Erica Verrillo's Blog, page 7

64 Writing Contests in June 2024 - No entry fees

Pickpik This June there are more than five dozen free writing contests for short fiction, novels, poetry, CNF, nonfiction, and plays. Prizes this month range from $50,000 to publication. None charge entry fees.
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Some of these contests have age and geographical restrictions, so read the instructions carefully.

If you want to get a jump on next month's contests go to Free Contests. Many of these contests are offered annually, so even if the deadline has passed, you can prepare for next year.

Good luck! 

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The Questions Writing Prize. Restrictions: Open to young Australian writers (18 to 30 years). Genre: Fiction and nonfiction on any topic as long as the piece remains between 1,500 and 2,000 words. Prize: $3,000 AUD top prize. Deadline: June 1, 2024. 

The Pattis Family Foundation Creative Arts Book Award. Genre: Works of fiction or nonfiction. Prize: $25,000. The award-winner will participate in a 2-3 day residency at Interlochen Center for the Arts in April 2025. Deadline: June 1, 2024.

Dan Veach Prize for Younger Poets. Restrictions: Open to poets aged 18-23. Genre: Poetry. Prize:  $100 and publication in the Atlanta Review. Deadline: June 1, 2024.  

The PEN Grant for the English Translation of Italian Literature. Genre: Translation. Work-in-progress of a book-length translation of an Italian work of literary fiction or nonfiction into English. Prize: $5,000 grant. Deadline: June 1, 2024. 

The Africa Institute: Global Africa Translation Fellowship. Restrictions: Open to Translators in the Global South. Genre: Translations of works from the African continent and its diaspora, into English or Arabic. This is a non-residential fellowship. Projects may be retranslations of old, classic texts, previously untranslated works, poetry, prose, or critical theory collections. The project may be a work-in-progress, or a new project feasible for completion within the timeframe of the grant. Prize: $1,000-$5,000. Deadline: June 1, 2024. 

Cromwell Article Prize. Restrictions: Open to early career scholars. Genre: Articles published in the field of American legal history. Prize: $2,500. Deadline: June 1, 2024.

The Novel Prize. Genre: Book-length work of literary fiction written in English. Prize: $10,000. Deadline: June 1, 2024. Biennial award.

The PEN/Heim Translation Fund. Genre: Book-length works of fiction, poetry, creative nonfiction, and drama in translation. Prize: $2000 - $4000. Deadline: June 1, 2024.

PEN/Phyllis Naylor Grant for Children’s and Young Adult Novelists. Restrictions: Candidates must have published one or more novels for children or young adults that have been warmly received by literary critics, but have not generated sufficient income to support the author. Genre: Book-length children's or young-adult fiction. Prize: $5000. Deadline: June 1, 2024.

The PEN/Jean Stein Grant for Literary Oral History. Genre: Literary work of nonfiction that uses oral history to illuminate an event, individual, place, or movement. Prize: $15,000 each. (Two prizes) Deadline: June 1, 2024.

Bard Fiction Prize. Restrictions: Open to a writer who is an American citizen aged 39 years or younger at the time of application. Genre: Published fiction book. Prize: $30,000 and a one-semester appointment as writer-in-residence at Bard College. Deadline: June 1, 2024.

Peggy Willis Lyles Haiku Awards. Genre: Haiku. Prize: First Place - $200, and a miniature crystal turtle; Second Place - $100; Third Place - $50. Deadline: June 1, 2024.

Defenestration. Genre: Short story including an incident of defenestration – the art or –ism of throwing people out of windows. It need not be literal. "This can be a sudden, immediate, even violent shift, change, or seismical event between the beginning and the end.” Prize: $75, two runner-up prizes of $30 each. Deadline: June 2, 2024.

Channel 4 Writing for Television Awards. Restrictions: Open to writers from Northern England who would like to work in television. Genre: TV writing. Prize: Mentoring support and a bursary worth £3000. Deadline: June 4, 2024.

Fraser Institute Student Essay Contest. Restrictions: Canadian high school, college, and graduate students. Genre: Short essay on "What would our Essential Scholars say about the world today?" Prize: CAD$1,500 in each age category. Deadline: June 5, 2024.

Spectator Comp No. 3353: Running on full. Genre: "You are invited to submit a poem about the dine-and-dash phenomenon (16 lines max). Please email entries to lucyATspectator.co.uk" Prize: £30. Deadline: June 5, 2024. 

Icelandic Festival of Manitoba Poetry & Short Stories Contest. Genre: Poetry and short stories. Length; 1200 words max. Prize: $50 - $125. "You do not need to be of Icelandic descent to submit an entry however material reflecting Icelandic culture and interests will be given preference." Deadline: June 7, 2024.

Furious Fiction. Genre: Flash fiction based on their prompt. Length: 500 words max. Prize: $500AUD. Deadline: June 9, 2024. Opens June 7.

Ocean Awareness Youth Contest. Restrictions: Open to students in grades 6 - 12. Genre: Art, poetry, prose, film. "Use humor, positivity, irony, or other unconventional approaches that are not typically used in environmental communication to address the climate crisis. Think outside the tackle-box, beyond clichés, to create something that makes the topic of climate change and our oceans more approachable and accessible." Prizes: $100 - $1,500. Deadline: June 10, 2024.

Wyoming Creative Writing Fellowship. Restrictions: Open to Wyoming writers who are U.S. citizens or have legal resident status. Genre: Fiction, Poetry, CNF. Prize: $5,000 and an honorarium/travel stipend. One fellowship will be awarded in each category of Poetry, Creative Nonfiction, and Fiction, for a total of three fellowships. Applications are juried by noted authors, literary agents, or writing professionals from outside the state. Jurors may award honorable mentions. Recipients of the Creative Writing fellowships will share their work at one of Wyoming's literary conferences. Deadline: June 10, 2024.

Molly Keane Creative Writing Award. Restrictions: Open to Irish residents. Genre: Unpublished short story, maximum 2,000 words. Prize: €250 plus a course at the Molly Keane Writers Retreat. Deadline: June 14, 2024.

Baltimore Science Fiction Society Amateur Writing Contest. Restrictions: Open to Maryland residents or students at a MD 2- or 4-year college, and not a member of the Science Fiction Writers of America or published in a professional science fiction/fantasy magazine Genre: Science fiction short stories. Prize: 1st place is $250; 2nd place is $100; 3rd place is $50. Deadline: June 15, 2024.

Little, Brown Emerging Artist Award. Genre: High-quality picture books that resonate with readers of diverse backgrounds and experience. Diversity includes literal or metaphorical inclusion of characters of underrepresented ethnicity, religious background, gender identity, class, mental or physical disability, or any other nondominant populations. Prize: American Express® gift cards totaling $1,500, round trip travel to New York City, and the honor of a one-day mentorship with a Little, Brown Books for Young Readers’ professional children’s book design and editorial team. Submission will be reviewed for publication. Deadline: June 15, 2024.

Norton Writer's Prize. Sponsored by W.W. Norton & Company. "The Norton Writer’s Prize will be awarded annually for an outstanding essay written by an undergraduate. Literacy narratives, literary and other textual analyses, reports, profiles, evaluations, arguments, memoirs, proposals, mixed-genre pieces, and more: any excellent writing done for an undergraduate writing class will be considered." Genres: Creative Nonfiction, Scholarly Essay. Prize: Three cash prizes of $1,000 apiece will be awarded in 2024 for coursework submitted during the academic year. Deadline: June 15, 2024.

Goi Peace Foundation International Essay Contest for Young People. Restrictions: Open to people 25 years of age or less. Genre: Essay (max 700 words). Theme: “My Experience of Overcoming Conflict.” Prize: 1st US$840, 2nd US$420. Deadline: June 15, 2024.

Towson University Prize for Literature. Restrictions: Open to Maryland writers. Genre: Book-length manuscript of fiction, poetry, drama or imaginative non-fiction. The work must have been published within the three years prior to the year of nomination or must be scheduled for publication within the year in which nominated. Self-published works will not be considered. Prize: $1,000. Deadline: June 15, 2024. See nomination form HERE.

International Wizard of Oz Club Annual Contests. Genre: Short Fiction, Art & Academic Nonfiction Research Papers. All work must be related to the world of Oz. Prize: $100 in each genre. 2nd Prize $50 in each genre. Deadline: June 15, 2024

Apparition Lit. Genre: Flash fiction. See themes. Prize: $30. Deadline: June 15, 2024.

53-Word Story Contest. Genre: Flash fiction of exactly 53 words based on monthly theme. Prize: Publication and a free book. Deadline: June 15, 2024. (Note: This is a monthly contest)

Penguin: Write Now. Restrictions: Open to UK/Ireland-based writers, for people from a background or community that is currently under-represented in UK and Irish publishing. Genre: Science fiction, fantasy, and horror - all ages. Prize: A final group of applicants will be invited to join the year-long editorial program. Deadline: June 16, 2024.

Soho Theatre: The Verity Bargate Award. Restrictions: Open to UK and Ireland based playwrights. Genre: One-hour play written for stage. Prize: £8,000 and full production.  Deadline: June 17, 2024.

Solid Essay Contest. Restrictions: Open to high school students. Genre: Essay (See site for topics.) Minimum number of words is 600 and maximum is 800. Prize: Scholarship of $1000. Deadline: June 19, 2024.

Young Scots Writer of the Year Award. Restrictions: You must be aged 11–18 to enter as an individual. Genre: Stories, poems, spoken word pieces, comics, videos or other pieces of writing. "We want to see it all, as long as it's in Scots and under 2500 words or up to ten minutes." Prize: £100 book token. Deadline: June 19, 2024. 

A Midsummer Tale Narrative Writing Contest. Genre: Non-genre fiction and creative nonfiction. Theme: Summer Olympics. Length: 1,000 words minimum; 5,000 words maximum. Prize: $35 - $50 Amazon gift card. Deadline: June 21, 2024.

Griffin Poetry Prize. Restrictions: One prize goes to a living Canadian poet or translator, the other to a living poet or translator from any country, which may include Canada. Genre: Poetry. Books must have been published in English during the calendar year preceding the year of the award. Prize: The winner receives C$130,000 and the other shortlisted poets each receive C$10,000. Deadline: June 21, 2024, for works published between January 1 and June 30, 2024.

Scotiabank Giller Prize. Restrictions: Open to books published in Canada in English. Must  be nominated by publisher. Genre: Fiction. Full-length novel or collection of short stories published in English, either originally, or in translation. Prize: $100,000 to the winner and $10,000 to each of the finalists. Deadline: Books published between May 1, 2024, and June 30, 2024 must be received on or before June 21, 2024.

International EJCA Spring Haiku Contest. Genre: Haiku. Prize: $20 - $30. Deadline: June 22, 2024.

Write the World Competitions. Restrictions: Young writers ages 13-19.5. Genre: Essay: Open a Window. Prize: Best Entry: $100; Runner up: $50. Deadline: June 24, 2024. (Note: This is a monthly contest.)

Grist: Imagine 2200. Genre: Short stories. "What we’re seeking: short stories that envision the next 180 years of equitable climate progress. Our mission is to make the story of a better world so irresistible, you want it right now." Prize: First, second, and third-prize winners will be awarded $3,000, $2,000, and $1,000 respectively, and nine additional finalists will each receive a $300 honorarium. Deadline: June 24, 2024.

Atwood Gibson Writers' Trust Fiction Prize. Restrictions: Titles must be published in Canada and written by Canadians. No self-published works. Genre: Novel or short story collection. Prize: $60,000 will be awarded to the novel or short story collection published between  May 1, 2024 and September 30, 2024. Deadline: June 25, 2024.

Hilary Weston Writers' Trust Prize for Nonfiction. Restrictions: Books must be English-language, first-edition trade books published by a Canadian press, written by Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada. Titles must be published between May 1, 2024 and September 30, 2024. Genre: Literary nonfiction including, among other forms, works of personal or journalistic essays, memoirs, commentary, criticism both social and political, history, and biography. Prize: Winner: $60,000; Finalists: $5,000. Deadline: June 25, 2024.

Writers' Trust Dayne Ogilvie Prize for LGBTQ2S+ Emerging Writers. Restrictions: Open to Canadian LGBTQ+ writers. Genre: Debut book published between May 1, 2024 and September 30, 2024. Prize: $10,000. Deadline: June 25, 2024.

Emmy Awards - Sir Peter Ustinov Television Scriptwriting Award. Restrictions: Non-US citizens under the age of 30 only. Prize: $2,500, a trip to New York City, and an invitation to the International Emmy® Awards Gala in November. Deadline: June 26, 2024.

Faber Children’s: Faber and Andlyn BAME (FAB) Prize. Restrictions: Open to undiscovered BAME writers and illustrators; entrants must be of black, Asian or minority ethnic background, and UK- or Ireland-based. Genre: Text or artwork for children. Prize: £1,500 and £500 each for a writer and an illustrator. Deadline: June 28, 2024.

Hubert Butler Essay Prize. Restrictions: Open to European Union citizens aged 18+. Genre: Essay on theme ‘With narratives of conflict currently distorted by misinformation and the substitution of memory for history, what are the chances of reconciliation?’ 3,000 words max. Prize: First prize of €1,500 and two second prizes of €500. Deadline: June 28, 2024.

Marlborough Lit Fest Love Books Competition. Restrictions: Open to UK residents. Genre: Individual Poems, Short Fiction & Creative Nonfiction. "We want you to tell us why you love your favourite book, poem or play. Your response should be in the form of a piece of text of up to 750 words. Entrants should explain what they love about their chosen read, highlighting key areas of interest, and why they think others should try it." Prize: Up to 300 pounds in each of three categories (13-15 years, 16-19 years, 20+ years). Deadline: June 28, 2024.

Storyhouse: Preservation Foundation Essay Contest for Unpublished Writers. Restrictions: The contest is open to writers whose creative writing has never produced revenues of over $250 in any single year. First prize winners of previous contests, while ineligible for prizes in regular contests, can compete in this one.  Genre: Nonfiction. Prize: First prize is $200; Runners-up will receive $100. Deadline: June 30, 2024.

#GWstorieseverywhere. Genre: Micro fiction. Your story must be no longer than 25 words, with a max of 280 characters, including spaces and the hashtag. See themes. Prize: Free Gotham class. Deadline: June 30, 2024. This is a monthly contest.

My Writing Journey. Genre: Essay on the theme: The best writing tip I’ve ever received. Length: 600 words. Prize: $200 (R2 000 or £100). Deadline: June 30, 2024.

Sargeson Prize for Secondary Schools. Restrictions: Open to students enrolled at a New Zealand secondary school and aged between 16 and 18 years. Genre: Short story, Length: 5,000 words max. Prize: First Prize: $10000; Second Prize: $1000; Third Prize: $500. Deadline: June 30, 2024.

Sargeson Prize. Restrictions: Open to New Zealanders. Genre: Short stories. Length: 5,000 words max. Prize: First Prize: $10000; Second Prize: $1000; Third Prize: $500. Deadline: June 30, 2024.

Drue Heinz Literature Prize. Restrictions: The award is open to writers who have published a book-length collection of fiction or a minimum of three short stories or novellas in commercial magazines or literary journals of national distribution. Online and self-publication does not count toward this requirement. Genre: A manuscript of short stories; two or more novellas (a novella may comprise a maximum of 130 double-spaced typed pages); or a combination of one or more novellas and short stories. Novellas are only accepted as part of a larger collection. Prize: $15,000 and publication by the University of Pittsburgh Press under its standard contract. Deadline: June 30, 2024.

Fountain Magazine Essay Contest. Genre: Essay on theme: Home. “Home” holds a special place in our lives. A large, luxurious mansion or a small, decrepit place, our homes are hard to replace with anything. Our earliest memories form inside its walls; we utter our first words and take our first steps there. Does everyone feel the same about home? Is it where you were born or where you earn your bread? Is home a physical place? In a world that moves faster than ever and is confined to small screens, how do perceptions about "home" change? Where is home for people who are forced to leave their homes? Where is your home?" Prize: 1st Place - $1,000, 2nd Place - $500, 3rd Place - $300, Two Honorable Mentions - $150 each. Deadline: June 30, 2024.

2024 BCSA Writing Competition. Genre: Fiction, nonfiction. See theme. Entries must deal with either (1) the links between Britain and the Czech and/or Slovak Republics, at any time in their history, or (2) society in those Republics since 1989. Entries should be in English and not more than 2,000 words long. Prize: First prize £400, second prize £150. Deadline: June 30, 2024.

McLaughlin-Esstman-Stearns First Novel Prize is awarded to the author of the best first novel published in the previous calendar year. Restrictions: Only American authors publishing in English are eligible. Non-eligible books include short story collections, flash fiction, memoirs, biographies and books published solely in electronic format. Prize: $3000. Deadline: June 30, 2024.

Digital Privacy Scholarship. Restrictions: You must be a high school freshman, sophomore, junior, or senior or a current or entering college or graduate school student of any level. Home schooled students are also eligible. There is no age limit. You must also be a U.S. citizen or legal resident. Genre: 500- to 1,000-word essay about digital privacy. Prize: $1000 scholarship. Deadline: June 30, 2024.

The Lindisfarne Crime Prize. Restrictions: Residents of the North East of England, or whose work celebrates the North East of England. Genre: Crime short story of up to 10,000 words. Prize: £2500.  Deadline: June 30, 2024.

L. Ron Hubbard's Writers of the Future Contest. Restrictions: Contest is open only to those who have not professionally published a novel or short novel, or more than one novelette, or more than three short stories, in any medium. Professional publication is deemed to be payment and at least 5,000 copies (or 5,000 hits for online publication). Genre: Fantasy, Sci-Fi or Horror. 17,000 words max. Prize: $1,000 1st Prize awarded each quarter; one of those winners also receives the $5,000 annual "Golden Pen Award" grand prize. 2nd Prize $750, 3rd Prize $500. Deadline: June 30, 2024.

Utah Division of Arts and Museums Original Writing Competition. Restrictions: Open to Utah writers. Genres: Poetry and prose. Prize: $1,000 top prizes for book-length manuscripts of novels, creative nonfiction & history, collection of poetry or short stories, and juvenile book; $300 top prizes for individual poems, short stories, and personal essays. 2nd Prize $500 for the book-length categories, $150 for poetry. Deadline: June 30, 2024.

Eden Mills Teen Poetry Contest. Restrictions: Open to Canadian teens. Genre: Poetry. Prize: Two $50 prizes, two $25 prizes. Deadline: June 30, 2024.

Resource Center for Women and Ministry in the South Essay Contest. Restrictions: Open to women (including trans and nonbinary women) age 18+.  Genre: Nonfiction essay, 1200 words max, on images. See website for details. Prize: $200. Deadline: June 30, 2024.

Last Stanza Poetry Journal. Genre: Poetry. Prize: A single $100 award will be given for an outstanding poem. Deadline: June 30, 2024. See theme.

Washington State Book Awards. Restrictions: Open to Washington State writers. Genre: Published book, fiction, nonfiction, poetry: adults or children. Prize: Recognition (?) Deadline: June 30, 2024 (for books published Jan. 1-May 31, 2024).

