For the benefit of our members (and the broader writing community), we’ve collected this list of current competitions and opportunities for you. Please note that we do not administer these competitions, and we can’t answer any questions you might have about them. Listings are provided in good faith. Please check details and conditions of entry.
Looking for children’s contests? Those exclusively for school-aged and ‘young’ writers are marked YOUTH, but others may include junior sections.
Date limited competitions and calls for submission, January 2026 onward
Anthology Short Story Award (early bird closes 31 January 2026) – https://anthology-magazine.com/awards/short-story-competition/
Anthology Poetry Award (early bird closes 31 January 2026) – https://anthology-magazine.com/awards/poetry-award/
Anthology Nature Writing Prize (early bird closes 31 January 2026) – https://anthology-magazine.com/awards/nature-writing-prize/
Bristol Short Story Prize (closes 31 January 2026) – https://www.bristolshortstoryprize.co.uk
Byouk Short Story and Poetry Competition (closes 31 January 2026) – https://www.byoukbooks.co.uk/competition
Fiction Factory First Chapter & Synopsis Competition (closes 31 January 2026) – https://fiction-factory.biz/first-chapter-synopsis-competition/
GenreCon Short Story Competition (closes 31 January 2026) – https://www.genrecon.com.au/competitions
Jerry Jazz Musician Short Fiction Prize (closes 31 January 2026) – https://www.jerryjazzmusician.com/fiction-contest/
Rhiza Teen Author Prize (closes 31 January 2026) – https://rhiza.org.au/teen-author-prize/
Stringybark Open Short Story Competition (closes 1 February 2026) – https://www.stringybarkpublishing.com/competitions
The Masters Review Winter Short Story Award (closes 1 February 2026) – https://mastersreview.com/winter-short-story-award/
Calibre Essay Prize (Australian Book Review, closes 3 February 2026) – https://www.australianbookreview.com.au/prizes-programs/calibre-prize
Ninth Heaven Writing Prize (closes 14 February 2026) – https://www.ninthheavenpress.com/writing-prize
Tasmanian Writers’ Prize (closes 14 February 2026) – https://taswriters.org/prizes/tasmanian-writers-prize/
Dolors Alberola International Poetry Prize (closes 15 February 2026) – https://dolorsalberolaprize.com
Sheila Malady Short Story Competition (closes 16 February 2026) – https://sheilamaladyshortstorycompetition.com
Limnisa Short Story Competition (closes 22 February 2026) – https://limnisaliteraryprize.com
Next Generation Short Story Awards (closes 26 February 2026) – https://nextgenerationshortstoryawards.com
Victorian Bush Poetry Championships – written categories (closes 27 February 2026) – https://www.abpa.org.au/victorian-bush-poetry-championships.html
Flash 500 Short Story Competition (closes 28 February 2026) – https://flash500.org
Sutherland Shire Literary Competition (closes 28 February 2026) – https://www.sutherlandshire.nsw.gov.au/library/literary-competition
Writers of the Future Contest (open January–March 2026) – https://writersofthefuture.com/enter-writer-contest/
Ongoing Opportunities
Henshaw Press – Quarterly Short Story Competitions https://www.henshawpress.co.uk
AAWP – Meniscus Literary Journal https://www.meniscus.org.au/submit-to-meniscus
The Raven Review https://www.ravenreview.org/submit
Metapsychosis Journal https://metapsychosis.com/submit
POSTCARD Literary Magazine https://www.postcardmag.com/submit
Not Quite Write Prize for Flash Fiction https://notquitewritepodcast.com/prize
Social Alternatives https://socialalternatives.com/submissions
Spineless Wonders https://shortaustralianstories.com.au/submissions
Black Inc. https://www.blackincbooks.com.au/submissions
Etherea Magazine https://www.ethereamagazine.com/submissions
The Mythic Circle https://www.mythsoc.org/mythic-circle/submissions.htm
Old Moon Quarterly https://www.oldmoonpublishing.com/submissions
Southerly https://southerlylitmag.com.au/submit
Litro Magazine https://www.litromagazine.com/submissions
Overland https://overland.org.au/submit
The Victorian Writer (Writers Victoria) https://writersvictoria.org.au/resources/the-victorian-writer
The School Magazine https://theschoolmagazine.com.au/contributors/writers
Extinction Rebellion Creative Hub https://xrcreative.org/submit
Tim Saunders Publications https://timsaunderspublications.com
Voiceworks (Under 25) https://voiceworksmag.com.au/submit
Wordgathering – Disability Literature https://wordgathering.com/submissions
Green Stories Competitions https://www.greenstories.org.uk/competitions
Women with Disabilities Australia https://www.wda.org.au/blog
Australian Bush Poets Association https://www.abpa.org.au/competitions.html
Ginninderra Press ttps://ginninderrapress.com.au/submissions
Wombat Books https://www.wombatbooks.com.au/submissions
LitMag https://litmag.com/submit
Big Sky Publishing https://www.bigskypublishing.com.au/submissions
Science Write Now https://sciencewritenow.com.au/submit
Creative Writing News https://www.creativewritingnews.com/category/calls-for-submissions
Write From the Heart https://www.writefromtheheartstories.com
Right Now Magazine https://rightnow.org.au/pitch
Penny Mint https://pennymint.com.au/submit
Arena https://arena.org.au/submit
Going Down Swinging https://goingdownswinging.org.au/submit
Archer Magazine https://archermagazine.com.au/pitch
Sydney Review of Books https://sydneyreviewofbooks.com.au/pitches
Sweaty City https://www.sweatycity.com.au/submissions
Copyright Agency Cultural Fund https://www.copyright.com.au/culturalfund/
Sunspot Literary Journal https://sunspotlit.com/submit
Positive Words https://positivewordsmagazine.wordpress.com
The Human Writers https://thehumanwriters.com/submissions
Babyteeth Journal https://babyteethjournal.com/submit
Dark Lake Publishing https://www.darklakepublishing.com/submissions
Red Room Poetry https://redroompoetry.org/projects
ISLAND Magazine https://islandmag.com/submissions
Genre Opportunities (SFF, Horror, Mystery)
Lightspeed Magazine https://lightspeedmagazine.com/submissions
Nightmare Magazine https://nightmare-magazine.com/submissions
Fantasy Magazine https://www.fantasy-magazine.com/submissions
Clarkesworld Magazine https://clarkesworldmagazine.com/submissions
Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine https://www.alfredhitchcockmysterymagazine.com/contact-us/writers-guidelines
ILLUMINATIONS OF THE FANTASTIC https://www.illuminationsfantastic.com
Furious Fiction (Australian Writers’ Centre) https://www.writerscentre.com.au/furious-fiction
Screenwriting Opportunities
Shore Scripts https://www.shorescripts.com
Green Stories – Screenplay Competitions https://www.greenstories.org.uk/competitions/screenwriting
Australian Writers’ Guild (AWG) https://awg.com.au/programs/opportunities
Script Revolution https://www.scriptrevolution.com
Coverfly https://www.coverfly.com/opportunities
ScreenCraft https://screencraft.org
Raindance https://www.raindance.org/film-festival/screenplay-competition/
The Black List https://blcklst.com