline in 2023). They also publish translations.
For the Family theme, “Just as each of us carries many identities within us, each of us belongs to many families. There’s our family of origin, often complicated and tumultuous, that leaves an indelible impression on our physical selves …. There’s our family of choice, those people we gather to us to be our support system as we grow and change. There are families of affinity: people with whom we share common interests or experiences. But those aren’t the sum total of possibility.
Who are your family? How do you relate to them? How has family shaped your life and your responses to the world? What is the gulf between the family you need and the family you have? We want to know about your relationships and how they shaped you, rather than hearing the story of your (no doubt wonderful) grandpa, Auntie Bertha, or Little Timmy. We want to hear about your accidental families, your surprise families, your fucked-up families, and the ways you have carved out a place in your life and heart for them, or managed to build a much-needed barrier between you and them.”
Deadline: 31 October 2022 for Family theme
Length: Up to 3,000 words for prose; up to 3 pages for poetry
Pay: $0.01/word for prose, $10 for poetry
Details here.
Ontology Books: A Darkness Visible
They want postmodern horror. “This anthology will explore the inter-relationship between the postmodern and horror. … Writers like Mark Danielewski (House of Leaves), Bret Easton Ellis (American Psycho), William Burroughs (Naked Lunch) or Thomas Pynchon (Gravity’s Rainbow) may be reference points, although thinking outside the box is welcome. Stories may be in the horror genre, or they may investigate horrific aspects of what Jean-François Lyotard called “the postmodern condition. How you address the theme is up to you.”
Deadline: 31 October 2022
Length: 3,000-8,000 words
Pay: £80
Details here.
THEMA: So THAT’s Why
They want fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and art. Please note, they take emailed submissions only from writers not based in the US; US-based writers must post their submissions. The next upcoming theme is, ‘So THAT’s Why’. (They have other themes listed too, with deadlines in 2023: Help from a Stranger, and The Magic of Light and Shadow).
Deadline: 1 November 2022 for So THAT’s Why
Length: Unspecified for prose, up to 3 poems
Pay: $10-25 for prose, $10 for poetry
Details here.
The Last Girls Club: Homeless Nation
This is a feminist horror magazine. The theme is ‘Homeless Nation’. “Whether through war, immigration, medical bills, financial mishap, or lack of mental health care homelessness is a worldwide epidemic with few answers. Explore the horror of the unhoused. They are humans cast adrift by circumstance.” They accept fiction and poetry submissions, and nonfiction pitches.
Deadline: 1 November 2022, or until filled
Length: Up to 2,500 words for fiction; up to 200 words for poetry
Pay: S0.01/word for fiction, $10 for poetry
Details here.
(Submissions are also open for Under the Stars: An Anthology of Homebound Horror – horror stories about what happens when one’s sense of home is lost. Pay is $0.03/word for stories up to 3,000 words; deadline 31 October 2022; details here and here.)
Awake: The West is under attack!
Awake is a zine for Black creators only, from Lucky Jefferson Magazine. They want fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and art, including comics. For the upcoming issue, they say, “The West is under attack! Protect your frontier and deliver your ‘isms [alive] to collect your bounty!
While the frontier is often typecast through an old western lens, your frontier can be whatever setting or undiscovered territory you want to explore. This can be a place near to you or a place not yet imagined. …Think modern westerns…, cross-genre…, or even traditional/revisionist western…. Leave no ‘ism’ unturned or territory underexplored. Whether through the region, era, or genre, there are no restrictions defining what, when, or where your frontier exists. Just show us, How the West Was (or still is) Black.”
Deadline: 1 November 2022
Length: Varies
Pay: $15-50
Details here.
(– For the upcoming print issue of Lucky Jefferson Magazine, the theme is Gibberish – the submission period for this is yet to be announced; and submissions for The 365 Collection for poetry, published online, are open year-round. Details here.
— Submissions are also open for The Underdogs Rise anthology from Underdog Press. “This anthology will focus exclusively on BIPOC writers who live in or hail from locales in the United States and whose short stories feature BIPOC characters set in a science fiction or fantasy setting where the character is an underdog who uses their skills to overcome a challenge.” Pay is $0.03/word for stories of 3,500-7,500 words. The deadline is 31 October 2022. Details here and here.)
