Details

Details

UK Writing Competitions (currently 82)

Writers’ Forum Short Story Competition.  There is a new contest in each issue of this writers’ mag.  All types of stories are accepted, from horror to romance, with a length of between 1,000 and 3,000 words.
    Closing: Monthly.  Entries arriving too late for one comp go into the next.
    Prizes: £300, £150, £100 in each issue.
    Entry Fee: £6, or £3 for subscribers to the magazine.  Critique - £5 (enclose sae if entering by post).
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Writers’ Forum Poetry Competition.  This monthly contest from the glossy magazine Writers’ Forum is for poems of up to 40 lines.
    Closing: Monthly.  Entries arriving too late for one month go forward to the next.
    Prizes: 1st - £100.  Runners-up - A Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable.
    Entry Fee: £5 each, £3 each thereafter.  Includes a free critique (sae required if entering by post).
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Whidbey Writing Competition .  This contest from Whidbey Writers Workshop in the USA is open worldwide and is for fiction, creative non-fiction, poetry and writing for children or young adults.  Up to 1,000 words.  I should point out that they have a rather strange - and if I may say so lazy - way of selecting a winner for this one.  The judge reads submissions until he or she finds one that ‘knocks his/her socks off’.  Never mind that the next one might have divested the judge of his/her pants and woolly vest, the remaining entries are tossed aside without so much as a glance.  However, you can submit you entry again if it isn’t selected (try to get it in early, as entries are read in order of submission).
    Closing: Monthly.
    Prize: $50.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Books to Improve Your Writing Skills  

Cazart Short Story & Flash Fiction Competition.  Well I’ll be ******.  They allow swearing in this one.  However, I don’t suppose expletives alone will be enough to win.  For the short story category, entries should be between 400 and 3,000 words.  Flash fiction can be up to 400 words.
    Closing: 26th of each month.
    Prize (in each category): A cash amount based on the number of entries received.  The winning stories will be published on the Cazart homepage for two months.
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Comp Page: Click Here .

Flash 500 Humorous Verse Competition.  Any kind of humorous verse up to 30 lines is required for this one.
    Closing: 30.3.12, 30.6.12, 30.9.12, 31.12.12.
    Prizes: £150, £100, £50.
    Entry Fee: £3 for the first, £2.50 thereafter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Five Stop Story Competition.  This is for stories of up to 3,000 words on any subject or theme.
    Closing: End of each month.
    Prizes: Monthly - £50.  Top author in league table at end of year - £150.  Winners and runners-up will be published on the website.  They will also be published as an iPad and iPhone ap, whatever that means.
    Entry Fee: £4 each, £7 for two, £8 for three.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Hi
    Before I discovered your website I’d never even thought of trying my luck in a writing competition. My stories were a very private part of my life, I was (and for the most of the time still am) very convinced that they are not good enough for the ‘outside world’.
     I don’t know what made me try - call it a crazy moment of self-confidence - but here I am the October winner of the Cazart short story competition. I haven’t felt so good about myself in months. It might not seem like a big deal to the world but for me it means everything. And it would not have happened if it wasn’t for your wonderful website.
     Thank You very much.                                         -  Dorota Nocun

Cinnamon Press Poetry Collection Award.  Entries for ths one should comprise 10 poems of up to 40 lines.
    Closing: Bi-annually (end of June and November).
    Prize: £100 and your collection published.
    Entry Fee: £16 per batch of ten (includes a free copy of the winners’ anthology).
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Cinnamon Press Short Story Award .  This is for stories of between 2,000 and 4,000 words.
    Closing: Bi-annually (end of June and November).
    Prize: £100 and publication.
    Entry Fee: £16 (includes a free copy of the winners’ anthology).
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Cinnamon Press Novel/Novella Award .  To enter this you submit the first 10,000 words of your novel or novella.
    Closing: Bi-annually (end of June and November).
    Prize: £400 and your novella published.
    Entry Fee: £16.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

WriteOnSite Writing Competition.  This, they say, could be described as literary open mic.  The competition opens at 5.30pm GMT every Saturday, at which point three themes are given.  You choose your theme, pay your entry fee and then write.  You have just 20 minutes to complete your story.  Three entries are then chosen to be read and judged by all the other entrants during the following week.  Only for the brave.
    Closing: Every Saturday.
    Prize: £40.
    Entry Fee: £3.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Telegraph ‘Just Back’ Travel writing Competition.  If you are just back from somewhere a little more interesting than the local park, the Telegraph Online would like the gripping details in up to 500 words.  You can read previous winners on the website.  A ‘voyage’ across the Mersey is one of them - proving that you don’t have to write about anywhere exotic to scoop the prize.
    Closing: Monthly.
    Prize: £200 in the currency of your choice.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

     Thank you, Michael, for bothering to put your website together. Encouraged by your words I sent off a piece to the Daily Telegraph Travel Writing Competition but didn't win. Third time lucky, and after considerable honing and editing, I have just been informed by the deputy editor that my piece will be published this Saturday (17th July) and I have won £200.
     I am now inspired to go on to bigger things.
     Thanks again.                                                      -  Liz Cleere

Bloomsbury 247tales Competition.  Here is a contest from the publishers of Harry Potter for tales of up to 247 words written by children between the ages of 8 and 16.
    Closing: Monthly.
    Prize: £75 worth of Bloomsbury children’s books, publication on the website and a framed copy of your story.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Hi Michael,
     Just wanted to say thanks for working so hard on your fantastic site. It must take up loads of your time and energy to keep updating it with such enthusiasm and humour! I found it last year, and entered the Global Short Story competition. Although I didn't win, I was shortlisted for the August comp.  I then submitted a short story to the Bridge House Anthology which aimed to raise money for the Born Free Foundation. I remember you saying something like there is no prize money, but it will help your CV if you can say you are published in a book with Richard Adams, author of Watership Down, and a foreword by Virginia McKenna.
     Well guess what - I am! Well, in June anyway. The anthology is a collection of animal stories and is called Gentle Footprints.
     So thanks again, and a plug for charity - all readers of your site are kindly invited to buy a copy!                                             -  Mandy James

The Write Place Novel Competition.  This contest has now been cancelled by the promoters (The Write Place Creative Writing School) following my comments about the alleged value of the prize (publication) and the nature of the publishing firm (Pneuma Springs Publishing) supplying it.  Although the promoters are blaming me for ruining a worthwhile competition, I consider the cancellation to be their acceptance that my comments were spot on.
    Pneuma Springs Publishing offers services which are deemed by the book trade to be vanity publishing.  If anyone is unclear about the meaning and implications of this term, they should read the free Occasional Paper on Vanity Publishing by the Society of Authors: Click Here.

