The Malahat Review Far Horizons Award for Poetry

Genre: Poetry, Short Fiction
Entry Fee: Early Bird rate of $15 CAD and regular rate of $25 CAD for each first entry from Canada, and $15 CAD for each additional entry
Deadline: May 1, 2025
Prize: $1,250 CAD and publication in the magazine’s fall 2025 issue
Description: The Malahat Review invites emerging short-story writers to enter the Far Horizons Award for Short Fiction. Eligible authors have yet to publish their fiction in book form (a book is defined to have a length of 48 pages or more). Publication in literary magazines is acceptable. The contest is open to Canadian and international writers anywhere in the world. All entries are judged anonymously, and the winning story will be published in the magazine’s fall 2025 issue. The story must not exceed 3,500 words. There are no restrictions on subject matter or aesthetic approach. The Far Horizons Awards are short-form contests, with the Far Horizons Award for Short Fiction given during odd years and the Far Horizons Award for Poetry in even years.
Details: http://www.malahatreview.ca/contests/contests_info.html

 

Tom Howard/John H. Reid Fiction & Essay Contest

Genre: Fiction, Essay
Entry Fee: $25 USD per entry
Deadline: May 1, 2025
Prize: First prize of $3,500 USD in each category; ten honorable mention prizes of $500 USD each; top 12 entries will be published online
Description: For this contest, a story is any short work of fiction, and an essay is any short work of nonfiction. Submit published or unpublished work.
Details: https://winningwriters.com/our-contests/tom-howard-john-h-reid-fiction-essay-contest

 

F(r)iction Writing Contests

Genre: Short Story, Creative Nonfiction, Flash Fiction, Poetry
Entry Fee: $10 – $15 USD
Deadline: May 2, 2025
Prize: Short story prize of $1,000 USD; creative nonfiction prize of $500 USD; poetry prize of $300 USD; flash fiction prize of $300 USD
Description: F(r)iction is seeking writing that pushes boundaries and challenges readers to think differently. F(r)iction likes work that features complex characters and strong narratives, and plays with genre, setting, voice, you name it. Short stories word limit is 1,001 – 7,500 words, flash fiction word limit is up to 1,000 words per piece, poetry word limit is up to three pages per poem, and creative nonfiction word limit is up to 6,500 words.
Details: https://frictionlit.org/contests/

 

Royal City Literary Arts Society (RCLAS) Write On! Contest 2025

Genre: Poetry, Fiction, Nonfiction
Entry Fee: $10 CAD per story or poem for RCLAS members and $20 CAD per story or poem for non-RCLAS members
Deadline: May 4, 2025
Prize: First prize of $150 CAD; second prize of $100 CAD; third prize of $75 CAD; three honourable mention prizes; winners and honourable mentions will be published in RCLAS E-Zine Wordplay at Work
Description: Maximum of three submissions per person combined in any one or all three categories. Poems and stories will only be accepted by email.
Details: https://rclas.com/2024-write-on-contest/

 

Australian Book Review 2025 Elizabeth Jolley Short Story Prize

Genre: Short Story
Entry Fee: $20 AU for current ABR subscribers or $30 AU for non-subscribers
Deadline: May 5, 2025, at 11:59 pm AEST
Prize: First prize of $6,000 AU; second prize of $4,000 AU; third prize of $2,500 AU
Description: Seeking original short stories of between 2,000 and 5,000 words on any subject and in any style.
Details: https://www.australianbookreview.com.au/prizes-programs/elizabeth-jolley-story-prize/current-prize#:~:text=ABR%20welcomes%20entries%20in%20the,5%2C000%20words%2C%20written%20in%20English

 