Substack runs a monthly short story competition. Their mission is to "revive the art of the short story, support artists, and produce something wonderful." Genre: Short story. Length: 6000- 10,000 words. Prize: $100 plus 50% of subscription revenue to be sent by Paypal, Zelle, or check. Deadline: June 30, 2024. Reprints are ok so long as you still have the rights to distribute.

53 Great Writing Conferences and Workshops in June 2024

This June there are more than four dozen writing conferences and workshops. Some conferences and workshops will be held online, but most will be held in person or use a hybrid format.

These writing events offer everything a writer might want: intensive workshops, pitch sessions with agents, to how to market yourself and your books, discussions - there is something for everyone

For a full list of conferences held throughout the year see Writing Conferences. If you miss an application deadline, put it on your calendar for next year. Quite a few conferences offer scholarships, so apply early. Plan ahead!

Be sure to check out Highlights list of workshops. They offer many throughout the year. 

(Image: Squam Lake, NH: Chuck Taylor, Flickr)
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Sundress Academy: Summer Poetry Writing Retreat. June 1 - 2, 2024: Via Zoom. All SAFTA retreats focus on generative writing, and this year’s retreat will also include the following craft talk sessions: “Let’s Talk About Prose Poems” and “Third Space Grief: The (Written) Performance of Intersectional Mourning.” The event will be open to poets of all backgrounds and experience levels and provide an opportunity to work with many talented authors and poets from around the country, including workshop leaders Amorak Huey, Sarah A. Chavez, and keynote speaker Barbara Fant. The total cost of attendance is $75.

Yale Writers' Conference. June 1 - 8, 2024, on campus, June 9 - 15, virtual: New Haven, CT. The Yale Writers’ Workshop brings together the experience and expertise of leading teachers, authors, editors, agents and publishers in a series of panels and workshops, for the benefit of writers the world over. We are offering three sessions (one on campus and two remote) that will enhance the writing skills of any serious writer. Our faculty provides unique, tailored, and transformative experiences to all participants. Will be conducted online and in person. 

Lit Camp. June 2 - 7, 2024: Bell Valley Retreat Center and the Boonville Hotel in Mendocino County, California. The conference features workshops, panels, and craft talks for fiction writers and creative nonfiction writers. Part writing retreat, part MFA-style intensive, our spring conference focuses on the craft of writing. Over the course of the five days, you will have plenty of uninterrupted time to write...because one of the best ways to get better at writing is to sit down and write. There will also be prompted free writing sessions to motivate and inspire you, as well as daily afternoon master classes taught by some of the most accomplished writers and instructors in publishing. Registration is limited to 23 participants. Application Deadline: March 15, 2024.

Odyssey Writing Workshop. June 5 and August 14, 2024. (6 weeks and 12 weeks, respectively) Since its inception in 1996, Odyssey has become one of the most highly respected workshops for writers of fantasy, science fiction, and horror. Will be held online. Deadline March 27.

Clarksville Writers Conference. June 5 - 7, 2024: Clarksville, TN. Two days of writing workshops and presentations, a keynote banquet with the authors, and manuscript consultations.

The Creativity Workshop in New York. June 6 - 9, 2024: New York, New York. "The Creativity Workshops take away the fear of writing and open the way to new ideas. They are especially helpful for writers in fiction, poetry, memoir, theatre and film to get over writing blocks. In our Creativity Workshop Retreats you will generate both new work and ideas for the work you are in the midst of creating. We use many different techniques to help you find your way through the novel, essay, poem, memoir, or script you are writing or hope to write. In The Creativity Workshop you will be doing free writing, writing from guided visualizations, collaborative writing, journaling and memoir work and even some rudimentary drawing, collage and photography."

Nebula Conference. June 6 - 9, 2024: Pasadena, CA. SFWA members and other individuals who are interested in the field of science fiction and fantasy are welcome to attend SFWA’s Nebula Conference. Attendees may participate in workshops, programming and special events throughout the weekend. You do not need to be a member of SFWA to attend. 

Squam Writes Retreat. June 6 - 9, 2024: Squam Lake, New Hampshire. The Squam Writes Retreat is a small group retreat for experienced fiction writers. We focus on craft with an eye toward publication. We offer opportunities for feedback and plenty of time to write, make new friends, and recharge creative batteries in a beautiful New Hampshire lakeside setting. Every participant receives a one-on-one critique with an agent or editor. 

The 2024 Writers' Police Academy. June 6 – 9, 2024: Green Bay, WI. "Killer Con offers a unique opportunity for attendees to participate in many of the same hands-on training classes---basic and advanced---taught to homicide and crime scene investigators. This special event takes attendees on a detective’s journey, from the discovery of a body and subsequent 911 call, collection and processing of evidence, and the various stages of the investigation, to the apprehension and arrest of a murderer. These incredibly exciting cutting-edge sessions have been typically reserved for investigators and forensics professionals ... until now."

Indiana University Writers’ Conference. June 6 - 9, 2024, Indiana University in Bloomington. Each summer, the conference invites gifted writers of fiction, poetry and nonfiction to teach workshops and craft classes over the course of four days. The workshops consist of three-hour sessions held each morning in which students exchange manuscripts and offer feedback on the work of their peers under the guidance of their instructor. At the end of each day’s workshop, students are invited to lunch talks where the faculty discuss their publishing experiences and answer questions from attendees. The afternoons are comprised of three, one-hour classes led by additional faculty on topics ranging from story structure and the ethics of writing nonfiction to crafting compelling images in poems. Each evening is capped off by a reading and from conference faculty.

Sundress Academy: Trans/Nonbinary Writing Retreat. June 7th- 8th, 2024: Via Zoom. All SAFTA retreats focus on generative writing, and this year’s retreat will also include the following craft talk sessions: “Elegies for Past Selves” and “Writing Together: On the Poetics of Citation.” The event will be open to trans and nonbinary writers of all backgrounds and experience levels and provide an opportunity to work with many talented authors and poets from around the country, including workshop leaders Evelyn Berry and Aerik Francis, and keynote speaker Ching-In Chen. Cost $75.
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West Virginia Writers Conference. June 7 - 9, 2024: Cedar Lakes, West Virginia. Author readings, contests and sharing your love of writing with others.

Tinker Mountain Writers’ Workshop. June 9 - 13, 2024: Roanoke, Virginia. "In our manuscript workshops, capped at 10, you will distribute manuscripts in advance, prepare comments for your colleague’s submissions, and gather each morning to share insights and gain inspiration on the best path to advance your writing. You’ll receive critical feedback from peers and your faculty mentor and learn what other writers are working on as well. Our write-now workshops, capped at 12, allow you to immerse yourself in the craft of writing without the pressure of preparing or reading manuscripts. Through daily reading, writing exercises, and prompts, you’ll write both in class and during the afternoon to generate new work over the course of each day, dedicating as much time as possible to your own new writing. In our tutorial (a new offering this year!), you will submit work in advance to your faculty mentor, and then meet one-on-one three times during the week in 30-minute sessions. You will get an individualized reading list and extensive writing prompts to help you continue your work throughout the week."

Interlochen Writer’s Retreat. June 9 - 14, 2024: Interlochen, Michigan. Nestled deep in the woods between two lakes, Interlochen College of Creative Arts' five-day Writers Retreat is a true writer's dream. Spend your days writing new material, attending presentations by award-winning faculty, and enjoying lakeside lunches and evening readings while making friends and connections in the literary world. Select your concentration from four unique courses, each grounded in different craft concepts  with an emphasis on generating new work—appealing to both advanced and beginning writers alike.

The Santa Barbara Writers Conference. June 9 – 14, 2024: Santa Barbara, Calif. "Every summer, writers in many genres from around the world gather to participate in a magical week of intensive work focused on story, voice, craft, marketing, and networking with fellow writers and publishing professionals."  

Juniper Summer Writing Institute. June 9 - 15, 2024: Amherst, MA. Daily workshops in poetry, fiction, & nonfiction; interactive craft sessions that include discussions & writing exercises; evening readings by faculty & writers-in-residence. Workshops and craft sessions are led by MFA candidates from the renowned University of Massachusetts MFA Program for Poets and Writers who design curricula especially for the Institute setting. 

Idyllwild Arts Summer Program for Children & Teens. June 9  - 15, 2024: Idyllwild, California. The Summer Program will offer workshops for all ages and abilities on our picturesque mountain campus. The tradition of gathering an impassioned community of artists during the summer months in Idyllwild dates back over seven decades and has served generations of musicians, painters, writers and performers in a variety of disciplines including dance and theatre. Join us in discovering the magic of an Idyllwild Arts summer, and explore your creativity in an inspiring setting with an enthusiastic community of students, faculty and staff. Residential options exist for adults and students aged 10 and up.

Naropa Summer Writing Program. June 9 - 29, 2024: Boulder, CO. Summer Writing Program of the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics at Naropa University. (See site for individual classes)

Writing and Illustrating for Young Readers. June 10 - 14, 2024: Draper, Utah. A week-long conference filled with hands-on workshops where the faculty work WITH you on your manuscript. As a participant of a five-day workshop, you get free feedback from an agent or editor on your writing, opportunities to network with like-minded writers, and five days of afternoon breakout sessions filled with dozens of craft-specific topics designed especially for kidlit authors.

Bread Loaf Environmental Writers' Conference. June 11 - 17, 2024: Ripton, VT. The Bread Loaf Orion Environmental Writers' Conference is a week-long writers’ conference designed to hone the skills of people interested in producing literary writing about the environment and the natural world. The conference is co-sponsored by the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, Orion magazine, and Middlebury College’s Environmental Studies Program. 

Bread Loaf Translators' Conference. June 11 - 17, 2024: Ripton, VT. The Bread Loaf Translators’ Conference includes workshops in poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction, as well as lectures, craft classes, meetings with editors and agents, and readings by faculty and guests. 

Sundress Academy for the Arts: From Selfie to Poetry: Writing the Self-Portrait Poem. June 12, 2024: Online. In this generative workshop, we will explore the self-portrait poem and what it means to explicitly make the self—as messy and resistant to definition as it is—the subject of our poems. We’ll take inspiration from visual arts as well as contemporary poetry to draft new work and expand our poetic selves.

Working Retreat: Spark Inspiration with Meditation and Creative Play. June 15 -18, 2024: Boyds Mills, PA. Join Kekla Magoon and Laurie Calkhoven for a retreat built to spark creativity through meditation and creative play, and then give you time to harness that spark in your own projects. 

Martha’s Vineyard Summer Writers’ Conference. June 16 - 21, 2024: Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts. "The Martha’s Vineyard Summer Writers’ Conference brings together writers from around the world with the central belief that we can all learn from one another.  Our program offers week-long classes on the craft of fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction, evening readings, panel discussions, and individualized manuscript sessions. Attendees study with award-winning Visiting Authors & Poets and celebrate writing on the beautiful island of Martha's Vineyard. For those interested in individualized feedback, we offer Manuscript Sessions with our Visiting Authors and Poets. These one-on-one sessions allow attendees to get individualized feedback on their works-in-progress as well as advice on how to seek publication."  

Orion Environmental Writers’ Workshop. June 16 - 21, 2024: The Omega Institute in Rhinebeck, New York. This program is for writers who want to learn how to write an Orion essay, short story, or poem; for writers who seek to become better advocates for the environment through their writing; for poets who are drawn to writing about nature and culture; for teachers and scholars who wish to write for a more general readership; and for environmental professionals who want to bring better writing skills to bear on their work. The program will feature small writing workshops dedicated to poetry, fiction, and nonfiction, as well as faculty readings and lectures, student readings, and presentations on publishing.

Kenyon Review Young Writers Workshops. June 16 – 21, 2024: Gambier, Ohio. At Kenyon Review Young Writers Workshops, talented high school students from around the world join a dynamic and supportive literary community to stretch their talents, discover new strengths, and challenge themselves in the company of peers who are also passionate about writing. Application deadline: April 15. Online.

Chesapeake Writers' Conference at St. Mary's College of Maryland. June 16 - 22, 2024: St. Mary's City, Maryland. "Join us on Maryland’s Western Shore-for the 8th Annual Chesapeake Writers’ Conference for a week of craft talks, lectures, panel discussions, and readings, as well as daily workshops in fiction, poetry, screenwriting, translation, songwriting, or creative nonfiction.

Novel-In-Progress Bookcamp & Speculative Fiction Writing Retreat. June 16 - 22, 2024: Racine, Wisconsin. The Bookcamp offers morning instruction, an afternoon editing clinic, group critique sessions, discussions on the current publishing industry, one-on-one consultations with our staff, pitch sessions with literary agents and acquisition editors, and presentations on writing or publishing topics. Separate tracks for speculative fiction, and all genres.

Christopher McKitterick Speculative Fiction Writing Workshop. June 16 - 28, 2024: Lawrence, Kansas. Learn how to write SF that sells. Using the short-story form, we help you master the elements that create great stories. Since 1985. This annual two-week residential writing workshop helps established writers grow their skills while helping those who have just begun to publish or who need the final bit of insight or skill to master the elements that create great stories readers love and editors want to buy. Become part of a writing community: Award-winning author, SF scholar, long-time director of James Gunn's original SF research center, and Ad Astra SF Institute Director Christopher McKitterick has led this workshop since 2010, and served as guest author in James Gunn's SF Writers Workshop starting in 1995. 

Clarion West Summer Writers Workshop. June 16 - July 27, 2024: Seattle, Washington. "The six-week workshop can give you time away from everyday distractions and encourage you to experiment and take artistic risks. The critique sessions are the heart of the workshop: you learn not only by receiving critiques, but by reading others’ work and constructing your own critiques. Instructors work directly with attendees to present group critiques of newly written stories, participate in discussions about writing techniques or professional concerns, and hold individual or small-group conferences. Throughout the entire experience, the Clarion West Workshop staff is present to help guide participants and facilitate an inclusive environment." Closed.

Fine Arts Work Center Summer Workshops (poetry, fiction, visual art, and creative nonfiction). June 16 - August 16, 2024: Provincetown, Massachusetts. "This year, we have lined up 65 extraordinary workshops in visual arts and creative writing over the course of nine weeks. We’ve brought together an outstanding group of instructors that includes many esteemed faculty members, along with many faces who are new to FAWC. We are confident that this dynamic combination of new and familiar faces will help create an inspiring atmosphere at FAWC that will invite students to take creative leaps." Housing is available at nearby guesthouses and inns; limited campus housing is available on a first-come, first-served basis. See individual workshops for dates.

Community of Writers at Squaw Valley: Poetry Workshop. June 17 - June 23, 2024: Olympic Valley, California. "We work together to create an atmosphere in which everyone might feel free to try anything. In the mornings we meet in workshops to read to each other the work of the previous twenty-four hours; each participant also has an opportunity to work with each staff poet. In the late afternoons we gather for a conversation about some aspect of craft. On several afternoons staff poets hold brief individual conferences." Registration deadline: March 10.

Kwame Alexander Writers’ Lab & Conference. June 18 - 21, 2024: Chautauqua, New York. In addition to opportunities to take two Master Classes with well-renown faculty writers in a selected genre track, attendees can also experience an opening and closing keynote address, featured speaker events, mix and mingle events with publishers and agents, and panel conversations. All these features are included in the cost of Standard Registration. 

Western Writers of America Convention. June 19 - 22, 2024: Tulsa, OK. Children's, Fiction, Marketing, Non-fiction, Publishing, Young Adult. History presentations at the convention include Cats in the Old West, Border Wars/Law and Order, Mark Twain Literary Contributions, and more. Other sessions will take place related to the craft of writing, book marketing, and research sources and techniques.

Working Retreat: Writing for the Educational Market. June 20 -23, 2024: Boyds Mills, PA. Are you currently writing for the educational market, or would you like to learn how to produce content for educational publishers? Join us to discuss the opportunities welcoming writers into this kid-centered market.

Mountain Heritage Literary Festival. June 21 - 22, 2024: Cumberland Gap, TN. "Every year writers gather at the ancient and beloved Cumberland Gap to celebrate writing, music, and Appalachian heritage. Events include workshops, panels, readings, concerts, lectures, open mic, and more." 

Orion Online Poetry Workshop. June 21 - August 2, 2024. Online. "The Storytelling Animal: Nature, Language, and Self . This will be a gathering of people who want to build trust: in one another, in the process of writing, and in the greater-than-human world. Together we will read and discuss ecopoems/ecopoetry, write poems (with optional prompts), and dedicate attention to one another’s work through writing workshop. Our workshop will be attentive—oriented toward quality and depth of discussion—in order to build the kind of trust and community that make for honesty and risk-taking in poems. Each participant will have the opportunity to sit down with the instructor one-on-one in the second half of the course to discuss their poems and/or topics of the class. Throughout the course, we will frame and question the roles of language in relationship to the greater-than-human world, and will attempt to reach through the poems to that world. The duration: This course meets over six Fridays from 1-4 pm ET,  June 21-August 2 (skipping the week of July 12). Application period: April 1-20. 

New York Pitch Conference. June 20 - 23, 2024: NY, NY. The New York Pitch Conference and writers workshop is held four times a year and features publishing house editors from major houses such as Penguin, Random House, St. Martins, Harper Collins, Tor and Del Rey, Kensington Books and many more who are looking for new novels in a variety of genres, as well as narrative non-fiction. The event focuses on the art of the novel pitch as the best method not only for communicating your work, but for having you and your work taken seriously by industry professionals.

Bookstock Literary Festival. June 21 - 23, 2024: Woodstock, Vermont. Expect 50+ speakers, author signings, live music, workshops, exhibits, special events and a huge tent sale of 10,000-12,000 used & rare books. All events and workshops are free and open to the public.

Writers' League of Texas. June 21-23, 2024: Austin, Texas. "The WLT’s Agents & Editors Conference is one of the nation’s premier conferences for writers. Every year, we bring together nationally-known literary agents and book editors and other industry professionals with writers at all stages of the writing process for a weekend of conversation and community around the craft of writing and the practical steps toward publication. For writers with finished manuscripts, the conference’s one-on-one consultations with agents and editors offer a unique opportunity to pitch their work directly to publishing professionals. For writers working toward a completed manuscript, the conference’s genre meet-ups, panels, presentations, and general sessions offer an abundance of useful information and a friendly, relaxed atmosphere for informal chats with agents, published authors, and fellow writers from all genres and backgrounds."

The 2024 Writing Workshop of Chicago. June 22, 2024: Chicago, IL. This is a special one-day “How to Get Published” writing workshop on Saturday, June 24, 2023, at the Congress Plaza Hotel. In other words, it’s one day full of classes and advice designed to give you the best instruction concerning how to get your writing & books published. We’ll discuss your publishing opportunities today, how to write queries & pitches, how to market yourself and your books, what makes an agent/editor stop reading your manuscript, and more. No matter what you’re writing — fiction or nonfiction — the day’s classes will help point you in the right direction. Writers of all genres are welcome.

Hedgebrook: Virtual Radical Craft Retreat with Claire Dederer. June 22 - 26, 2024: Whidbey Island, WA. "Radical Craft Retreats combine Hedgebrook's retreat experience with the unique opportunity to  study with an experienced and celebrated instructor. Participation in each class is limited, to ensure individual attention, and create an intimate, supportive writing community."