                         The Rules, the T&Cs, the Fine Print
When you submit a story or poem to a competition, you are entering into a contract with the promoter.  Make sure you know the terms.  It may be, for instance, that you are granting the promoter the right to publish your work without payment even if you don’t win.  This is often the price you pay for entering a contest with no entry fee.  If it bothers you, don’t participate.  But before you get sniffy about that 450-word story set in the sedate world of turnip farming, ask yourself this: Would I really be able to sell it to anyone else?  Publication, even without payment, might not be a bad thing if it gets you a healthy crop of readers.  And if it’s in a newspaper or magazine that carries some prestige ... well, there are plenty of struggling writers who would gift wrap and hand over their very souls for the privilege of being able to put that in their cv.  Only you can decide if it’s worth it.

Dear Michael
   I discovered your excellent site a few months back and entered some of the poetry competitions. I have in all my long years never received a payment for anything I have written, but I today received an email from Cooldog Publications to say I have won second prize in their E-mag Poetry Competition! £50! What a great way to start the new year.
   I just had to write and say thanks to you for the trouble you have taken with your site and how much I appreciate the sense of humour that underpins it.
  This has given me a terrific boost.                             -  Carol Browne

Words Magazine Short Story Competitions.  Words Magazine seems to have been around for a long time and for most of that time it’s been running competitions. They close on various dates.  They usually have different themes, but the ones announced for this year have no themes.
    Closing: 30.6.12, 31.12.12.
    Prizes: The winner in each contest takes all the money raised from the entry fees.
    Entry Fee: £3.
    Website: Click Here .

How-To Writing Competition.  This one from How To Books Ltd is for easy-to-read instructional articles.  Ideally these should be between 350 and 500 words.  Longer works will be accepted if the extra length is justified, but you should restrain any tendency to repeat yourself, state the blindingly obvious, go off at tangents and generally get on everyone’s tits.
    Closing: Monthly.
    Prize: £50 or £100.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Dear Michael,
     I love your website and its pertinent personal comments re the comps.
     I entered the Alexander Cordell one some months ago, the mini saga, and was short-listed to win. It was a 600 mile round trip with two toddlers but we had a really wonderful weekend. My husband is self employed and works really long hours so it was great to drag him away and out into the countryside. The people were lovely, the whole event was fascinating, and I was thrilled to get two books and a book token. My little girl age 3 gets excited every time Wales is mentioned on the news now! The greatest thrill was hearing the Director of Visit Wales read out my story so reverently, and with evident enjoyment. The organisers were delighted with the world-wide entries.  I don’t write for money - just as well - but for the love of the medium and the message.
     Keep up the good work!                                         -  Julie Noble

Strictly Shakespeare Writing Competition.  Strictly speaking you don’t have to be Shakespeare to enter this one.  Nor do you have to write like Shakespeare.  In fact, as far as I can make out, you don’t even have to have read Shakespeare.  It’s got nothing to do with Shakespeare really, although of course Shakespeare did write things.  The contest requires you to write something (prose or poetry) in response to prompts posted on the News page on the first of each month,  You will have 14 days to submit your entry, which will then be displayed on the website, whereupon visitors will decide the winners.
    Closing: 14th of each month.
    Prizes (3): A share of the entry fees.
    Entry Fee: £1.
    Comp Page: Click Here

Hi there,
     I just want to say a BIG thank you from South Africa for your incredible website. It is so informative and detailed -- and this morning (on Christmas!) I just discovered that I’ve won First Prize for the Mona Schreiber competition - the details of which I found on your BRILLIANT website!  $500!  Thank you again!!
     Sincerely,  Sharon Rina de Villiers

Camp Trip Writing Contest.  This recurring US contest is for camping related articles (minimum 200 words) in which you share your tips, tricks, advice, infomative experience, etc.  Note that your entry may appear on the website, so leave out the illegal stuff (such as what you were smoking round the campfire).
    Closing: When they’ve received 100 entries - so you’d better be quick.  See website for latest count.
    Prizes: $100, $75, $25 - all in Visa Gift Cards.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Flash 500 Competition.  This quarterly flash fiction contest, which offers higher prize money than many similar competitions, is for stories of up to 500 words on any theme.
    Closing: 31.3.12, 30.6.12, 30.9.12, 31.12.12.
    Prizes: 1st - £300 and publication in Words With Jam.  2nd - £100.  3rd - £50.  Highly Commended - A copy of The Writer’s ABC Checklist.
    Entry Fee: £5 each, £8 for two.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Dear Michael,
     I just wanted to tell you that I won first prize in the Charnwood Arts' miniWords Poetry Competition (£250), so thank you very much for that!
                                                                               -  Mary Whitsell
Hello Michael
     I've just won the Telegraph's 'Just Back' Travel Writing Competition, which I heard about on your site. Thank you yet again for providing this service to writers.
     It's a good thing I don't have to tell you about all the competitions I entered but didn't win, isn't it?  But all the rejections only make the wins that much sweeter!
                                                                                                  -   Mary Whitsell

Words With Jam Short Story Competition.  This one from the free e-zine Words With Jam is for stories of up to 2,500 words on any subject including preserves.  The judge is author Douglas Jackson.
    Closing: 27.1.12.
    Prizes: £500, £100, £50.  Winning entries will be published in the e-zine.
    Entry Fee: £6 each, £10 for two.
    Comp Page: Click Here .

Million Stories Project Competition.  Relax - you don’t have to write a million stories for this one.  Four will do.  In fact, you could get away with one, although you then have fewer chances of winning a quarterly prize.  For each of the four quarterly rounds you are invited to devise a ‘wicked creative life story’ of between 400 and 1,000 words based on your own life.  You then have to drum up support from your friends because the winner each quarter will be decided on the basis of online reader votes.  At the end of the four rounds, voting opens again and the story that gains the most votes wins the grand prize.
    Closing (Part One): 28.1.12 (5pm).
    Prizes: 1st - A week’s writing holiday in Spain.  There are four other prizes of writing coaching packages for the best quarterly entries.  The top 75 stories will be published in an anthology called the Million Stories Project.  Don’t ask me where the Million comes in.
    Entry Fee: £6 for each of the four rounds.  This includes a free online journaling course.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Hi Michael,
     Having found your website my first ever entry in a writing compeition was the one run for a modern fairy story by the East Lancs Art Centre. I've just heard that my story is short-listed and on display and I've been invited to the awards evening. Gosh. Don't suppose it'll be like the BAFTA's (much) but I'll have my fixed grin ready for when somebody else walks off with the wonga. To be honest, just having got to this stage is enough, and I'll now be entering some more writing comps. Funny how even small victories can encourage, isn't it?  Anyhow, thanks to you for a brilliant site. Perhaps I should mention it in my acceptance speech..well I can dream!                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                               -   Rod Bull