Royal Society of Literature (RSL) Writers Awards

Genre: Substantial Works of Outstanding Literary Merit
Entry Fee: None
Deadline: May 9, 2025, at 5:00 pm BST
Prize: 12 writers will be appointed 2025 RSL International Writers
Description: The RSL was founded in 1820, as a UK charity for the advancement of literature. The RSL International Writers programme 2024 is open to recommendations. Anyone, anywhere, can recommend a writer. Please submit your recommendations and share how to recommend with colleagues and your networks. To be eligible, the writers you recommend must not be resident in, or citizens of, the UK; and have published two substantial works of outstanding literary merit (where works are translated into English, or originally written in English). Guided by your recommendations, the panel of RSL Fellows will select the next 12 writers to be appointed RSL International Writers in 2024.
Details: https://rsliterature.org/rsl-international-writers/

 

RBC PEN Canada 2025 New Voices Award

Genre: Short Story, Creative Nonfiction, Journalism, Poetry
Entry Fee: None
Deadline: May 12, 2025, at 11:59 pm ET
Prize: $3,000 CAD and mentorship from a Canadian author
Description: This annual award supports and celebrates emerging talent in Canadian literature. Unpublished writers are encouraged to submit short stories, creative nonfiction, journalism, and poetry. The shortlisted submissions will be judged by a distinguished jury of Canadian writers. The competition is open to writers over the age of 17 whose work has not yet been published. Prose entries must be between 2,000 – 4,000 words. Poetry entries may take the form of individual poems, a sequence, or one long poem of no more than 2,500 words in total. Please send all submissions to submissions@pencanada.ca.
Details: https://https://pencanada.ca/news/submissions-open-for-the-2025-rbc-pen-canada-new-voices-award/

 

The Lush Triumphant – subTerrain’s Annual Literary Awards

Genre: Fiction, Poetry, Creative Nonfiction
Entry Fee: $30 CAD per entry plus $5 CAD for every additional entry in any category
Deadline: May 15, 2025
Prize: First prize of $1,000 CAD in each of the 3 genre categories and publication in the Winter issue; runner-up prizes of publication in the spring issue of the following year
Description: subTerrain is hosting their Annual Lush Triumphant Literary Awards, aiming to spotlight works in Fiction, Poetry, and Creative Nonfiction. All entries must be previously unpublished material and not under consideration in any other contest or competition. Fiction submissions have a maximum of 3,000 words with no specific theme limitations, poetry submissions must be a suite of 5 related poems with a maximum of 15 pages, and creative nonfiction submissions must be based on fact, adorned with fiction, and have a maximum of 4,000 words.
Details: https://subterrain.ca/about/103/lush-2014-awards-open+for+entries

 

The Betty Award Spring Contest

Genre: Short Story (Ages 8 – 12)
Entry Fee: $20 USD
Deadline: May 17, 2025
Prize: First prize of $300 USD; second prize of $200 USD; third prize of $100 USD
Description: Winning entries will be published on the Betty Awards website. Maximum story length is 1,000 words. Entries must be the original unpublished work of the child entering the contest.
Details: http://www.thebettyaward.com/

 

Naomi Shihab Nye Prize

Genre: Middle-grade Manuscripts for Ages 8 – 12
Entry Fee: $25 USD
Deadline: May 20, 2025
Prize: First prize of $1,000 USD; second prize of $500 USD
Description: The Naomi Shihab Nye Prize was established in 2024 to uplift Arab voices in literature and to inspire book-length stories for and about young Arab readers. Arab American and Arab Canadian writers are invited to submit English-language middle-grade manuscripts intended for readers ages 8–12. The prize, initiated by Barbara Nimri Aziz, is open to both emerging and established writers and aims to celebrate the richness of Arab creativity and storytelling.
Details: https://www.albustanseeds.org/naomi-shihab-nye-prize

 

Canadian Jewish Playwriting Competition

Genre: Playwriting
Entry Fee: None
Deadline: May 25, 2025
Prize: $1,000 CAD and an 8-hour CAEA workshop with a director and up to six actors, concluding with a public reading
Description: Playwrights do not need to be Jewish but must be Canadian (dual citizenship is acceptable). Playwrights with Canadian citizenship living abroad (i.e Israel, USA, Europe, etc.) are welcome to submit. Play content must have a Jewish focus, depicting a prominent theme or aspect of Jewish or Israeli life. Plays must be no less than one hour and no more than two hours in length (1 page of dialogue equals roughly 1 min of stage time)
Details: www.mnjcc.org/theatre