The First Line Literary Journal
This is a fiction journal; they also accept poetry, and nonfiction. For fiction and poetry, the work has to begin with a pre-set first line; for the upcoming deadline, this is, “When he died, their father had two requests.” For nonfiction, they want critical essays about your favorite first line from a literary work. Please see their note for international contributors, toward the end.
Deadline: 1 November 2022
Length: 300-5,000 words for fiction; 500-800 words for nonfiction
Pay: $25-50 for fiction, $25 for nonfiction, $5-10 for poetry
Details here.
Ninth Letter: Constellations
They want fiction, nonfiction, and poetry submissions for their online magazine, and the theme is ‘Constellations’. “The nightsky stars themselves are not arranged in patterns and shapes and mythological beasts–it is the observer who sees the connections, draws the lines, and makes the picture. What is a constellation, then, but independences transformed into a larger vision when unseen connections are realized and imagined into being?
With this theme, we hope our writers will explore the invisible ways disparate things connect if we observe, notice, hope, and imagine new relationships between them. Imagine: Small pictures in a photo mosaic that, from afar, turn into a single large one. Community. The way separate trees are secretly whispering in their own tongue to one another through fluids and root fibers just a little underground.
We seek work that makes connections we can’t see—constellations—out of things we wouldn’t expect or anticipate—things we think are separate–and we seek writers who can draw those lines for us so we can learn to see them differently, or realize what was there all along.”
Deadline: 1 November 2022
Length: Up to 3 poems, up to 3,500 words for prose
Pay: $25 for poetry, $75 for prose
Details here.
Arc Poetry Magazine: 100th Issue Celebrations
They are accepting poetry to celebrate their 100th issue; send up to 3 poems that respond to work published in previous issues of the magazine. Some submissions are charged, but there is no submission fee for this category.
Deadline: 25 November 2022
Length: Up to 3 poems
Pay: $50/page for poetry or prose published in the magazine; $50/webpage for online reprints on the website
Details here (guidelines) and here (Submittable).
(– Arc is also accepting fee-free submissions for their Crip Lives: Restoring Subjectivity issue, from “artists who live with disability/chronic illness/mental illness and other forms of existence that are impacted by ableism to send us poems, prose, essays, and reviews exploring what it means to be in the world, or your topic of choice”, deadline 15 May 2023.
— And Griffith Review will have a poetry call-out in October; other genres are closed – see their notice here – scroll down.)
Pride Book Cafe: Fable – An Anthology of Horror, Suspense, & the Supernatural
This is a fiction anthology. “Submissions must fall into one of the following categories: horror, mystery, crime, thriller, and/or suspense. Supernatural elements are encouraged. However, they are not necessary.” They also accept reprints.
Deadline: 30 November 2022
Length: Flash (1,000 words) up to novella length (39,999 words)
Pay: $0.08/word for the first 1,000 words, and $0.01/word after
Details here.
(Submissions are also open for PRIDE Quarterly, a genre fiction magazine for QTBIPOC creators; send fiction of flash to novella length, poetry, and art, including comics. Pay is $0.08/word for the first 1,000 words and $0.01/word after for fiction, $15 for poems, $50 per page for comics, and $25 for reviews on bookish QTBIPOC topics. Details here.)
Abandon Journal: Abandon Love
Abandon journal publishes work that has been created with abandon; for their upcoming issue, the theme is ‘Abandon Love’. Send submissions of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, art, hybrids/cross-genre work, craft essays and writing about craft, and pitches on book reviews/interviews.
Deadline: 30 November 2022
Length: Varies
Pay: $15
Details here.