Working Retreat: Poetry and Poetry Anthologies. June 23 - 26, 2024: Boyds Mills,PA. Join us for this Working Retreat if you are a poet looking for inspiration and time to work; have a poetry collection in progress and want to get it submission-ready; would like to place your work in poetry anthologies; or want to learn more about opportunities in writing poetry for children.


Aspen Summer Words. June 23 - 28, 2024: Snowmass Village, Colorado. Workshops, panels, and readings in fiction and creative nonfiction, as well as opportunities to meet with agents and editors. "Aspen Summer Words is the Rocky Mountain gateway to the literary world. Recognized as one of the country’s pre-eminent literary conferences, Summer Words welcomes visitors and locals alike to celebrate writing and writers in Aspen for a week each June. The exceptional faculty and awe-inspiring mountain scenery combine to make this a writing retreat like no other."

New York State Summer Writers Institute at Skidmore College. June 23 - July 20, 2024: Saratoga Springs, NY. Since 1987, the Institute has been offering students the opportunity to learn from an extraordinary faculty of distinguished writers led by director Robert Boyers. The program is an offshoot of the New York State Writers Institute created by Albany native and Pulitzer Prize-winning author William Kennedy. The curriculum is designed for college-aged students and adults, and the new virtual format will retain many of the Institute’s hallmark features:Creative writing workshops in poetry, fiction and non-fictionSmall classes that offer individualized attention and workshop student writingsPublic readings and afternoon Q & A sessions with world-renowned guest writersPrivate tutorial sessions for student fiction manuscripts, book-length poetry, or non-fiction (available for an additional fee)Option to enroll for one-week, two-week, or four-week sessionsOptional undergraduate credit for eligible students enrolled in one genre for four weeksMerit Scholarships for tuition​
Kenyon Review Writers Workshops. June 24 - 29, 2024: Gambier, Ohio. Workshops in poetry, fiction, and nonfiction led by an accomplished faculty. Genre workshops (Fiction, Literary Nonfiction, and Poetry) are held for three hours each morning. Online. Applications close April 12, 2024.

Stonecoast Writers’ Conference. June 24 - 29, 2024, Portland, ME. "Your conference experience centers around the workshop. In these classes, your work (and the work of your peers) serves as the primary text. Faculty focus on providing constructive criticism that can help you unlock your writing. Class discussions provide opportunities to discuss theories and practical application of writing craft. Each instructor adapts their class to reflect the interest and abilities of the students. Generative writing exercises ensure that you’ll have threads of new work to follow after the conference ends. This summer we are offering two distinct workshop classes: Fiction and CNF/Memoir. Each workshop is limited to ten students.

Minnesota Northwoods Writers Conference. June 24 - 29, 2024: Bemidji, Minnesota. The Minnesota Northwoods Writers Conference is thrilled to announce our 2024 teaching writers: Kazim Ali (Hybrid Poetry & Prose), Nicky Beer (Poetry), Valerie Miner (Fiction), Lia Purpura (Creative Nonfiction), and Sun Yung Shin is offering a speculative nature writing workshop (Multi-genre). They will each offer an intensive four-day writing class beside the lake at Bemidji State. Danez Smith will be our Northwoods Visiting Writer.

Fordham University Retreat. June 26 - 30, 2024: New York City. "In order to help mentor the next generation of Asian American writers, Kundiman sponsors an annual Retreat in partnership with Fordham University. During the Retreat, nationally renowned Asian American poets and writers conduct Master Classes and manuscript consultations with fellows. Readings, writing circles and informal social gatherings are also scheduled. Through this Retreat, Kundiman hopes to provide a safe and instructive environment that identifies and addresses the unique challenges faced by emerging Asian American writers." 

David R Collins Conference Faculty & Workshops. June 27 - 29, 2024: Rock Island, IL. Daily workshops, critiques, pitches, evening events, keynote. 

In Your Write Mind Workshop. June 27 - 30, 2024: Greensburg, Pennsylvania. This is an annual, alumni-run writers workshop. It features writing-related classes, agent pitch sessions, a book signing, and other special events. Open to the public.

Chuckanut Writers Conference. June 28 - 29, 2024: Bellingham, Washington. Writers conference that includes speakers, panels, breakout sessions, authors' readings, reception with authors, pitch sessions with literary agents, book signings, open mic for attendees. Autobiography/Memoir, Children's, Fiction, Nature, Non-fiction, Poetry, Publishing. 

Colrain Classic. June 28 - July 1, 2024. "The Colrain Manuscript Classic is a highly focused, 3-day conference designed for poets with manuscripts in progress. The Classic features in-depth pre-conference work and candid, realistic evaluation and feedback from nationally-known poets, editors and publishers. In preparation, participants work at home on pre-conference assignments and then, in the workshop, review, arrange, and winnow their work based on the pre-conference work. In addition to the manuscript preparation workshop, manuscript workshop and editorial sessions, there will be an editorial Q&A, and an after-conference strategy session." On Zoom.

9 Established Agents Actively Seeking Kidlit, Historical Fiction, Genre Fiction, Narrative Nonfiction, Memoir and more

Sabhbh Curran Here are nine established literary agents actively seeking clients. All of them work with respected literary agencies and have good track records. They are looking for all genres of fiction as well as nonfiction.

Always check the agency website and agent bio before submitting. Agents can switch agencies or close their lists, and submission requirements can change. 

NOTE: Don't submit to several agents at the same agency simultaneously. If one rejects you, you may then submit to another. (Some small agencies share. Be alert to a notice that "a no from one is a no from all.")

You can find a full list of agents actively seeking new clients here: Agents Seeking Clients. 
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Ms. Sabhbh Curran of Curtis Brown Group, Ltd. (UK)

Before joining Curtis Brown in 2018, I was the Literary Assistant at Sheil Land Associates. Prior to that I studied for a Masters in Renaissance literature at Cambridge. 

What she is seeking: In non-fiction, I’m particularly keen to hear from chefs, mixologists and food writers but I am also interested in narrative non-fiction, history, travel writing, current affairs, popular science, psychology, MBS, fashion and popular culture. I would like to hear from non-fiction writers, journalists and activists. I have a real soft spot for anything related to art or art history, whatever the genre.

In fiction, what I look for is well-crafted and stylish prose, complex characterisations and probably at least a hint of darkness: obsessive friendships and relationships; loneliness; trauma; dysfunctional families; the strangeness of urban life. I’m also drawn to beautifully written, researched and evoked historical fiction.

How to submit: Please email a short synopsis and a three-chapter excerpt for fiction, or a concise proposal for non-fiction to sabhbh.curran@curtisbrown.co.uk.
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Zoe Sandler of Sanford J. Greenburger Associates

Prior to joining SJGA, Zoe spent over 11 years at ICM (now CAA), first as a royalties assistant, then after apprenticing with a literary agent, she began representing her own author clients. She started her career in publishing at an academic press in North Carolina after graduating from McGill University with a joint BA in English Literature and Hispanic Studies. Born in England, raised in California, Zoe is delighted to call New York home, where she and her family split their time between Upper Manhattan and the Catskills.

What she is seeking: Zoe represents a mix of adult fiction that could be classified as commercial yet unconventional (she especially loves when a novel takes her by surprise), and narrative nonfiction largely by female journalists who specialize in fields such as science, the environment, medicine, and untold women's history. Within children's, Zoe specializes in voice-driven middle grade that leans more literary, and the occasional picture book, especially those that have a strong message.

How to submit: To submit your work: please email zsandler@sjga.com
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Ms. Monica MacSwan of Aitken Alexander Associates (UK)

I started my career in publishing at Felicity Bryan Associates and Profile Books, and then went on to work in translation rights at United Agents and Aitken Alexander. Since 2020, I’ve worked in the books department as Emma Paterson’s assistant, as well as previously with Chris Wellbelove too. In my role, I have worked alongside them editorially on their books, including Assembly by Natasha Brown and Hungry Ghosts by Kevin Jared Hosein.

What she is seeking: In fiction, I’m drawn to tightly-plotted literary novels that have a clear intent and a command of form, such as Anna Burns’ Milkman, Jennifer Egan’s A Visit from the Goon Squad, Blindness by José Saramago or any book by Tayari Jones, Emily St John Mandel, Brit Bennett or Yaa Gyasi. I also admire novels that are funny and use wit to make sense of their frustrations with the world like Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters, The Topeka School by Ben Lerner, Happy Hour by Marlowe Granados, Chilean Poet by Alejandro Zambra and Fuccboi by Sean Thor Conroe.

In non-fiction, I like to read books by academics, critics and journalists who want to shift public discourse by putting forward a new framework for their subject of expertise. Good examples are Putin’s People by Catherine Belton, The Spirit Level by Richard G. Wilkinson and Kate Pickett, Empire of Pain by Patrick Radden Keefe, Revolting Prostitutes by Molly Smith and Juno Mac, The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel Van der Kolk and The Windrush Betrayal by Amelia Gentleman. I also enjoy reading non-fiction that mines the uniquely personal to reflect on much larger structures of power, such as In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado, Minor Feelings by Cathy Park Hong, Free by Lea Ypi and Afropean by Johny Pitts. 
​
How to submit: Please follow submission guidelines HERE.
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Ms. Gaia Banks of Sheil Land Associates Ltd

I’ve worked in publishing for over 20 years: in translation rights at John Murray, then joining Sheil Land as an agent in 2004. For 17 years I looked after the translation interests of Sheil Land Associates' extensive and varied list of authors, and also acted as a primary agent. I became a primary agent full-time at the start of 2022. I take on one or two new writers a year, and when doing so look for projects with wide international appeal. 

Clients include; Neil Chapman, MacKenzie Common, Catherine cooper, Rachel Elliott, Michelle Frances, Jane Fraser, Kate Goldbeck, Janice Hallett, Felicity Hayes-McCoy, Charlie Hodges, Ann Featherstone, Julia Lee, Cas Lester, Robert J Lloyd, Jane Lythell, The Brothers McLeod, Paterson Joseph, Robert Rigby, Catherine Robertson, Eva Schloss, Sarah Sigal, Julie Soto, Fenella Smith, Sarah Steele, Laura Summers and Sue Teddern.

What she is seeking: I represent writing across the spectrum of fiction and non-fiction: at the moment I'm particularity interested in fiction and memoir which will ignite reading group discussions, and I'll always have a soft spot for a good romance.

How to submit: All book submissions should be sent via email to submissions@sheilland.co.uk. See details HERE. 
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​Mr. Piers Blofeld of Sheil Land Associates Ltd (UK)

I am a literary agent based in London with a wide range of clients writing fiction and non-fiction, literary and commercial. I am also a columnist for Writing Magazine, for a better sense of who I am check out my youtube channel.
Clients include Nadine Dorries, Professor Sir Graham Thorneycroft, Mungi Ngomane, Pizza Express, Cate Quinn, Paul Magrs, Tanya Sarne, Ingrid Seward, Robert Verkaik, The Secret Accountant, Charlie Hertzog Young, Jamie Thomson, Peter Stanford, the Rev'd Rachel Mann, Macer Gifford, Francesco Dimitri, Geraint Anderson and many others.

What he is seeking: Fiction: In fiction my first love is story. I love really strong commercial genre fiction that understands the expectations of the genre and delivers that in spades. In particular I love a good noir-ish thriller, spy fiction, gritty crime but also saga, romance and romantic comedy. At the less genre, more reading group end of the market, I love stories that take me out of myself and feel like something I have never read before.

Non-fiction: In non-fiction I am looking for strong narrative voices in memoir and history that help connect and root us to the world we live in as well a big ideas and smart thinking to make us feel less confused about the extraordinary times we live in.

How to submit: All book submissions should be sent via email to submissions@sheilland.co.uk. See details HERE.  
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Alex Kane of William Morris Endeavor

Alex joined WME in 2017. He represents bestselling and award-winning nonfiction and fiction. His clients have been published in The New Yorker, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Guardian, New York Magazine, The Paris Review, Harper’s, n+1, and The Baffler among others. He is based in Los Angeles.

What he is seeking: Nonfiction and fiction, and he is especially drawn to stories that have a strong social or political conscience.

How to submit: To query Alex with fiction, please send your query letter (including a bio) and the first ten pages of your manuscript in the body of the email. For nonfiction, please send your query letter. See his bio for contact information.
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Mr. Charlie Brotherstone of Aevitas Creative Management 

Charlie founded BCM in 2017 after working closely with Ed Victor, where he ran the film/tv and speakers departments as well expanding the roster of authors he’d been building at A.M Heath. Charlie’s list includes many New York Times and Sunday Times bestsellers, from musicians and celebrities to political scientists and food writers. As well as being an NYT bestseller, Joanne Molinaro’s The Korean Vegan Cookbook also won a James Beard Award, with fellow agency author Hannah Che’s The Chinese Vegan Kitchen winning in the same category the following year. Other clients include Farah Karim-Cooper, author of The Great White Bard (Viking US; Oneworld UK), screenwriter and novelist Nathan Newman (Viking US; Little, Brown UK), Stephen Bayley, Dan Hicks, George the Poet and Jessie Ware.

What he is seeking: Charlie Brotherstone represents adult fiction and nonfiction.

How to submit: Use his querymanager HERE.

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Ms. Ariella Feiner of United Agents, LLP (UK)

I started working at PFD in 2006 before moving to United Agents, and I now represent many bestselling, critically acclaimed, and award-winning authors across fiction and non-fiction, including Sunday Times bestsellers, Richard and Judy book club picks, and New York Times bestselling authors. In 2017, The Bookseller named me as a Rising Star.

I am always open to submissions and have found many hugely exciting authors that way. I adore the rush of being the first to discover new voices and the strategy of working with authors to shape their careers in the long-term.

What she is seeking: In fiction, do send me books with an exciting or unusual hook, an unexpected voice, uplifting novels which will make readers feel good in these uncertain times, those with a speculative or magical element, multi-generational novels, book club titles which explore big issues or have memorable characters at their heart, or where secrets come to the fore, stand-out twisty thrillers and crime novels including cosy crime. I would also love an epic tale such as Great Circle, historical fiction which reflects something of the world we live in now and a love story or commercial romance with a memorable concept or stand-out writing. I am very much on the lookout for more diverse voices and books which open conversations around important topics.

Recent fiction I've adored includes The Maid, Wrong Place Wrong Time, Great Circle, The Vanishing Half, Notes on an Execution, The List of Suspicious Things, Happy Place, Girl A, Lessons in Chemistry, How to Kill Your Family, Weyward, Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, the Ruth Galloway series and everything by Taylor Jenkins-Reid.

Please do not send me sci-fi, YA, erotica, conspiracy thrillers or spy / army novels.

On the non-fiction front, do be in touch with exciting proposals showcasing expert-led ideas (such as Ultra-Processed People or Entangled Life), narrative memoir, nature writing, mouth-watering cook books and books with ground-breaking or unusual historical insights. Non-fiction which has stayed with me includes English Pastoral, Wild, Educated, Somebody I Used to Know, Wilding, The Salt Path and I Am Not Your Baby Mother.

How to submit: For submissions please email a synopsis together with either the first three chapters of a novel or a proposal for a non-fiction book to afeiner@unitedagents.co.uk.
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Sophie Scard of United Agents, LLP (UK)

Sophie Scard worked in Rights at Penguin Books before joining United Agents in 2013. 

What she is seeking: She is actively building her client list, and is looking for excellent writing of all types, fiction or nonfiction. 
​
How to submit: For submissions please email a brief cover letter along with a biographical note and the first 10,000 words of your text to SScard@unitedagents.co.uk

6 New Agents Seeking Kidlit, YA, SFF, Literary Fiction, Nonfiction, Romance, LGBTQ and more

Rachel Goldblatt Here are six new literary agents actively seeking clients. New agents are a boon to writers. They are actively building their lists, and will go the extra mile for their clients.

All of these agents work for established agencies with good track records. They are looking for all genres.

Always check the agency website and agent bio before submitting. Agents can switch agencies or close their lists, and submission requirements can change. 

NOTE: Don't submit to several agents at the same agency simultaneously. If one rejects you, you may then submit to another. (Some small agencies share. Be alert to a notice that "a no from one is a no from all.")

You can find a full list of agents actively seeking new clients here: Agents Seeking Clients. 
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Ms. Rachel Goldblatt of Curtis Brown Group, Ltd. (UK)

I joined Curtis Brown in 2022 and am now an Associate Agent. I assist Jonathan Lloyd and am also actively building my own list. I am open to submissions and eager to find new writers. Working editorially with authors is one of my very favourite parts of the job and I am keen to hear from debut novelists.

What she is seeking: In terms of fiction, I’m particularly drawn to character and voice driven narratives that make me feel deeply and think hard about the world around us. If the writing is compelling, agile, atmospheric and intelligent I can fall for any kind of story, but I especially enjoy those that have a strong sense of time and place, are clear and bold in their intent and style and that interrogate what it means to be human. I love books that explore complicated or outsider characters, complex family dynamics, the domestic space, modern life, relationships in all forms, identity and the female experience. 

I want to read absorbing narrative non-fiction that challenges and broadens our perspective and offers a fresh take on or new approach to big subjects. I am especially drawn to literary biography and criticism as well as books about nature, art, history and contemporary social issues, and I'm always interested in extraordinary stories about real people or events. 

How to submit: If you would like to submit your work to me, please email rachel.goldblatt@curtisbrown.co.uk with your covering letter and a sample of your work (a synopsis and the first 10,000 words/three chapters of a novel or your non-fiction proposal).
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Davinia Andrew-Lynch of Curtis Brown Group, Ltd. (UK)

Prior to CB, I founded and ran boutique agency Andlyn and was formerly a film/TV agent. I also co-founded, in conjunction with Faber Children's, the FAB Prize which aims to discover unpublished children's writers and illustrators from Black and Ethnic Minority backgrounds (www.fabprize.org) 

A complete 90s child with a love of film and TV, I’ve been shaped by the storytelling of the time - big, bold and pacy but with characters you can't help but love.  I’m looking for stories that smack you between the eyes, capture your heart, make you laugh (no matter the story or genre) and genuinely reflect the world in which we live. Above all, I want to give writers and illustrators the space to tell the stories that they want to tell.

What she is seeking: I represent children’s/YA writers and illustrators across the genres, and a growing list of commercial adult fiction. 

How to submit: dalsubmissions@curtisbrown.co.uk
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James Farrell of Curtis Brown, Ltd.

James Farrell received a bachelor’s degree from Colorado College and a master’s degree from Bath Spa University. 

What he is seeking: His reading interests include literary and upmarket adult fiction, non-fiction, and, on occasion, science fiction. He is open to submission as an associate agent, especially seeking voices from underrepresented backgrounds.

How to submit: Please direct queries to jtf@cbltd.com with the first fifty pages of your manuscript or a full proposal in the body of your email, and include the title, genre, and “jtf query” in the subject line.
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Francesca Ali of William Morris Endeavor

Francesca joined WME in 2019 and is based in the London office. She sells UK rights for WME’s incredible array of US-based authors and is actively searching for new clients for her own list. She is editorially focussed and has a passion for working alongside authors from the conception of their idea to the final manuscript. 