 

Austin Film Festival Playwrighting Competition

Genre: Playwrighting
Entry Fee: $30 USD
Deadline: May 28, 2025
Prize: Second Rounders, Semifinalists, and Finalists get larger discounts and have the opportunity to attend exclusive panels, intimate roundtable discussions, script reading workshops, and are afforded special access to industry professionals; all entrants receive free “Reader Comments” Austin Film Festival registration discounts regardless of placement
Description: For over twenty-seven years, Austin Film Festival has been catapulting writers into life-changing careers. With one of the most noteworthy competitions among Hollywood tastemakers, AFF consistently yanks newcomers from the isolation of their desks and ushers them into the bustling world of film and television. Whether your dream is to sign a contract, land an agent, learn from an industry icon, or take home the coveted Bronze Typewriter Award, it’s simple: you can’t win if you don’t enter.
Details: https://austinfilmfestival.com/submit/screenplay-and-teleplay-submissions-2/submit-screenplay-and-teleplay/

 

Austin Film Festival Screenplay & Teleplay Competition

Genre: Screenplay, Teleplay
Entry Fee: Feature screenplay fee is $80 USD and short screenplay or teleplay fee is $65 USD
Deadline: May 28, 2025
Prize: Second Rounders, Semifinalists, and Finalists get larger discounts and have the opportunity to attend exclusive panels, intimate roundtable discussions, script reading workshops, and are afforded special access to industry professionals; all entrants receive free “Reader Comments” Austin Film Festival registration discounts regardless of placement
Description: For over twenty-seven years, Austin Film Festival has been catapulting writers into life-changing careers. With one of the most noteworthy competitions among Hollywood tastemakers, AFF consistently yanks newcomers from the isolation of their desks and ushers them into the bustling world of film and television. Whether your dream is to sign a contract, land an agent, learn from an industry icon, or take home the coveted Bronze Typewriter Award, it’s simple: you can’t win if you don’t enter.
Details: https://austinfilmfestival.com/submit/screenplay-and-teleplay-submissions-2/submit-screenplay-and-teleplay/

 

Peter Hinchcliffe Short Fiction Award

Genre: Short Story
Entry Fee: $40 per short story CAD (includes one-year subscription to The New Quarterly)
Deadline: May 28, 2025
Prize: $1,000 CAD; all entries will be considered for publication in The New Quarterly ($250 CAD paid upon publication)
Description: This contest honors distinguished St. Jerome’s University lecturer, Peter Hinchcliffe, who was instrumental in founding The New Quarterly and who served for many years as co-editor. While there is no word limit to short fiction entries, most fall within the range of 2,000 – 5,000 words.
Details: https://tnq.ca/peter-hinchcliffe-award/

 

Irene Adler Scholarship Prize

Genre: Essay (see guidelines for essay topics)
Entry Fee: None
Deadline: May 30, 2025
Prize: $1,000 USD scholarship to pursue a career in journalism, creative writing, or literature at a recognized post-secondary institution in the U.S. or Canada
Description: This prize is to award a $1,000 USD scholarship to a woman pursuing a degree in journalism, creative writing, or literature at a recognized post-secondary institution in the U.S. or Canada, based on an essay competition.
Details: https://www.facebook.com/groups/572667429453561/posts/9460761117310770/

 

bpNichol Chapbook Award 2025

Genre: Chapbook
Entry Fee: None
Deadline: May 31, 2025
Prize: First prize of $4,000 CAD to the author, with the publisher receiving $500 CAD
Description: The bpNichol Chapbook Award recognizes excellence in Canadian poetry in English published in chapbook form within Canada. The prize is awarded to a poetry chapbook judged to be the best submitted. Awarded continuously since 1986, the bpNichol Chapbook Award is currently administered by the Meet the Presses collective. Chapbooks should be not less than 10 pages and not more than 48 pages. The chapbooks must have been published between January 1st and December 31st of the previous year (2023), and the poet(s) must be Canadian. Interested authors or publishers should submit three copies of eligible chapbooks. Translations into English from other languages are eligible, as long as the translator is Canadian or a permanent resident of Canada. Chapbooks by two or more poets who are Canadian or permanent residents of Canada are also eligible.
Details: https://meetthepresses.wordpress.com/