Parabola: Transformation
Parabola is a quarterly journal that explores the quest for meaning as it is expressed in the world’s myths, symbols, and religious traditions, with particular emphasis on the relationship between this store of wisdom and our modern life. Their guidelines say, “We look for lively, penetrating material unencumbered by jargon or academic argument. We prefer well-researched, objective, and unsentimental pieces that are grounded in one or more religious or cultural tradition; articles that focus on dreams, visions, or other very personal experiences are unlikely to be accepted.” They publish articles (1,000-3,000 words), book reviews (500 words), retellings of traditional stories (500-1,500 words), forum contributions (up to 500 words), and poetry (up to 5 poems). The theme for their upcoming Spring 2023 issue is ‘Transformation’.
Deadline: 1 December 2022
Length: See above
Pay: Unspecified
Details here.
Eye to the Telescope: Frankenstein
This is a speculative poetry magazine. They have extensive guidelines, including, “After more than 200 years, the shadow of Dr. Frankenstein and his creature continues to loom large over science fiction, and it’s not difficult to understand why, especially considering the questions it raises: What does it mean to be a person, or a monster? How much of our actions are our own choice and how much is the influence of others? How do we develop our own identity while maintaining a connection to the past? What responsibilities do we owe each other and other beings? What is the price for progress and how far is too far? … Follow the Creature’s example: be fearless, and therefore, powerful.” They also accept translations.
Deadline: 15 December 2022
Length: Up to 3 poems
Pay: $0.04/word (up to $25)
Details here.
Dead Fish Books: Yay! They’re Here!
This is a fiction anthology. “We are looking for Speculative Fiction stories featuring a Human/Alien first contact that starts optimistically, but then, well, things happen. Remember that scene in Mars Attacks where the Humans enthusiastically welcome the Martians?”
Deadline: 31 December 2022
Length: 2,000-6,000 words
Pay: $5
Details here.
Zombies Need Brains: Four themes
They are open for four fiction anthologies.
— Dragonesque: “you’ll experience an anthology of fantasy and science fiction stories told from, or through, or with, the dragon’s point of view. High fantasy, sword & sorcery, urban fantasy, dark fantasy, magical realism, and of course science fiction…DRAGONESQUE will feature a wealth of genres that even a dragon would be tempted to horde.”
— Game On!: “Games played in fiction often symbolize more than winning and losing. Games represent risk and reward, wealth and class, strategy and blind fortune. In science fiction and fantasy, games can be matters of cosmic importance and of literal life and death… we’re looking for unique science fiction and fantasy takes on games, game playing, and games in culture. A game or games—real or imagined—should be central to the story in some fashion. Please note anything considered a ‘sport’ (i.e.: baseball, soccer, rollerball, etc.) won’t be a fit for this anthology. Games used in stories must also not infringe on real-world trademarked names or third-party copyrights.”
— Artifice & Craft: “Our drive and ability to create for the sake of creativity defines us as a species and enriches our cultures, our societies, our lives. The best of these works of art, from novels to paintings to statues to music, are imbued with a special kind of magic. But when that magic is literal—when Wilde’s Picture of Dorian Gray ages instead of the actual man, and Mozart’s Magic Flute plays its protective song—art takes on a whole new meaning. .. we invite writers of fantasy, science fiction, horror, and other speculative fiction to spin their own tales of works of art that have been enchanted, hexed, charmed, or cursed.”
— Solar Flare: “Imagine a Solarpunk future where societies value cooperation over consumerism, where technology solves ecological challenges rather than creating them. SOLAR FLARE will envision a future where humanity has embraced the Earth and learned to co-exist with it, not simply on it, where sustainability is a way of life, not merely a catch phrase.”
Deadline: 31 December 2022
Length: Up to 7,500 words
Pay: $0.08/word
Details here and here.
THEMED CONTESTS
(Apart from the contests below, there are some grant/fellowship deadlines this month, including:
— Getty Scholar Grants, for researchers of all nationalities who are working in the arts, humanities, or social sciences, for established scholars and writers who have achieved distinction in their fields, deadlines 3 October and 1 November, grants are $21,500-65,000; details here.
— Canada Council for the Arts’ Explore and Create Grants, for Canadian artists, curators and writers, for creative research, creation and project development. They also have other types of grants listed.
The grants are up to CAD25,000, the deadline is 5 October 2022; details here and here.