What she is seeking: In fiction, Francesca is primarily interested in science-fiction, fantasy, and speculative works but is also looking for graphic novels, Young Adult, and Middle Grade titles. She enjoys a project with an expansive world that prioritises character at heart and leans literary in tone. Romance is a plus but should not be the driving factor of the narrative. High on her list is science-fiction that plays with form and takes the genre in new directions (like This Is How You Lose The Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone and The Surviving Sky by Kritika H. Rao). Any fantasy that will need a map at the front of the book and a glossary at the back will be immediately captivating! 
For Childrens’, she is looking for adventures that explore themes of growing up, and the ‘greyness’ of morality and villains. There always has to be an element of magic, whether in a fantastical or contemporary setting, but the less classroom antics the better. 

In non-fiction, Francesca is drawn to queer and neurodivergent stories, works that reframe historical narratives, and illustrated memoir. She is looking for writing that weaves the wider exploration of a subject with a personal and intimate lense.

How to submit: Follow submission guidelines HERE.
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Morgan Wilson of Belcastro Agency

Morgan’s love for writing and books and was fostered from an early age by a grandmother that wrote them bedtime stories and taught them how to write poetry. As they grew this love evolved into devouring books faster than their bookshelves could keep up and writing their own stories in magical kingdoms galaxies away. With over a decade of work in classrooms across the Midwest, Morgan wants to uplift the stories that their students needed so that everyone can see themselves on the page using magic, finding love and defeating the bad guy. They are dedicated to being an agent for change in the publishing industry and working with marginalized voices so that every child and adult can experience the joy of a book that speaks to them.

What they are seeking: I am dedicated to supporting marginalized voices and focused on increasing the representation of those voices in the publishing industry. I am only open to receiving work from authors who are BIPOC, LGBTQ+, ND, and/or DIS. Please note that I will not ask you to disclose your marginalization unless you feel comfortable doing so.

 I am open to the following age groups and genres:

In Both Adult and YA I am Looking For:
Fantasy: I am more interested in stories that break conventional western methods, however I am open to western stories written by historically marginalized voices.

I love most subgenres but in Adult my preferences lean towards cozy fantasy like Travis Baldree or Delemhach, blends like sci fantasy, romantasy or fantasy with horror elements and contemporary/urban fantasy like Whitney Hill.
I would also love to see queernorm fantasy worlds and accessible fantasies!

For YA Fantasy I would love to see more retellings, cozy fantasy and blends like sci fantasy and romantasy, or stories with strong horror elements.

I am not the best fit for epic fantasy at this time in either age category.

Science Fiction: I am more interested in stories that contain hard science, or extrapolations on current science. I love stories set in space or involve space travel, cli-fi, are blended with horror or set after an apocalypse. I would love some science fiction horror in the vein of Mira Grant.

Horror: I am interested in almost all forms of horror, but am not the best fit for hauntings or ghosts. I love monsters and sentient forests/waters/natural settings and things that are more psychological than physical.

Romantasy: I am most interested in sapphic romantasy or ones that involve trans/nonbinary MCs or LIs. I would love a YA version of Trial of the Sun Queen by Nisha J Tuli!

MG:
Fantasy I love all things fantasy with middle grade but would love to see dragons and other magical creatures set in our world, witches and magical schools with diverse casts!

Horror: I love all things horror in middle grade, but would especially love haunted houses/schools, monster hunting and sentient natural settings!

Graphic Novels: I am also open to graphic novels especially if they are fantasy, science fiction or horror. Some of my recent favorites have been Lore Olympus and Mooncakes and I love manga-inspired art, but am not a good fit for noir art styles.

How to submit: Use their querymanager HERE. (Opens to submissions the first week of every month)
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Thais Afonso of Jennifer Azantian Literary Agency

​Thais is an Associate Agent with Azantian Literary Agency. Thais has eight years of experience in publishing between Brazil, China, and the United States. More recently, she interned at Writers House, where she honed her skills while supporting the desks of Amy Berkower and Johanna Castillo, and she was mentored by Jennifer Azantian before stepping up to the Associate Agent role at ALA. She intends to represent marginalized authors, and she's especially seeking to uplift BIPOC born and raised in the Global South. An Afro-Brazlian lesbian, Thais currently lives and works out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She helps care for her grandmother when she's not editing books and she's one of those terrible people who calls the gym her hobby (even though she currently doesn't go).

What she is seeking: In Adult Fiction, Thais is looking to represent Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Horror, Contemporary Romance, and Suspense/Thrillers. In YA, she's currently open to Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Horror, and Supernatural Mysteries/Thrillers. She's predominantly interested in anything with a speculative bent. She's also especially keen on championing Queer voices in this space, especially BIPOC Queer voices. She does love Romantasy in YA and she welcomes all of it.

How to submit: Use her querymanager HERE.

85 Calls for Submissions in May 2024 - Paying markets

GoodFon This May there are more than seven dozen calls for submissions. All of these are paying markets, and none charge submission fees. As always, every genre, style, and form is wanted, from short stories to poetry to essays.

​I post upcoming calls for submissions shortly before the first day of every month. But as I am collecting them, I post them on my page, Calls for Submissions. You can get a jump on next month's calls for submissions by checking that page periodically throughout the month. (I only post paying markets.)

Also see Paying Markets for hundreds of paying markets arranged by form and genre.
Happy submitting!

________________


Cincinnati Review. Genre: Prose, poetry, art. Payment: $25/page for prose in journal. $30/page for poetry in journal. Deadline: Opens on May 1, closes when cap is reached.

Flash Fiction Online. Genre: Flash fiction, reprints only. Payment: $100. Deadline: Opens May 1, 2024.

Flash Fiction Online. Genre: Flash fiction. Theme: Rural Fantasy. Payment: $100. Deadline: Opens May 1, 2024.

Grumpy Old Gods Anthology: Grumpy Old Sherwood Genre: Speculative fiction stories. Theme: Robin Hood. "It’s open season on storytelling.  It means you can take whatever bits you like best of thousands of available tales, and twist and turn them however you like." Length: 3,000-4,000 words. Payment: A percentage of the profits. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

december magazine. Genre: Poetry, fiction, and creative non-fiction (essays, memoirs, biography, literary journalism, social or cultural commentary or analysis) and visual art that can be reproduced in our print format. Payment: $10.00 per page with a minimum of $40.00 and a maximum of $200.00. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

Bright Wall/Dark Room. Genre: Essay on theme: Spike Lee. "For our month of Lee, we’re seeking essays and voices tackling any and all of his films, his performances, his writings, his impact on cinema and culture.” Payment: $100. Deadline: May 1, 2024. 

Everyday Heroes. Genre: Contemporary Fiction. "In Honor of Mark Christopher Wagner the 2nd, we are looking for compelling and heartfelt stories centered around those who serve their communities. Stories of Firefighters, First responders, Law Enforcement, etc. Those Everyday Heroes who make a difference in the lives of their communities." Payment: Royalties. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

Vilas Avenue. Genre: Poetry on theme of “Impermanence." Payment: $25. Deadline: May 1, 2024.


LONG DIVISION: Stories of Social Decay, Societal Collapse, and Bad Manners. Genre: Stories of transgression, of the mechanisms behind what’s fraying the bonds that bind us. Payment: 10c/word for original short fiction (up to 5,000 words). Deadline: Opens on May 1, closes when cap is reached.

Cutleaf. Genre: Fiction. Length: Less than 6,000 words. Payment: $100 to $400. Deadline: May 1, 2024.
The Bombay Literary Magazine. Genre: Fiction, poetry, translated fiction/poetry and graphic fiction. Payment: Indian rupees 5,000 (approx. $61) per contribution. Deadline: Opens on May 1, 2024.

The First Line. Genre: Fiction, poetry, nonfiction using the first line provided. (See site.) Payment: $25.00 - $50.00 for fiction, $10.00 for poetry, and $25.00 for nonfiction. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

Seven Story Hotel. Genre: Interviews, essays, stories, poems, and artwork. 7SH explores the weird, esoteric, and outsider fringes of contemporary culture, art, and technology. Payment: $35. Deadline: May 1, 2024. or until filled. 

Caretaker Press: Back Into The Ground. Genre: Horror. “For the purposes of Back Into The Ground we seek spooky stories inspired by place, specifically, our home, the Pacific Northwest." Payment: $40. Open until filled. 

Whisper House Press: Costs of Living. Genre: Horror. Length: 500-4,000 words. See theme. Payment: $25. Open until filled.

Vault of Shadows. Genre: Short horror, weird, dark fiction between 3000 and 7500 words (not really a firm limit - the final product will be the comics script, not the short story), that can be adapted into a comic book script of 12 pages or less. Payment: $35 per page of the adapted script, up to 12 pages, paid via PayPal, and a print copy of the issue. Deadline: Extended submission window exclusively for LGBTQIA+, BIPOC, neurodivergent, and other marginalized writers open April 16 - May 1, 2024.

Last Girls Club. Genre: Feminist horror: short stories and poems - see themes. Payment: Fiction, 15 cents/word. Poetry, $10. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

Spellbinder: Genre: Poetry, fiction, nonfiction, drama, art. Payment: £3. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

Foglifter. Genre: Foglifter is a biannual compendium of  queer and trans writing. It’s a space where LGBTQ+ writers celebrate, mourn, rage, and embrace. "Foglifter welcomes daring and thoughtful work by queer and trans writers in all forms, and we are especially interested in cross-genre, intersectional, marginal, and transgressive work. We want the pieces that challenged you as a writer, what you poured yourself into and risked the most to make. But we also want your tenderest, gentlest work, what you hold closest to your heart. Whatever you're working on now that's keeping you alive and writing, Foglifter wants to read it." Payment: $25. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

Cosmic Roots and Eldritch Shores. Genre: Speculative stories. Payment: 8 cents/word for original work. 2 cents/word for reprints. Deadline: May 2, 2024. Opens May 1.

Havok. Genre: Flash fiction. See themes. Payment: $50 via PayPal for each story selected for an Anthology. No payment for online publication. Deadline: May 3, 2024.

Pride Magazine: Infinite Horizons. Restrictions: Open to 2SLGBTQAI+ writers from across Canada. Genre: Short articles (300-600 words), and features (900-1,300 words). See theme. Payment: CAD 0.60/word. Deadline: May 4, 2024. Pitches only.

The Suburban Review. Genre: Prose, art, poetry on theme: Meet Cute. Payment: AUD150-275 for prose; AUD125-275 for poetry. Deadline: May 5, 2024.


Eggplant Emoji is an annual comedy publication. Genre: Eggplant Emoji Volume 3 will be a print and eBook collection of hilarious short stories that are character-driven and culturally striking. Stories selected for this anthology will define pop culture with unforgettable characters, outrageous situations, and riotous humor. Length: 1,000 – 7,000 words. Payment: $25. Deadline: May 6, 2024.
Unnerving Books. Genre: Horror. Length: 6,000-11,000 words. Payment: 1 cent/word. Deadline: May 6, 2024. 


Geist. Restrictions: Canadian connection required. Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, art. Payment: $100 - $1000. Deadline: May 6, 2024. Geist offers no-fee general submissions for Black writers, Indigenous writers, and writers of color.

Hexagon. Genre: Speculative fiction short stories, flash fiction, poetry, graphic stories, and visual art, in English or French. Payment: $5 for accepted poetry and cartoons, 0.01$ per word for all short stories up to 7,500 words, $40/page for comics and $150 for cover art pieces. (Payment in CAD). Deadline: May 7, 2024. 

Abyss and Apex. Genre: Speculative fiction. No horror. Payment: USD $.08/word (eight cents a word) up to 1,000 words, and a flat payment of $80.00 for longer stories. Deadline: May 7, 2024.

Stone's Throw. Genre: Noir, dark fiction, crime short stories. Length: between 1,000 and 2,000 words. See theme. Payment: $25. Deadline: May 7, 2024. 

Island Magazine. Restrictions: Open to Australian and New Zealand citizens and residents only. Genre: Fiction. Payment: 40 cents per word for print fiction, with a minimum of $700 and a maximum of $1500 and $200 per page, with a maximum of 6 pages for graphic narratives. Deadline: May 8, 2024.

Cursed Cooking: A Horror Community Cookbook and Food Horror Anthology. Restrictions: Extended submission window exclusively for writers of color, members of the LGBTQ+ community, and other underrepresented groups: May 1 - May 10, 2024. Genre: Horror on theme: Food. Payment: 5 cents per word for original fiction works and 1 cent per word for reprints. Accepted recipe submissions will receive $5. Deadline: May 10, 2024. Reprints accepted.

Cordite. Genre: Poetry. Payment: Not specified. Payment is available for Australian contributors only. Deadline: May 12, 2024. 

Shooter. Genre: Fiction, poetry, CNF, art on theme of Nightlife. Payment: £25 per story and £5 per poem. Deadline: May 12, 2024.

Going Down Swinging. Restrictions: Open to writers in Oceania. Genre: Long short stories, mini-manifesto, chapbook collections, essays. Length: 6,000 - 10,000 words. Payment: $600. Deadline: May 13, 2024.

Island Magazine. Restrictions: Open to Australian and New Zealand citizens and residents only. Genre: Poetry. Payment: $175 per poem. Deadline: May 13, 2024.

Georgia Review. Genre: Fiction, poetry, non-fiction. Payment: $50 per printed page for prose and $4 per line for poetry. Essay-reviews and standard reviews earn honoraria of $50/printed page. Deadline: May 14, 2024. Fee to submit online; no fee for postal submissions.

A Velvet Giant. Genre: "We are open to work that takes the shape of basically any format: words, recordings, visual art, hybrid forms, etc. We are open to translated original work." Payment: $20. Deadline: May 14, 2024. 

Philly Poetry Chapbook Review. Genre: Reviews of chapbooks coming soon or published in the past three years, essays on the crafts of poetry and chapbook making or publishing, and features about authors or publishers of chapbooks. Payment: $10. Deadline: May 15, 2024.

Reader Beware. Genre: Horror. Payment: $0.01/word for fiction, $0.05/line for poetry, $5/page for comics. Deadline: May 15, 2024.

100-Foot Crow. Genre: Speculative fiction drabbles. Payment: 8 cents/word. Deadline: May 15, 2024.

Talk Vomit. Genre: Non-fiction under 4,000 words, fiction under 2,000, and poetry just generally kept to a minimum. Payment: Fiction and nonfiction run in the $10-30 range; poetry in the $5-15 range. Deadline: May 15, 2024.

Eat the Rich Anthology. Restrictions: Deadline extended for BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, chronically-ill/disabled, and writers from other historically marginalized groups. Genre: Speculative fiction about billionaires being eaten. Payment: $.05 per word and a paperback. Deadline: May 15, 2024.

Root Quarterly. Restrictions: RQ is a quarterly print-only journal of art and ideas from Philadelphia. Genre: Nonfiction, art. "We are publishing RQ in part because we’d like to promote regional arts and culture, makers, and entrepreneurs, be part of the national discourse on important issues, build a community of thoughtful people, and reclaim discourse from the highly-politicized, rage-stoking space of social media." See theme. Payment: $25 - $100 depending on the piece and its length. Deadline: May 15, 2024. Pitches only. 

The Lorelei Signal. Genre: Fantasy short stories, flash fiction, and poetry with strong female characters. Payment: $15 for short stories, $5 for poems and flash (<1000 wds) fiction pieces, $5 for reprints. Deadline: May 15, 2024. Accepts reprints.

Honeyguide Magazine is a bi-annual magazine that features fiction, poetry, nonfiction, art, and blog posts about animals and their human neighbors. Payment: $25 for the story, $50 for art. Only pays for featured articles. Deadline: May 15, 2024. See themes.

Archive of the Odd. Genre: Speculative fiction, horror preferred. “Archive of the Odd is a zine of uncanny occurrences, told in even stranger ways.” They’d like a variety of time periods. Stories can be in any format, except traditional prose. Some of the suggested formats are: academic papers; technical writing; medication warning sheets; sales papers; newspaper articles; recipes; knitting/crochet/weaving/what-have-you guides; care guides (plant, animal, rock garden, etc); or any other unusual format. Submissions do not have to be entirely in text. Payment: $15-$25 for fiction of 500-5,000+ words. Deadline: May 15, 2024.

Fourteen Poems Genre: Poems. "We want to represent all that's thrilling about the new wave of LGBT+ poets. If you’re a poet, even if you’ve never been published before, we want to read your work. Every issue we publish 14 of the best queer poems we’ve found, and we want to include you! We publish 4 times a year, but take submissions all year round. To be considered, email up to 5 poems, preferably in a pdf format, with a small paragraph about yourself to hello@14poems.com." Payment: £25 for each poem published. Deadline: May 15, 2024.

Subterrain. Genre: Creative nonfiction, commentary, fiction and poetry. See theme. Payment: Poetry: $50 per poem; Prose: $.10 per word (to a maximum of $500). Deadline: May 15, 2024. No fee if submitted by mail. Journal is located in Canada.

Brilliant Flash Fiction. Genre: Flash fiction stories of 300 words or less on the subject of Tenacity. Payment: $20. Deadline: May 15, 2024. 

Diet Milk: Gothic. Genre: Gothic fiction, poetry, and art. See theme. Payment: $0.01/word for fiction (minimum $40); $15/poem; $50/art piece. Deadline: May 15, 2024. 
Luna Station Quarterly. Restrictions: Open to women writers only. Genre: Speculative fiction. Payment: $5. Deadline: May 15, 2024. Some reprints accepted.

khōréō. Restrictions: Open to writers who identify as an immigrant or member of a diaspora in the broadest definitions of the terms. "This includes, but is not limited to, first- and second-generation immigrants, refugees, asylum seekers, undocumented migrants, persons who identify with one or more diaspora communities, persons who have been displaced or whose heritage has been erased due to colonialism/imperialism, transnational/transracial adoptees, and anyone whose heritage and history includes ‘here and elsewhere’. We especially encourage BIPOC creators who identify as the above to submit their work." Genre: Stories, essays, and art: fantasy, sci-fi, horror, and any genre in between or around it, as long as there’s a speculative element. Payment: 0.08/word for fiction, $100 for nonfiction, and $40-300 for art. Deadline: May 15, 2024.

GreenPrints. Genre: Personal essays about gardening. “Calling all experienced gardening writers—we seek gardening stories that are true and personal, expressive and thoughtful, and humorous and witty. We focus on the human, not the how-to, side of gardening, so your story should be entertaining, moving, unexpected, touching, and funny—a heartfelt story you would tell a friend or family member.” Payment: Up to $100 (?). Deadline: May 17, 2024.

Solarpunk Micro Mini. Genre: Solarpunk micro fiction, 250 words max. Payment: $25. Deadline: May 21, 2024.

Off Topic Publishing: Poetry Box. Genre: Poetry. Payment $30 CAD.  Deadline: May 25, 2024. This is a monthly call.

The Stinging Fly. Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, poetry. Payment: Fiction and nonfiction: €30 per magazine page; Poetry: €50 per poem; Featured Poet: €250. Deadline: May 29, 2024.

