Here are 18 upcoming deadlines for submitting fiction, article pitches, and entering contests. All of these are paid opportunities. The deadlines are through November 30th.
Most of these were previously listed in Freedom With Writing, or Authors Publish Magazine.
Thanks to S. Kalekar for most of the listings in this article.
Submissions are open for the Greater & Gander Collective Folk Fiction Writing Competition, which focuses on at least two people from different walks of life coming together to accomplish something, and on a science lesson; a contest which counteracts the superhero narrative. The deadline is 8 December 2021, and the top prize is $250.
Deadline: December 8th, 2021
Three Time Travelers Walk Into… is a fiction anthology. Their guidelines say, “Take any three famous people from history, toss them together, and have an adventure.
How they got together is up to you – you could do an origin story of how they first met or you could write the story as if they had been adventuring for years. You can use a time machine or a rip in space/time or quantum magic or whatever. You could have some sort of universal translator or you can have the language barrier be part of your plotline.
And these three people should be really separate if possible, from different cultures and times. “ Also, “I’m looking for real people or people who are so ingrained in mythology that they could be real (Robin Hood, King Arthur, Mulan, etc.). Obviously, do not use any copyrighted characters or clearly fictional characters even if they are in the public domain”.
Length: Prefers up to 4,000, can accept up to 5,000 words
Pay: $0.05/word
Details here.
Deadline: December 9th, 2021
J. Anthony Lukas Work-in-Progress Awards: Two awards are given for non-fiction works in progress which deal with a topic of American political or social concern, to aid their completion. Writers must already have a contract with a US-based publisher. There is no fee for the work-in-progress award. The prizes are run by Columbia Journalism School – they also have the J. Anthony Lukas Book Prize and the Mark Lynton History Prize, and these awards have an entry fee.
Value: $25,000
Open for: Unspecified
Details here and here
Deadline: December 9th, 2021
The Graphic Short Story Prize is an opportunity for UK-based aspiring graphic novelists, or a team of writer and artist, for a graphic story. The prize is organized by Jonathan Cape and Comica, together with The Observer. Stories can be fiction or non-fiction, in black and white or color, and with or without words. Entries have to be mailed.
Value: £1,000, £250
Open for: UK-based aspiring graphic novelists/graphic novel writer and artist teams
Details here (scroll down) – download the entry form from here for terms & conditions, acceptable format, and other details.
Deadline: December 10th, 2021
Are We Europe is a themed, quarterly publication and they commission articles and photo series from young journalists in Europe on underreported topics. They’re commissioning pitches for feature pieces (1,200-2,000 words), photography, illustration, short stories, podcasts and infographics on a rolling basis for their quarterly themes. Their pitching rounds are open for magazine entries as well as pitches for personal, in-depth multimedia stories. They have extensive guidelines on the ‘The Lie of the Land’ theme, and some of the angles they’d like covered are: “Who are the people working the land today, and under what conditions? What does the journey of a product of the land, be it fruit, plants or flowers, into our homes look like? Does the meaning of land change from one part of Europe to another? What is the connection between land and identity?” The pitch deadline is 10 December 2021. Details here.
Deadline: December 10th, 2021
BBC Future covers science, technology, food, health, climate change, and more. Their editor has tweeted, “I’m looking for pitches on early warning systems for Future Planet.” “I’m interested in solutions stories on the systems that warn us about impending disasters, from earthquakes, volcanoes and tsunamis to floods, disease, drought and famine.” “Stories should centre around one or two specific systems in a specific place, and should be evidence-based. We’re looking for a good spread of global stories, and prioritise local (within-country) reporting.” According to payment reports, they pay £800 for 2,000-word features. Send your pitches to jocelyn.timperley@bbc.com. To read their editor’s Twitter thread, click here. To read Future Planet’s articles, click here.
Deadline: December 10th, 2021
Short Fiction is affiliated with the University of Essex and it publishes short fiction from writers in all countries, except the US. “We have wide-ranging tastes and have happily published traditional character-driven stories next to non-conformist work of extraordinary innovation.” Writers who have never had a short story published before should submit work under the ‘Introducing’ section.
Length: 500-5,000 words
Pay: £0.02/word up to £100
Details here.
Deadline: December 12th, 2021
Submissions are open for the ‘Letters I’ll Never Send’ anthology. Their guidelines say, “This anthology will be a compilation of first-person accounts including letters, prosaic poems, diary entries, postcard letters, very short personal essays, and other genre-bending experimental pieces.
“letters i’ll never send” is meant to serve as a sentimental linkage between the writer and the reader. It should lure the reader in emotionally, so that they can resonate in some meaningful way. Simultaneously, all pieces inside the book should connect with the others in vulnerable, open, or spiritual ways – or all of those ways. Essentially, just write as if you’re writing to whoever, and run with whatever comes up – whether it’s an angry letter, a love letter, a breakup letter, a friendship letter, a self-reflection letter, a letter to yourself, a postcard letter to a friend/significant other, etc.” Pay is $50 for submissions of up to 1,000 words. Details here.