— One Story’s Adina Talve-Goodman Fellowship for an early-career writer of fiction who has not yet published a book and is not currently nor has ever been enrolled in an MFA program; grants are travel stipend ($2,000) and tuition to attend One Story’s week-long summer writers’ conference, manuscript review & consultation, and other benefits. The deadline is 12 October 2022; details here.
— Amy Lowell Poetry Travelling Scholarship for a poet born in the US, who is willing to spend a year outside the continent of North America. While many recent winners have been published poets, there is no requirement that applicants have previously published their work. Applications have to be mailed. The scholarship is approximately $66,500, adjusted for inflation, the deadline is 15 October 2022; details here (application instructions), here (FAQ – includes link to application form), and here (home page).
— Black Mountain Institute’s Shearing Fellowship, a residential fellowship for emerging and distinguished writers who have published at least one book with a trade or literary press. The fellowship is $20,000, the deadline is 1 November 2022; details here.
— The Haven Foundation Grants were instituted by Stephen King after he suffered a debilitating accident. They are for legal US residents, and give financial assistance to help freelance artists and writers who have suffered disabilities or a career-threatening illness, accident, natural disaster or personal catastrophe. The deadline is 4 November 2022; details here.)
American Antiquarian Society: Fellowships for Creative and Performing Artists and Writers
These are fellowships for historical research by the American Antiquarian Society by those who wish to produce “imaginative, non-formulaic works dealing with pre-twentieth-century American history.” Room fee will be charged if staying in the Society’s scholars’ housing. Fellowship projects may include (but are not limited to) historical novels, documentary films, TV programs, radio broadcasts, plays, screenplays, illustration and other graphic arts, magazine or newspaper articles, and non-fiction works of history for a general audience, either for adults or for children.
Value: $2,000 (less room fee in some cases – see above), residency
Deadline: 5 October 2022
Open for: All writers
Details here.
(And for writers in the UK ages 11-19, there’s also the Young Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction. They want historical fiction of 800-2,000 words. The fiction can be in any form – a story or an extract from a longer work, a poem or drama script, a fictional diary, letters, or reportage. The story can be set at any time in history, as long as it is an identifiable period before the author was born, in a world recognisably different from the present. Prizes are £500 travel and research grants, and the deadline is 31 October 2022. Details here.)
Embracing Our Differences Quotation Contest
Embracing Our Differences is a not-for-profit organization based in Florida that uses art and education to expand consciousness and celebrate human diversity. They want original quotes, of 20 words or fewer, for their 2023 exhibit. Their guidelines say, “A critical part of the impact of the exhibit is the selected quotations from the general public that accompany each piece of artwork.” The theme is ‘enriching lives through diversity and inclusion.’ They have several ideas on their website to help stimulate your thoughts, including: What does embracing our differences mean to you? What does diversity and inclusion mean to you? Writers can send as many quotations as they like, but they ask that writers submit only up to five quotations at a time. Teachers may complete submissions on behalf of their students and, at their option, substitute their personal or school contact information for that of their students.
Value: Two awards of $2,000
Deadline: 5 October 2022
Open for: All writers
Details here.
Tales from the Moonlit Path Halloween Challenge
They want a story, up to 2,000 words, around one of the movie quotes they have on the website. “Of course, we don’t want a retelling of the movie the quote is from, we want an original from you, simply use the quote as a guide. You do not have to use the actual quote in your story, but it’s perfectly ok if you do!” Some of the quotes are: Oh yes, there will be blood; It’s just the wind; It’s Halloween, I guess everyone’s entitled to one good scare; Fine, walk home then.
Value: $50
Deadline: 13 October 2022
Open for: All writers
Details here.
The Bread & Roses Theatre Playwriting Award
This is a competition for full length theatre plays that have not previously been produced or published and feature at least half of female, non-binary or gender neutral roles by UK and Europe based writers. The winning play will receive professional production at The Bread & Roses Theatre, 10% of box office income (in 2023/24), publication by The Bread & Roses Theatre, and royalty from all sales.