A Killing at the Copa Anthology. Genre: Crime fiction. "Barry Manilow created a crime story of his own in his hit song Copacabana, and now we look to provide the same treatment to his many other hits." Payment: $25. Deadline: May 30, 2024.

Kweli Journal. "Kweli is the first online journal of its kind to celebrate community and cultural kinships. In this shared space, you will hear the lived experience of people of color. Our many stories. Our shared histories. Our creative play with language. Here our memories are wrapped inside the music of the Muscogee, the blues songs of the South, the clipped patois of the Caribbean." Genre: Self-contained novel excerpt, short story, or creative non-fiction piece, poetry. Length: No more than 7,000 words. Payment: "Upon publication." Deadline: May 30, 2024.


Dragon Soul Press: Apocalypse. Genre: "All apocalyptic stories are welcome. All genres are accepted." Payment: Royalties. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

Olit. Restrictions: Strong preference for Orlando based writers/submissions about Orlando and surrounding areas. Genre: Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, Hybrid, Artwork, Photography. "Send us all kinds of stuff. We love the artfully weird." Payment: $10. Deadline: May 31, 2024.


Broken Sleep Books. (UK) Genre: Poetry pamphlets (up to 40 pages). Payment: Royalties. Deadline: May 31, 2024.


The Robots Were Right: Tales of Unstoppable Technology. Genre: Tales of technology gone right, wrong, and everything in between. Length: 500 – 5000 words. Payment: 5 cents/word. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

Black Lawrence Immigrant Writing Series. Restrictions: Open to any individual living in the U.S. who identifies as an immigrant and who either (i) was born in another country, (ii) has at least one parent who was born in another country (iii) is a refugee, or (iv) lives in the United States under Asylum or a Protection Program, such as TPS or DACA. Genre: Books of poetry, prose (fiction or nonfiction), and hybrid texts of poetry and prose. Payment: In addition to publication, marketing, and a standard royalties contract from Black Lawrence Press, authors chosen for the Black Lawrence Immigrant Writing Series will receive a travel stipend of $500, which can be used for book tours or in any manner chosen by the authors. Deadline: May 31, 2024

JMS Books. Genre: LGBTQ romance stories, 12,000 words minimum. See theme. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

AGNI. Genre: Poetry and prose. Payment: $10 per printed (or printed-out) page for accepted prose, and $20 per page for accepted poetry, up to a maximum of $150. Deadline: May 31, 2024. Fee to submit online. No fee to submit by USPS.


Heartlines. Restrictions: 50% of content is from writers identifying as being from Canada/Turtle Island. Genre: Speculative fiction and about relationships. "We're looking for short fiction and poetry focused on long-term relationships: platonic, romantic, or familial. We don't want the blaze of new love or the obsession of a new friend. We want pieces that show that comfort that develops when people know each other for years." Stories - 1,000 - 3,500 words. Payment: $0.08 CAD per word for short fiction (1,000-3,500 words) and $60 CAD flat per poem. Deadline: May 31, 2024.


filling station.  Genre: Stories, poems, CNF, nonfiction, and art on theme: Language. Payment: $50. Deadline: May 31, 2024. 

Skull and Laurel. Genre: Weird Horror, Dark Fantasy, Dark Science Fiction. Short Fiction, Narrative Poetry. "We also encourage trying us with things like comic strips, mixed media, found footage, puzzles, games, experiments, and other weird forms, as long as they tell a story." Word count: 100 to 7,499. Payment: 3 cents/word; $25 for reprints. Deadline: May 31, 2024. Accepts reprints.


Little Guts. Genre: Horror. They will be taking PITCHES, and if accepted, your story should be 2-5k words. Payment: 12 cents/word. Deadline: May 31, 2024. 

Strange Aeon. Genre: Speculative fiction. See theme. Payment: $20. Deadline: May 31, 2024, or until filled.

Poet Lore. Genre: Poetry. Payment: $50. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

The Cincinnati Review. Genre: Literary nonfiction (up to 20 pages), fiction (up to 40 pages), poetry, poetry translations, drama, and art. Payment: $25/page for prose in the journal, $30/page for poetry, $25 for miCRo posts or special features. Deadline: May 31, 2024. Opens on the first day of the month and closes once they hit the submissions cap.

Skin. Genre: Speculative stories (2-5k words) on the theme of skin. "We tend to prefer speculative, surreal, supernatural, dark fiction with creeping, poetic, dread-inducing prose, and endings we can't predict, but we're open to all subgenres of dark fiction." Payment: £0.005 per word. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

Haven Speculative. Restrictions: Open to submissions by authors of color, members of the LGBTQIA+ community, and other underrepresented groups. Genre: Speculative fiction and poetry. Payment: 8¢ per word for fiction and $20 for poetry. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

Apparition Lit. Genre: Speculative fiction and poetry on theme. See theme. Payment: $30. Deadline: May 31, 2024. Opens May 15. Submission periods are extended by a week for BIPOC creators only.

New Orleans Review. Genre: Fiction, nonfiction and poetry. Payment: $300 for prose, $100 for poetry. Deadline: May 31, 2024. In celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage month, there are no submission fees for all API writers for the month of May, not limited to those living in/born in the US.

Havok. Genre: Flash fiction. See themes. Payment: $50 via PayPal for each story selected for an Anthology. No payment for online publication. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

Malahat Review. Genre: Poetry, Fiction. Payment: CAD $70/page. Deadline: May 31, 2024. (Note: Submissions by Canadian writers are accepted for consideration all year.)

Split Lip Magazine. Genre: Fiction (flash and short stories), memoirs, and poetry. with a pop-culture twist. Payment: $75 for poems, memoirs, flash, fiction, and art, $50 for interviews/reviews, and $25 for mini-reviews web issues. Deadline: May 31, 2024. Closes when they reach capacity, so submit early. 

Escape Pod. Genre: Science fiction (Audio and written format). Payment: USD $0.08 per word for original fiction. USD $100 per story for reprint fiction. Deadline: May 31, 2024. Reprints accepted.


Contemporary Verse 2. Genre: Poetry and critical writing about poetry, including interviews, articles, essays, and reviews. Payment: $30 - $150. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

Abyss and Apex. Genre: Speculative poetry. No horror. Payment: $5.50 per poem. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

Typehouse. Restrictions: In honor of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, and Mental Health Awareness Month, no-fee submissions are open for all API creators and all Mental Health identified creators, not limited to those from the US. Genre: Prose, poetry, art. Payment: $25. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

University Press of Kentucky. Genre: Books of poetry or fiction (novels, short story collections, etc.). Payment: Royalties. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

Baltimore Review. Genre: Poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, videos (including poetry), and cross-genre work. Payment: $40. Deadline: May 31, 2024.


AND A FEW MORE...

Totally Entwined: Love at Second Sight. Genre: Novellas, 30,000 - 50,000 words. Theme: Second chance romance. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: June 1, 2024.

Eternal Haunted Summer. Genre: Poetry, short fiction. Theme: Gardens. Payment: $5. Deadline: June 1, 2024.

The Fires of Retribution. Genre: Speculative Fiction. Theme: A collection of stories dealing with DRAGONS! Concept: We’re looking for a story that shows the struggle between man and beast. These aren’t Pete’s Dragon; these are vicious killers who would just as soon eat you as look at you. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: June 1, 2024.

Darkest Shadow, Brightest Light. Genre: Dark Fantasy. Word Count: 5,000 – 10,000. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: June 1, 2024.

Hellbound Books. Genre: Horror. Payment: $5. Deadline: June 1, 2024.

Shivering Timbers! Genre: Pirate themed horror fiction. "Avast ye, scurvy seadogs! Within these pages there be swashbuckling zombies, petrifying privateers and bloodthirsty buccaneers hunting for cursed treasure in darkened coves. Come aboard and join our crew as we set sail on a chilling voyage across the kraken infested seven seas. Sharpen your cutlasses, raise the Jolly Roger and prepare to be terrified by tales of piratical peril. Arrr!" Payment: £20. Deadline: June 1, 2024.

Parabola. Genre: Original essays and translations, poetry, reviews. Payment: $400. Deadline: June 1, 2024. See themes.

Air/Light. Genre: New and innovative works of literary arts across all mediums and genres including cross genre work. Length: Up to 4,000 words for prose, and up to 10 pages for poetry. Payment: Poetry: $50; Responses and department pieces: $100; Fiction and essays/nonfiction: $200; Visual art, music, and multimedia: $200. Deadline: June 1, 2024.

The Fires of Retribution Anthology. Genre: Speculative Fiction. Theme: A collection of stories dealing with DRAGONS! Payment: Royalties. Deadline: June 1, 2024.

72 Writing Contests in May 2024 - No entry fees

Freerange This May there are six dozen free writing contests for short fiction, novels, poetry, CNF, nonfiction, and plays. Prizes this month range from $50,000 to publication. None charge entry fees.Some of these contests have age and geographical restrictions, so read the instructions carefully.

If you want to get a jump on next month's contests go to Free Contests. Many of these contests are offered annually, so even if the deadline has passed, you can prepare for next year.

Good luck! 

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Descant. Each year, descant offers four awards:the $500 Frank O’Connor Award for fiction (for the best short story in a issue)the $250 Gary Wilson Award (for an outstanding story in an issue)the $500 Betsy Colquitt Award for poetry (for the best poem or series of poems by a single author in an issue)the $250 Baskerville Publishers Award (for an outstanding poem or poems by a single author in an issueThere is no application process or reading fee. All published submissions are eligible for prize consideration. Simply submit your work. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

Neukom Institute Literary Arts Awards. Genre: Play that addresses the question: “What does it mean to be a human in a computerized world?” Prize: $5000. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

The Waterston Desert Writing Prize. Genre: Literary nonfiction, desert theme. Prize: $3,000. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

CINTAS Creative Writing Fellowship. Restrictions: Open to any Cuban author (including those of direct Cuban lineage; need not reside in Cuba). Genre: Novel excerpts, short stories, plays, or poems of up to 25 pages. Prize: $20,000 fellowship. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

West Virginia Fiction Competition. Restrictions: Open to West Virginia residents or students. Genre: Short fiction, 5,000 words max. Prize: $500. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

The Future Bookshelf: Mo Siewcharran Prize. Restrictions: The contest is open to BAME writers in the UK. Genre: Picture book. Prize: £2,500, £1,500 and possible publication. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

Rabbi Sacks Book Prize. Genre: Published nonfiction book that contributes significantly to the arena of modern Jewish thought. Prize: $50,000. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

Casa Africa: Essay Contest. Genre: Essay on theme: Intra-African immigration. Essays, of 15,000-20,000 words, can be in Spanish, English, French or Portuguese. Prize: €2,000. Deadline: May 2, 2024.

On The Premises Mini-Contest. "For this mini-contest, tell, show, or evoke a complete story between 25 and 50 words long in which a hat of some kind matters to the story. We’re going with the fairly traditional definition of “hat” for this one. Scarves, hijabs, earmuffs, wigs, hoods, and other head coverings do not qualify. I’m going to say that even helmets don’t qualify. Caps are okay; they’re an informal hat. The judges will not care if anyone wears the hat in the story, so that’s up to you." Prize: First place pays $35, second pays $25, and third pays $15, all in US dollars. Honorable mentions get published, but make no money. Deadline: May 3, 2024.

Furious Fiction. Genre: Flash fiction. "On the first Friday of every month, a new set of story prompts will be revealed. You will have 55 hours to submit your best 500-word (or fewer) story." Prize: $500AUD. Deadline: May 5, 2024. Opens on May 3.

Singapore Poetry Contest. Genre: Poetry. "We are looking for poems that use the word “interrogation” in imaginative ways." Prize: USD300, 200, and 100 will go to the top three winners. Deadline: May 6, 2024.

Create 4 Freedom. Restrictions: The contest is open to writers in the contiguous United States (48 states plus Washington, DC). Genre: Essays and poetry. This year’s contest focuses on One's Moral Compass. Prize: $750. Deadline: May 8, 2024.  Note: Winner gives up all rights.

RTÉ Radio Short Story Competition. Restrictions: Open to Irish writers and residents of Ireland. Genre: Short story. Prize: Up to 5,000 euros. Deadline: May 10, 2024.

Pulitzer Center's "Fighting Words—Poetry in Response to Current Events" Contest. Restrictions: Current K-12 students anywhere in the world may enter. Students may write in any language, and are welcome to submit multilingual poems. Judges will have reading fluency in English and Spanish. Genre: Poetry. Theme: How can poetry be an effective response to current events and underreported stories? How can journalism and poetry help us make connections between global issues and our local and personal contexts? Prize: $300 top prize. Deadline: May 12, 2024.

Quay Words Young Writers’ Flash Fiction Competition. Restrictions: Open writers aged 10 to 18-years. Genre: Flash fiction on theme ‘Trading Places.' Prize: £200 top prize. Deadline: May 12, 2024.

Brown's Mart Theatre Award 2024. Restrictions: Open to all writers from across the Northern Territory, Australia. Genre: Script. There is no word limit. Scripts must have a performance time of more than 30 minutes. Script treatments are ineligible. Prize: The winner of the Brown’s Mart Theatre Award will receive a $1,000 prize, an NT Writers’ Centre membership and a double pass to select shows in Brown's Mart’s performance program. Deadline: May 13, 2024.

Charles Darwin University Creative Non-Fiction Award 2024. Restrictions: Open to all writers from across the Northern Territory, Australia. Genre: A factually accurate work, written with attention to literary style and technique. Can take the form of a biography, autobiography, memoir, diary entry, travel writing, food writing, literary journalism, or criticism. Word limit: 3,000 words. Prize: The winner of the Charles Darwin University Creative Non-Fiction Award will receive a $500 prize, an NT Writers’ Centre membership and a double pass to Brown's Mart’s performance program. Deadline: May 13, 2024.

Charles Darwin University Essay Award 2024.  Restrictions: Open to all writers from across the Northern Territory, Australia. Genre: A referenced academic essay on a topic relating to the Northern Territory. Word limit: 3,000 words. Prize: The winner of the Charles Darwin University Essay Award will receive a $1,000 prize, an NT Writers’ Centre membership and a double pass to Brown's Mart’s performance program. Deadline: May 13, 2024.

Flash Fiction Award 2024. Restrictions: Open to all writers from across the Northern Territory, Australia. Genre: A blog post, fan fiction, short story, fictional diary entry or fictional letter. Word limit: 500 words. Entries limited to three entries per person. Prize: The winner of the Flash Fiction Award will receive a $600 prize, an NT Writers’ Centre membership and a double pass to Brown's Mart’s performance program. Deadline: May 13, 2024.

Kath Manzie Youth Award 2024. Restrictions: Open to all writers from across the Northern Territory, Australia. Genre: A piece of creative writing, either poetry or short story, by a person aged 12 to 18 years as of 1 January 2023. Limit of three poetry entries with a 300-line limit OR a short story with a 3,000-word limit per person. Prize: The winner of the Kath Manzie Youth Award will receive a $600 prize, an NT Writers’ Centre membership and a double pass to Brown's Mart’s performance program. Deadline: May 13, 2024.

NT Writers' Centre Poetry Award 2024. Restrictions: Open to all writers from across the Northern Territory, Australia. Genre: A single poem up to 300 lines. Entries limited to three separate poetry entries per person. Prize: The winner of the NT Writers’ Centre Poetry Award will receive a $1,000 prize, an NT Writers’ Centre membership and a double pass to Brown's Mart’s performance program. Deadline: May 13, 2024.

Cave Canem Poetry Prize. Restrictions: Open to Black writers of African descent who have not had a full-length book of poetry published by a professional press. Authors of chapbooks and self-published books with a maximum print run of 500 may apply. Genre: Unpublished, original collections of poems written in English. Prize: $10,000, publication by Graywolf Press in fall 2025, 15 copies of the book, and a feature reading. Deadline: May 13, 2024.

Zip Print Short Story Award 2024. Restrictions: Open to all writers from across the Northern Territory, Australia. Genre: An original work of short fiction. Word limit: up to 3,000 words. Prize: The winner of the Zip Print Short Story Award will receive a $1,000 prize, an NT Writers’ Centre membership and a double pass to Brown's Mart’s performance program. Deadline: May 13, 2024.

Apparition Lit. Genre: Speculative flash fiction on themes related to food. (See site for specifics)  Length: 1000 words max. Prize: $30. Deadline: May 14, 2024.

Governor General's Literary Awards. Restrictions: Books must have been written by Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada. They do not need to be residing in Canada. Genre: The Governor General’s Literary Awards are given annually to the best English-language and French-Language book in each of the seven categories of Fiction, Literary Non-fiction, Poetry, Drama, Young People’s Literature (Text), Young People’s Literature (Illustrated Books). Prize: $25,000. Deadline: May 15, 2024.

Dark Tales from the Tarot. Genre: Horror based on Tarot card. See website. Prize: $10. Deadline: May 15, 2024. Opens May 1. 

Prose Poetry Contest. Genre: Prose poem. Prize: First place: £50 plus publication; Second place: £25 plus publication; Third place: £15 plus publication; Honorable mention: £10 plus publication. Deadline: May 15, 2024.

Leeway Foundation: Transformation Award. Restrictions: Women and transgender poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers in the Philadelphia area who have been creating art for social change for five or more years. Writers who have lived for at least two years in Bucks, Camden, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, or Philadelphia counties, who are at least 18 years of age, and who are not full-time students in a degree-granting arts program are eligible. Award: $15,000. Deadline: May 15, 2024.

ABA Journal/Ross Writing Contest for Legal Short Fiction. Sponsored by the American Bar Association. Restrictions: Entrants must be U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents. Genre: Original works of short fiction that illuminate the role of the law and/or lawyers in modern society. 5000 words max. Prize: $3,000 and publication in ABA Journal. Deadline: May 15, 2024.

Andy Warhol Foundation Arts Writers Grant. Genre: Articles, books, and short-form writing about contemporary art—the grants support projects addressing both general and specialized art audiences, from short reviews for magazines and newspapers to in-depth scholarly studies. The program also supports art writing that engages criticism through interdisciplinary methods and experiments with literary styles. Grant: $15,000 to $50,000. Deadline: May 15, 2024.

The Queen’s Commonwealth Essay Contest. Restrictions: The competition is open to all citizens and residents of the Commonwealth aged 18 and under. Genre: Essay. The theme of the contest is "Community in the Commonwealth." Prize: Past prizes have included certificates, resources for winner's school, visits to Cambridge University, a trip to London and a week of activities, work experience at international organisations, and having your entry featured in worldwide media. Deadline: May 15, 2024.

The James Laughlin Award is sponsored by the Academy of American Poets. Genre: A second book of poetry forthcoming in the next calendar year. Must be under contract with US publisher. Restrictions: Open to US citizens and residents only. Prize: $5,000, an all-expenses-paid week long residency in Florida, and the Academy will purchase approximately 1,000 copies of the book for distribution to its members. Deadline: May 15, 2024.

Brain Mill Press Chapbook Contest. Restrictions: Open to all Wisconsin poets, with a particular interest in voices under-represented in traditional publishing, such as writers of color, women, indigenous voices, disabled writers, queer writers. Genre: Poetry chapbook, 18-30 pages in length. Prize: $250 and publication. Deadline: May 15, 2024.