 

Bridport Prize International Creative Writing Competition

Genre: Poetry, Short Story, Flash Fiction, Novel
Entry Fee: £10 per poetry submission, £12 per short story submission, £9 per flash fiction submission, and £20 per novel submission
Deadline: May 31, 2025
Prize: Poetry first prize of £5,000; Short story first prize of £5,000; Flash fiction first prize of £1,000; Novel first prize of £1,500
Description: The prize worth writing for! Prestigious writing competition with £20K prize fund in Poetry, Short Story and Flash Fiction (international entries), with a First Novel Award for British writers at home and overseas, and a Young Writer Award for ages 16 to 25.
Details: https://bridportprize.org.uk/

 

CANSCAIP’s Writing for Children Competition 2025

Genre: Picture Book, Chapter Book, Middle Grade, and Young Adult
Entry Fee: Non-members pay $40 CAD for one entry, $60 CAD for two entries, or $90 CAD for three entries; CANSCAIP Friends pay $30 CAD for one entry, $50 CAD for two entries, or $75 CAD for three entries
Deadline: May 31, 2025
Prize: First prize of $500 CAD in each of the four categories; two finalists in each of the four categories; CANSCAIP sends the winners and finalists to Annick Press, Kids Can Press, and Scholastic Canada for their publication consideration
Description: CANSCAIP’s annual Writing for Children Competition is now open for entries by unpublished writers. A unique benefit of entering the Competition is that all entries receive written evaluations. Many writers enter every year, with previously submitted entries or with new stories. The maximum length for an entry is 1,500 words.
Details: https://www.canscaip.org/Writing-for-Children-Competition-2022

 

Flannery O’Connor Short Fiction Award

Genre: Fiction
Entry Fee: $30 USD per entry
Deadline: May 31, 2025
Prize: $1,000 USD and publication by the University of Georgia Press under a standard book contract (winner has ten days to accept the award and ten days to sign the contract once it’s received)
Description: The award recognizes outstanding collections of short fiction. Collections may include long stories or novellas (est. length of a novella is 50-150 pages). However, novels or single novellas will not be considered.
Details: https://georgiapress.submittable.com/submit

 

Indie Author Project 2025 Annual Contest

Genre: Mystery/Thrillers, Romance, SciFi/Fantasy, Historical Fiction, General/Contemporary Fiction, Memoir, Young Adult
Entry Fee: None
Deadline: May 31, 2025
Prize: First prize of $2,500 CAD; runner-up prizes of $250 CAD each
Description: More than a writing competition, the IAP contests are an opportunity for libraries to recognize two growing trends in publishing: digital and indie.
Details: https://indieauthorproject.librariesshare.com/iap

 

James Bartleman Indigenous Youth Creative Writing Awards

Genre: Creative Fiction and Nonfiction (Ages 12 – 18)
Entry Fee: None
Deadline: May 31, 2025
Prize: Up to six prizes of $2,500 CAD each
Description: This award recognizes up to six Indigenous students for their creative writing talent. The three geographic categories are fly-in community, on reserve and off reserve (do not live in a fly-in community or on a reserve). A junior student (12 years old and younger) and a senior student (13 to 18 years old) is chosen from each geographic category. You must submit a creative writing piece that is completely original (a short story, poem, essay, play or song), self-identify as an Indigenous person, attend a school in Ontario and be a resident of Ontario. The awards are presented at a ceremony at Queen’s Park.
Details: https://www.ontario.ca/page/honours-and-awards-arts-and-literature

 

