sixth Feb 2025
Studying Time: 8 minutes
Writing contests are ten a penny – however usually include enormous entry charges for low prizes, and that’s should you win. Nevertheless, there are additionally loads of free writing contests that you may enter to win money, publication, or different prizes, if you recognize the place to look.
And also you’ve discovered the proper place! Right here we’ve acquired a great deal of free writing contests so that you can enter this 12 months, together with some for younger writers and in addition a pair for playwrights. We have now particularly chosen UK-based contests with both a money prize or important different prize (like a writing retreat) reasonably than simply publication, so to focus your time writing tales for contests which have a terrific reward should you win.
Writing Contest Fast Ideas
Whereas it may be straightforward to assume that writing contests supply fast and straightforward cash, assume once more! The free contests will put you in opposition to an enormous expertise pool, so that you want to have the ability to hone your story into one thing that’s gripping and publishable. Listed below are some fast suggestions:
- Don’t rush: be aware of the deadlines and depart your self loads of time to jot down and rewrite your story
- Produce other folks learn and provide you with suggestions
- Once you assume it’s prepared, put it away for a number of weeks earlier than you edit: the house gives you recent eyes to hone your story
- Take a look at free on-line programs just like the Open College supply to be taught the fundamentals and constructing blocks of nice brief story writing.
And eventually – it is a huge one – learn the principles!! Each contest has completely different guidelines of eligibility, so it’s vital to ensure your entry received’t be rejected right away. This may embody issues like formatting guidelines (if doubtful, double line spacing with 12 level Instances New Roman works properly), age or location guidelines, or whether or not you’ve revealed earlier than.
Some contests let you enter the identical story into different ones, whereas some insist you possibly can solely enter that story to them. Those which permit simultaneous submission (getting into the identical story into multiple contest) may say you must pull your entry out of the working should you win one other one with that very same story. Learn the small print earlier than you enter.
Try our article on writing brief tales for extra suggestions and concepts.
Quick Story Contests
From flash fiction to novellas, brief tales are the most well-liked sort of writing contest. It’s a ability to inform a good story in just some thousand phrases, so if you wish to problem your self and be in with an opportunity of profitable money prizes, check out these free UK writing contests!
Writers’ and Artists’ Yearbook Quick Story Competitors
The main anthology non fiction e-book, a necessary for any budding author, is the Writers’ and Artists’ Yearbook. Their brief story contest is very regarded, for tales as much as 2,000 phrases on the theme of ‘marvel’. The prize is a free course with Arvon Basis, a writing retreat course that helps aspiring writers take a break from busy life to deal with writing.
Writing Journal New Yr, New You
Writing Journal is the UK’s main journal for writers of every kind, they usually usually run free contests for his or her subscribers in addition to some for everybody. The primary free for everybody contest of 2025 is ‘New Yr, New You’ themed, with publication and a primary prize of £150 and second prize of £50,
Closes: twenty eighth February
BBC Nationwide Quick Story Award
This one is an enormous award, with a high prize of £15,000, and £600 for 4 shortlisted tales. It’s an enormous accolade to win – and anyone can enter. They’re searching for brief tales as much as 8,000 phrases on any topic.
Deborah Rogers Basis Writers Award
This is likely one of the greatest sort of contest: it’s for the popularity of expertise for work in progress of prose writing. Now, technically, this isn’t a brief story award as a result of they need a piece of an extended piece like a novel. Nevertheless, since you are submitting a piece in progress, your full novel doesn’t should be completed to enter – they need 15,000-20,000 phrases. The primary prize is £10,000 and two runners up obtain £1000 to help them to proceed writing their work.
The Alpine Fellowship Writing Prize
One other one with an enormous money prize for the winner, it is a themed writing contest. For 2025 the theme is ‘Worry’. The primary prize is £3,000 whereas two runners up obtain £1000 every. The utmost phrase rely is 1250 phrases, so it’s a good problem – however these phrases may be in any kind (brief story, non fiction, poetry and so forth).
The Oxford College/42MP New Writing Prize
A model new prize for 2025, this one has created plenty of buzz. Oxford College is teaming up with main company and manufacturing firm, 42MP, to search out new writing they love. 42Mp is a expertise company with large A-list expertise from actors to novelists to screenwriters, they usually wish to discover recent new voices. This isn’t strictly a brief story contest prize, however as an alternative they need a brief part. This could possibly be a synopsis and 10,000-15,000 phrases of a novel OR 30-90 pages of a stage or screenplay. The prize is £1500 and potential illustration by 42MP.
