Writing Contests for Teens Enter, Win, Learn (NEW FOR 2017)

When I was in high school, my sister and I used to play a little game. We’d write poems to each other in the style of William Carlos Williams. The poems proved most useful in injecting some love  into a crap situation. For example: This Is Just to Say By Shana  Thompson I have taken your shoes that were in your closet and which you were probably wearing to school tomorrow Forgive me they are now muddy but so comfy and so cute Award winning, eh? Well, Ive never won any awards for my poetry. But maybe youve got something to share with the world. There are lots of writing contests for teens, and most of them are legit. Its not just poetry, either! You can enter your short stories, examples of journalism and your prose.  Be sure you read the instructions carefully, and dont submit your work to anything that would accept my poem. With that in mind, heres info about nine  of the best writing contests for teens. Exit Earth: Short Story Competition Admit it. Since Trumps election, youve had at least one vision of what the world will be like when he pushes the Red Button. I know you did because we all did. Now you can write about it. When you win, you can use your prize to buy supplies for your underground bunker. Exit Earth is a short story writing contest for teens and its sponsored by Storgy magazine. The website states the theme beautifully: We are looking for fiction that explores life – be it past, present, or future – on, or off – this beautiful, yet fragile, world of ours. Dystopian or utopian, realist or fantasy, horror or sci-fi, comedy or romance Entries are due on May 31, 2017, and will be reviewed by judges including Diane Cook. Shes a former producer of  This American Life  and is the author of  Man V. Nature. It costs  Ã‚ £10 to enter, but you can use PayPal to convert the currency to USD. The website includes specific instructions on how to format and send your entry, so be sure to read them first. The 1st, 2nd and 3rd place prizes are  £1,000,  £500 and  £250, respectively, as well as publication in the magazine. Exit Earth: Short Story Competition Deadline: May 31, 2017 Entry fee:  £10 Prize: Up to  £1000 and publication Bow Seat Ocean Awareness Student Contest This is kind of a neat little contest because you can get your friends in on it, too. Ill give you the details of the contest, but Im not going to offer any advice on how to split the prize. This is an annual writing contest for teens sponsored by Bow Seat Ocean Awareness Programs. Theyre a non-profit that advocates ocean awareness and conservation, and they do a lot of projects with schools. This year, theyd like submissions from you on the topic of Ocean Pollution: Challenges and Solutions. and while the topic is pretty specific, theyll take pretty much any kind of entry. You can enter poetry,  prose or even visual art, and you can enter as an individual or a group. There are two age categories for entry. If youre in grade 6 through 8, youll enter a different category than grades 9-12, but the prizes are a bit different, too. The younger crowds first place award is $1,000 and the older crowd wins $1,500. The deadline for entry is June 19th. Make sure you read the contest page, because there are requirements for formatting as well as for a reflection piece that youll need to submit. Bow Seat Ocean Awareness Student Contest Deadline: June 19, 2017 Entry fee: None Prize: Up to $1,500 for grades 9-12; up to $1,000 for grades 6-8 One Teen Story This ones not technically a contest, but its an open call for submissions. If your submission is published, theyll pay you $500. They only publish 4 stories each year, so its quite competitive. One Teen Story is a daughter publication to  One Story Magazine.  One Story   has an interesting format. Theyll send one story each month to subscribers. Beginning this year,  One Story subscribers will also receive  One Teen Story, so youll get plenty of exposure once youre published. The magazine is currently looking for stories that explore the teen experience, topics like  family or friendship. As always, read the submission guidelines. The website explicitly states that theyll shred your paper submission as soon as they get it in the mail, so dont send one. Youll also be asked to adhere to word counts and offer proof of your age. One Teen Story Deadline: ongoing Entry fee: None Prize: Pays $500 upon publication L. Ron Hubbard’s Writers of the Future Contest Im a huge fan of  weird fiction. I love sci-fi and fantasy not the George R.R. Martin kind, but the H.P. Lovecraft kind. And I love that this contest was established by L. Ron Hubbard. If you dont know who LRH is, maybe this contests not for you. But if you do, start writing! This contest is quarterly, is judged by published