Book Awards & Writing Competitions - United States

Adventure Writer's Competition

The AWC accepts novels exhibiting (in whole) the general action-adventure-themed genre and style. The Adventure Writer's Competition is sponsored by the Clive Cussler Collector's Society, Braveship Books and AJM Books. It is a annual writing competition for published and non published auth...

Fountain Hills, AZ   US

Agatha Awards

The Agatha Awards honor the traditional, "cozy" mystery. That is to say, books best typified by the works of Agatha Christie. Agatha Awards are given for materials first published in the United States by a living author during the calendar year 2014 (January 1-December 31), either in hardcover, as a...

Gaithersburg, MD   US

Agha Shahid Ali Prize in Poetry

Honoring the memory of a celebrated poet and a beloved teacher, the Agha Shahid Ali Prize in Poetry is awarded annually and is sponsored by The University of Utah Press and The University of Utah Department of English. $1,500 Cash Prize and Publication from the Press; $500 and reading in The Univer...

Salt Lake City, UT   US

Agnes Lynch Starrett Poetry Prize

Established in 1981, the Agnes Lynch Starrett Poetry Prize is administered by the University of Pittsburgh Press. Named in honor of Agnes Lynch Starrett, the Press’s first director, the prize is awarded for a first full-length book of poems. The prize carries a cash award of $5,000 and public...

Pittsburgh, PA   US

Albert B. Corey Prize in Canadian-American Relations

The Albert B. Corey Prize in Canadian-American Relations, jointly sponsored by the Canadian Historical Association and the American Historical Association is awarded to the best book dealing with the history of Canadian-American relations or the history of both countries. - See more at: http://www.c...

Ottawa, ON   US

Alex Awards

The Alex Awards were first given annually beginning in 1998. The titles were selected by the YALSA Adult Books for Young Adults Task Force from the previous year’s publishing and were part of the Adult Books for Young Adults Project, which explored the role of adult books in the reading liv...

Chicago, IL   US

Aliki Perroti and Seth Frank Most Promising Young Poet Award

Established in 2013, the Aliki Perroti and Seth Frank Most Promising Young Poet Award recognizes a student poet twenty-three years old or younger, with an annual cash prize of $1,000.

Students who have won one of our 2014 University & College Poetry Prizes and who were twenty-three years old or yo...

New York, NY   US

American Eagle Book Awards

Each year, American Eagle Book Awards recognizes notable works of fiction by self-published or independently published authors whose books were published in the previous year in the United States....

Kendall, NY   US

Amy Lowell Traveling Poet Scholarship

The American poet Amy Lowell died in 1925. Her will established an annual scholarship to support travel abroad for gifted American-born poets. The scholarship is administered by the Trustees under her will at the law firm of Choate, Hall & Stewart in Boston, Massachusetts. There is no age requireme...

Boston, MA   US

Andre Norton Nebula Award for Middle Grade and Young Adult Fiction

The Andre Norton Award for Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy, named to honor prolific science fiction and fantasy author Andre Norton (1912-2005), is a yearly award presented by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) to the author of an outstanding young adult or middle grad...

Enfield, CT   US

Anthony Awards

The Anthony Awards are literary awards for mystery writers presented at the Bouchercon World Mystery Convention since 1986. The awards are named for Anthony Boucher (1911–1968), one of the founders of the Mystery Writers of America. Among the most prestigious awards in the world of mystery w...

Stevensville, MD   US

Axiom Business Book Awards

The Axiom Business Book Awards are intended to bring increased recognition to exemplary business books and their creators, with the understanding that business people are a very well-read and informed segment of the population, eager to learn about great new books that will inspire and inform them, ...

Traverse City, MI   US

Benjamin Saltman Poetry Award

Established in 1998, in honor of the poet Benjamin Saltman (1927-1999), this award is for a previously unpublished original collection of poetry. Awarded collection is selected through an annual competition which is open to all poets. ...

Pasadena, CA   US

Berkshire Prize for a First or Second Book of Poetry

The Berkshire Prize for a First or Second Book of Poetry is open to anyone writing in the English language, whether living in the United States or abroad. Translations are not eligible for this prize, nor are previously self-published books....

North Adams, MA   US

Big Moose Prize

Each year Black Lawrence Press will award The Big Moose Prize for an unpublished novel. The prize is open to new, emerging, and established writers. The winner of this contest will receive book publication, a $1,000 cash award, and ten copies of the book. Prizes will be awarded on publication....

Pittsburgh, PA   US

Bisexual Book Awards

Books can be submitted by the author, publisher or the Bi Writers Association (BWA). However, anyone may suggest a book for us to outreach. Any book with a bisexual or bi+ character, bisexual storyline, bisexual subject matter or bisexual themes can be submitted. The book award categories are open t...

New York, NY   US

BKMK Press Book Prize

The BKMK Press Prize offers $1000 and publication for the best book-length collections of poetry and short fiction.

Submissions for The G. S. Sharat Chandra Prize for Short Fiction should be approximately 125- 300 pages, double spaced.

Poetry manuscripts for The John Ciardi Prize for Po...

