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.
Dates of limited competitions and calls for submission – April 2026 onward:
Anthology Short Story Award – February – July 2026:
https://anthology-magazine.
Anthology Poetry Award – July – October 2026:
https://anthology-magazine.
Anthology Nature Writing Prize – February – September 2026:
https://anthology-magazine.
OPPORTUNITIES: – click links for details:
GriffithReview 94 Out of Office – fiction and non-fiction submissions
Closes: 17 May
Submit fiction and non-fiction up to 4,000 words
28 April: Spill the Beans Member Prize
For Poets, novella, children’s and memoir writers.
OTHER COMPETITIONS:
Click on each link for the relevant website:
28 April: Jane Austen Literacy Foundation Short Story Writing Competition 2026
30 April: The Best of Times Short Story Competition #41 (Autumn 2026)
30 April: Flying Islands Poetry 2026 Manuscript Prize
Orange City Council – Banjo Paterson Writing Awards – Closes: 1 May
Right Left Write – Closes: 30 Apr
Society of Women Writers Victoria – Margaret Hazzard Short Story Award – Closes: 3 May
15 May: Eastwood Hills FAW Literary Competition 2026
18 May: 2026 ABR Elizabeth Jolley Short Story Prize
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