Twisted Americana Short Story Competition.  This one from PJM Publishing, ‘an independent micro press, invites you to take a trip to the dark side and unleash your bad self.  If you think this is wise, you should unleash your bad self Stateside and write a story of any length above 1,500 words.  Entries will be subject to peer review on the website, although the final winners will be selected by a panel of judges.
    Closing: 28.1.12.
    Prizes: Publication in a paperback collection.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Bats Blood Poetry Competition.  For those of you who are now picturing poor little flying mammals with blood oozing from ghastly wounds, I’d better mention that the Bats Blood we are talking about here is a wine from Transylvania.  The contest task you have to get your fangs into involves the creation of a four- or five-line stanza of poetry depicting the gothic charm of Bats Blood Merlot in four of the lines.  The poem must be original and unpublished.  Set it in single spacing and include your full name, postal and email address, and daytime telephone number.
    Closing: 30.1.12.
    Prizes: 1st - Your poem and name printed on the label of a bottling run of Bats Blood Merlot.  The poem will also appear in the Bats Blood yearbook, and you will receive a case of Bats Blood.   2nd - A case of Bats Blood and your poem printed in the yearbook.  3rd - A bottle of Bats Blood and your poem in the yearbook.  4th - A bloodless bat.  Late news: the 4th prize has now been withdrawn due concerns about bad taste (bloodless bats don’t taste very good).
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Entries to: info@batsblood.com
    Comp Page (no comp info - just some of the entries): Click Here.

Fish Publishing Memoir Competition.  This one from Ireland is for short memoirs running to no more than 4,000 words.
    Closing: 30.1.12.
    Prize: 2,000 euros, of which 1,000 is for travel expenses to the launch of the anthology (so if you already live in Ireland, you can travel in style).
    Entry Fee: .
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Author Essentials Winter Short Story Competition.  This one from Author Essentials, a marketing and promotional services firm from East Sussex, is for stories of up to 2,500 words on any subject.
    Closing: 31.1.12.
    Prizes: £100, £50, £25.
    Entry Fee: £3.50.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Reader’s Digest 100 Word Story Competition.  This recurring contest from Reader’s Digest is for stories of exactly 100 words.  There are three age categories: one for adults and two for schools (Under 12, and 12 to 18).  You can read a selection of 100-word stories by well-known authors on the competition page.
    Closing: 31.1.12.
    Prizes: 1st - Adults: £1,000.  Runners-up (2) - £100 in book tokens.  Schools (in each category): £500 in high street vouchers for the winner, and £500 for the school.  Winners will be published in the mag.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Young Human Rights Reporter Competition.  This one from Amnesty International, in partnership with the Guardian Teacher Network (and others), aims ‘to encourage young people to become human rights reporters, to investigate what’s going on in the world and bring human rights abuses to light.’  These young people can be as young as Upper Primary age (year 3 to 6 in England).  I can remember when I was that age and keen to be an investigative reporter.  ‘I think I’ll go to China tomorrow,’ I announced one morning.  To which my mother replied shrewdly, ‘Okay, but you can’t take the TV.’  That was pretty much the end of my writng career for the next six years.  Anyway, to enter this contest, you write a report/article on the theme of Human Rights.  Younger entrants (Upper Primary, Lower Secondary) are limited to 200-250 words, but older ones (Upper Secondary, Sixth Form) can write up to 500 words.  See T&Cs for more detail.
    Closing: 31.1.12.
    Prizes: Alas, it seems the prizes amount to just the satisfaction of being a winner.  Not even a box of Smarties for the poor kids.  The top three entrants will be invited to attend an awards ceremony at the Guardian and Amnesty International.  They will be able to bring a friend and a parent.  It seems bringing a teacher is obligatory.  They’ll probably have to bring their own sandwiches as well.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Hi Michael,
     Thanks for a very useful website. Since finding the contact details on your site, I've won the Txtlit competition twice, and the Write Invite competition four times. With the prize money I'm now entering other competitions. Thanks for keeping us writers posted!
     Best regards, Uta Coutts

Swale Life Poetry Competition.  This one from the magazine Swale Life is for poems of up to 40 lines.  One third of the entry fees go to the charity Diversity House (publishers of the mag).  And as it happens, diversity is the name of the game, for poems are invited on any subject and in any style.
    Closing: 31.1.12.
    Prizes: £100, £50, £30 plus 2 @ £10.
    Entry Fee: £3 each, £12 for five.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

NCLA International Student Short Story Competition.  This one from the Newcastle Centre for the Literary Arts is for international students (including EU) studying at a UK university or recently graduated from one (within the past two years).  Entrants should write about any aspect of their experience of living and studying abroad, ‘such as the challenges of adapting to life in a different climate and culture’.  Can’t say I found living abroad much of a challenge in my teens.  Once I’d located the baked beans in the supermarket, I was home and dry.  Stories must not exceed 4,000 words.
    Closing: 31.1.12.
    Prizes: £1,000, £500, £200.
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

The James White Award.  This is for science fiction stories of under 6,000 words written by non-professional writers.  ‘Professional’ and ‘science fiction’ are defined on the website - which also contains a list of science fiction cliches you would be wise to avoid (e.g. robots that turn on their creators ... so no politicians).
    Closing: 31.1.12.
    Prize: £200.  The winning story will be published in the science fiction magazine Interzone.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Flarestack Poets Pamphlet Competition.  For this you submit a collection of up to 25 poems.  Poems can be any length.
    Closing: 31.1.12.
    Prizes: Two winners will receive £300 each and have their collections published by Flarestack Poets in 2012.  The winners will each receive 20 copies of their pamphlet and will  be invited to read their work at the Flarestack Poets’ launch event in Birmingham.  In addition an anthology containing the best individual poems will also be published.  Contributors will receive a free copy and an invitation to read at the Launch event.
    Entry Fee: £20 per collection.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Hippocrates Prize.  This annual contest is for poems of up to 50 lines on a medical subject.  ‘Medical,’ they say, ‘is to be interpreted in the widest sense.’  They go on to elaborate (on the About the Competition page, on which you will also find a link to the rules) but it’s all rather boring so I won’t repeat it here.  However, I must just mention the reference to ‘the patient journey’.  It seems you can write about the bus ride to the doctor’s surgery: ‘I caught the 28b with my ailing knee./The bus was freezing, the passengers sneezing./The doc fixed my knee, it’s true,/But the journey gave me the flu.’
    Closing: 31.1.12.
    Prizes: 1st - £5,000.   2nd - £1,000.  3rd - £500.   Runners-up (20) - £50.
    Entry Fee: £6.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Author Essentials Winter Short Story Competition.  This one is for stories with a winter theme running to no more than 2,500 words.
    Closing: 31.1.12.
    Prizes: £100, £50, £25.  The top 25 entries will be published in an anthology.
    Entry Fee: £3.50.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

The Sitcom Mission 2012.  Funnily enough, this contest is for sitcom scripts that do not feature children, pets, coffins, beds or Robin Hood’s Merry Men - the very things my entry would have contained had I not just put the outline through the shredder and fed it to Arkwright, my pet goat.  Why didn’t I read the Guidelines before starting to write?  Don’t make the same mistake, as there are numerous stipulations, including the fact that your script must have a running time of only fifteen minutes.
    Closing: 31.1.12.
    Prize: A 30-minute script commission from Hat Trick Productions, with a £5,000 fee.
    Entry Fee: £10 up to midnight on Jan 25, then £15.  This is refunded if you make it through to the knockout stages.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