Kansas City, MO   US

Black River Chapbook Competition

Twice each year Black Lawrence Press will run the Black River Chapbook Competition for an unpublished chapbook of poems or short fiction between 16-36 pages in length. The contest is open to new, emerging, and established writers. The winner will receive book publication, a $500 cash award, and ten ...

Pittsburgh, PA   US

Black Voices in Childrens Literature

The contest is open to Black authors who at the time of entry are at least 18 years of age and residing anywhere in the United States. As always, the contest’s mission is to elevate authentic, culturally relevant children's stories written by and about Black people. Every entry is consi...

Minneapolis, MN   US

Blue Ridge Mountains CWC Directors Choice Awards

Past and present attendees of the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference are eligible to submit their published work to this contest. ...

Ridgecrest, NC   US

Byron Caldwell Smith Book Awards

These awards are given biennially to one individual in each of three categories, residing or employed in Kansas, who has authored an outstanding book published within the two calendar years preceding the application deadline. One $750 award for fiction, one $750 award for non-fiction, and one $750 a...

Lawrence, KS   US

Caldecott Medal

The Caldecott Medal was named in honor of nineteenth-century English illustrator Randolph Caldecott. It is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association, to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children. ...

Chicago, IL   US

CALIBA Golden Poppy Awards

The members of CALIBA present The Golden Poppy Book Awards to recognize the most distinguished books written by writers and artist who make California their home. The Golden Poppies are given for books published in the following categories: Fiction, Non-Fiction, Cooking & Food, Mystery, Romance,...

Campbell, CA   US

Carol Awards

The Carol Awards are ACFW’s recognition for the best Christian fiction published by traditional publishing houses in the previous calendar year. Beginning with the 2015 Carol Awards program, certain independently published Christian fiction will be eligible.

Qualifying titles shall be writt...

Palm Bay, FL   US

CBC Literary Prizes Nonfiction Prize

Canadian citizens and permanent residents of Canada are eligible to enter. For any contestant who has not reached the age of majority in his/her province or country of residence, parental or guardian consent is necessary to enter the Contest. The Nonfiction Prize includes memoir, biography, hum...

Montreal, PQ   US

Chatelaine Awards

Chanticleer Book Reviews is looking for the best books featuring romantic themes and adventures of the heart,historical love affairs, perhaps a little steamy romance, we will put them to the test and choose the best among them. (Hint: check other genres for romance categories as well, such as parano...

Bellingham, WA   US

Christian Author Awards

Sponsored by Xulon Press, the Christian Author Awards recognizes preeminent new Christian authors who are independently published.

Full-length books of fiction and non-fiction are eligible. Eligible books must be in English and published in the United States as a self-published work or as a work p...

Maitland, FL   US

Christian Book Awards

The Christian Book Awards are among the most prestigious awards in the religious publishing industry, as well as the oldest. Formerly the Gold Medallion Book Awards, the Christian Book Awards have been awarded to Christian authors since 1978. Given out by the Evangelical Christian Publishers Associa...

Phoenix, AZ   US

Christian Indie Awards

Christian Indie Awards (formerly Christian Small Publisher Book of the Year Awards) honors books produced by small publishers and independent authors each year for outstanding contribution to Christian life. Books are nominated by the publishers or authors and voting is open to Christian readers, re...

Pace, FL   US

Christy Awards

Every year publishers are invited to submit novels written from a Christian worldview and copyrighted in the year preceding the awards.

To be eligible, you must submit a full-length work of fiction, including a novella published as a freestanding entity.

All eligible submissions must be writt...

Lawrence, KS   US

Cider Press Review Book Award

Submit 48-80 pages of original poetry in English not previously published in book form (individual poems may have been previously published in journals, anthologies, and chapbooks). ...

San Diego, CA   US

CIPA EVVY Book Awards

The EVVY awards are open to any independently or self-published print book, e-book or audio book and may be submitted by the author, publisher or credited service provider (Illustrator, designer, editor, printer, consultant, etc). CIPA membership is NOT REQUIRED....

Lakewood, CO   US

CMA Book Awards

This program recognizes the outstanding work of publishers, authors, and book editors who serve Catholic readers. The Catholic Media Association announces winning entry names at its Catholic Media Conference, publishes them in the Awards issue of The Catholic Journalist, and showcases them on the...

Chicago, IL   US

Colorado Prize for Poetry

The Colorado Prize for Poetry is an international literary contest started in 1995. Since the contest began, over 5,000 book-length poetry manuscripts have been entered. Each year’s prizewinner receives a $2,000 honorarium and publication of his or her book by the Center for Literary Publishi...

Fort Collins, CO   US

Coretta Scott King Book Award

The Coretta Scott King Book Awards are given annually to outstanding African American authors and illustrators of books for children and young adults that demonstrate an appreciation of African American culture and universal human values. The award commemorates the life and work of Dr. Martin Luthe...

Chicago, IL   US

Cowles Poetry Book Prize

Individual poems in the manuscript may have been published previously in a chapbook, magazines, journals or anthologies, but the work as a whole must be unpublished. Translations and previously self-published books are not eligible.

Open to any poet writing in English, age 18 or older, regar...

