Writing Contests with No Entry Fees

Writing contests can be a great exercise for your writing skills, especially if you need some motivation or ideas to help you get started. While some contests charge a small entry fee for each piece of work you submit, many are completely free, so you can potentially win prize money without paying a cent.

How should a contest entry be formatted?

Read the contest guidelines carefully for specifications on how entries should look. Make sure to follow the rules exactly- even if your entry is great, making a mistake here could be enough to disqualify you! If the guidelines don’t specify the format, double-space your entry, make the font size 12, and choose a readable font like Arial or Times New Roman.

If I don’t win, can I submit my work elsewhere?

You retain the rights to your work if it’s not selected as a winning entry. You can trash it or fix it up a bit and submit it somewhere else. If the contest mentions in the small print that they’ll be keeping the rights to your work- avoid it!

Where can I submit my work for free?

Here’s a list of writing contests that charge no reading, judging, or entry fees:

Design a Writing Competition

1^st prize: £50
Deadline: June 15, 2010
Design a competition that will make writers want to enter.

Great Expectations

1^st prize: $100
Deadline: June 28, 2010
Write a poem with the theme “Great Expectations” in 250 words or less (or 30 lines, or 2 pages- whichever is shortest).

A Heart for London

1^st prize: £100
Deadline: June 28, 2010
Write a poem with the theme “A Heart for London” in 250 words, 30 lines, or 2 pages- whichever is shortest.

The Richard J. Margolis Award

1^st prize: $5000 and one-month residency at Blue Mountain Center
Deadline: July 1, 2010
Send two examples of your work, published or unpublished, along with a brief biographical note.

One Act Play Competition

1^st prize: Play will be performed by professional theatre company for four performances.
Deadline: July 2, 2010
Write a one-act play with no more than 5 characters.

Campus Discovery “Value of College” Scholarship

1^st prize: $5000
Deadline: January 31, 2011
Fill out an online survey about your college campus and include a short written response to the scholarship topic.

Textnovel.com Writing Contest

1^st prize: $1,000 and possibly a publishing contract
Deadline: August 31, 2010
Begin writing a novel and post it on the site. It should have at least 50,000 words by the deadline.

The InnermoonLit Award for Best Short-Short Story

1^st prize: $100
Deadline: September 1, 2010
Write a story in 500 words or less.

The InnermoonLit Award for Best First Chapter of a Novel

1^st prize: $100
Deadline: September 1, 2010
Write the first chapter of a novel in 2,000 words or less.

Reference:

• pred-ed.com/pubctst.htm