DAWS One Act Play Competition.  This one from the Drama Association of Wales is for one act plays in English or Welsh with a performance time of between 20 and 50 minutes and a minimum cast of two.  There are three categories: Open, Best Play for a Youth Cast (16 -25), and Best Play in Welsh.  The best play from a playwright based in Wales will be awared a bursary for Ty-Newydd (the National Writer’s Centre for Wales).
    Closing: 31.1.12.
    Prizes: In each of three categories - £250. The winning plays will be published.
    Entry Fee: £15.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Kent & Sussex Poetry Society Poetry Competition.  This annual contest is for poems of up to 40 lines.  I list it every year and, as usual, I can’t think of anything of interest to add.  The Society is, according to the website, a local group with a national reputation.  That’s an impeccable reputation, no doubt - which is all very well, but it doesn’t give me anything to work on.  I need eccentricity, scandal, cross-dressing, seething jealousy and back-biting.  Ah well, perhaps next year ...
    Closing: 31.1.12.
    Prizes: £800, £300, £150, 4x£75.  Winners will be published in the Society’s Poetry Folio in July.
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Comp Page: Click Here .

Chapter One Promotions International Short Story Competition.
     The listing for this contest has been suspended pending a satisfactory response from the promoters to my representations regarding a complaint about non-payment of prize money.

TXTLit Micro Story Competition.  For this contest you need a mobile phone.  Well, everyone’s got one, haven’t they?  No.  There’s still one person in the UK who hasn’t.  Me.  I don’t like phones of any sort.  I have one that plugs into the wall but I never answer it when it rings.  I think: ‘They’ll ring again if it’s important.’  They seldom do, and if they do I never answer it and they never ring again - which proves they were just time-wasters.  Now, I may seem to be rambling a bit here, but hey, what do you know, this turns out to be relevant because you mustn’t ramble in this competition.  Limit your stories to 154 characters (letters and spaces, not people), and while you’re about it, refrain from using abbreviated TXT gibberish, as this is not welcome.  At last - someone is fighting back on behalf of the English language!  There is a different theme each month.
    Closing: 31.1.12.
    Prize: £50.
    Entry Fee: £1 plus the normal cost of sending a text message (no use asking me what that is).
    Website: Click Here.

Hi Michael
     Just another Thank You. I have just had notification that my story got selected for the anthology following The Sheriff’s Prize for Literature competition. I went along to the awards night and had fun watching Tony Robinson reading out some of the best entries. To be asked to put my story into the anthology was the icing on the cake!
     Thanks again for the great site.
                                                                                      - Pat Davies

Jim Baen Memorial Writing Contest.  This sci-fi contest from America is for stories that show the near future of manned space exploration (in a positive light).  By ‘near future’ they mean 50 to 60 years from now.  Do not boldly go beyond 8,000 words.
    Closing: 1.2.12.
    Prizes: 1st - Publication as the feature story on the Baen Books website at the normal professional rate, and a specially designed award.  You also get free entry into the International Space Development Conference in Washington, USA (but not, alas, travel costs).  In addition there is a year’s membership for the National Space Society (in America) and, finally, various Baen Books and space merchandise.  2nd & 3rd - A year’s NSS membership plus books and space merchandise.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

The Daily Satire Short Story Competition.  Here’s another one from the USA.  It is for humorous or satirical stories about celebrity culture or an individual celebrity.
    Closing: 1.2.12.
    Prizes: $50, £25, $20.  Winners received in addition a free copy of the competition anthology.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

    Many thanks for your entertaining and helpful website!  Last year it led me
    to win the Wyvern Prize in the Wells Fest of Lit competition.  This was
    particularly good news because it came on the day I got home from 7
    weeks in hospital.
        Can you please list our competition, which we’ve organised to raise a
    contribution to much-needed funding for a much needed charity down ’ere
    in Zummerzet.                                            -  Dennis Harkness

Home-Start Bridgewater Short Story Prize 2012.  This contest in aid of Home-Start, a charity which gives friendship and support to parents with young children in the Bridgewater area, is for stories of up to 2,200 words on any theme.  Award-winning novelist Patricia Ferguson is judging.  Winners will be announced at a ceremony at Bridgewater Arts Centre on March 24.
    Closing: 1.2.12.
    Prizes: £500, £200, £100. The prize money has been donated by sponsors, so all of the entry fees will go to the charity.
    Entry Fee: £7.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Hi Michael
     Well, you told me to let you know if I won anything, and who'd imagine I'd be writing so soon? I started sending to writing contests last month, fully expecting everything to fail dismally (bit of a pessimist that way). And this week I found out I have won the Biscuit Flash Fiction comp for 2009! To be honest, I had never even heard of flash fiction till I looked at your site. I sent a weird little thing I wrote in 1995 and it came first! That means publication and a 1000 prize! So a big lovely thankyou to you and your site for pointing me in the right direction.                                                     -  Cheryl Latter

Fable’s Fortune Short Story Competition.  Here’s another one from author and writing tutor Sue Johnson.  It is for stories of up to 1,000 words on the theme of Forbidden Fruit.  Entries are by post only and should be double-spaced.  Put your name and contact details on a separate sheet.
    Closing: 2.2.12.
    Prizes: £100, £50, £25.
    Entry Fee: £5 (cheques payable to S Johnson).  25% of profits will go to Macmillan Cancer Support.
    Entry Address: S. Johnson, 10 Woodward Close, Pershore, Worcs, WR10 1LP.
    Website: Click Here (comp details on Blog pages).

Accenti Writing Competition.  Accenti, ‘a Canadian magazine with an Italian accent’, is looking for prose works in English, running to no more than 2,000 words.  Your entry can be fiction, non-fiction or creative non-fiction.  It can, they say, be an English translation of something you have written in another language.  So if you happen to have written a story in Italian, you will have to translate it into English for this magazine with an Italian accent.  Iza very amusing.
    Closing: 7.2.12.
    Prizes : $1,000, $250, $100.  The dollars are Canadian.
    Entry Fee: $20.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Myriad Editions Writers’ Retreat Competition.  For this one from Myriad Editions and West Dean College you submit up to 5,000 words plus a one-page synopsis of a work in progress.  This could be a novel, a short story collection or a script - but not the disjointed and interminable ramblings from your diary (save those for your blog).
    Closing: 10.2.12.
    Prize: A one-week writing retreat at West Dean College near Chichester, with full board.
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Lumen/Camden Poetry Competition 2012.  This charity contest from Ward Wood Publishing is for poems of up to 40 lines.  Poet Lauriate Carol-Ann Duffy will be judging.
    Closing: 14.2.12.
    Prize: Your poetry published in a short, 20-page collection, with 50 free copies.
    Entry Fee: £2.50 each, £10 for six.  All proceeds go to two London Homeless Cold Weather Shelters.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Hello Michael
     Thanks to your wonderful website I entered two short stories for the recent 'Writefrance' competition which (to my great surprise) I won!  £100 prize money and publication in a collection of winners’ stories in the new year.  Furthermore my second story was also chosen for a publication prize.  What a boost!  I'm now scribbling away and trawling through the other competitions in the hopes of repeating my success!
     Many Thanks
                                                                       -  Kerry Chiron. France