Boroondara Literary Awards. Restrictions: Open to Australians. Genre: Prose and poetry. Prize: More than $5,000 in prize money across various age groups in the Young Writers’ category; more than $3,500 in prize money in the Open Short Story category. Deadline: May 17, 2024.

Creative Future Writers’ Award. Restrictions: Open to underrepresented writers in the UK only, who are over 18 years old. Genre: Poetry, fiction. This year’s theme is ‘Reveal.’  Prize: Publication, unspecified monetary award (?)  Deadline: May 19, 2024.

RBC PEN Canada New Voices Award. "The RBC PEN Canada New Voices Award is an annual award that aims to encourage new writing and to provide a space where unpublished Canadian writers can submit short stories, creative nonfiction, journalism, and poetry. The shortlisted submissions are judged by a distinguished jury of Canadian writers." Prize: The winning entry will receive a $3,000 CAD cash prize and mentorship from a distinguished Canadian author. Deadline: May 19, 2024.

Roscommon New Writing Award. Restrictions: All entrants must have a connection with the county of Roscommon (born in, living in, currently working in, went to school in, etc). Genre: Short story. Prize: €600.00. Deadline: May 20, 2024.

How Does War Affect People’s Lives? Restrictions: Open to young people ages 9 - 18. Genre: Poetry, art, speech, song. Prize: Unspecified. Deadline: May 24, 2024.

Changing Light Prize for a Novel-in-Verse. Genre: Novel-in-Verse. Prize: $500 and publication for a novel-in-verse, 90-160 pages. Deadline: May 25, 2024.

Great Lakes Colleges (GLCA) New Writers Award. Restrictions: Open to Americans and Canadians.  Genre: Poetry, fiction, and creative non-fiction. In each category, the submitted work must be an author’s first published volume. Prize: $500. Deadline: May 25, 2024.

Write the World Competition: Poetry & Spoken Word Competition. Restrictions: Young writers ages 13-19.5. Genre: Poem. Theme: Seeds of Change. Prize: Best Entry: $100; Runner up: $50. Deadline: May 27, 2024.  (Note: This is a monthly contest.)

Dream Foundry Emerging Writers Contest. Restrictions: You have published a total of less than 4,000 words of paid or income-earning speculative fiction in English. You have earned a total of less than USD 320 from those words. You have never been nominated for any award listed here as a major award in speculative fiction. Genre: Short speculative fiction, up to 10,000 words. Prize: $200 - $1,000. Deadline: May 27, 2024.

Irene Adler Prize for Women Writers. Restrictions: Open to Canadian women. Genre: Creative nonfiction. Prize: $1,000 scholarship to a woman pursuing a degree in journalism, creative writing, or literature at a recognized post-secondary institution in the U.S. or Canada. Deadline: May 30, 2024.

The Jeff Sharlet Memorial Award for Veterans. This creative writing contest for U.S. military veterans and active duty personnel is hosted by The Iowa Review and made possible by a gift from the family of Jeff Sharlet (1942–69), a Vietnam veteran and antiwar writer and activist. The contest is open to veterans and active duty personnel writing in any genre and about any subject matter. Prizes: First place: $1,000 plus publication in The Iowa Review. Second place: $750. Three runners-up: $500 each. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

The Drabble Harvest Contest. Genre: Drabble on theme of Interstellar Archives. A "drabble" is defined as a short story containing exactly precisely no more and no fewer than 100 words. It has a title, which can be from 1 to 15 words-- but no more than 15. Prize: $5. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

Restless Books Prize for New Immigrant Writing. Restrictions: Open to first-generation residents of the United States. “First-generation” can refer either to people born in another country who relocated to the U.S., or to American-born residents whose parents were born elsewhere. Genre: Unpublished nonfiction books. Prize: $10,000 and publication. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

Baltimore Review. Genre: Poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, videos (including poetry), and cross-genre work. Payment: $40. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

The Wolfe Pack Black Orchid Award. Genre: Mystery novellas in the style of Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe novellas. Manuscript length: 15K-20K words. Prize: $1,000, plus recognition and publication in a forthcoming issue of AAMM. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

Harlequin: Romance Includes You Mentorship. Restrictions: Open to debut writers in Canada and the US. Genre: Romance novel. Prize: A contract advance plus grant with a value of $5,000 U.S. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

A Voice for Animals Teen Essay Contest. Restrictions: Open to students between the ages of 14-18. Genre: Essays on an animal rights topic. In the 16-18 year olds category, essays must be 800-1,000 words long and be accompanied by a photograph; in the 14-15 year olds category, essays should be between 1,400-1,500 words. Prize: $200 - $500. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

bpNichol Poetry Chapbook Award. Restrictions: Canadian publishers only. Genre: Published poetry chapbook. Prize: The author receives $4,000 and the publisher receives $500. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

Vancouver Writers Fest's Youth Writing Contest. Restrictions: Open to students in British Columbia. Genre: Short stories and personal essays: 1,000 word limit (for elementary school student submissions) and 1,500 (for high-school student submissions). Prize: $100 top prize. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

Furphy Literary Award: Junior and Youth Competition. Restrictions: Open to  juniors & youth age writers who live in the Goulburn Valley, Australia. Genre: Short stories and poetry. Prize: First prize of $300. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

Jerry Jazz Musician Fiction Contest. Genre: Unpublished fiction approximately 1,000 - 5,000 words. Story should pertain to music, social history, literature, politics, art, film and theater, particularly that of the counter-culture of mid-twentieth century America. Prize: $100 and publication in Jerry Jazz Musician. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

Speculative Literature Foundation Older Writers Grant. Restrictions: Open to writers who are fifty years of age or older at the time of grant application. Genre: Speculative fiction. Prize: $500. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

Genesis Emerging Writers' Programme. Restrictions: Open to emerging writers over 18 years of age, of any background living in the UK. Genre: Fiction, non-fiction and poetry. Prize: Up to £1,500 and mentorship. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

The Center for Fiction / Susan Kamil Emerging Writer Fellowships offer grants, editorial mentorship, and other opportunities to early-career New York City-based practitioners who are at a critical moment in their development as fiction writers. Genre: Fiction. Grant: $5,000. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

James Bartleman Aboriginal Youth Creative Writing Awards. Restrictions: Open to aboriginal youth, 18 years or younger, residing in Ontario, Canada. Genre: Creative writing. Prize: $2,500. Deadline: May 31, 2024.
A Very Short Story Award. Genre: Short story of ten words or fewer. Prize: Free Gotham class. Deadline: May 31, 2024.

#GWstorieseverywhere. Genre: Micro fiction. Your story must be no longer than 25 words, with a max of 280 characters, including spaces and the hashtag. See themes. Prize: Free Gotham class. Deadline: May 31, 2024. This is a monthly contest.

Rattle's Ekphrastic Challenge. Genre: Poetry based on art. (See website) Prize: $100. Deadline: May 31, 2024. Monthly contest.

Substack runs a monthly short story competition. Their mission is to "revive the art of the short story, support artists, and produce something wonderful." Genre: Short story. Length: 6000- 10,000 words. Prize: $100 plus 50% of subscription revenue to be sent by Paypal, Zelle, or check. Deadline: May 31, 2024. Reprints are ok so long as you still have the rights to distribute.

3 New Literary Agencies Seeking Nonfiction and All Genres of Fiction

Anjali Singh New literary agencies are usually started by established agents with considerable experience in the publishing industry. They have reliable contacts in publishing houses and a roster of successes getting writers published. New agencies are looking to expand, and are eager to take on prospective clients.

Always check the agency website and agent bio before submitting. Submission requirements can change. 

NOTE: Don't submit to several agents at the same agency simultaneously. If one rejects you, you may then submit to another. 
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You can find a full list of agents actively seeking new clients here: Agents Seeking Clients. 
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Anjali Singh Agency  

Anjali Singh founded her agency in 2024. Most recently, she was an agent at Ayesha Pande Literary for nine years; she has also worked as an editor at Vintage Books, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Simon + Schuster and as Editorial Director of Other Press. She is best known for having championed Marjane Satrapi's Persepolis after stumbling across it on a visit to Paris. She has always been drawn to the thrill of discovering new writers and among the literary novelists whose careers she helped launch are Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Samantha Hunt, Saleem Haddad and Nawaaz Ahmed. She focuses on literary fiction, memoir, and narrative nonfiction as well as representing graphic novel writers and illustrators across all age ranges. 

If you would like to query Anjali, please send a pitch letter along with the first 5 pages of your MS in the body of the email, and the title of your project in the subject line, to queries@anjalisinghagency.com
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The Eck Agency. 

Connor Eck is the Founder and Principal Agent of Tea. He spent 8 years at Lucinda Literary as an Agent and Chief Operating Officer.

His authors are novelists, journalists, producers, professors, humorists, creative directors, athletes, and change-agents. He is most interested in books that tug at the heart strings, stimulate the mind, and have an emotional arc. Connor loves championing underrepresented authors and original thinkers with diverse backgrounds. He is known for his personable, transparent approach, dynamic editorial and pitching skills, and for his ardent advocacy of his authors.

They welcome the following genres only:  adult fiction, young adult fiction, narrative nonfiction, science, sports, history, and humor. If you’re a ghostwriter, please submit your portfolio. 
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Submit your query HERE.
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The Ballpoint Agency  (CANADA) 

The Ballpoint Agency is a new, artist-centred literary agency with many enthusiasms, but mostly books. We currently serve a small roster of writers with focused attention, creativity and care.  The three founders have 75 years of professional experience between them: Dave Bidini has spent 25 years writing books, earning valuable insight into the industry from an artist’s perspective. Warren Sheffer has 20 years as a lawyer, representing authors and performers and specializing in intellectual property law. Janet Morassutti has 30 years of publishing industry experience, most recently as a founder and  managing editor of a non-profit newspaper.
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Read submission guidelines HERE.

37 Marvelous Writing Conferences and Workshops in May 2024

Kachemak Bay, Alaska: Alan Grinberg | Flickr This May there are more than three dozen writing conferences and workshops. Some conferences and workshops will be held online, but most will be held in person or use a hybrid format.

These writing events offer everything a writer might want: intensive workshops, pitch sessions with agents, to how to market yourself and your books, discussions - there is something for everyone.

For a full list of conferences held throughout the year see Writing Conferences. If you miss an application deadline, put it on your calendar for next year. Quite a few conferences offer scholarships, so apply early. Plan ahead!

Be sure to check out Highlights list of workshops. They offer many throughout the year. 

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Asian and Asian American Voices: An In-Community Retreat. May 2 - 5. 2024: Boyds Mills, PA. The third annual Asian and Asian American Voices retreat celebrates the vibrant world of Asian and Asian American voices in children's and young adult literature. Waitlisted.

Lakefly Writers Conference. May 3 - 4, 2024: Premier Waterfront Hotel & Convention Center in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Workshops, talks, and a book fair for poets, fiction writers, and nonfiction writers. Previous presenters: Beth Amos, Malinda Andrews, Valerie Biel, Rebekah Bryan, R. R. Campbell and more. 

Washington Writers Conference. May 3 - 4, 2024: Bethesda, MD. "Expert sessions with authors and publishing pros on the many paths to publishing — from writing killer query letters and landing an agent to going your own way and utilizing a self/hybrid model — and publicizing your book once it exists!" 

Atlanta Writers Conference. May 3 - 4, 2024: Atlanta, Georgia. The goals of this conference are to give you access to eighteen top publishing acquisitions editors and literary agents actively seeking new clients (see their profiles on our Editors and Agents page), help you get your work ready for them, and educate you with a workshop and talks by experienced authors and other industry professionals. The Conference Activities page details each activity you can register for: select them all, only one, or some number in between–it’s entirely up to you, so you can craft the conference experience that will be best for your growth, interests, and budget. Virtual option for critique and pitch meetings with the agents and editors.

Michigan Writers Workshop. May 4, 2024: Detroit, MI. This is a special one-day “How to Get Published” writing workshop. In other words, it’s one day full of classes and advice designed to give you the best instruction concerning how to get your writing & books published. We’ll discuss your publishing opportunities today, how to write queries & pitches, how to market yourself and your books, what makes an agent/editor stop reading your manuscript, and more. No matter what you’re writing — fiction or nonfiction — the day’s classes will help point you in the right direction. Writers of all genres are welcome. 

The 2024 Writing Conference of Los Angeles. May 4, 2024: Los Angeles, CA. This is a special one-day “How to Get Published” writing workshop. In other words, it’s one day full of classes and advice designed to give you the best instruction concerning how to get your writing & books published. We’ll discuss your publishing opportunities today, how to write queries & pitches, how to market yourself and your books, what makes an agent/editor stop reading your manuscript, and more. No matter what you’re writing — fiction or nonfiction — the day’s classes will help point you in the right direction. Writers of all genres are welcome. 

Workshop: Getting to Know Your Characters through Passion, Purpose, and Place. May 4, 2024: Online. Katherine Higgs-Coulthard will explore share strategies for creating well-developed characters. Infusing characters with passion, purpose and place will pull readers into the story and make them care about what happens to the characters. We'll work through some examples and attendees will leave with a better idea of who they're writing about. Will be held via Zoom.

SCBWI 2024 Writers & Illustrators Working Conference. May 4 - 5, 2024: Round Rock, TX. Conference on children's books with keynotes; general sessions; breakout sessions for writing, professional development and illustration; intensives for novels, picture books and illustration; critiques; pitches and more. Will be held in person.

Blurred Lines: Writing Speculative Nonfiction. May 4 - June 8, 2024: Online. Though the golden rule of writing nonfiction is to be truthful, in speculative nonfiction, invention and imagination help a writer capture and hold truth’s slippery nature. In this five-week online workshop, we will read examples of speculative nonfiction by other writers like Margot Jefferson, Elissa Washuta and Jami Nakamura Lin, and learn how to draft scenes where facts are not fighting with what is imagined. Through exercises that employ both fiction and speculative nonfiction techniques, we will generate new material or fine-tune pieces already in progress. This workshop is open to new and more experienced writers looking to set their minds free—to use fact to explore fiction, blur the lines and create your own truth

Jewish Symposium: An In-Community Gathering for Jewish Writers and Illustrators. May 5 - 8, 2024: Boyds Mills, PA. The heart of the Jewish Symposium is to offer community for Jewish writers and publishing professionals. The program is designed to be an exchange of ideas, a place to connect, and a springboard for diversifying and amplifying Jewish content in literature for children and teens. There will be inspiring and engaging keynote addresses and faculty panel discussions with Q&A, readings by faculty and participants, and time set aside to write, retreat, and connect with fellow creatives.

Sundress Academy for the Arts: Mapping & Memory: Poetic Cartographies. May 8, 2024: Online. Through a series of writing exercises, we’ll use memory, cultural inheritances, and geographic imagination to develop new markers and map legends toward making and expanding our own poetic landscapes. Participants should expect to finish the class having generated the start of several new poems, and with new ideas in hand for approaching poetry in both reading and writing. 

Nonfiction Writers Conference. May 8 - 10, 2024. ONLINE EVENT. Online conference devoted to writing, publishing and promoting non-fiction books. Participation is live via phone or Skype, and recordings can be downloaded. Features 15 speakers over three days. Private Facebook group for attendees!

Annual PEN World Voices Festival of International Literature. May 8 - 17, 2024 at various locations in New York City and Los Angeles. "This year’s festival is a tribute to our fellow former President Salman Rushdie, the visionary who conceived the festival and has championed it ever since, as he launches his new memoir, Knife, an emblem of courage and of the role of literature and truth as vessels of human resilience. The PEN World Voices Festival was founded by Salman Rushdie, Michael Roberts, and Esther Allen."

2024 Portland Writing Workshop. May 10-11, 2024: Portland, OR and Online. This is a special one-day “How to Get Published” writing workshop on Friday, May 10, 2024, at the Radisson Hotel Portland Airport. In other words, it’s one day full of classes and advice designed to give you the best instruction concerning how to get your writing & books published. We’ll discuss your publishing opportunities today, how to write queries & pitches, how to market yourself and your books, what makes an agent/editor stop reading your manuscript, and more. No matter what you’re writing — fiction or nonfiction — the day’s classes will help point you in the right direction. Writers of all genres are welcome.

Ohio Writing Workshop. May 10-11, 2024: Online. This writing event is a wonderful opportunity to get intense instruction over the course of one day, pitch a literary agent or editor (optional), get your questions answered, and more. Note that there are limited online “seats” at the event (200 total). Will be held virtually.

Grub Street Muse and the Marketplace Conference. May 10 -  12, 2024: Boston, Massachusetts. The Muse and the Marketplace is a three-day literary conference designed to give aspiring writers a better understanding about the craft of writing fiction and non-fiction, to prepare them for the changing world of publishing and promotion, and to create opportunities for meaningful networking. On all three days, prominent and nationally-recognized established and emerging authors lead sessions on the craft of writing—the "muse" side of things—while editors, literary agents, publicists and other industry professionals lead sessions on the business side—the "marketplace." 

Colrain Classic. May 10 - 13, 2024: Via Zoom. "The Colrain Manuscript Classic is a highly focused, 3.5 day conference designed for poets with manuscripts in progress. The Classic features in-depth pre-conference work and candid, realistic evaluation and feedback from nationally-known poets, editors and publishers. In preparation, participants work at home on pre-conference assignments and then, in the workshop, review, arrange, and winnow their work based on the pre-conference work. In addition to the manuscript preparation workshop and editor sessions, there will be an editorial Q&A, and an after-conference strategy session." 

Seattle Writers Workshop. May 11, 2024: Seattle, WA. This is a special one-day “How to Get Published” writing workshop. In other words, it’s one day full of classes and advice designed to give you the best instruction concerning how to get your writing & books published. We’ll discuss your publishing opportunities today, how to write queries & pitches, how to market yourself and your books, what makes an agent/editor stop reading your manuscript, and more. No matter what you’re writing — fiction or nonfiction — the day’s classes will help point you in the right direction. Writers of all genres are welcome. 

Longleaf Writers Conference. May 11 - 18, 2024: Seaside, Florida. "Formerly the Seaside Writers Conference, Longleaf Writers Conference is an annual gathering of creative writers from all over the nation, featuring award-winning writers in poetry and fiction and screenwriting who will offer a full week of intensive writing workshops, one day seminars, school outreach programs, and social events. This event occurs every year in May, and offers the opportunity for beginning, intermediate and advanced writers to celebrate writing, to network with other writers, and to hone their craft. There will also be seminars hosted by professional editors and literary agents who will offer one-on-one consultations. All participants who pay the full conference tuition fee will be able to take part in all daily activities, while those paying a la carte pricing will have the pick of which classes and workshops they would like to attend. The Longleaf Writers Conference is one of the only conferences in the nation to take place on one of the most beautiful beaches in the US, and every year will feature notable guest writers, literary agents, and professional editors."