Cape Girardeau, MO   US

Cybils Awards

The Cybils (Children’s and Young Adult Bloggers Literary) Awards were started by a small group of bloggers in 2006 as a grassroots project. Our mission has always been to help discover children's and YA books which combine the highest literary merit and popular appeal and to bring those books ...

Chicago, IL   US

Cygnus Awards for Science Fiction

Chanticleer Book Reviews is looking for the best books in the genre. Winners receive editorial book reviews, $200 cash for grand prize and a chance to win $1000 cash. Novels may be Manuscripts, Self-published, Indie Published or Traditionally Published. Award categories are: Speculative Fict...

Bellingham, WA   US

Dayton Literary Peace Prize

The Dayton Literary Peace Prize, inaugurated in 2006, is the first and only annual U.S. literary award recognizing the power of the written word to promote peace. The Dayton Literary Peace Prize invites nominations in adult fiction and nonfiction books published within the past year that have led re...

Dayton, OH   US

Don D. and Catherine S. Fowler Prize

The Don D. and Catherine S. Fowler Prize will be awarded to the best book-length, single-author manuscript in anthropology submitted to the Press. All submitted manuscripts must demonstrate the best substantive research and quality writing. Successful entries will focus on the human experience in th...

Salt Lake City, UT   US

Drue Heinz Literature Prize

Drue Heinz Literature Prize for a collection of short fiction. The prize carries a cash award of $15,000 and publication by the University of Pittsburgh Press under its standard contract.

Eligible submissions include an unpublished manuscript of short stories; two or more novellas (a novella may ...

Pittsburgh, PA   US

DWAA Annual Writing Competition

The Maxwell Medallion writing contest is open to all writers, editors, publishers, photographers, artists and others whose work falls into the designated competition categories, which include newspaper, blog postings and magazine columns or articles on canine health, training, rescue or other topics...

Westlake Village, CA   US

Elixir Press Annual Poetry Awards

Elixir Press is sponsoring a poetry contest open to all poets writing in English. There will be a Judge’s Prize of $2,000 and an Editors’ Prize of $1000. Both winning manuscripts will be published by Elixir Press. All entries will be considered for publication. An outside judge, to be...

Denver, CO   US

Eric Hoffer Award for Independent Books

The Eric Hoffer Award for independent books recognizes excellence in publishing with a $2,000 grand prize and various category honors and press type distinctions, as well as the winners of the Montaigne Medal, da Vinci Eye, and First Horizon Award. The book awards are covered in the US Review of Boo...

Titusville, NJ   US

Erma Bombeck Writing Competition

The Erma Bombeck Writing Competition is hosted every two years by the University of Dayton and the Washington-Centerville Public Library in Centerville, Ohio, where Erma wrote the books and columns that launched her national fame.

Capture the essence of Erma’s writings, and you could win $...

Dayton, OH   US

Ernest Hemingway Flash Fiction Prize

Though many writers have helped to shape the history of flash fiction, Ernest Hemingway’s first short-story collection, In Our Time, easily makes him one of the form’s primary pioneers. For this reason, Fiction Southeast has chosen to honor his accomplishments through the Ernest Hemingway Flash ...

Baton Rouge, LA   US

Excellence in Publishing Awards

The goal of the "Excellence in Publishing Awards" is to recognize the best in Catholic publishing. Publishers may submit multiple books. Publishers who are Foundation Members at the time of submission will receive one free submission for every paid submission.

Awards will be given for books fallin...

Ellicott City, MD   US

Ezra Jack Keats Book Award

Known collectively as the Ezra Jack Keats Book Award, the New Writer Award was established in 1985 and the New Illustrator Award in 2001 to recognize and encourage emerging talent in the field of children’s books. The EJK Book Award is given annually to an outstanding new writer and new illus...

Brooklyn, NY   US

Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction

More than fifty short-story collections have appeared in the Flannery O'Connor Award series, which was established to encourage gifted emerging writers by bringing their work to a national readership. The first prize-winning book was published in 1983; the award has since become an important pr...

Athens, GA   US

Florida Book Awards

The Florida Book Awards is an annual competition that exists for one purpose--to honor the best work written by Florida authors and about Florida culture in the previous year. Begun in 2006, the Florida Book Awards is the most comprehensive state book awards program in the United States, and the onl...

Tallahassee, FL   US

Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Awards

You have a great book, you’re looking for some recognition, and you want a wider audience to fall in love with it. That’s where Foreword’s annual book awards program comes in. The IndieFab Awards recognize the best in indie book publishing, and has been doing so for fifteen years. ...

Traverse City, MI   US

French Voices Award

The French Voices Award honors both translators and American publishers for their work. The program’s goal is to create a US-published series of books representing the very best of contemporary French writing in every field. This ambitious program is aimed to support translations from French i...

New York, NY   US

Fugue Annual Writing Contest

Fugue’s Annual Writing Contest accepts submissions of both poetry and prose (fiction and nonfiction). Multiple submissions are accepted as long as separate fees are paid. For poetry submissions, please send between 1-3 poems. For prose submissions, please send no more than one short story or o...