Value: Part of box office income, royalties
Deadline: 14 October 2022
Open for: UK and Europe based writers
Details here.
(For BAME writers in the UK, there is also the JKP Writing Prize; send non-fiction pieces of up to 3,000 words on the ‘Stories of Resistance’ theme. The JKP Prize is partnering with Hachette’s Future Bookshelf, which offers support to aspiring writers from under-represented backgrounds. Winners will be published in an anthology and get a cash prize of £150. The deadline is 21 October 2022; details here.)
Endless Ink Publishing House Short Story Horror Comedy Contest
They want a short story, of 5,000-8,000 words, in the horror comedy genre. Please read the terms carefully, “By accepting the winning prize money the author is selling the rights for this story to Endless Ink Publishing House LLC for publication in futurity.”
Value: $750, $150
Deadline: 21 October 2022
Open for: All writers
Details here.
The Society of Authors: McKitterick Prize
This prize is for an author over the age of 40 for a fiction novel, published or self-published in the UK, or unpublished. The author must not have had a novel published before, barring works for children. For unpublished manuscripts, submit the first 30 pages.
Value: £4,000, £2,000, £1,000
Deadline: 31 October 2022
Open for: Debut novelists over 40
Details here.
Preservation Foundation Essay Contest: Travel Nonfiction
They want essays, 1,000-5,000 words, by unpublished writers (see guidelines). They are currently reading for the Travel Nonfiction category – “Stories should be factual and true accounts of a trip taken by the author or a person or persons known by the author.” Please read the guidelines carefully; “contest runners-up and winners are expected to remain on the site for as long as the Preservation Foundation exists.”
Value: $200; $100
Deadline: 31 October 2022
Open for: All unpublished writers (see guidelines)
Details here.
Rune Bear Quarterly: War in Space
This is a themed drabble contest. They want fiction of 100 words on the theme, ‘War in Space’.
Value: $10
Deadline: 31 October 2022
Open for: All writers
Details here.
Defenestrationism: 2022 Flash Suite Contest
This is a contest for at least three flash fiction pieces (up to 1,000 words each) that co-relate in some way. A single piece of the suite may have been published before, otherwise, no previously published material. Finalists will be published daily on the site, followed by at least two weeks of Fan Voting – winners will be selected by a judging panel, with Fan Voting counting as an additional judge vote.
Value: $75, $60
Deadline: 1 November 2022
Open for: All writers
Details here.
The William F. Deeck-Malice Domestic Grant for Unpublished Writers
This is given to an unpublished writer (see guidelines) in the Malice Domestic genre at each year’s Malice Domestic convention. The grant may be used to offset registration, travel, or other expenses related to attendance at a writers’ conference or workshop within a year of the date of the award. The Malice Domestic genre is loosely described as mystery stories of the Agatha Christie type—i.e. “traditional mysteries.” These works usually feature no excessive gore, gratuitous violence, or explicit sex. See guidelines for additional details and submission requirements. Apart from the cash award, the prize covers a comprehensive registration for the upcoming convention and two nights’ lodging at the convention hotel, but does not include travel to the convention or meals.
Value: $2,500, and other expenses – see above
Deadline: 1 November 2022
Open for: Unpublished writers in the Malice Domestic genre
Details here.
A couple of contests with later deadlines are:
— The One Teen Short Story Contest, which is open for short fiction of 2,000-4,500 words by writers around the world ages 13-19 – the winners get $500 and copies of the magazine, and the deadline is 27 November 2022;
— St. Martin’s Minotaur/ Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel Competition, an international contest for crime novel manuscripts of approximately 60,000 words, for writers who have never been the author of any published novel in any genre; the prize is an advance of $10,000 against royalties, and the deadline is 17 December 2022.
— The Writers College: My Writing Journey Competition – They want a 600-word piece on ‘The best writing tip I’ve ever received’. The contest is open to writers all over the world. The prize is AUD200/£100, the deadline is 31 December 2022, and it is open for all writers.
Bio: S. Kalekar is the pseudonym of a regular contributor to this magazine. She can be reached here.