Deadline: December 12th, 2021
Bright Wall/Dark Room wants writing on cinema, and they publish themed issues. For ‘The Best of 2021’ they have extensive guidelines, including “Send us your writing about movies from this year that surprised you, moved you, riled you. More than anything, we want to read about movies that made you feel something this year, a year when it was often easier to feel nothing. Feel free to get meta, go long — make it your own.” Longer, creative essays are 2,000-4,000 words. Pay is $100. Details here.
Deadline: December 13th, 2021
Extra Teeth is a Scottish magazine, and they accept fiction and nonfiction submissions from writers all over the world. They want “short stories that stick with you, lingering in the memory long after reading, and essays that explore specific interests or issues from a new perspective. We offer a space for writers to be strange, bold and experimental, and to express their unique style however they see fit.”
Deadline: 14 December 2021
Length: 800-4,000 words
Pay: £100
Details here.
Deadline: December 14th, 2021
The Journal of Compressed Creative Arts publishes weekly. “We accept fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, mixed media, visual arts, and even kitchen sinks, if they are compressed in some way.” General fiction (including prose poem) submissions are up to 600 words. Also see their guidelines for Topical Thursdays (up to 1,000 words) and Triptychs. Pay is $50. The deadline is 15 December 2021 for general submissions; Topical Thursdays are read year-round. Details here.
Deadline: December 15th, 2021
Brink is open for submissions on the ‘Certainty’ theme. “How do you know when something is undeniably, inevitably true? What does certainty feel like in your body? Is it a firm knot of conviction deep in your core? Does it manifest as clarity or courage? Can you grasp certainty? Are you sure?
What happens when certainty crumbles? When the home, the relationship, your own body, break and you must reckon with the reality that what was once indisputable is now disrupted? … We are interested in work that focuses on the edge, the brink, of certainty. What surrounds certainty? What are the images, sounds, ideas, people, movements, and opportunities?“ They publish poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and hybrid works. Pay is $25 for poems, and $50-100 for other works. Details here and here.
Deadline: December 15th, 2021
New_ Public is “a nonprofit project seeking to advance the design of healthier digital spaces.” For their next issue (April 2022), they are looking for stories about trust (and what it means for the internet). They are primarily seeking nonfiction pieces but are open to other forms (speculative fiction, visual journalism, etc.) They pay $0.75 per word for nonfiction pieces (1,500 to 2,000 words). For more information, refer to their Tweet and call for pitches.
Deadline: December 15th, 2021
Table//FEAST Literary Magazine has three contests: for flash fiction, a micro/mini poem, and translations of poetry (send up to 3 translations).
Value: $40 each for flash and micro/mini poem; $200 for translations
Open for: All writers and poets
Details here
Deadline: December 15th, 2021
The Fray publishes original themed non-fiction of 1,000-4,000 words. They prefer pieces – including review essays — with a strong connection to the magazine’s themes of understanding other people and cultures, encouraging empathy and compassion, and defying categories and conventions. They want work on the ‘Openings and Closings’ theme. “For many people, life nowadays is a state of continual transition. Economies shut down, then reopen, then shut down again. Practices of business and leisure are in flux, responding to ever-changing local conditions. The pandemic continues to foreclose some possibilities while opening others, and it is anyone’s guess what the new normal will eventually be.
In The Fray magazine is looking for essays, reportage, and photo essays that examine experiences of upheaval and realignment—of whatever variety, and however construed.” They publish news (in-depth profiles and other reportage): $50-100; commentary (personal essays, op-eds, and travel writing): $25-75; art (photo essays, artwork, videos, multimedia projects, and accompanying photos/art): $25-75; interviews (Q&As): $25-75; and reviews (reviews of books, film, music, and art): $20-50. Blogs (shorter pieces, in any genre): unpaid – they will determine after seeing the first draft, which pieces will go in the blog section. They do not publish fiction or poetry. The pitch deadline is 15 December 2021. Details here and here.
Deadline: December 15th, 2021
The Monitor is the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives’ bimonthly policy and current affairs magazine, covering issues of critical importance to the related goals of social, economic and environmental justice. They have issued a submission call on ‘Undoing the transit death spiral’. They have extensive guidelines on the theme of plummeting transit ridership and associated problems, including “The March/April issue of the Monitor explores saving, reinvesting in, and reimagining Canada’s public transit systems. We are accepting pitches that explore the following questions (and more!): Can we apply a racial equity lens to Canada’s transit systems and, if so, how would this work begin? How can we develop truly affordable transit that extends beyond the current inadequate model of opening a single tier of affordable passes up? How do we fund a better transit system? What does a functional intercity transit system look like? What does a thriving accessible transit system look like? Where can we draw inspiration from? What lessons can we learn from Ottawa’s P3 experience?” They want feature articles, investigative journalism, illustrations, and book reviews, that are rooted in an intersectional analysis between 700-1,500 words. The writing style should be accessible (not academic or theoretical). The pitch deadline for this issue is 15 December 2021. Details here and here.
Sasee wants first-person, non-fiction material that is for or about women, of 500-1,000 words. Essays, humor, satire, personal experience, and features on topics relating to women are their focus areas. They do not publish fiction or poetry. They have three upcoming themes: The Future is Female (submission deadline 15 December 2021); Best Buds (deadline 15 January 2022), and Express Yourself! (deadline 15 February 2022). Details here.
Deadline: December 15th, 2021