Writers’ & Artists’ Yearbook Short Story Competition.  This freebee from Bloomsbury’s venerable yearbook is for stories of up to 2,000 words on the theme of Identity.  They did a good job of hiding the contest details on the W&A website this year, but I found them anyway.
    Closing: 14.2.12.
    Prize: £500 plus a place on an Arvon writing course of your choice (includes full board but not travel costs).  The winning story will be published on the website.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

BBC International Short Story Award 2012.  Usually a national affair, this annual contest from the BBC and Booktrust is this year thrown open to anyone in the world, in celebration of the Olympics.  Entrants, however, must have a prior record of publication in the UK (not online or self-published).  Entries should be limited to 8,000 words and must either be unpublished or published after 1.3.11.
    Closing: 27.2.12 (5pm GMT).
    Prizes: £15,000, £2,500, 8x £250.  The ten shortlisted stories will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4.
    Entry Fee : None - free to enter (only one entry per person).
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Grace Dieu Writers’ Circle Poetry Competition.  This annual contest is for poems of up to 40 lines.  As the entry form (accessed from the competition page) doesn’t give the entry address, I’d better mention that all is revealed on the General Rules page.  Most of you will check all the rules automatically, I know, but believe it or not there are some misguided scribes who never do.  This is why you will sometimes see a chap in a frock collecting a prize at an awards ceremony after finding out from the congrats letter that the contest is for women only.  Others may be disqualified for stapling their manuscripts or not using the right sort of envelope.  Now and again these booby traps do turn up in the fine print, and I don’t always have time to seek them out when listing the contest.
    Closing : 28.2.12.
    Prizes: £500, £200, £100, £75, £50.
    Entry Fee: £4 each, £12 for four.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Hi Michael,
     I know that plenty of other writers have said this, but a big thank you for compiling your competition listings. I rely on your website for finding out about upcoming contests. It gives me all the information I am after as well as making me laugh. I found out about the Trowell competition through you and came second this year, after winning in 2009. I have forwarded your link to many other writer friends. Keep up the good work.
                                                   -  Andrew Campbell-Kearsey (Brighton)

Grace Dieu Writers’ Circle Short Story Competition.  The requirement here is for stories of up to 2,000 words on any subject.  If you can’t find the entry address on the website, see the Grace Dieu Poetry Competition listing above.
    Closing: 28.2.12.
    Prizes: £500, £200, £100, £75, £50.
    Entry Fee: £5 for the first, £3 thereafter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Thynks Publications Poetry Pamphlet Competition.  This is for collections of up to 25 pages (max 40 lines per page) on the theme of Memories.
    Closing: 29.2.12.
    Prizes: 1st - Publication of the winning collection plus £25.  2nd & 3rd - £25.  A selected poem from each of the winning submissions will be published in the Bards of Blidworth 2012 Anthology.
    Entry Fee: £10.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Anniversary Gifts by Year Poetry Competition. This annual contest is for happy anniversary poems.  Entries will be published on the website so that visitors can vote for their favourites.  The poems with the most votes win the prizes.
    Closing: 29.2.12.
    Prizes: $100, $50, $50.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Prole Laureate Poetry Competition.  This one from Prole, a print magazine that publishes high quality prose and poetry, is open worldwide and is for poems in any form and on any subject (also any length).
    Closing: 1.3.12.
    Prizes : 1st - £130.  Runners-up (2) - £25.
    Entry Fee: £3 each, £5 for two, £7 for three.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Hi Michael
     Just to say thanks to your website. I have won, not one, but two prizes! Having never entered a travel writing competition in my life before, I entered the Justback competition with the Telegraph, and won after a few attempts - working out what the travel editors liked.  I then came second in the British Guild of Travel Writers competition. Great site - keep up the good work.
                                                                                      -  Helen Moat

Cardiff International Poetry Competition.  A poem of up to 50 lines could earn you some useful spending money in this annual event, but they do get rather a lot of entries, so don’t book that celebratory cruise just yet.  For those of you who care about such things, the contest carries a certain amount of prestige in the snooty world of poetry.  Judges this year are Sinead Morrissey and Patrick McGuinness, with Samantha Wynne-Rhydderch doing the filtering.
    Closing: 2.3.12.
    Prizes: 1st - £5,000.  2nd - £500.  3rd - £250.  Runners-up - 5 x £50.  A selection of winning poems will be published in New Welsh Review.
    Entry Fee: £6.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Twisted Stringybark Short Story Award.  This one from Oz is for stories of up to 1,500 words with a twist in the tail and some link to Australia.  Don’t know anything about the land of the wombat?  No worries, mate, for the link, they say, can be tenuous.  If I understand that correctly it seems all you need is to have your protagonist drinking a can of Fosters or doing an impromptu impression of Rolf Harris as he hacks his way through the Amazon jungle (the hero, not Rolf) or goes about some other unrelated task.
    Closing: 4.3.12.
    Prizes: 1st - A$300, a certificate, publication electronically or in hardcopy, and a copy of the book.  2nd - A$125, a certificate, publication and a copy of the book.  3rd - A$50, a certificate, publication and a copy of the book.
    Entry Fee: A$9.75 each, A$18 for two, A$25 for three.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Limnisa/Bluethumbnail Short Story Competition.  Limnisa, a creative writing centre on the idyllic Greek Island of Methana, seems like a great place to get your creative juices flowing - and you could be there if you win this contest, although you will have to stump up for the travel costs unless you use your thumb (with or without a blue thumbnail).  The competition, which is open worldwide, is for stories of up to 3,000 words an any theme.
    Closing: 15.3.12.
    Prizes: 1st - A week’s writing retreat at Limnisa in Greece, with full board.  2nd and 3rd - 50% discount on the writing retreat (alternatively you a have an online session of personal turtoring or feedback on written work).  Runners-up - 20% discount for writer’s retreat.
    Entry Fee: £6.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Writefrance Competition .  This has two categories: 1) Fiction with a French theme, and 2) Writing about writing or writers (fact or fiction).  In both cases the length should be between 1,000 and 7,500 words.  You must also submit a short piece of between 50 and 250 words on any subject.
    Closing: 15.3.12.
    Prizes: 2 x £175.  A book will be published featuring the winning entries.  All ‘intellectually honest’ pieces will be published, reviewed or mentioned with the author’s consent.  I regret that I am unable to give you any guidance on the meaning of ‘intellectually honest’.
    Entry Fee: £7.99 for an unlimited number of entries by the same author.  This also includes free entry into the summer competition.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