, ID   US

Futurescapes Writing Contest

FutureScapes is an annual writing competition that asks writers to envision a particular future, and tell us its story. We could run projections and publish reports, but there's a reason why Oscar Wilde didn't say, Life imitates empirical studies. We want to help writers of excellent potential fin...

Sundance, UT   US

Geisel Award

The Theodor Seuss Geisel Award is given annually to the author(s) and illustrator(s) of the most distinguished American book for beginning readers published in English in the United States during the preceding year. The award was established in 2004 and first presented in 2006.

The award is ...

,   US

Genesis Contest

The ACFW Genesis Contest is for unpublished Christian fiction writers. With ten categories to enter, Genesis provides the opportunity for unbiased feedback on writers’ work by published authors and experienced judges, and the chance for finalists to have their work read by Christian publishing...

Palm Bay, FL   US

Gertrude Warner Awards for Middle-Grade Books

Chanticleer Book Reviews is looking for the best books featuring stories of all shapes and sizes written to an audience between the ages of about eight to twelve. Science Fiction, Fantasy, Mystery, Paranormal, Historical, Adventure we will put them to the test and choose the best Middle Grade Books ...

Bellingham, WA   US

Global Ebook Awards

The Global Ebook Awards are more than an honor for the best ebooks published, they offer high-profile publicity for ebook authors, publishers and ebooks....

Santa Barbara, CA   US

HeartWood Broadside Series Contest

Submit one poem (of any form) or flash prose piece (fiction or nonfiction) per entry; regardless of genre, the entry must be 200 words or less. There is no limit on the number of entries per person....

Buckhannon, WV   US

Henry and Anne Paolucci Book Award

The Paolucci Book Award is an annual honor recognizing the best book that advances conservative principles. The award is named in memory of Henry and Anne Paolucci, distinguished scholars, teachers, and writers who exemplified the ideal of the public intellectual. ...

Wilmington, DE   US

High Plains Book Award

The High Plains Books Awards recognize regional authors and/or literary works which examine and reflect life on the High Plains. The High Plains region includes Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, Nebraska, Colorado, Kansas, Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

The Art & Photograph...

Billings, MT   US

Hudson Prize

Each year Black Lawrence Press will award The Hudson Prize for an unpublished collection of poems or short stories. The prize is open to new, emerging, and established writers. The winner of this contest will receive book publication, a $1,000 cash award, and ten copies of the book. Prizes awarded o...

Pittsburgh, PA   US

Hugo Awards

The Hugo Awards, presented annually since 1955, are science fiction’s most prestigious award. They were first awarded in 1953, and have been awarded every year since 1955. The awards are run by and voted on by fans.

The Hugos are World awards. Works are eligible when they are first publishe...

Cambridge, MA   US

IACP Cookbook Awards

The IACP Cookbook Awards honor the authors, publishers, and other contributors behind the best cookbooks published each year. Being acknowledged as a finalist or winner has become a coveted mark of distinction, in part because of the program’s growing list of illustrious honorees, who, o...

New York, NY   US

IBPA Benjamin Franklin Award

The IBPA Benjamin Franklin Award for excellence in book publishing is regarded as one of the highest national honors for small and independent publishers.

The awards are administered by the Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), with help from over 150 book publishing professionals includ...

Manhattan Beach, CA   US

IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law/Roy C. Palmer Civil Liberties Prize

Established in 2007 at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law by alumnus Roy C. Palmer and his wife, Susan M. Palmer, the prize honors a work of scholarship that explores the tension between civil liberties and national security in contemporary American society. The $10,000 prize is designed to encourage a...

Chicago, IL   US

ILA Children's and Young Adults' Book Awards

The ILA Children's and Young Adults'; Book Awards are intended for newly published authors who show unusual promise in the children's and young adults' book field. Awards are given for fiction and nonfiction in each of three categories: primary, intermediate, and young adult. Books from all countrie...

Newark, DE   US

Illumination Book Awards

With the motto, "Shining a Light on Exemplary Christian Books," the Illumination Book Awards are designed to honor the year's best new titles written and published with a Christian worldview.

Authors, illustrators, publishers and self-publishers of Christian books written in English and intended ...

Traverse City, MI   US

Independent Publisher Book Awards

Conducted annually, the Independent Publisher Book Awards honor the year’s best independently published titles from around the world. The awards are intended to bring increased recognition to the thousands of exemplary independent, university, and self-published titles published each year.

The ...

Traverse City, MI   US

Instruction & Insight Book Awards

CIBA is looking for the best Non-narrative/Non-Fiction books including guidebooks, instructional books, inspirational books and more. There is a $75.00 US Dollar fee and an amazing prize package. Please see our website for more details....

Bellingham, WA   US

Iowa Poetry Prize

The Iowa Poetry Prize, open to new as well as established poets, is awarded for a book-length collection of poems written originally in English. Previous winners, current University of Iowa students, and current and former University of Iowa Press employees are not eligible. ...

Iowa City, IA   US

Iowa Short Fiction Award & John Simmons Short Fiction Award

Any writer who has not previously published a volume of prose fiction is eligible to enter the competition.