The Braided Narrative: Weaving Creative Nonfiction. May 13 - June 17, 2024: Online. Personal narratives are driven by our own stories and experiences. In this workshop, our goal will be to weave these stories into multiple braids to create one cohesive narrative. Using craft essays as models, we will explore interconnections between the self and society, between the individual and the universal. As we share and discuss our revelatory pieces in a positive, supportive community, we will look for the potential in each draft to become relatable to a multitudinous body of readers. Come empty-handed to write something new, or bring some works-in-progress to unite.

Writing with Pride: A Two-Night Mini for Picture Book Writers. May 14 - 16, 2024: Online. Picture books can be filled with Pride! Join celebrated authors Lesléa Newman and Rob Sanders for this short course designed to bring LGBTQIA+ creators and their allies together to study the craft of picture books, and build confidence to create picture books with LGBTQIA+ characters and or/themes.

Whole Novel Workshop: An In-Person Retreat for Novelists. Application deadline May 15, 2024. August 14 - 19, 2024: Boyds Mills, PA. OVERVIEW: In-person 6-Day/5-Night Workshop and Retreat with a Full Novel Critique Included This intensive Whole Novel Workshop offers writers the rare opportunity to have the entire draft (up to 80,000 words) of a novel read by faculty, with detailed written feedback and two private consultations provided. Attention in an intimate setting makes this program one that guarantees significant progress in preparation for submission. 

Get Unstuck: Defying Writer’s Block in Your Poetry. May 15 - June 12, 2024: Online. Feeling like you want to write but can’t? Struggling to move your poems forward? This online poetry workshop for writers of all levels will give you the tools to break free from writer’s block and revise your “stuck” poems. Together, we will study published work for inspiration and experiment with creative prompts that make use of texts, art and objects you can find around your home to generate new poems. We will also play with revision strategies that will help you identify your poem’s lifeforce to enliven stale drafts you’ve all but given up on. Each weekly meeting will be preceded by a selection of assigned readings and at least one writing prompt. Our meetings will be divided between discussion of published texts, short in-class writing exercises and workshopping our poems. At the conclusion of our five weeks together, you will have assembled a reliable “Getting Unstuck” toolkit to return to whenever you need.

Biographers International Organization Conference. May 16 - 17, 2024. Each year, BIO brings together some of the finest practitioners of the craft of biography to help guide, mentor, encourage, and advise attendees on a wide variety of topics relating to the writing, researching, and selling of biography. The conference also offers a unique opportunity to hear some of biography’s best—and best-known—writers share their stories. During the James Atlas Plenary, prominent biographers such as Douglas Brinkley, Annette Gordon-Reed, David Remnick, Stacy Schiff , T. J. Stiles, and Evan Thomas begin the day in casual conversation. The afternoon features a keynote lecture by the recipient of the BIO Award. Past recipients include Robert Caro, Ron Chernow, Arnold Rampersad, Jean Strouse, and Claire Tomalin. Panel sessions throughout the day provide tips for novice biographers, examination of the craft of biography, and exploration of issues aimed at seasoned biographers. And a highlight of the conference is the presentation of the Plutarch Award for the year’s best biography.

Working Retreat: Nonfiction and Informational Fiction. May 16 - 16, 2024: Boyds Mills, PA. Join Heidi Stemple, Andrea Page, and editor Eileen Robinson for time to create and connect with fellow nonfiction writers.

Pennwriters Conference. May 17 - 19, 2024: Pittsburgh, PA. The Annual Pennwriters Conference features three days of workshops, panels, networking and learning to help you learn, grow, soar! Friday, Saturday and Sunday feature an open attendance slate of one-hour workshops on all things writing. The schedule is structured with open attendance, so you can take whichever classes appeal to you. Attendees will have 40+ hours of sessions to choose from. Our faculty is comprised of published authors, literary agents and editors, and other writing industry professionals. Pitch appointments are available at no additional fee.

Peripatetic Writing Workshop and Retreat. May 17 - 24, 2024: Catskill,  New York. NYU teachers and authors Maureen Brady and Martha Hughes lead the program featuring daily workshops, stimulating writing exercises, structured "quiet hours" for writing, plus optional tutorials. Martha Hughes founded the Peripatetic on Shelter Island, NY in 1991 in response to writers' needs for a quiet time and place for writing coupled with constructive feedback of their work from excellent editors and like-minded peers. Since then in keeping with its name, the Peripatetic has moved from state to state and country to country, meeting twice-annually in such diverse locations as Achill Island, Ireland; Anna Maria Island, Florida; Antigua, Guatemala; Siracusa, Sicily; Woodstock, NY; Verona, Italy; St Simon's Island, Georgia; Tybee Island, Georgia; and Deal, England. This is the Peripatetic's first stay in Catskill in Upstate New York. The location of the Peri may change, but what remains year after year is the stimulating atmosphere and warm camaraderie created by serious writers sharing work and writing concerns.

Kachemak Bay Writers' Conference. May 18 - 21, 2024: Homer, Alaska. This year, we will be exploring the theme “Wonder in the Wounded World” and the myriad ways we can be stronger writers and readers. Not only will there be four-days of craft classes, agent and editor meetings, panel discussions, readings by the participants and the faculty, but we’ll have more chances for folks to interact with each other and form the community of writers that sustains us when we return to our desks.

Writeaway in New Mexico. May 18 - 25, 2024: Casa Bellisima, New Mexico. $3.200 for private room; $2,800 each for friends or couple sharing a room Includes writing consultations and daily writing workshops, all meals, wine and cocktails, plus a cooking class and excursion. 

Working Retreat: Novelists and Graphic Novelists. May 19 - 22, 2024: Boyds Mills, PA. All creatives need time and space to accomplish their goals. We invite novelists and graphic novelists to gather with fellow storytellers for an immersive experience where productivity meets inspiration!


Boldface Conference for Emerging Writers. May 20 - 24, 2024: Houston, Texas. Daily workshops, readings, craft talks, social events and professionalism panels in an intimate and supportive environment designed specifically with the needs of emerging writers in mind.

Balticon. May 24 - 27, 2024: Baltimore, MD. Balticon is sponsored by the Baltimore Science Fiction Society (BSFS). BSFS presents the Compton Crook Award, the Robert A. Heinlein Award, and the winner of the annual Jack L. Chalker Young Writer's Contest annually at this event. Multiple tracks of Programming over the four day weekend, featuring authors, artists, scientists, musicians, podcasters, publishers, editors, costumers and other creative SF luminaries. 

Martha’s Vineyard Summer Writers’ Conference. May 26- 31, 2024: Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts. "The Martha’s Vineyard Summer Writers’ Conference brings together writers from around the world with the central belief that we can all learn from one another.  Our program offers week-long classes on the craft of fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction, evening readings, panel discussions, and individualized manuscript sessions. Attendees study with award-winning Visiting Authors & Poets and celebrate writing on the beautiful island of Martha's Vineyard. For those interested in individualized feedback, we offer Manuscript Sessions with our Visiting Authors and Poets. These one-on-one sessions allow attendees to get individualized feedback on their works-in-progress as well as advice on how to seek publication." 

ThrillerFest XIX. May 28 – June 1, 2024: New York City. This is the annual conference of the International Thriller Writers. The ThrillerFest conference has four main components: Master CraftFest, CraftFest, PitchFest, and ThrillerFest. Master CraftFest was designed as an educational tool for aspiring writers as well as debut and midlist authors to gain advanced training from the masters of the craft in an intimate, day-long training session. CraftFest was designed for all writers to learn from bestselling authors and subject experts who kindly offer their advice and assistance to advance attendees’ writing techniques and further their careers. PitchFest was designed to match writers with agents, editors, publishers, and producers. ThrillerFest, the final two days of the conference, is intended to offer readers a chance to meet the best authors in the industry and be introduced to debut and midlist authors. Expect innovative panels, spotlight interviews, and workshops to educate and inspire. 

North Words Writers Symposium. May 29 - June 1, 2024: Skagway, Alaska. "Exploring the Frontiers of Language," the North Words Writers Symposium welcomes all to an intimate setting with just 40 participants engaging with authors in a spectacular Alaska setting. Join this year's faculty of Alaska-NW authors for four days of panel discussions, writing workshops, readings, and adventure in Skagway, Alaska. Symposium events include activities such as hiking and writing workshops, a barbecue with live music at Alderworks Writers & Artists Retreat in Dyea; and a keynote banquet in a show garden.

Pittsburgh Writing Workshop. May 31 - June 1, 2024: Online. "This is a special two-day “How to Get Published” writing workshop. In other words, it’s two days full of classes and advice designed to give you the best instruction concerning how to get your writing & books published. We’ll discuss your publishing opportunities today, how to write queries & pitches, how to market yourself and your books, what makes an agent/editor stop reading your manuscript, and more. No matter what you’re writing — fiction or nonfiction — the day’s classes will help point you in the right direction. Writers of all genres are welcome. And even though this is the “Pittsburgh” Writing Workshop, make no mistake — writers from everywhere are welcome to attend virtually. Our WDW writers conferences have helped dozens of writers find literary agent representation." Will be held virtually.

Wyoming Writers Conference. May 31 - June 2, 2024: Casper, WY. The conference features workshops in craft, marketing, and productivity for poets, fiction writers, and nonfiction writers, as well as publisher pitch sessions, roundtable critiques, and open mics. Past writers have included fiction writer Nina McConigley, and Poet Matt Mason. 

8 New Agents Seeking Commercial and Upmarket Fiction, Kidlit, Picture Books, SF/F, Nonfiction, LGBT and BIPOC Writers and more

Christine Goss Here are eight new literary agents actively seeking clients. New agents are a boon to writers. They are actively building their lists, and will go the extra mile for their clients.

All of these agents work for established agencies with good track records. They are looking for all genres.
Always check the agency website and agent bio before submitting. Agents can switch agencies or close their lists, and submission requirements can change. 

NOTE: Don't submit to several agents at the same agency simultaneously. If one rejects you, you may then submit to another. (Some small agencies share. Be alert to a notice that "a no from one is a no from all.")

You can find a full list of agents actively seeking new clients here: Agents Seeking Clients. 
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Ms. Christine Goss of The Purcell Agency, LLC

Christine Goss is a graduate of Lake Forest College with a BA in communications. Formerly a sales representative, she has skills that pair well with her love of reading and story development.

What she is seeking: Open to queries from BIPOC authors only.

Adult and Young Adult: Stories that could be considered New Adult and also true Young Adult 

Upmarket Fiction/Commercial Fiction
Romance
Fantasy/Romantasy
Dystopian or utopian 

Middle Grade - Adult:
Graphic Novels

Nonfiction:
Cookbooks: Original family recipes with anecdotes sprinkled throughout. A true story of cooking. Stories about motherhood, unspoken troubles and hardships of new motherhood. A story that would compel readers to take care of themselves or expand sympathy/understanding for themselves (Re: YOU SHOULD REALLY TALK TO SOMEONE). Christine would love to see books about approachable ways for a sustainable lifestyle. With work resuming and people going back to the office, how can the environment still be top of mind?Anything exposing fast fashion and how fashion is detrimental to the environment, and not only that but how to practice “slow fashion”. How to submit: Use her querymanager HERE.
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Ms. Elinor Davies of The Madeleine Milburn Literary Agency (UK)

Elinor joined MMA in 2021 having graduated from Oxford Brookes University with a degree in Publishing Media after a career-change away from holistic therapy. She primarily assisted Hayley Steed with her commercial/upmarket fiction list before recently becoming an Associate. She has been a freelance editor for the Faber Academy and mentors with Asian Women Writers.

What she is seeking: I’m looking for commercial and upmarket fiction stories that will be either the next compulsive read or a cozy winter comfort book. I love a feminist crime thriller and I’m especially drawn to merciless narrators who we can’t help but love (even when they do bad things). I’m also open to lighter crime reads and can’t get enough of crime capers with comedy at their heart. In historical fiction, I’m looking for stories set from the Victorian era onwards, although I’m currently avoiding wartime fiction. I adore a dose of magic in just about everything I read whether it comes in the form of spirituality, family, or love. I’m talking about magical realism rather than outright fantasy.

How to submit: Read the agency guidelines HERE.
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Ms. Millie van Grutten of Rogers, Coleridge & White (UK)

One of my earliest memories is reading Lauren Child’s Clarice Bean – I adored seeing Clarice Bean tucked up in the airing cupboard amongst the knickers and socks whilst reading her comics and escaping her wonderfully eccentric family. Little did I know that one day I would have the enormous pleasure and privilege of working in the world of children’s book writing and illustration. Narrative in both text and illustration have always been important to me. My degree was in Classics and I love the great stories of Virgil and Homer and to me there’s no better example of narrative than the ancients – packed with suspense, jammed with emotion and all within the perfect structure. 

What she is seeking: I work as an agent with a particular interest in illustrators and picture books. 

How to submit: Follow the agency's guidelines HERE. Note: This agency does not accept submissions from writers in the USA.
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Ms. Lane Clarke of Ultra Literary

Lane Clarke believes in representing books that transport your mind, whether it be in a fantastical world, or the real one. She is always hoping to learn something new from books, and strives to represent a diverse list of creators. 

She earned a Bachelors of Arts in English Literature from Virginia Tech, and a law degree from The University of Chicago Law School. She is the co-founder of PitBlk, a Twitter pitch event for Black writers from across the diaspora, and is the brain behind #BVM, the Black Voices Matter hashtag. She lives in the Washington D.C.-area with her husband and two fur babies.

What she is seeking: Lane is looking for an array of genres in Picture Books, Young Adult, and Adult. In all age groups, she would love to see stories by underrepresented and marginalized creators. In Graphic Novels, she would love to see early readers, MG, YA, and adult by author/illustrators or author and illustrator teams. She is not a good fit for script only. She would love to see both contemporary and speculative graphic novels. In Non-Fiction, she is looking for humorous essay collections that address societal issues and personal growth (HERE FOR IT). She would also love to see memoirs akin to CRYING AT H MART. She is always on the hunt for narrative or prescriptive nonfiction about the Black experience.

How to submit: Use her querymanager HERE.
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Joanna Rasheed of Ultra Literary

Joanna Rasheed joined Ultra after interning at Triada US Literary Agency and working as an assistant at Jennifer Lyons Literary Agency. Joanna graduated from Virginia Tech with a BA in English with a dual focus in Creative Writing and Professional Writing. She is obsessed with books, turning to them for inspiration and adventure. In her free time, you can find her at a coffee shop or in Central Park with her rescue mix.

What she is seeking: Joanna is primarily looking for YA and Adult fantasy, science fiction, women's fiction, and contemporary fiction; if there is a hint of romance mixed in, all the better. A few of her favorites are Saint, Divine Rivals, and Little Fires Everywhere. 

How to submit: Joanna Rasheed is currently open to queries at jrasheed@ultraliterary.com.
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Tyler Monson of Sterling Lord Literistic

Tyler joined Sterling Lord Literistic, Inc. in 2023 and works with Robert Guinsler and Nadyne Pike. Tyler has a Ph.D. in American Literature from Marquette University. He has held teaching positions at Dartmouth College, the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Marquette University, and Seton Hall University. He lives in Manhattan with his partner and their cat and dog.

What he is seeking: Tyler loves books about everyday life and the moments that rupture its routine to surprise, delight, frustrate, reroute, and renew our humanity and bend toward hope. He seeks out fiction and nonfiction that imagines otherwise and other ways of being in the world. In fiction, he enjoys writing about place, family, desire, and time in playful or inventive ways. Tyler values nonfiction that centers the voices and subjects of those who live in the margins of the social, political, and cultural mainstream, especially queer and trans folks. Also, he is interested in literary criticism and essays, data collection and its uses, and everything about tennis. 

How to submit: Use the agency's form HERE.

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Ms. Saskia Leach of Kate Nash Literary Agency (UK)

Saskia joined Kate Nash Literary Agency in 2021, after graduating from Royal Holloway, University of London in 2020 with a BA degree in English and History. She is also Secretary of the AAA Bridge Committee, a sub-committee of the Association of Authors’ Agents who support early career agents.

What she is seeking:  I am especially looking for contemporary cosy crime (I love unconventional settings) and a Lucy Foley-esque locked room psychological thriller that revolves around toxic friendship.

How to submit: Use her querymanager HERE.

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Jo Ramsay of Transatlantic Literary Agency

Jo Ramsay (they/she) comes to Transatlantic after nearly three years working as literary assistant to Carly Watters at P.S. Literary Agency. They’ve worked in publishing for over eight years at a number of publishers and literary magazines which include Simon and Schuster, Shrapnel Magazine, Arsenal Pulp Press, PRISM International, and Greystone Books. Their journalism has been published in The Globe & Mail, Maclean’s, and This Magazine among others. After graduating from UBC with a major in English Literature and a minor in Creative Writing, Jo went on to live in Japan and the UK, always keeping a foot in the publishing world. Now based in Toronto, Jo is looking to represent a variety of adult fiction and nonfiction.

What she is seeking: 

Fiction:Upmarket fiction (book club conversation starters, fresh take on friendships, relationship, and family)Sci-fi (Black Mirror-esque, commentary on society, genre blending)Speculative fictionGothic / Neo-GothicPsychological horror / thrillerLight horror (no heavy gore please)DystopianMysteries (with unique POV, character-driven)Graphic NovelsSelect literary fiction (less quiet realism, and more unusual or unique storytelling)Select romance (new spin or genre subversion)Select fantasy (fabulism, light world building)Select historical fiction (unique concept or genre blending)Non-fiction:Pop Culture Deep DivesPolitics and Social SciencesCultural CritiqueInvestigative JournalismEco-NonfictionNaturalist / Survivalist Accounts or TraveloguesPop ScienceGraphic memoirHow to submit: Query via email HERE.

83 Calls for Submissions in April 2024 - Paying markets

Wikimedia This April there are more than six dozen calls for submissions. All of these are paying markets, and none charge submission fees. As always, every genre, style, and form is wanted, from short stories to poetry to essays.

I post upcoming calls for submissions shortly before the first day of every month. But as I am collecting them, I post them on my page, Calls for Submissions. You can get a jump on next month's calls for submissions by checking that page periodically throughout the month. (I only post paying markets.)

Also see Paying Markets for hundreds of paying markets arranged by form and genre.

Happy submitting!

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Totally Entwined: Family Business. Genre: Novellas, 30,000 - 50,000 words. Theme: Mafia romance. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

The Paris Review. Genres: Poetry. Payment: Not specified. Deadline: Opens April 1, 2024, and closes when they reach capacity.

Canthius. Restrictions: Open to women, trans men, nonbinary, Two-Spirit, genderqueer, and gender non-conforming writers. Genres: Unpublished poetry and prose (both fiction and creative non-fiction – "we welcome experimental works and play excerpts). Please limit prose submissions to 3500 words and poetry submissions to five poems." Theme: Trash. Payment: $50 for one page, $75 for two pages, $100 for three, $125 for four pages, and $150 for five pages or more, regardless of genre. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

The Beast Hunt. Genre: Speculative fiction. "Theme: Monsters have feelings too, even if it’s used to rage against the machine." Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

Creature Feature Classics #1: Lycanthropy. Genre: Stories on theme: Werewolves. Length: 3,000-8,000 words. Payment: £20 and 3 author copies. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

Write or Die. Genre: Short fiction. Length: Up to 4000 words. Payment: $200. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

The Ex-Puritan. Genre: Poetry, fiction, reviews, interviews, essays, and experimental work. "The Ex-Puritan now seeks to publish the best in all forms of writing." Payment: $100 - $200 (CAD). Deadline: April 1, 2024.