CheerReader Humorous Short Story Competition .  This one from the cheery writers’ group based in Portugal is for comical/witty stories on any theme.  Be as funny as you like, but if your tale exceeds the word limit of 1,500 the judge will not be amused.
    Closing: 15.3.12.
    Prize: 100 euros.
    Entry Fee: 5 euros.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Dear Michael
     Just to say a big ‘Thank You’ for your work on the website. I have been selected for publication in the Mirador competition which ran last year and have been awarded 3rd place in the Stringybark Speculative Fiction competition. To be published twice is like a dream for me, which the information found on your site made possible. Thanks again.
                                                                                    -   Pat Davies

Fish Flash Fiction Competition.  This one from Fish Publishing in Ireland is for flash fiction running to no more than 300 words on any theme.
    Closing: 20.3.12.
    Prizes: 1st - 1,000 euros plus publication in the Fish Anthology.  Runners-up will be published in the Anthology and will receive five free copies.
    Entry Fee: Online - 14 euros.  Postal - 16 euros.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Fish International Poetry Competition.  This annual contest from Irish publisher Fish is for poems of up to 200 words on any theme and in any style.
    Closing: 30.3.12.
    Prizes: 1st - 1,000 euros.  2nd - A week at the Anam Cara Writers’ & Artists’ Retreat in West Cork, Ireland, with 300 euros travelling expenses.  The best ten poems will be publishing in an anthology and the writers will receive five complementary copies.
    Entry Fee: Online - 14 euros.  Postal - 16 euros.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Inspired by Nature Writing Challenge.  This one from the quarterly magazine Natur Cymru (Nature of Wales, if in common with 99.99% of the population you don’t speak the lingo) is for a an article of between 950 and 1,050 words on a subject of wildlife or environmental interest in Wales.  Your article should be written for an audience that is not necessarily expert in these matters.
    Closing: 31.3.12.
    Prizes: 1st - £500.  2nd - A £500 place on the nature writing course at Ty Newydd, the National Writers’ Centre.   3rd -  An overnight trip for two to Skona Island.  4th - A two-hour boat trip for two, assisting the Cardigan Bay Marine Wildlife Centre.  5th - A 2-course meal for two at the Glasshouse Cafe in the Welsh Wildlife Centre Cilgerran.
    Entry Fee: No entry fee as such, but you have to be a subscriber to the mag.  Current issue £4; annually £16 (4 issues).
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Bristol Short Story Prize .  This annual contest from Bristol is for stories of up to 3,000 words on any subject.  I went to Bristol on a treasure hunt once in search of a whalebone associated with explorer John Cabot who was based there in the late 1400s.  The whale bone wasn’t the prize.  It was a clue, or rather it would have been if I hadn’t misinterpreted earlier clues and gone hopelessly wrong (the irrelevant Cabot whalebone was in the western entrance to St Mary Redcliffe church, a fact I’m confident you will one day find useful). You’ve probably twigged by now that this is in no way relevant to the competition.  It’s just that I can’t think of anything else to say about Bristol.
    Closing: 31.3.12.
    Prizes: 1st - £1,000 plus £150 Waterstone’s gift card.  2nd - £700 plus £100 gift card.  3rd - £400 plus £100 gift card.  The remaining 17 entries from the shortlist will be awarded £100 each.  All 20 shortlisted entries will be published in the anthology.  The winning story will also be published in Bristol Review of Books and Venue magazine.  Winners will be announced at an awards ceremony to which all shortlistees will be invited.  This event doesn’t take place until July, so you will have plenty of time to write your acceptance speech or, if not so confident, rehearse your sporting loser’s smile (the sort of ghastly rictus you might deploy were you to spill some scalding soup in your lap at a dinner party and not want anyone to know).
    Entry Fee: £7.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Short Story Radio Competition .  This one from online radio station Short Story Radio is for tales of between 1,500 and 2,000 words suitable for broadcasing online.
    Closing: 31.3.12.
    Prize: Your story professionally produced and recorded, then broadcast online.  Your also get an ‘author promotional podcast’.  I’m not sure what this is.  Sounds like a peapod-shaped plaster cast you wear on your arm and decorate with advertising slogans about your work.
    Entry Fee: £3 to 31.12.11, then £4.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Meridian Spring Short Story Competition.  This one from Meridian Writing is for stories of up to 3,000 words on the subject of springs.  Boing!  I’m joking.  There is no set subject.  With one bound you are free to write what you please.
    Closing: 31.3.12.
    Prizes: £100, £50, £25.
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

                                  One less Pedestrian ...
Hi
     Just to let you know rather belatedly that I entered a number of prose competitions last year – all from your web site and had great fun trying a varied menu of different word lengths and genres. I won $500 in an essay writing competition in the Pedestrian magazine - entering despite your scathing comments. I got the money and bought a lovely new bike. The magazine then went bust so my entry wasn’t published - so yet to see my name in print but I have the bike so hey ho.
                                                                                                       -  Rosemary Barry

Thynks Publications Stories for Children Competition.  This one is for stories of up to 5,000 words aimed at children aged between 7 and 11.
    Closing: 31.3.12.
    Prizes: £100, £50, £25.  Winners will be published on the website.  The promoter reserves the right to publish any entry in various forms.
    Entry Fee: £5.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Yellow Room Spring Short Story Competition.  The Yellow Room is a place ‘where women writers can gather together for support, encouragement and friendship.’  Not physically gather, you understand: it’s a website.  So the gathering is a sort of virtual coffee morning.  As with real coffee mornings, men are not welcome.  We are not sensitive enough.  Well, I got in touch with my feminine side once but I found I couldn’t park my car.  Sorry.  That was inappropriate. The contest is for stories in any genre, running to fewer than 2,500 words.
    Closing: 31.3.12.
    Prizes: £80, £45, £20. 
    Entry Fee : £4 each, £10 for three.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Firstwriter Short Story Competition.  Stories of up to 3,000 words for this one, any style or subject.
    Closing: 1.4.12.
    Prize: £200.  Plus ten special commendations.  All winners will be published in firstwriter.magazine and receive a subscription voucher to the site.
    Entry Fee: £6.50.  Discounts for 2+.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Onward Writing Competition.  This annual contest in support of Theatre Royal Onward, (a registered charity concerned with the restoration and running of an Edwardian theatre in Hyde, Cheshire), is for stories of up to 1,200 words and poems of up to 40 lines.  It is open to anyone aged 16 or over.
    Closing: 1.4.12.
    Prizes: £50, £30, £20.  Winners will be published in an anthology.
    Entry Fee: £3 each, £5 for two, £9 for four.
    Comp Page: Click Here .

