Writing Contests
Writing Contests
When students write with an authentic purpose and audience, they are motivated to craft powerful words into prose and poetry. The New York Times Learning Network has an article with ten reasons to send student work out into the world. The Learning Network also has a list of over 70 avenues for student publication of writing.
The following contests—state, national, and international—are ways for students to submit their writing. The contests are organized chronologically by deadline.
| Name | Participants | Type | Genre(s) | Deadline |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Ages 13-18 |
National |
Oct: Speech |
Monthly |
|
| Learning Network from The New York Times | 6th-12th | International |
Sept-Nov: Coming of Age in 2020 Sept-Oct: Election 2020 Oct-Nov: Personal Narrative Nov-Dec: Vocabulary Video Dec-Jan: Review Jan-Mar: STEM Writing Feb-Apr: Editorial Apr-May: Podcast Jun-Aug: Summer Reading |
Monthly |
| Rattle's Ekphrastic Poetry Challenge | all ages | National | poetry | Monthly |
| The First Line literary journal | all ages | International | fiction | Quarterly |
| NYC Midnight | all ages | International |
short story screenwriting flash fiction microfiction short screenplay |
Quarterly |
| I, Too, Am the Dream Contest | 12th | National | essay |
|
|
12th |
State |
essay |
October 31, 2020 |
|
|
9th-12th |
National |
audio essay |
October 31, 2020 |
|
| VFW Patriot's Pen | 6th-8th | National | essay | October 31, 2020 |
|
7th-12th |
National |
critical essay |
December 4, 2020 |
|
|
6th-12th |
State |
poetry |
*December 2020* |
|
|
8th |
State |
essay |
*December 2020* |
|
| Oklahoma Bar Association Law Day Writing Contest | PK-12th | State | essay | *January 2021* |
| Profile in Courage Essay Contest | 9th-12th | National | essay | January 15, 2021 |
|
PK-12th; teacher |
State |
descriptive paragraph |
January 2021 |
|
| OKC National Memorial Annual Student Essay Contest | 5th-12th | National | essay | January 2021 |
| R. Darryl Fisher Creative Writing Contest | 9th-12th | State | fiction & poetry | February 5, 2021 |
| Aerie International | Ages 13-19 | International |
poetry short story flash fiction brief nonfiction lyric essay short drama foreign language poetry and translations |
February 2021 |
| Engineer Girl | 3rd-12th | National |
3rd-5th: letter 6th-8th: news story/blog post 9th-12th: essay |
February 1, 2021 |
| Black Heritage Creative Contest | K-12th | State |
essay poetry |
February 2021 |
| Promising Young Writers (NCTE) | 8th | State | various | February 15, 2021 |
| Achievement Awards in Writing (NCTE) | 11th | State | various | February 15, 2021 |
| English Jueju | K-12; adults | State | poetry | 2021 |
| Scope's Write-a-Story Contest | 5th-10th | National | short story | March 2021 |
| Sejong Cultural Society | K-12; adults | National |
poetry (sijo) literary analysis essay |
March 2021 |
| Podcast (NPR) | 5th-12th | National | podcast | *March 2021* |
| Adroit Prizes | 9th-12th; college | International |
poetry short story |
April 1, 2021 |
| Ages 6-14 | National | poetry | *April 1, 2021* | |
| Bulwer Lytton Fiction Contest | PK-12th; adults | National | bad sentence | April 15, 2021 |
| Penguin Random House Creative Writing Awards Program in Partnership with We Need Diverse Books | 12th | National |
poetry memoir/personal essay fiction/drama spoken-word |
April 2021 |
|
8th-12th |
National |
essay |
April 2021 |