Gordon Square Review. Genre: Poetry, short stories, personal essays, and hybrid prose works.  Payment: $25 per prose piece and $10 per poem. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

Toronto Journal. Genre: Short stories from anywhere in the world. "We will also consider non-fiction pieces about local history (Toronto, GTA, and surrounding)." No word limit. Payment: $50 CAD per piece. All published writers will also receive two printed copies of the issue in which they appear. Deadline: April 1, 2024. 

Kangas Kahn. Genre: Horror short stories on theme: Clowns Payment: 8 cents/word. Deadline: April 1, 2024..

Salamander. Genre: Poetry, fiction, and nonfiction. Payment: Not specified. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

West Branch. Genre: Poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and translation. Payment: $50 per submission of poetry, and $.05/word for prose with a maximum payment of $100. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

Shenandoah. Genre: Poetry. Payment: $100. Deadline: Opens April 1, 2024, and closes when they reach capacity. 

Zero Street Restrictions: Open to LGBTQ+ writers. Genre: Full-length literary fiction. "Zero Street will be committed to LGBTQ+ literary fiction with commercial potential, providing marginalized authors opportunities for a wide readership in the trade fiction market. The series editors are Timothy Schaffert, bestselling author of The Perfume Thief, and SJ Sindu, author of Blue-Skinned Gods. The series seeks LGBTQ+ literary fiction of all kinds, from stories of modern life to innovations on traditions of genre and are particularly interested in BIPOC authors, trans authors, and queer authors over 50." Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 1, 2024.

The Best Hunt. Genre: Speculative Fiction. Theme: Monsters have feelings too, even if it’s used to rage against the machine. Payment: "a percentage of sales divided equally between the contributing authors." Deadline: April 1, 2024.

Cosmic Roots and Eldritch Shores. Genre: Speculative stories. Payment: 8 cents/word for original work. 2 cents/word for reprints. Deadline: April 2, 2024. Opens April 1.

Island Online. Restrictions: Open to Australian and New Zealand citizens and residents only. Genre: Fiction, Nonfiction. Payment: $500. Deadline: April 3, 2024.

Havok. Genre: Flash fiction. See themes. Payment: $50 via PayPal for each story selected for an Anthology. No payment for online publication. Deadline: April 5, 2024.

Only Poems. Genre: Poetry. "We love prose poems, traditional forms (ghazals, villanelles, sestinas), love poems, sex poems, and experimental questionnaires, but we are not married to a style or genre. We are welcoming of anything you think is your most exciting work. Ultimately, we want poems that move us or make us go: “God, I wish I had written this!” Payment: $55. Deadline: April 7, 2024.

Daikaijuzine. Genre: Speculative fiction, poetry, art. Payment: $10.00 for each short story, and $5.00 for each poem and flash fiction piece. Deadline: April 7, 2024.

Stone's Throw. Genre: Noir, dark fiction, crime short stories. Length: between 1,000 and 2,000 words. See theme. Payment: $25. Deadline: April 7, 2024. 

Flame Tree: Sun Rising Short Stories. Genre: Speculative fiction on them: The Sun. "This will be a feast of modern fiction, folklore and mythology, and ancient tales of the looming, life-giving, eye-burning solar entity that dominates our sky." Payment: 8 cents/6 pence per word for original stories, 6 cents/4 pence for reprints. Deadline: April 7, 2024. Accepts reprints. 

Flame Tree: Moon Falling Short Stories. Genre: Speculative fiction on theme: The Moon. "This collection will bring a potent mix of superstition and belief that reaches back to the gods of Babylon, Ancient Egypt and Greece. Khonsu, Innana, Artemis and Thoth are just a few of the deities who brought a mix of love, sensuality and war to the ancient perceptions of the world." Payment: 8 cents/6 pence per word for original stories, 6 cents/4 pence for reprints. Deadline: April 7, 2024. Accepts reprints. 

Laughs in Space. Genre: Humorous science fiction. Length: 2000 words to 9000 words. Payment: £10 per 500 words, up to £55. Deadline: April 7, 2024. 

Terrain.org. Genre: "The Climate Stories in Action series will expand our vision of climate activism and help people imagine meaningful ways to be involved. We are inviting storytellers to submit poetry, nonfiction, fiction, art and multimedia pieces that showcase climate activism in professional, civic and community life. We are interested in stories that help shift our cultural mindset from despair to creative possibility and from isolation to collective purpose." Payment: $200. Deadline: April 8, 2024. 

Mslexia. Restrictions: Open to women. Genre: Fiction poetry, nonfiction. Payment: £25. Deadline: April 8, 2024. See themes.

berlin lit. Genre: Poetry. Payment: 20 euros per poem. Deadline: April 10, 2024.

Seaside Gothic. Genre: Seaside gothic fiction, poetry, nonfiction, or a collection of photographs or illustrations. Payment: £0.01 per word. Deadline: April 14, 2024.

Solarpunk Magazine. Genre: Solarpunk. Payment: $0.08/word for fiction, $40/poem, and $75/essay.  Deadline: April 14, 2024.

Griffith Review. Genre: Fiction and nonfiction on theme: Status Anxiety. Payment: AUD$0.75 per word. Deadline: April 14, 2024.

Hansen House. Genre: Hansen House is looking for anything with queer protagonists or by queer authors so long as the story does not fall into the “bury your gays” trope. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Bull City Press: Inch. Genre: Small collections—a minimum of three stories or essays, or a constellation of poems, between 10-16 pages in length. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Radon. Genre: Short stories and poetry containing elements of anarchism, transhumanism, dystopia, and/or science fiction. Payment: 1 cent per word for original work, half a cent per word for reprints. $20 per original poem and $10 for reprints. $100 for issue cover art, $30 for back cover art, and $20 for art used on their website. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Mythulu Magazine. Genre: Submit AI-assisted short stories, art, nonfiction. See prompts. Payment: $0.08/word. Comics pay $45/page. A.I. Art pays $10/page. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Bourbon Penn. Genre: "We are looking for highly imaginative stories with a healthy dose of the odd. Odd characters, odd experiences, odd realities. We’re looking for genre / speculative stories and are quite partial to slipstream, cross-genre, magic realism, absurdist, and the surreal." Length: 2000 - 7500 words. Payment: 4 cents/word. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Vault of Shadows. Genre: Short horror, weird, dark fiction between 3000 and 7500 words (not really a firm limit - the final product will be the comics script, not the short story), that can be adapted into a comic book script of 12 pages or less. Payment: $35 per page of the adapted script, up to 12 pages, paid via PayPal, and a print copy of the issue. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Electric Spec. Genre: Speculative fiction. Payment: $20 per piece. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Epoch. Genre: Poetry, prose, art and comics. Payment: $100 - $500 for poetry, prose, and comics, depending on length, and $350 for cover art. Deadline: April 15, 2024. No fee for snail mail submissions.

The Threepenny Review. Genre: Poetry, fiction, nonfiction. Payment: $400 per story or article, $200 per poem or Table Talk piece. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Consequence Magazine: The Culture of War. Restrictions: Open to BIPOC writers. Genre: Short fiction, poetry, nonfiction, interviews, reviews, and visual art mainly focused on the culture of war. Payment: $20 - $60 for prose and poetry, $150 for art. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Bikes in Space. Genre: Queer Halloween short fiction (in written or comics form) about bicycling from a feminist perspective. Payment: $50 minimum. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Rattle: Tribute to Musicians. Genre: Poetry. "We want to explore how music in the air in forms poems on the page. The poems may be any style or subject, but must be written who have been professional musicians at some point in their lives." Payment: $100. Deadline: April 15, 2024.

Grimm Retold. Genre: Horror and dark fantasy of Dark Grimm Fairy Tales, retold in new and horrific ways. Length: 2000 – 8000 words, Poems 1 - 4 pages. Payment: $25 for stories 2000 - 5000 words (after edits), $35 for stories 5000 - 8000 words (after edits), $15 for poems, $10 for reprints. Deadline: April 19, 2024. Accepts reprints.

Astrolabe. Genre: Fiction, creative nonfiction, and photography & art. Payment: $50. Deadline: April 20, 2024.

Super Canucks: An anthology of small-town Canadian superheroes. Genre: Superhero stories. " We want stories set in and around the nation’s more often overlooked locales—isolated small towns, remote reservations, bedroom communities, and other underrepresented areas of Canada." Payment: $200. Deadline: April 21, 2024.

Flash Fiction Online. Genre: Weird Horror flash fiction. Payment: $100. Deadline: April 21, 2024.

Mudroom. Genre: Poetry, fiction, essays, and essays in translation. Payment: $15. Deadline: April 25, 2024.

Off Topic Publishing: Poetry Box. Genre: Poetry. Payment $30 CAD.  Deadline: April 25, 2024. This is a monthly call.
 
Dragon Soul Press: Fairy Rites. Genre: "All Fae stories are welcome. All genres are accepted." Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Brick. Genre: Literary nonfiction. Payment: $55–685, depending on the length of accepted work, plus two copies of the issue the work appears in and a one-year subscription to the magazine. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Verve Poetry Press. Genre: Full-length poetry manuscripts. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

The Rabbit Hole. Genre: Weird stories and poems. Theme: “Not From Here”. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Plenitude Magazine Restrictions: Open to Canadians. "Plenitude Magazine aims to promote the growth and development of LGBTTQI literature through an online publication of literary fiction, nonfiction, poetry, graphic narrative, book reviews and short film by both emerging and established LGBTTQI writers. We define queer literature and arts as works created by LGBTTQI people, rather than works which feature queer content alone." Genre: Poetry. Payment: $50 - $100. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

The Temz Review. Genre: Prose (fiction and creative non-fiction) up to 10,000 words long. Payment: $20. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

After Happy Hour. Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, art, comics. Payment: $10. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Don’t Ask, Ghosts Tell. Genre: LGBTQ+ horror anthology loosely related to military life/service. Payment: $0.03/word (USD) for short stories with potential for increase based on Kickstarter success. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Boulevard. Genre: Poems up to 200 lines. Send up to five poems. Also fiction and nonfiction. Payment: $50-$250 for poetry, and $100-300 for prose. Deadline: April 30, 2024. No submission fee for mailed submissions.

Agbowo. Restrictions: Open to African origin writers only. Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, plays, book reviews and art/photography. Payment: Single Poems - $25; Suites of poems (2-4) - $50; One act plays -$50; Essays/Nonfiction - $60; Fiction - $60; Visual Art - $35. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Massachusetts Review. Genre: Fiction, poetry, hybrid, translations. Payment: $100. Deadline: April 30, 2023. Fee for online submissions. No fee for USPS.

Cast of Wonders. Genre: YA Speculative fiction. Podcast. See theme. Payment: $.08/word for original fiction up to 6,000 words. For reprints, a $100 flat rate for Short Fiction, and a $20 flat rate for Flash Fiction. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

the other side of hope. Genre: Poetry by refugees, asylum seekers, and immigrants only. They accept submissions in English for this reading period. Payment: £50. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Cursed Cooking: A Horror Community Cookbook and Food Horror Anthology. Genre: Horror on theme: Food. Payment: 5 cents per word for original fiction works and 1 cent per word for reprints. Accepted recipe submissions will receive $5. Deadline: April 30, 2024. Reprints accepted.

Book Worms: Rock n Roll. Genre: Horror: fiction and essays. See theme. Length: Up to 1,500 words. Payment: 8 cents/word. Deadline: April 30, 2024.
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Lanternfish. Restrictions: Open to writers identifying as Black, Indigenous, and people of color. Genre: Fiction and memoir, full-length (60 to 100,000 words) and novella-length (20 to 40,000 words). Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Deadly Yellowstone: A Collection of Mystery Shorts. Genre: Mystery short stories set in Yellowstone National Park. Length: 10,000 words max. 3,000 to 7,000 words preferred. Payment: $25. Deadline: April 30, 2024. 

Small Harbor Publishing. Genre: Poetry, art. See theme. Payment: Honorarium. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

I'm Here. Restrictions: Open to writers living in Canada. Genre: YA short stories connected in some way to the theme of “identity." Payment: $250. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Harbor Review. Genre: Poetry, art. Payment: $10. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Book Slayer Press. Restrictions: OPEN to any and everyone that identifies (now or in the past) as femme in the most inclusive of definitions. Genre: Adult speculative poetry under 50 lines. "HEMORRHAGING FLOWERS: A COLLECTION OF 100% FEMME RAGE is a collection of speculative poetry showcasing the spectrum of femininity and the rage contained within." Payment: $10. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Book Slayer Press Hentai Ectoplasm. Genre: Adult horror, including genre-chimeras. Submissions must be between 3,000 and 6,000 words. "Twelve - fifteen authors will tell a story of survival as their neighborhood is cut off by the destruction, each delivering the perspective of their respective home." Payment: $100. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Best New England Crime Stories 2024. Restrictions: Open to all writers who currently live in the six New England states. Genre: Crime stories, mystery, thriller, suspense, caper, historical, and horror. Payment: $25. Deadline: April 30, 2024.  

Chicken Soup for the Soul: Funny Stories. Genre: True stories and poems. "We are looking for stories about something that happened to you in your life - in your relationship with a partner or spouse, a parent or child, a family member or friend, at work or at home – that made you and the people around you laugh out loud." Payment: $200. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Texas Review Press publishes poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and scholarly works. "Topics we are interested in include 20th/21st Century American Poetry, Environmental Writing, Ecopoetics, Contemporary Poetics, Creative Writing Pedagogy, Southern Literature, Southern Issues, Gulf of Mexico Studies, Texas/Louisiana Literature, Texas/Louisiana History, Folklore, Cajun-Creole Studies, African-American Literature, African-American Studies, Latinx Literature, Latinx Studies, & Texas/Mexico History." Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 30, 2024. Submissions are capped at 300, so submit early.

Haven Speculative. Genre: Speculative fiction and poetry. Payment: 8¢ per word for fiction and $20 for poetry. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Psychopomp. Genre: Speculative fiction or literary novellas between 20,000 to 40,000 words, that fall under the umbrella of goth, death, funerary, grief, loss, alternative, otherworldly themes. Payment: $750 advance and 25% of net net receipts. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Thisledown Press (CANADA). Restrictions: Open to Canadian authors, with a preference for Western Canadian voices. Genre: Full-length literary work, including novels, short story collections, creative non-fiction, and collections of poetry. They will consider YA novels and—occasionally—books for younger children. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Soul Ink: Volume 2. Genre: Poetry. 1,000 word count minimum (not line count) Payment: Royalties (?) Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Chicken Soup for the Soul: Christmas, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, New Year's. Genre: True stories and poems. "Please submit your true stories and poems about the entire December holiday season, including Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Boxing Day, and New Year’s festivities too." Payment: $200. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Mythaxis. Genre: Speculative fiction. Payment: $20. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Typehouse. Restrictions: In honor of Arab American Heritage Month, no-fee submissions are open for all Arab creators, not limited to those in the US. Genre: Prose, poetry, art. Payment: $25. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

FIYAH. Restrictions: Submissions are restricted to people of the African Diaspora. Genre: Speculative fiction, art, and poetry about African Diaspora. Length: Short fiction 2,000 – 7,000 words and novelettes up to 15,000 words. See theme. Payment: $150 per story. $50 per poem. $300 per novelette. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Nonbinary Review. Genre: Speculative fiction, poetry, art. Theme: Heredity. Length: Up to 3,000 words for prose; up to 3 pages for poetry Payment: $0.01/word for prose, $10 for poetry. $25 flat fee for visual art, or $50 for pieces chosen as cover art. Deadline: April 30, 2024.

Malahat Review. Genre: Fiction. Payment: CAD $70/page. Deadline: April 30, 2024. (Note: Submissions by Canadian writers are accepted for consideration all year.)

AND A FEW MORE...

Cincinnati Review. Genre: Prose, poetry, art. Payment: $25/page for prose in journal. $30/page for poetry in journal. Deadline: Opens on May 1, closes when cap is reached.

Grumpy Old Gods Anthology: Grumpy Old Sherwood Genre: Speculative fiction stories. Theme: Robin Hood. "It’s open season on storytelling.  It means you can take whatever bits you like best of thousands of available tales, and twist and turn them however you like." Length: 3,000-4,000 words. Payment: A percentage of the profits. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

Bright Wall/Dark Room. Genre: Essay on theme: Spike Lee. "For our month of Lee, we’re seeking essays and voices tackling any and all of his films, his performances, his writings, his impact on cinema and culture.” Payment: $100. Deadline: May 1, 2024. 

Everyday Heroes. Genre: Contemporary Fiction. "In Honor of Mark Christopher Wagner the 2nd, we are looking for compelling and heartfelt stories centered around those who serve their communities. Stories of Firefighters, First responders, Law Enforcement, etc. Those Everyday Heroes who make a difference in the lives of their communities." Payment: Royalties. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

LONG DIVISION: Stories of Social Decay, Societal Collapse, and Bad Manners. Genre: Stories of transgression, of the mechanisms behind what’s fraying the bonds that bind us. Payment: 10c/word for original short fiction (up to 5,000 words). Deadline: Opens on May 1, closes when cap is reached.

The Bombay Literary Magazine. Genre: Fiction, poetry, translated fiction/poetry and graphic fiction. Payment: Indian rupees 5,000 (approx. $61) per contribution. Deadline: Opens on May 1.

The First Line. Genre: Fiction, poetry, nonfiction using the first line provided. (See site.) Payment: $25.00 - $50.00 for fiction, $10.00 for poetry, and $25.00 for nonfiction. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

Seven Story Hotel. Genre: Interviews, essays, stories, poems, and artwork. 7SH explores the weird, esoteric, and outsider fringes of contemporary culture, art, and technology. Payment: $35. Deadline: May 1, 2024. or until filled. 

Vault of Shadows. Genre: Short horror, weird, dark fiction between 3000 and 7500 words (not really a firm limit - the final product will be the comics script, not the short story), that can be adapted into a comic book script of 12 pages or less. Payment: $35 per page of the adapted script, up to 12 pages, paid via PayPal, and a print copy of the issue. Deadline: Extended submission window exclusively for LGBTQIA+, BIPOC, neurodivergent, and other marginalized writers open April 16 - May 1, 2024.

Last Girls Club. Genre: Feminist horror: short stories and poems - see themes. Payment: Fiction, 15 cents/word. Poetry, $10. Deadline: May 1, 2024.

Foglifter. Genre: Foglifter is a biannual compendium of  queer and trans writing. It’s a space where LGBTQ+ writers celebrate, mourn, rage, and embrace. "Foglifter welcomes daring and thoughtful work by queer and trans writers in all forms, and we are especially interested in cross-genre, intersectional, marginal, and transgressive work. We want the pieces that challenged you as a writer, what you poured yourself into and risked the most to make. But we also want your tenderest, gentlest work, what you hold closest to your heart. Whatever you're working on now that's keeping you alive and writing, Foglifter wants to read it." Payment: $25. Deadline: May 1, 2024.