Erika Dreifus

Each week in this space, Practicing Writing shares no-fee, paying markets for writers of fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction: competitions, contests, and calls for submissions. These weekly posts complement monthly issues of The Practicing Writer newsletter, where you’ll always find more listings, none of them limiting eligibility to residents of a single municipality, state, or province. (But this blog does share those more localized opportunities, including jobs.)

As always, if you’d like to share a specific opportunity listed here, please credit the blog for the find. Thanks for respecting the time and effort that I put into researching, curating, and posting this information! I do notice, and I appreciate the courtesy.

• Posted by Rheana Murray on Twitter: “A reminder that my inbox is open for essay submissions at @TODAYshow! Looking for personal pieces of ~1K words about parenting, health and more. (See http://TODAY.com/Essays for examples.)” Included in subsequent tweets/responses: submission instructions (TODAYEssays[at]nbcuni[dot]com) and pay rates (“we typically pay $350 for essays”).
• Caught this from Maisonneuve‘s Twitter account last week: “Maisonneuve is looking for poets to feature in forthcoming issues! To have your work considered, please send packages of no more than 5 unpublished poems along with a short bio to maisonneuvepoetry(at)gmail(dot)com.” I followed up and found out that they pay “$75 for poems and generally tend to only publish Canadian residents or Canadian contributors. This is a general call out rather than one for specific issue, so we don’t have a specific deadline for submissions and will likely keep it open for a month or so.”
• August 31 is the deadline for submissions of creative nonfiction and poetry, “by authors identifying as women,” for Yellow Arrow Journal‘s upcoming “Emblazon” issue (to be guest-edited by Leticia Priebe Rocha). Payment: “If selected, you will receive $10.00USD and a PDF of the journal issue. Note that payments are through PayPal; while we try to accommodate those that do not have a PayPal account, this is not always possible, especially for people outside of the U.S.” (Hat tip: The Sub Club Newsletter.)
• Open to writers internationally (as confirmed on Twitter): Wales-based Planet‘s New Writers Competition. Eligible entrants must not have published a book. “We would welcome creative and unconventional ways of exploring the essay form as well as a more traditional style. Planet features writing which is in-depth, yet sufficiently accessible for a non-specialist readership. What we are looking for most are lively, well-crafted essays which leave a lasting impression. We would especially welcome submissions that relate to Wales in some way, however obliquely.” Prize package includes £200, publication, and more. Deadline: September 1. (Caught this one via Sian Meades-Williams’s Freelance Writing Jobs newsletter.)
• Attention, Ohioans: September 1 is also the deadline for applications for Ohio Arts Council Individual Excellence Awards ($5,000 grants). For writers of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, playwriting/screenplays, criticism. (Hat tip: The Authors Guild.)
• Proposals for Washington State’s Get Lit! Festival are also due September 1. “The 26th annual Get Lit! Festival is being planned primarily as an in-person celebration, with some additional virtual events. The festival will take place in April 2024. Events will run from Thursday, April 11th through Sunday, April 14th.  In 2024, the festival will be moving from a celebration with 40+ events, to 20+ events total, including virtual. This change is due in part to issues of budget and overall support, and it means we will need to be more selective when it comes to programming.” Compensation: “We offer every participant an honorarium (or lodging) as a thank you for sharing their time and talent, but as a non-profit that relies on grants, sponsorships, and ticket sales to cover all festival costs, this payment is very modest and will fluctuate from year to year.”
• Yes, we’re just about midway through August, but plenty of opportunities listed in the August newsletter remain open for submissions. Make sure you haven’t missed anything that might be of interest to you!
• In Colorado, Aspen Words “seeks a highly organized, detail-oriented Program Assistant capable of juggling multiple administrative needs….Candidate must also have the ability to work from the Aspen Words office in Aspen, Colorado, a minimum of four days per week.” Salary: “$43,000-$50,000.” Deadline: “Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis until the position is filled.”
• The Georgia Review is advertising for a Marketing and Outreach Manager. This on-site position pays a salary of “minimum $50,000.” Deadline: “Although this position is open until filled, applicants are encouraged to submit their applications by August 31 in order to receive full consideration.”
• “Hollins University in Roanoke, Virginia invites applications for a tenure-track Assistant or Associate Professor of English and Creative Writing. Both entry-level and experienced candidates are encouraged to apply. This is a full-time position beginning July 1, 2024….We invite applications from writers with book publication in fiction (or under contract) and some publication or experience in poetry, nonfiction, or hybrid forms to teach multi-genre creative writing and literature at the undergraduate and graduate levels.” Deadline: “Screening of candidates will begin September 15, 2023 and will continue until the position is filled.”
• In Massachusetts, “the Smith College English Department invites applications for a full-time tenure-track position in creative writing, with a specialty in fiction writing, at the rank of Assistant Professor, beginning July 1, 2024.  Courses to be taught include an introductory workshop in fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction, and intermediate and advanced fiction workshops.  We welcome candidates working in speculative or other forms of genre fiction.” Deadline: “The review of applications will begin on October 1.” 
• The Ohio State University is advertising for a “Visiting Assistant Professor for a 1-semester appointment (Spring 2024) to teach in the graduate MFA program. This is a 35% FTE appointment and the duties will be split as follows:: 25% will be teaching a graduate poetry workshop in the MFA creative writing program; 10% will be advising MFA students and attending creative writing events as time allows.” No deadline indicated.
• Adjunct faculty opportunity: Dominican University of California “is seeking an accomplished writer to mentor graduate students in our MFA Creative Writing Program. This low residency program pairs students to work one-on-one with writing mentors through semester long courses in creative writing. Mentors guide students in developing the craft and aesthetic vision of their creative writing….There are a variety of mentorships across literary genres and sub-genres, primarily in the areas of fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry. These mentorships sometimes include a focus on narrative medicine or writing about health and healing.” No deadline indicated. Salary range: “$1,949.00 – $8,296.00.”