Minds Shine Bright Places Writing Competition

Genre: Flash Fiction, Poetry, Short Story
Entry Fee: $15 AUD for general entry and $5 AUD for students / concession
Deadline: May 31, 2025
Prize: First prize of $1,500 AUD plus publication in Places anthology; category prize of $500 AUD in each of three categories plus publication in Places Anthology; English as a second language prize of $500 AUD plus publication in Places Anthology; commended prize of $100- $200 AUD (depending on length) plus publication in Places Anthology (generally 25-40 commended writers); young writers (15 and under) prize of $50 AUD plus publication in Young Writers’ Places anthology; 10-12 Certificates of recognition and gifts for writing that shines strongly in some way
Description: 5,000 word limit on short stories and 1,000 word limit on flash fiction. Each entry must be original, unpublished fiction written by the submitting author.
Details: https://mindsshinebright.com/writing-competitions/

 

SCWES Book Award for BC Authors 2025

Genre: Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry
Entry Fee: $50 CAD per book, $20 CAD per poetry book under 120 pages or $50 over 120 pages, and $15 for any genre if author is under the age of 18
Deadline: May 31, 2025
Prize: Winners receive one-year membership in SCWES plus other prizes; see website for full prize listings
Description: Established in 2023 to recognize excellence in both British Columbian traditional and self-publishing, the Sunshine Coast Writers and Editors Society Book Awards offers prizes in three genres: fiction, non-fiction and poetry in traditional and independent categories. There will be three finalists in each category, with the winners announced at the Annual Sunshine Coast Art & Words Festival. Each entry receives comments from a judge on their submission, including areas of excellence and areas for improvement. Books must be published between January1, 2022, and May 31, 2024.
Details: https://www.scwes.ca/

 

Vancouver Writers Fest 2025 Youth Writing Contest

Genre: Short Story (B.C. students in grades 5 – 7 and 8 – 12)
Entry Fee: None
Deadline: May 31, 2025
Prize: Elementary category – first prize of $100 CAD, publication in Books & Ideas Newsletter, and social media shout-out; second prize of $50 CAD and publication in Books & Ideas Newsletter / High school category – first prize of $200 CAD, publication in Books & Ideas Newsletter, and social media shout-out; second prize of $100 CAD and publication in Books & Ideas Newsletter
Description: The elementary school youth writing contest is open to all writers in grades 5-7 who are attending a school or being taught in a home-school environment in British Columbia. The high school youth writing contest is open to all writers in grades 8-12 who are attending a school or being taught in a home-school environment in British Columbia. Entries will be accepted for previously unpublished short stories and personal essays with a 1,000 word limit for elementary school student submissions and 1,500 word limit for high-school student submissions.
Details: https://writersfest.bc.ca/youth/youth-writing-contest

 

Montreal Fiction Prize

Genre: Fiction
Entry Fee: $15 CAD
Deadline: Inactive contest in 2025
Prize: First prize of $2,000 CAD and publication in Yolk Magazine’s issue 4.1; second and third prize of $500 CAD and publication in print or digital issue
Description: Judged by:Souvankham Thammavongsa. Yolk welcomes entries to the inaugural Montreal Fiction Prize, a Canadian award for original short stories written in English. The contest is open to all Canadian writers. Seeking original short stories up to 4,000 words on any subject and in any style. The shortlist will be announced the first week of July, and the winners the following week.
Details: https://www.yolkliterary.ca/montreal-fiction-prize

 

Montreal International Poetry Prize

Genre: Poetry
Entry Fee: $20 CAD per first entry submitted by May 1, 2024; $25 CAD per first entry submitted by May 15, 2024; $17 per each additional entry
Deadline: Inactive contest in 2025
Prize: $20,000
Description: The Montreal Prize awards one prize of $20,000 CAD to a poet for a single poem of 40 or fewer lines. A jury of internationally reputed poets and critics selects a shortlist of approximately 60 poems, from which a judge chooses one winner. The shortlist is published in The Montreal Poetry Prize Anthology. The prize is run by the Department of English at McGill University in Montreal, Canada.
Details: https://www.montrealpoetryprize.com/