The manuscript must be a collection of short stories in English of at least 150 word-processed, double-spaced pages. We do not accept e-mail submissions. ...

Iowa City , IA   US

Irish Writers Lost Gatos Writing Contests

Writing contests open till 21 September. Short Stories $10 per story, $1000 prize. Poetry $10 per poem $600 prize. Youth Poetry (under 18's) $8 per poem, $400 Gift Card Prize. Open to all, unpublished work only in English....

Los Gatos, CA   US

Jake Adam York Prize

The Jake Adam York Prize is a collaboration between Copper Nickel & Milkweed Editions. It is open to all poets in the US who have published no more than one full-length poetry collection. The entries are due October 15. The entry fee is $25 (which includes a year's subscription to Cop...

Denver, CO   US

John Dos Passos Prize for Literature

The John Dos Passos Prize for Literature is given annually by Longwood University to an underappreciated writer whose work offers incisive, original commentary on American themes. The winner of the prize receives an honorarium and will give a reading on Longwood’s campus in the spring....

Farmville, VA   US

Juanita Brooks Prize in Mormon Studies

The Juanita Brooks Prize will be awarded to the best monograph submitted to the Press in the subject area of Mormon Studies related to history, biography, or culture. To compete for this award, manuscripts must emphasize research in primary and secondary sources and quality writing in the tradition ...

Salt Lake City, UT   US

Kentucky Literary Award

First awarded in 2003, and presented annually by the Southern Kentucky Book Fest Partnership, the Kentucky Literary Award is a celebration of Kentucky literature. Eligible books include those written by Kentuckians or books with a substantial Kentucky theme. Fiction and non-fiction works will be con...

Bowling Green, KY   US

Kindle Book Awards

The Kindle Book Review’s Best Indie Book Awards is co-sponsored by book sites like Kindle Boards, Digital Book Today, World Literary Cafe, and Author Marketing Club. Any independent or small press author can submit books in the categories of Mystery/Thriller, Romance, Y/A, Sci-fi/Fantasy, Lit...

Kokomo, IN   US

Maine Literary Awards

The 2018 Maine Literary Awards are open to all current Maine residents, including seasonal residents. All nominations to the Book Awards, regardless of category, must have been published during the 2017 calendar year. The editors (or lead editor) of books entered in the Anthology category must be Ma...

Portland, ME   US

Margaret Lawrence Award for Fiction

This award is given to the Manitoba writer whose book is judged to be the best book of adult fiction written in English and published during the calendar year. Eligible authors must have been resident in Manitoba...

Winnipeg, MB   US

Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award

The Black-Eyed Susan Book Award is a children's choice award for the state of Maryland. Each year since 1992, the Black-Eyed Susan Book Award has been given to authors and/or illustrators of outstanding books chosen for the award by Maryland students. The award seeks to promote literacy and lifelong...

Westminster, MD   US

May Sarton New Hampshire Poetry Prize

The May Sarton New Hampshire Poetry Prize is named for May Sarton, the renowned novelist, memoirist, poet, and feminist (1912-1995).

The winner receives $1000, book publication, and 100 copies of the published book, as well as distribution with our other spring titles through our partner UPNE (Uni...

Peterborough, NH   US

McNally Robinson Book For Young People Awards

This award is divided into the categories of Older and Younger. The Older Category is presented to the Manitoban writer whose English language book is judged the best written. It is geared towards books published for readers who are ages 9 to 18. Fiction and non-fiction are eligible. The Younge...

Winnipeg, MB   US

Michael L. Printz Award

The Michael L. Printz Award annually honors the best book written for teens, based entirely on its literary merit, each year. In addition, the Printz Committee names up to four honor books, which also represent the best writing in young adult literature. The awards announcement is made at the ALA Mi...

Chicago, IL   US

Mighty River Short Story Contest

Searching for the best short story of any theme. Submit a maximum of 30 pages, double-spaced. Submissions must not be previously published. ...

Cape Girardeau, MO   US

Miller Williams Poetry Prize

A prize of $5,000 and publication by University of Arkansas Press is given annually for a poetry collection. Submit a manuscript of 60 to 90 pages with a $28 entry fee by September 30. Visit the website for complete guidelines. ...

Fayetteville, AR   US

Mona Schreiber Prize for Humorous Fiction and Nonfiction

An award for humor, comedic essays, articles, short stories, poetry, shopping lists and other forms. Works should be 750 words or less.

Entries are not returned and must be unpublished. Winners will have their entries posted on www.brashcyber.com. All other rights belong to the authors. Humor is s...

Studio City, CA   US

Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards

The Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards contest is designed to honor the year’s best children’s books, authors and illustrators. The program is open to authors, illustrators, and publishers of children’s books written in English or Spanish and intended for the North American market. ...

Traverse City, MI   US

Mystery & Mayhem Awards

The M&M Awards reward independently published books and unpublished manuscripts in the following categories: Amateur Sleuth, Romance, Animals, Hobbies, Blended Genres, Medical/Lab Lit, Travel/Vacation/Exotic Locales, Humourous, Senior Sleuths, Historical/Period, Y/A, and Classic/British-...