authors, and has great prizes. Plus, its free to enter. This isnt specifically a writing contest for teens. Anyone can enter as long as theyre not a professional writer. The website specifically tells entrants what the definition of professional is, so be sure to check out the guidelines carefully. Dont enter your childrens books or your poetry, but do enter your short stories or novellas up to 17,000 words in length. Every three months, prizes of $500, $750 and $1,000 will be awarded, but theres also an annual grand prize of $5,000 for the best submission. L. Ron Hubbards Writers of the Future Contest Deadline: Quarterly Entry fee: None Prize: Up to $1,000 Princeton University Contests for High School Students These writing contests for teens  are specifically for writers in the 11th grade, and are judged by members of the Princeton University Creative Writing faculty. So even if youre not a winner, maybe you can turn a head over at Princeton? Who knows, but even if entering the contest doesnt make you a shoo-in for admission, you can at least earn some pocket money. Princeton University actually offers two competitions. One in poetry and one for the best ten-minute play. They have different deadlines, so be sure to visit the website for more info. The prizes are nice, at $100, $250 and $500. They wont pay your tuition, but maybe now you can afford that elbow patch sport coat youve been eyeing. Princeton University Poetry Contest and Ten Minute Play Contest Deadline: Varies by contest Entry fee: None Prize: Up to $500 Nancy Thorp Poetry Contest so much depends upon the poem  you choose to enter a contest and maybe, perhaps win. Thats a good one, too, isnt it?  If I were a bit younger Id enter it into this poetry writing contest for teens. Nancy Thorp was a poet who attended Hollins University, the sponsors of this contest. The contest is now in its 53rd year, and is open to girls in 110th or 11th grade. You can submit up to two poems, and the first prize is awesome: youll get $200 plus free tuition to the colleges summer creative writing program. The deadline for this years contest has passed, but its an annual competition  which usually ends in October. Check the website periodically for information on deadline updates. Nancy Thorp Poetry Contest Deadline: Usually October Entry fee: None Prize: Up to $200 plus tuition for a summer writing camp Hemingway Festival Writing Contest Heres another writing contest for teens which is sponsored by a university. The University of Idaho wants fiction or creative non-fiction, poetry and academic essay entries from high school juniors and seniors. The contest usually runs from October until January, with winners announced in February. The contest is open to everyone, and theres a variety of prize categories, including a couple for residents of the state and county. Check out the website for details. Its free to enter, and prizes range from gift cards to the University of Idaho Vandal store to $500 cash. Hemingway Festival Writing Contest Deadline: January Entry fee: None Prize: Up to $500 for the grand prize winner Aerie International Contest Want a jury of your peers? This magazine is curated, edited and published by high school students. Theyre looking for entries in poetry and prose, as would love your foreign language poem. Be sure to include an English translation. You can contribute up to 5 pieces each year. They like for your work to be fewer than 1500 words, and theyll only get one time rights to your work. That means that after they print it, you can submit it elsewhere. If you win the contest, theyll give you $100, as well as a copy of the publication. Your teacher can get a copy as well, check out the submissions page for details. Aerie International Writing Contest Deadline: February Entry fee: None Prize: $100 and copies of publication The Adroit Journal This contest is open to both high school students and undergrads. Its an annual contest, and theyll choose two winners to receive $200 each. Winners also get  copies of the judges latest books; Ill leave it up to you to do with that info what you like. You can submit up to 6 poems or 3 works of prose, but make sure that your total word count isnt more than 3,500 words.  Its always a good idea to check out writers who have won in the past, and you can read the past winners works right from the contest website. It does cost $12 to enter this one, but theres a fee waiver if you absolutely need one. The Adroit Journal Deadline: 2017 deadline to be announced Entry fee: $12 Prize: $200 and a healthy dose of self promotion by the judges In closing, Ill leave you with this haiku. Its an original, and Im thinking of entering it into a contest. Let me know what you think. There are so many Writing contests for the teens Good luck and have fun