About r/literarycontests
Reddit's top resource for literary contests and calls for submissions. Powered by Winning Writers, one of the "101 Best Websites for Writers" (Writer's Digest 2024).
The community at a glance
r/literarycontests is a Subreddit for Writers with roughly 21K members. It has been around since 2019. It uses a forum format for communication.
Roughly 2K members have joined in the past year.
Community Topics
Community Features
This community has a forum
Subreddit Analysis
via GummySearchMember growth over time
All time (yearly)
- 2020: 4K members
- 2021: 5K members
- 2023: 7K members
- 2024: 1K members
- 2025: 1K members
- 2026: 827 members
Past year (monthly)
- Jul: 139 members
- Aug: 114 members
- Sep: 58 members
- Oct: 190 members
- Nov: 172 members
- Dec: 177 members
- Jan: 180 members
- Feb: 125 members
- Mar: 130 members
- Apr: 135 members
- May: 231 members
- Jun: 26 members
Flair
- No fee77 posts in the past month
- [CREATIVE WRITING] Mar 12, 2025: NEA Creative Writing Fellowships (No fee; awards $50,000 grant)
- [FICTION][HORROR] Nov 15, 2024: Weird Horror Magazine November 2024 Window (No fee; awards 2 cents per word with a $25 minimum)
- [POETRY] Nov 14, 2025: Manchester Cathedral Poetry Competition (Fee: £5; awards £200)
#177No fee[CREATIVE WRITING] Mar 12, 2025: NEA Creative Writing Fellowships (No fee; awards $50,000 grant) · [FICTION][HORROR] Nov 15, 2024: Weird Horror Magazine November 2024 Window (No fee; awards 2 cents per word with a $25 minimum) · [POETRY] Nov 14, 2025: Manchester Cathedral Poetry Competition (Fee: £5; awards £200) - Resource75 posts in the past month
- [RESOURCE] 31 Themed Calls for Submissions
- [RESOURCE] Heads up! from a Short Story Judge
- [RESOURCE] Nine Terrific New Literary Journals (October, 2025)
#275Resource[RESOURCE] 31 Themed Calls for Submissions · [RESOURCE] Heads up! from a Short Story Judge · [RESOURCE] Nine Terrific New Literary Journals (October, 2025) - Discussion29 posts in the past month
- Friday Fantasies: What would be the perfect contest for your work? Describe your ideal contest - maybe someone here can suggest one that fits those parameters
- Monday Milestones: What submissions have you recently made? What contests are you currently writing for? And what made you choose these particular contests?
- Friday Fantasies: What would be the perfect contest for your work? Describe your ideal contest - maybe someone here can suggest one that fits those parameters
#329DiscussionFriday Fantasies: What would be the perfect contest for your work? Describe your ideal contest - maybe someone here can suggest one that fits those parameters · Monday Milestones: What submissions have you recently made? What contests are you currently writing for? And what made you choose these particular contests? · Friday Fantasies: What would be the perfect contest for your work? Describe your ideal contest - maybe someone here can suggest one that fits those parameters - Fee18 posts in the past month
- [FICTION][NONFICTION] Aug 25, 2025: Summer Short Story Award for New Writers (Fee: $20; awards $3,000)
- [FICTION] May 31, 2026: Reedsy Literary Prize (Worldwide, aged 18+; $20 fee; awards $1,500, publication, and agent feedback)
- [FLASH FICTION] Jan 31, 2025: New Writers Flash Fiction Competition 2025 (Fee: $13; awards £1,100)
#418Fee[FICTION][NONFICTION] Aug 25, 2025: Summer Short Story Award for New Writers (Fee: $20; awards $3,000) · [FICTION] May 31, 2026: Reedsy Literary Prize (Worldwide, aged 18+; $20 fee; awards $1,500, publication, and agent feedback) · [FLASH FICTION] Jan 31, 2025: New Writers Flash Fiction Competition 2025 (Fee: $13; awards £1,100) - AMA1 post in the past month
- I’m a literary agent, former Big 5 editor, and literary contest judge — AMA (co-hosted by r/Reedsy)
#51AMAI’m a literary agent, former Big 5 editor, and literary contest judge — AMA (co-hosted by r/Reedsy)
Community Reviews
Frequently asked questions
- Who is r/literarycontests for?
- Best for Writers enthusiasts looking for a Reddit-based community with forum discussion.
- Is r/literarycontests free to join?
- This listing is not marked as paid-only. Access rules and any fees are decided by the community.
- How many members does r/literarycontests have?
- Roughly 21K members, based on figures reported by the community or its host. Member counts are approximate and change over time.
- What platform is r/literarycontests on?
- r/literarycontests runs on Reddit. Reddit communities (or "subreddits") are forum-based groups on the popular social news aggregation, web content rating, and discussion website Reddit. Reddit is commonly known as "the front page of the internet". Users submit content to the site such as links, text posts, and images, which are then voted up or down and discussed by other members. From investing Reddit communities, to professional ones, to ones just for laughs, you're likely to find a community for you on Reddit.
- What topics does r/literarycontests cover?
- On the Hive Index, r/literarycontests is organized under Writers.
- How do I join r/literarycontests?
- You can join r/literarycontests by clicking this link, or pressing the "Go to community" button above.
- What are the Writing communities like?
- Communities for writers of all kinds, from fiction and screenwriting to technical writing and journalism. Discord and Reddit have large general writing communities for feedback and accountability, with more specialized groups for specific genres, craft topics, and publication paths like self-publishing and traditional querying.
Added 10/18/2021
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