Bellingham, WA   US

Mystery & Mayhem Awards - Cozy Mystery Writing Contest

Chanticleer Book Reviews is looking for the best books featuring "mystery and mayhem", amateur sleuthing, light suspense, travel mystery, classic mystery, British cozy, hobby sleuths, senior sleuths, or historical mystery, perhaps with a touch of romance or humor, we will put them to the t...

Bellingham, WA   US

Mythopoeic Fantasy Award

The Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Adult Literature is given to the fantasy novel, multi-volume novel, or single-author story collection for adults published during the previous year that best exemplifies “the spirit of the Inklings”. Books not selected as finalists in the year after publi...

Stillwater, OK   US

Narrative Fall Story Contest

Entries can include short shorts, short stories, essays, memoirs, photo essays, graphic stories, all forms of literary nonfiction, and excerpts from longer works of both fiction and nonfiction. Entries must be previously unpublished, no longer than 15,000 words, and must not have been previously cho...

San Francisco, CA   US

National Book Awards

The National Book Award is one of the nation’s most prestigious literary prizes and has a stellar record of identifying and rewarding quality writing. In 1950, William Carlos Williams was the first Winner in Poetry, the following year William Faulkner was honored in Fiction, and so on throug...

New York, NY   US

National Indie Excellence Awards

The National Indie Excellence Awards is open to all English language books available for sale, including small presses, mid-size independent publishers, university presses, and self-published authors.

The National Indie Excellence Awards exists to help establish independent publishing as a str...

Hermosa Beach, CA   US

National Outdoor Book Awards

The National Outdoor Book Awards (NOBA) is a non-profit educational program sponsored by the NOBA Foundation, the Association of Outdoor Recreation and Education, and Idaho State University. Its purpose is to recognize and encourage outstanding writing and publishing in the outdoor field. Books ma...

Pocatello, ID   US

Nelligan Prize for Short Fiction

The Nelligan Prize for Short Fiction was established in 2004 in memory of Liza Nelligan, a writer, editor, and friend of many in Colorado State University’s English Department, where she received her master’s degree in literature in 1992. The Nelligan Prize is offered annually. The wi...

Fort Collins, CO   US

NEOWA Youth Outdoor Writing Contest

The contest is open to schools in New England. Student entries must be submitted by school personnel.

The written entries should be no longer than 500 words and must be on any outdoor-oriented topic and can include, for example: fishing, boating, archery, shooting, hunting, field trials, sporting ...

East Bridgewater, MA   US

New England Book Awards

Titles must be either about New England, set in New England or by an author residing in New England. It can be a hardcover, a paperback original or reissue that was published between September 1, 2014 and August 31, 2015....

Cambridge, MA   US

New Letters Editor's Choice Award

We're looking for work that experiments, that crosses the traditional boundaries of genre and form.

Enter your hybrid work - your lyric essays, prose poems, short-shorts, collages, micro-memoirs . . . whatever you're doing that's experimental, that defies easy categorization.

Sub...

Kansas City, MO   US

Next Generation Indie Book Awards

The Next Generation Indie Book Awards (#NGIBA) is the largest non-profit book awards program for indie authors and publishers.

The Next Generation Indie Book Awards was established to recognize and honor the most exceptional independently published books in over 70 different categories, for the ye...

Lake Oswego, OR   US

Nilsen Literary Prize for a First Novel

Submissions must be previously unpublished novels, novellas, or collections of closely linked short stories.

Manuscripts that have been self-published or published online will not be accepted.

Open to English-writing, U.S. residents who have not yet published a novel. ...

Cape Girardeau, MO   US

Operation Thriller Writing Competition

This is an open call for US and UK writers who write thriller fiction. Your story must be for an adult audience and have a thriller intrigue as main component. Cosy crime or cosy mystery novels will not be accepted. Paranormal elements are allowed as long as the thriller element stays predominant. Y...

Austin, TX   US

Pacific Northwest Book Awards

Since 1964 the PNBA has presented annual awards to recognize excellence in writing from the Pacific Northwest. Rather than soliciting nominations for specific categories, we simply require that the author and/or illustrator reside within the PNBA region (Washington, Oregon, Alaska, Montana, Idaho an...

Eugene, OR   US

Parents' Choice Awards

Designed to help parents and caregivers of all achievements and backgrounds make informed decisions about which new products are right for their children, the Parents’ Choice Awards is the nation’s oldest nonprofit program created to recognize quality children’s media. The Parents&...

Timonium, MD   US

Patricia Cleary Miller Award for Poetry

A poetry entry may contain up to six poems, and those poems need not be related.<br>Please include one cover sheet stating the genre (poetry) and the tile(s) of each poem. <br>The name of the file you upload should be the title of the first poem in the entry....

Kansas City, MO   US

PEN Translation Prize

The $3,000 PEN Translation Prize invites submissions of book-length translations from any language into English published during the current calendar year. Eligible titles must be original book-length literary translations published by a U.S. trade publisher. Self-published books and reprints are no...

New York, NY   US

Prime Number Magazine Awards

Submit one unpublished poem or story. Poem should be no more than three pages in length (no word count needed) with numbered pages and spaced according to the poet’s intended style. Short story should be 53 to 5,300 words, double-spaced in 12-pt. type with numbered pages. ...

