Monday, May 17, 2010

Writing Contests and Writing Competitions




Back in April, I wrote a post about how to win writing contests.  As a result, I have seen a large number of requests for information about writing contests.  Here are a few of my favorite competitions and awards.  John Kremer as a more comprehensive list on his site.

The Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards - The Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards recognize books that have made important contributions to our understanding of racism and our appreciation of the rich diversity of human cultures.

The Bancroft Prizes - The Bancroft Prizes are awarded annually by Columbia University in the City of New York. Under the terms of the will of the late Fredric Bancroft, provision is made for two annual prizes of equal rank  to be awarded to the authors of distinguished works in either or both of the following categories: American History (including biography) and Diplomacy.

James Jones Fellowship Contesthe award is intended to honor the spirit of unblinking honesty, determination, and insight into modern culture exemplified by the late James Jones, author of From Here to Eternity and other prose narratives of distinction.


Los Angeles Times Book Prizes - The Los Angeles Times Book Prizes were established in 1980. Finalists and winners are determined by panels of published authors who specialize in each genre. Category winners receive a $500 cash award and Kirsch and Innovator’s Award winners both receive $1000.

The Robert F. Kennedy Book AwardThe Robert F. Kennedy Book Award was founded in 1980, with the proceeds from Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.'s best-selling biography, Robert Kennedy and His Times. Each year the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights presents an award to the book which "most faithfully and forcefully reflects Robert Kennedy's purposes - his concern for the poor and the powerless, his struggle for honest and even-handed justice, his conviction that a decent society must assure all young people a fair chance, and his faith that a free democracy can act to remedy disparities of power and opportunity."

Benjamin Franklin Awards™ - Named in honor of America's most cherished publisher/printer, the Benjamin Franklin Awards™ recognizes excellence in independent publishing. Publications, grouped by genre are judged on editorial and design merit by top practitioners in each field.


What is your favorite writing award or contest?

2 comments:

  1. All these are good prizes - however, you missed the CWA's Debut Dagger competition. Every year, the UK's Crime Writers' Association holds competitions, and the Debut is for unpublished authors. They have to submit the first few thousand words of a novel, together with a synopsis. The prize is not huge, BUT - on average every year, two to three new writers are snapped up by publishers. When I ran it, I think I had seven new authors get into print in two years. That ain't bad!

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  2. My favorite is the Writer's Digest Short Story Competition. It's held every year and for a nominal fee your story gets read and you have a chance of going to New York to meet agents as the first prize.

    In the 75th annual contest at Writer's Digest I had 5 stories place in the top 60 in the category "Genre Short Story".

    One of mine called, "The Newspaper" made it to the 6th spot out of almost 20,000 entries.

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