Artistic Future Writers’ Award
A extremely revered annual contest for underrepresented writers within the UK, the Artistic Futures award additionally has classes for non-fiction and poetry, with prizes of £75, £50, and £25 for first, second and third place in every class. However what makes this award stand out is the additional stuff with the prize: a complete host of mentoring, conferences with brokers, programs from established locations like Jericho Writers and Curtis Brown Artistic, and work with a writing coach – in addition to publication within the anthology. There isn’t a minimal size however you possibly can’t go over 2000 phrases.
Laurie Lee Writing Prize
One other contest with each poetry and prose prizes, this one is for 1500 phrases on the theme of ‘Journeys’ this 12 months. This can be a region-specific prize, so that you’re solely eligible should you stay or work in Gloucestershire or South Gloucestershire (or had been born there). The highest prize is £1000 and you’ll submit non-fiction, poetry, or a brief story.
Val Wooden Prize
An annual contest with a £100 high prize and a signed copy of a Val Wooden e-book. The theme is launched when the competition opens, so preserve a watch on the web page (theme not revealed at time of penning this!).
Writers’ and Artists’ Working Class Author’s Prize
The second W&A contest on this checklist, this one is for writers who determine as working class. As soon as once more, this one doesn’t should be an entire brief story – in truth, they need 2,000 of a work-in-progress. That could possibly be an extended brief story, a novella, or novel and that may be both fiction or non-fiction. The prize is £200. Full particulars for the 2025 contest are but to be launched so regulate the web page.
Awa Moniack Mhor Rising Author Award
Open to unpublished writers of fiction, this one isn’t a money prize – it’s a writing retreat package deal price £2,000 on the extremely regarded Moniack Mhor inventive writing centre in Scotland. Your entry must be a piece in progress – however in contrast to related contests which require it to be a novel, Moniack Mhor accepts collections of brief tales because the work in progress, too. Entries open 1st November 2025.
53-Phrase Quick Story Contest
That is an ongoing brief fiction contest that runs each month – good for testing your inventive writing abilities and practising writing to a deadline AND phrase rely! There’s a very strict eligibility: your story should be 53 phrases lengthy. The prize isn’t money, however it’s glory within the type of publication and a free e-book, and we liked the thought of it a lot we snuck it onto this checklist!
Younger Individuals Contests
The definition of ‘younger’ varies wildly in terms of the literary world. A few of these contests are for college youngsters, some for college students at college, and even these below the age of 30. Be sure you learn the principles of eligibility to see should you can enter!
Younger Northern Writers’ Awards
New Writing North is the established writing centre within the North East (they’ve simply received £5m funding to develop their efforts into a brand new centre for writing and already run a great deal of improbable free contests!). Younger writers aged 11-18 can enter this explicit award, in any format – fiction, non fiction, poetry, even scriptwriting – for a prize of £150.
Hive Younger Writers’ Competitors 2025
Hive is a inventive writing hub for younger writers within the North and Midlands, catering to folks aged 14-30.There are three age classes (14-16, 17-19, 20-30) they usually settle for brief fiction, flash fiction, and poetry. Prizes embody a Kindle Hearth, skilled suggestions, vouchers and publication,
The Orwell Youth Prize
There’s no money prize for this one, however we’ve included it as a result of it’s a longtime award with a prize of mentoring and publication. This 12 months, entries needs to be on the theme of “Freedom is…” and it’s open to anybody who’s a pupil at secondary faculty or faculty.
Playwriting Prizes
If you happen to love stay theatre and assume you may write a play that’s worthy of the stage, there are a number of free playwriting contests that provide enormous alternatives.
The Ladies’s Prize for Playwriting
To redress the stability of ladies playwrights (in 2018 solely 26% of recent main-stage performs had been by girls), Ellie Keel and Paines Plough created the Ladies’s Prize for Playwriting. The winner receives £20,000, their play is produced with Sheffield Theatre, and the play is revealed. The prize opened for entries on thirteenth January 2025 however it could possibly take a very long time to listen to – longlisted performs are introduced in October.
Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting
This can be a MASSIVE prize and prestigious contest – but it surely’s free to enter so that you may as properly take your shot. The primary prize is £16,000, with a decide’s award of £10,000 to a different entry. In the intervening time (Feb 2025) the web site continues to be centered on the 2024/5 prize which is now closed – however meaning you’ve acquired a very long time to work in your play to shine it earlier than entries open once more! Entries are normally open round September and shut in January.
Papatango is an Olivier-award-winning theatre firm and that is a longtime award for brand spanking new playwright. Just like the Bruntwood, at time of writing the 2025 contest has simply closed, which suggests you could have a 12 months to shine your script earlier than it reopens. And the £6,000 prize with efficiency is definitely worth the wait should you win!