Winston-Salem, NC   US

Psychopomp Magazine Short Fiction Award

As of 2020, we have paused our contest indefinitely in order to better keep up with the demands of publishing our regular issues.

The Psychopomp Magazine Short Fiction Contest recognizes outstanding pieces of fiction that push the boundaries of genre and/or form. Surprise us! Show us some...

,   US

Pura Belpré Award

The award is named after Pura Belpré, the first Latina librarian at the New York Public Library. The Pura Belpré Award, established in 1996, is presented annually to a Latino/Latina writer and illustrator whose work best portrays, affirms, and celebrates the Latino cultural experience ...

Chicago, IL   US

R.L. Shep Ethnic Textiles Book Award

Given annually to a publication judged to be the best book in the field of ethnic textile studies, the award consists of a cash prize funded by an endowment established by R.L. Shep in 2000. The purpose of this award is to encourage the study and understanding of textile traditions by recognizing an...

Berkeley, CA   US

Raiziss/de Palchi Translation Awards

The Raiziss/de Palchi Translation Awards recognize outstanding translations into English of modern Italian poetry through a $10,000 book prize and a $25,000 fellowship, given in alternating years.

To apply, a translator must submit four copies of a proposal describing the work-in-progress, the app...

New York, NY   US

Read Russia Prize

The READ RUSSIA PRIZE is a cash prize of up to $10,000 awarded in New York each May for works of Russian literature in English translation in the following categories:
contemporary fiction written after 1990; 20th-century fiction written between 1900 and 1990; 19th-century fiction written bet...

New York, NY   US

Restless Books Prize for New Immigrant Writing

The ethos of America is defined by its immigrants. Their stories have always been an essential component of the nation's cultural consciousness, from Isaac Bashevis Singer to Jhumpa Lahiri, from Jacob Riis to Maxine Hong Kingston. In novels, short stories, memoirs, and works of journalism, immigrant...

Brooklyn, NY   US

REVERE Awards

The REVERE Awards identify and honor high quality resources that educate learners of all ages, in all media, and in all educational environments, both in and beyond the classroom. The program supports the PreK-12 Learning Group's mission of advocating for quality content in teaching and learning....

Philadelphia, PA   US

Rhina Espaillat Poetry Award

This award honors the achievements of the great Dominican-American poet, translator, and public school teacher Rhina Polonia Espaillat. The Rhina Espaillat Poetry Award will be awarded for an original poem of not more than fifty lines that reflects her lyricism, empathy, and ability to find grace in...

Walden, NY   US

Schneider Family Book Awards

The Schneider Family Book Awards are designed to recognize authors or illustrators for portraying storylines featuring characters with special needs.The awards are given annually for books aimed at each of three audiences – children up to age 8, kids ages 9 to 13 and teens ages 14 to 18....

Chicago, IL   US

Shamus Awards

Eligible works must feature as a main character a person PAID for investigative work but NOT employed for that work by a unit of government. These include traditionally licensed private investigators; lawyers and reporters who do their own investigations; and others who function as hired private ag...

Laughlin, NV   US

Shelf Unbound Competition For Best Indie/Self-Published Book

Any independently published book in any genre is eligible for entry. "Independently Published" books include self-published books and e-books (such as those published through CreateSpace, Lulu.com, iUniverse, etc.) and/or books and e-books published through small presses releasing less than five tit...

Richardson, TX   US

Sophie Brody Award

The Sophie Brody Medal is funded by the Brodart Foundation and is given to encourage, recognize and commend outstanding achievement in Jewish Literature. Works for adults published in the United States in the preceding year are eligible for the award.

In the context of this award, Jewish literatur...

Chicago, IL   US

Spirit First Poetry Contest

Poetry submissions may be of any length and any style but must have a theme of Meditation, Mindfulness, Silence, Stillness, or Solitude (we are referring to peaceful solitude - not loneliness). Poems may reflect any discipline, any faith, or none. Poems must be previously unpublished.

Enter up...

Langley Park, MD   US

Stonewall Book Awards

The first and most enduring award for LGBTQIA+ books is the Stonewall Book Awards, sponsored by the American Library Association’s Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Round Table. Since Isabel Miller’s Patience and Sarah received the first award in 1971, many other books have been ho...

Chicago, IL   US

Tethered by Letters F(r)iction Literary Competition

TBL is pleased to announce our Spring Literary Competition. There are three submission categories: 1) short stories of any genre ranging from 1,000 to 7,500 words, 2) flash fiction with a word limit of either 55, 250, or 500 words, and 3) poetry no longer than three pages. For these contests we are ...

Elizabeth, CO   US

The Black Orchid Novella Award

The Black Orchid Novella Award offers a $1,000 prize to the best original, unpublished novella that conforms to the tradition of the Nero Wolfe series. Entries must be 15,000 to 20,000 words in length, and submitted by the deadline....

New York, NY   US

The Center for Book Arts Poetry Chapbook Competition

The Center's Poetry Chapbook Competition has been going strong since 1996; past winners have included Ailish Hopper, Jeffrey Skinner, L.B.Thompson, and Rachel Zucker. Poets! Submit your work for this year’s contest; the deadline every year is December 1; current guidelines are up on our site...