Hi Michael
     I spent a year or so reading all those comments on your website from people who, since consulting your list, seem have won just about every competition going. I read it and thought it must be too good to be true – but worth a try. Then, on my third submission, I have actually gone and won the Yeovil Literary Prize for Poetry. I am absolutely over the moon, unable to believe it, etc.  Thank you so much.
                                                                                   -   Andy Miller

Buxton Poetry Competition.  This annual contest from the High Peaks, presented by Buxton Festival and the University of Derby, is for poems of up to 40 lines on the subject of ‘Welcome to Britain’.  I think you are meant to take a positive stance on this rather than an ironic one, as it’s intended to celebrate the Olympics and the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.  One of the patrons is ex-Poet Laureate Sir Andrew Motion who used to judge these things before he got his knighthood.  Now, presumably, he is too busy waving at the cheering crowds as he glides by in his cheuffeur driven Rolls.
    Closing: 6.4.12.
    Prizes: Open Category (19 and over) - £300, £200, £100.  Young People (12 - 18) and Children’s categories - book tokens.  The 15 finalists will be invited to an Awards Event at the Devonshire Dome during Buxton Festival 2012.  Their entries will be displayed at the Dome throughout the Festival (7 - 25 July 2012).
    Entry Fee: Open Category (19 and over) - £5.  Young People and Children - free.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Fylde Brighter Writers Circle Short Story & Poetry Competition.  I spent a couple of years of my childhood living on the Fylde coast, so I can tell you with confidence that this contest comes from Lankisheer.  It is for stories of up to 2,500 words and poems of up to 60 lines.  In the previous contest two years ago they invited poems of any length.  They are probably still ploughing through some of them.
    Closing: 28.4.12.
    Prizes: Stories - £200 plus trophy, £50, 3 x £25.  Poetry - £100 plus trophy, £50, 2 x £25. Winners will be published in an anthology.
    Entry Fees: Stories - £5 each, £10 for three.  Poems - £3 each, £5 for three.
    Comp Page: Click Here .

Poetic Republic Poetry Prize.  This contest, which is supported by Arts Council England, is for poetry (or ‘prose poetry’) of up to 42 lines on any subject.  Entrants are required to judge the competition themselves, as detailed on the website.  Unfortunately you don’t get to judge your own entry.  No, hang on, maybe you do.  It says that in the third round everyone reads the 12 shortlisted poems, so it seems that if you are on the shortlist, you assess your own poem along with the other eleven.  Will twelve poems tie for first place?  We’ll have to see.
    Closing: 30.4.12.
    Prizes: Single Poem - £2,000.  Portfolio (two entries) - £1,000.  The best work from the contest will be published in an ebook.
    Entry Fee: £7 per poem.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Momaya Short Story Competition.  Entries of up to 3,000 words on the theme of Heat will be accepted for this annual international contest from Momaya Press.
    Closing: 30.4.12.
    Prizes: £110, £55, £30.  Winners will be published in the Momaya Annual Review 2012.
    Entry Fee: £8.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Southport Writers’ Circle International Poetry Competition.  I used to live just up the road from Southport.  It was a cultural void back then, often referred to as the poor man’s Blackpool.  But not any more.  These days, in addition to its renowned flower show (‘a horticultural hotbed’) it has a writers’ circle and an international poetry contest.  Some are now calling Blackpool the poor man’s Southport, although admittedly not many.  The contest requires poems of up to 40 lines.  Alison Chisholm will be judging.
    Closing: 30.4.12..
    Prizes: £200, £100, £50.  Humour Prize - £25.  Local Prize - £25.
    Entry Fee: £3 each, £10 for four.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Dear Michael Shenton,
     I would just like to say ‘thanks’.  I entered a writing competition that I saw on your website. I didn’t win but still thought the story was OK. I re-wrote it and submitted it to The Lady. It was published! This was the first story that I have had published and I was very happy. Also ecstatic, giggly, smug, cheerful, optimistic and generally jolly pleased with myself. I would not have written that particular story if it had not been for your entertaining, helpful and inspirational website.                         
                                                                                     -  Patsy Collins.

Thynks Publications International Open Poetry Competition.  For this one it seems there is no limit on length other than the one imposed by a need not to bore the nether garments off the judges.
    Closing: 30.4.12.
    Prizes: £100, £50, £25.  Winners will be published on the website.
    Entry Fee: £3.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

The A.Vogel Dormeasan Write a Story for Bedtime Competition.  The first thing to note about this one from herbal remedies company A. Vogel is that it is open to Irish residents only.  The second thing is that it is free to enter.  The third thing, running a close second to the fourth thing in importance, it that it is for stories of between 1,500 and 3,000 words.  Finally, the fourth thing, which was very nearly the third thing, relates to the ‘Dormeasan’ part of the competition title.  This is a product designed to combat insomnia - hence the ‘Story for Bedtime’ bit.  So you are not meant to produce a story that sends people to sleep - that’s the product’s job.  On the other hand making readers as tense as a banjo string is probably not a good idea either.
    Closing: 30.4.12.
    Prizes: 500, 300, 100 - all euros (or IOUs if things take a further turn for the worst in the eurozone).
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

East Grinstead Jubilee Literary Competition.  This one from East Grinstead Town Council is open to anyone who lives or works in, or has a connection to, Sussex.  It is for poems and short stories.  Poems can be humorous or serious and should extend to no more than 40 lines.  The theme should be something connected to Sussex or the Queen’s Jubilee and should contain one of the following words: service, reign, queen, soldier, sixty, Sussex, England.  The stories have a word limit of 1,000 and should begin with one of the first lines shown on the comp page, one of which is the unlikely: ‘She had no umbrella, so the Queen caught up her collar, glad to hide her face from the rain and from the few stragglers lingering in the thin drizzle ...’  To which you might add, ‘Where’s that chap I pay to carry the brolly?’ she muttered.  ‘I’ll sack the useless bugger when I find him.’
    Closing: 1.5.12.
    Prizes (in each category): 1st - £100 and a commemorative Jubilee plaque.  2nd - £50 and commemorative Jubilee plaque.
    Entry Fee: £3 each, £10 for four.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

FBFT Sports Writing Competition.  Here is the second of these annual contests from Free Bets, Free Tips.  It is for sports-related articles running, galloping or jumping to no more than 1,500 words.  Your chances of scoring will be increased if your sports writing is ‘original, exciting or somehow out of the ordinary’.
    Closing: 13.5.12.
    Prizes: £50, £30, £20.  Winners will be published on the website.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter.
    Comp Page: Click Here .

