Genre: Fiction

Rome Prize

American Academy in Rome
Entry Fee: 
$50
Deadline: 
November 1, 2025
Half-term and full-term fellowships of $16,000 and $30,000 respectively are given annually to artists, academics, and creative writers, including poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers, to support the development of a project. In addition to a stipend, the fellows are each provided with meals, a private workspace, and a bedroom with a private bathroom as they join the Academy’s residential community on the Janiculum Hill in Rome, alongside other fellows and visiting artists and scholars. All applicants, except those applying for the National Endowment for the Humanities postdoctoral fellowships, must be U.S. citizens at the time of their application. Writers who in the past six years have published a book in their respective genre are eligible. Using only the online submission system, submit up to 20 pages of poetry or prose, a résumé, a project proposal, and contact information for three references with a $50 entry fee by November 1 (or an $80 entry fee by November 15). Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Adina Talve-Goodman Fellowship

One Story
Entry Fee: 
$0
Deadline: 
October 8, 2025
A yearlong fellowship of $2,000, access to One Story online classes, and admission to One Story’s weeklong summer writers’ conference, which includes craft lectures, an intensive fiction workshop, and panels with literary agents and publishers, is given annually for a work of fiction. The winner also receives a full manuscript review of up to 150 pages or 35,000 words of a story collection or novel-in-progress and a consultation with One Story executive editor Hannah Tinti. Writers who have not been enrolled in an advanced degree-granting program in creative writing and have not yet published a book are eligible. Using only the online submission system, submit a manuscript of 3,000 to 5,000 words, a résumé, a personal statement, and contact information for two references by October 8. There is no entry fee. Visit the website for an application and complete guidelines.

Kurt Vonnegut Speculative Fiction Prize

North American Review
Entry Fee: 
$23
Deadline: 
November 1, 2025
A prize of $1,000 and publication in North American Review is given annually for a work of speculative fiction. Rachel Yoder will judge. Submit up to two works of flash fiction of 500 to 1,500 words each or one short story or novel excerpt of up to 10,000 words with a $23 entry fee, which includes an issue of North American Review, by November 1. All entries are considered for publication. Visit the website for complete guidelines. 


International Short Story and Poetry Awards

Bedford Competition
Entry Fee: 
$11
Deadline: 
October 31, 2025
Two prizes of £2,000 (approximately $2,680) each and publication in the Bedford Competition anthology are given annually for a poem and a short story. Fran Lock will judge in poetry, and Toby Litt will judge in fiction. Submit a poem of up to 40 lines or a short story of up to 3,000 words with an £8.50 (approximately $11) entry fee by October 31. All entries are considered for publication. Visit the website for the required entry form and complete guidelines.

Award for Fiction

PEN/Faulkner Foundation
Entry Fee: 
$95
Deadline: 
September 30, 2025
A prize of $15,000 is given annually for a book of fiction published during the current year. Four finalists each receive $5,000. The winner and finalists will also be invited to read in Washington, D.C., in May 2026. Using only the online submission system, authors, agents, and publishers may submit a PDF of a story collection, novella, or novel published in 2025 with a $95 entry fee (waivers based on financial need are available upon request only for authors submitting their own books) by September 30. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Fiction Contest

Tennessee Williams & New Orleans Literary Festival
Entry Fee: 
$25
Deadline: 
October 15, 2025
A prize of $1,500 is given annually for a short story by a writer who has not published a book of fiction. The winner also receives domestic airfare of up to $500, private lodging, and an invitation to read at the Tennessee Williams & New Orleans Literary Festival in March 2026. Ladee Hubbard will judge. Submit a story of up to 7,000 words with a $25 entry fee by October 15. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Vern Rutsala Book Prize

Cloudbank Books
Entry Fee: 
$25
Deadline: 
October 31, 2025
A prize of $1,000, publication by Cloudbank Books, and 50 author copies is given annually for a collection of poetry, flash fiction, or a combination of the two. Submit a manuscript of 60 to 90 pages with a $25 entry fee by October 31. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Book Prize

Permafrost
Entry Fee: 
$25
Deadline: 
October 15, 2025
A prize of $1,000 and publication by University of Alaska Press is given in alternating years for a book of poetry, fiction, or creative nonfiction. The 2025 prize will be given in creative nonfiction. Alison Hawthorne Deming will judge. Submit an essay collection or book-length creative nonfiction manuscript, including memoir and literary journalism, of 150 to 300 pages and a brief bio with a $25 entry fee by October 15. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Willie Morris Award for Southern Fiction

University of Mississippi
Entry Fee: 
$0
Deadline: 
September 30, 2025
A prize of $12,000 is given annually for a novel published during the current year that asks readers “to engage with or reflect on the complexities of the U.S. South.” The winner will also receive an all-expenses-paid trip to Oxford, Mississippi, for the awards ceremony in March 2026. Submit a hard copy of a published book, or an advance reader’s copy of a book to be published in October, November, or December, by September 30. There is no entry fee. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Donald L. Jordan Prize for Literary Excellence

Columbus State University
Entry Fee: 
$25
Deadline: 
October 15, 2025
A prize of $10,000 and publication with DLJ Books, the imprint of Columbus State University Press, will be given annually for a book of fiction or creative nonfiction “that engages a reader with upholding human values, such as trust, generosity, love, gratitude, or responsibility.” Maureen Gibbon will judge. Using only the online submission system, submit a manuscript of any length with a $25 entry fee by October 15. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

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