New York, NY   US

The Killer Nashville Claymore Award

Every year, the Killer Nashville Claymore Award assists new and rebranding English-language fiction authors get published, including possible agent representation, book advances, editor deals, and movie and television sales. ...

Franklin, TN   US

The Killer Nashville Silver Falchion Award

The Killer Nashville Silver Falchion Award seeks to discover and honor the best books of the previous year....

Franklin, TN   US

The Masters Review Flash Fiction Contest

Send us your stories under 1000 words! We love a good piece of flash fiction. The winner will receive $3000, publication, and a spot in Kathy Fish's Fast Flash online workshop. Our love of flash fiction runs deep. And throughout our years of reading work by emerging writers we’ve seen so...

Bend, OR   US

The Wallace Stegner Prize in Environmental Humanities

The Wallace Stegner Prize will be awarded to the best monograph submitted to the Press in the broad field of environmental humanities. To compete for this award, manuscripts must emphasize interdisciplinary investigations of the natural and human environments and their fundamental interconnectedness...

Salt Lake City, UT   US

The Washington Prize

The Washington Prize, awarded annually to a living American or Canadian poet, is $1,500 and book publication for a manuscript of original poetry in English. Poets at any stage in their career may submit a manuscript of 48 to 80 pages between January 15 and March 15. $25 entry fee. The winner is sele...

Washington , DC   US

Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award

The Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award is an annual award presented by the Center for the Study of Science Fiction at the University of Kansas to the author of the best short science fiction story published in English in the preceding calendar year. Nominations are only accepted from editors and revi...

Lawrence, KS   US

Three Percent Best Translated Book Awards

Launched by the weblog Three Percent in 2007, the Best Translated Book Awards aim to bring attention to the best original works of international fiction and poetry published in the US during the previous year. Starting in 2011, each winning translator and author will be awarded a $5000 cash prize an...

Rochester, NY   US

Tillie Olsen Short Story Award

Send unpublished, original stories of no more than 5,000 words in standard manuscript format, paginated and with word count on the first page. Do not include any identifying information on the manuscript. You may submit as many stories as you wish, but each story must be submitted separately. Simult...

Boston, MA   US

Tom Watson Brown Book Award

Tom Watson Brown Book Award recognizes an outstanding book published in the previous calendar year on the causes, conduct, and effects, broadly defined, of the Civil War.

All genres of scholarship on the causes, conduct, and effects, broadly defined, of the Civil War are eligible. This includes, b...

University Park, PA   US

Tomás Rivera Mexican American Children's Book Award

Texas State University College of Education developed The Tomás Rivera Mexican American Children's Book Award to honor authors and illustrators who create literature that depicts the Mexican American experience. The award was established in 1995 and was named in honor of Dr. Tomás Rivera, a di...

San Marcos, TX   US

Twisted Mystery Podcast Contest

We are looking for audio books that walk the line between torment and contempt. Tantalizing and torturous. Desire and degradation. Literally, we could do this all day, but we'll stop. If you feel like your mystery novel goes to the edge without plunging over into infamy, please let us have a lo...

Valencia, CA   US

Vermont Book Award

The Vermont Book Award is a new prize created to honor artists with deep connections to the state of Vermont, and to draw attention to a state so uniquely suited for creative enterprise.

To be eligible for this year’s prize, a book must either be set in Vermont, published by a Vermont...

Montpelier, 05602   US

Wergle Flomp Humor Poetry Contest

Now in its 14th year, this contest seeks today’s best humor poems. No fee to enter. Submit published or unpublished work. $2,000 in prizes....

Northampton, MA   US

Western Writers of America Spur Awards

To be eligible, works submitted must be set in the American West, the early frontier, or relate to the Western or frontier experience. Submitted works must be first copyrighted and published in the calendar year covered by the award.

Categories include Western Traditional novel, Historical nov...

, NM   US

Wilda Hearne Flash Fiction Contest

Searching for the best short-short story of any theme. Submissions may not be more than 500 words, and must be previously unpublished....

Cape Girardeau , MO   US

World Fantasy Awards

The World Fantasy Awards, established in 1975, are presented annually at the World Fantasy Convention. The World Fantasy Award has been described as one of the three most prestigious speculative fiction awards. The nine awards are presented at the banquet of the World Fantasy Convention held each y...

Mukilteo, WA   US

Writer’s Digest Self-Published eBook Awards

Writer’s Digest’s 9th Annual Self-Published E-book Awards honors the best self-published e-book(s) in eight of the most popular categories with $5,000 in cash, a featured interview in Writer’s Digest magazine, and a paid trip to the ever-popular Writer’s Digest Annual Conference in New York ...

Blue Ash, OH   US

Young Readers Choice Awards

The Pacific Northwest Library Association’s Young Reader’s Choice Award is the oldest children’s choice award in the U.S. and Canada. Chosen by the children of Alberta, Alaska, British Columbia, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington, from books published 3 years previously, and nominated by l...

Bothell, WA   US