Frogmore Poetry Prize 2012.  This annual contest is run by Frogmore Press which was founded in 1983 in the Frogmore tearooms in Folkestone.  Well, what else can you do in Folkestone?  I know: you can fall in the sea, a feat I managed at the age of 8.  Will I ever forget that day?  Unlikely, for I had the misfortune to be rescued by my two sisters.  ‘No, no - let me drown!’ I cried.  ‘I’ll never be able to face my mates again.’  But I had the ice cream money in my pocket and my pleas were ignored.  I later wrote a poem about the shame of it all but it would have been too long for this contest because it ran to 360 lines.  The line limit here is 40.
    Closing: 31.5.12.
    Prize: 1st - 200 guineas.  Classy.  You also get a two-year subscription to The Frogmore Papers.  2nd - 75 guineas and a year’s sub to the Papers.  3rd - 50 guineas and a year’s sub.  Shortlisted poets will receive selected Frogmore Press publications (Frogs.  More Frogs.  Even More Frogs. Frog Recipes.  Stop.  Come back.  I’m joking.  They publish poetry - and none of it about frogs).
    Entry Fee: £3.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Bridport Prize.  This is one of the most prestigious writing contests in the British literary calendar.  Everyone in the trade whose mind is not addled by drugs has heard of it, and they will be impressed if you can claim to have won it.  The good news is that winning it is easy.  All you have to do is submit the best poem or short story, the former having no more than 42 lines, the latter running to no more than 5,000 words.   For those who find 5,000 words too tiring to write there is now a flash fiction category for stories of up to 250 words (if that’s too much, consider becoming a poet).  This year’s judges are Gwyneth Lewis (poems) and Patrick Gale (stories).  Writers from beyond the veil should note that the Bridport rules forbid posthumous entries.  Shame: the awards ceremony would be so much more interesting with a couple of ghosts in attendance.
    Closing: 31.5.12.
    Prizes: In each of the main categories (Short Stories, Poems) - £5,000, £1,000, £500.  There are also ten runners-up prizes of £50.  These are called ‘supplementary prizes’ to make you feel less like an also-ran.  There is in addition a special prize of £100 and a perpetual trophy for the highest placed writer from Dorset.  Prizes in the Flash Fiction category are £1,000, £500, £250, plus three supplementary awards of £25.  The top 13 short stories will be entered for the National Short Story Prize worth £15,000, and the Sunday Times Short Story Award worth £30,000.  The top four poems will be entered for the Forward Prize.  All winners will be invited to an awards ceremony on October 14 at the Bridport Open Book Festival.
    Entry Fees:Poems - £7.  Short Stories - £8.  Flash Fiction - £6.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Yeovil Literary Prize.  This is the ninth of these international contests from Yeovil, the literary capital of the West Country where even the sheep appreciate poetry.  I once read out some of my verses on a Yeovil sheep farm and the verdict was ‘Baaa!’ - which in sheepspeak means ‘brilliant’  I got some of my best reviews that day.  The contest has three categories: Short Story, Poetry, Novel.  The stories can run to 2,000 words, while the poems should be no more than 40 lines.  Novels have a limit of 15,000 words for the opening chapters and synopsis.
    Closing: 31.5.12.
    Prizes: Short Story - £500, £200, £100.  Poetry - £500, £200, £100.  Novel - £1,000, £250, £100.  In addition there is the Western Gazette Best Local Writer Award someone living in Dorset or Somerset.  It isn’t worth moving down there however as the prize is only £100 plus a trophy.
    Entry Fee: Short Story - £5.  Poetry - £5 each, £8 for two, £10 for three.  Novel - £10 each.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Sportswriter Competition 2012.  This one from the SportsWriter website is for fiction or non-fiction, prose or poetry which relates to sport in some way.  The maximum length is 2,000 words.
    Closing: 1.7.12.
    Prizes: £250, £75, £25.
    Entry Fee: £3 (£1 from this goes to the Cyclists Fighting Cancer charity).
    Comp Page: Click Here.

‘What I Love About Cornwall’ Writing Competition.  No prizes for guessing the theme of this one.  It only remains for me to say that your story should be between 500 and 750 words.
    Closing: 1.8.12.
    Prize: A week’s stay in a holiday cottage in Cornwall.  The winning entry will be published in the 2013 Cornish Traditional Cottages brochure.  Suitable entries may be selected for publication in Cornwall Living magazine.
    Entry Fee: None - free to enter (only one per person).
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Thanks so much for your fantastic website which I discovered a few months ago.  I recently found out I have won 2nd prize in the Legend Writing Flash Fiction competition - 100 words only.  I am so happy!  The prize was £30 but the feeling of pride is priceless.
                                                                                  -  Karren Francis

L. Ron Hubbard’s Writers of the Future Competition.  This US contest is open worldwide and is for short stories of up to 17,000 words.  They should be science fiction, fantasy or horror with fantastic elements.
    Closing: Quarterly.
    Prizes: $1,000, $750, $500.
    Entry Fee: None.
    Website: Click Here.

Scribble Quarterly Short Story Competitions. This is run by short story magazine Scribble.  It is for stories on any subject, up to 3,000 words.
    Closing: Ongoing.
    Prizes: £75, £25, £15.
    Entry Fee: £3.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Envoi International Poetry Competition.  This one, from the well-known though small magazine Envoi , is for poems up to 40 lines.
    Closing: 20th February each year.
    Prize: Poetry books to the value of £150, £100, £50.
    Entry Fee: £3.00 per poem or 5 for £12.00.
    Comp Page: Click Here.

Hi Michael,
     I won the Prima magazine contest you advertised - I was in the November 2008 issue. Better yet, the prize was not a pair of pink garden shears emboldened with the Prima logo (as you suggested), or even a polyester nightie, but £200 and a year’s subscription to the mag. It might not have given me worldwide fame but it’s encouraged me to continue writing. And since that I’ve placed a short story in the Sunday Express magazine, a venue that ‘rarely accepts unsolictated fiction,’ have had other stories accepted by various websites and an American anthology, and have completed my first novel.
                                                                               -  Louise Beech

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Notes: Unless otherwise stated in the rules, all poetry should be single-spaced.  The rest should be double-spaced (which is to say, double spacing between the lines, not the words!).  It is sometimes the case that your name shouldn’t appear on the manuscript.  Again, check the rules.  If you put your name on there after being told not to, you’re out.  Don’t use coloured paper or fancy fonts, and don’t send your manuscript done up like the Queen’s dinner menu with a fancy gold-tooled leather cover.  These things merely announce that you have no confidence in your submission or, worse, that you think the judges are shallow enough to judge on appearance rather than content.  Plain white A4 80gsm paper is the stuff to use, with plain black typing or print.  Write on one side of the sheet only (unless asked to put your address on the back).

            Before you start writing, allow me to introduce you to an old friend

                                       The Typo Goblin

            I am the Typo Goblin, my heart is made of flint,
            My role in life is simply this: to keep you out of print.
            I sneak into your manuscript and do my fiendish work,
           Adding errors guaranteed to make you look a berk.
           And then I cast the ‘Careless’ spell: you say, ‘Ah, what the heck!’
           And pop your script into the post without that final check.
           At length some hapless editor receives your golden wit,
           And after reading fifty words he writes it off as ... unpublishable.

                                                                            - Michael Shenton

Finally, as you sift through the remnants of your shattered dreams and wonder if it’s worth going on ... www.samaritans.co.uk/

                                    
My Humorous            This is the Prizemagic website                   Poem:
       Verse                 Email comps@prizemagic.co.uk               Being a
    & Songs            Copyright:  Michael Shenton  2012              Writer