Competitions, Awards & Opportunities
The Tom Howard and Margaret Reid poetry contests are open to all poems written in English. There are no restrictions on age or country. TOM HOWARD PRIZE: $1,500 for a poem in any style or genre MARGARET REID PRIZE: $1,500 for a poem that rhymes or has a traditional style Length limit: 250 lines per poem.
Submit maximum 10,000 words of manuscript, plus maximum 1,000 word synopsis, of unpublished romance manuscript. For details, see website. Maximum of two entries per person.
A Varuna Focus Week offers a residential masterclass to writers with a shared interest in a particular area. Each week is limited to only five participants and includes a creative and stimulating mix of individual work-time, facilitated sessions, one-on-one mentorship as well as social time for unstructured conversation. Participation in this program is through written application.
Open to Australian journalists or writers whose work was published in the year from 1 September in the preceding year to 31 August. Entries can encompass subject matter including true crime and biographies through to political analysis, business writing, war reporting, investigative journalism and foreign correspondence.
Poems are to be no less than 50 lines and a maximum of 500 lines and must be published works within the last 12 months (from the closing date) and in book or journal form (hard or electronic). Open only to Australian citizens as specified by the donor in the original trust.
Whitley Awards are presented for outstanding publications (print or electronic) containing a significant amount of information on the Australasian region fauna. More than one medal may be given each year. The prize may be withheld if submissions are of insufficient standard. Certificates of commendation (to author and to publisher) are given within a series of categories.
No prescribed qualifications required. Award is based on merit and past achievements or demonstrated ability for future achievement in any walk of life. Benefit to Australia is a significant factor. Fellowships are awarded for periods of four to eight weeks duration. Overseas travel only.
The Wollongong Writers Festival Short Story Prize is awarded for a story up to 2500 words on the theme ‘World-Changing Words’. The theme can be interpreted as broadly and playfully as you like. Feel free to experiment with form and content, but please keep submissions within the word count.
The World Nomads Travel Writing Scholarship gives three aspiring writers the opportunity to attend a travel writing workshop with a professional and widely-published travel writer (a different tutor each year). After completing the workshop, they will then put their writing skills to the test on a 10-day all-expenses-paid trip where they will document their adventures. This is a global opportunity. 2019 dates are to be confirmed.
Entries are now open for the Write Around the Murray short story competition. The competition is open to writers from all over Australia who can enter in two categories: Open Short Story (3,000 words) or the Nano Story (50 words) using images from the Albury Art Gallery as inspiration.
A free to enter short story writing competition. Ongoing monthly competition. Deadline: Last day of every month. Prize: $30. Submit short stories of up to 3,000 words. Open theme.