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.

• For its spring 2024 issue, Poetry Wales seeks submissions “on all themes. However, we would be particularly pleased to see work that considers what home means in a time of ecological emergency. ‘Home’ could be framed in terms of the ecological, but also in relation to the national, ancestral, spiritual, physical and emotional.” Note: “Poetry Wales is always open to all, but for this call, we want to prioritise writers of the global majority” (they provide a definition of “global majority” within the guidelines; pay rates are also detailed on the guidelines page). Deadline: September 29.
• Tinderbox Poetry Journal, which seeks “to expand the definition of poetry,” is open for submissions through the end of the month. Pays: “$15 regardless of number of poems selected.”
• An opportunity for “poets and writers of all backgrounds and levels who are currently residents of St. Louis, Missouri”: “Plain Talk: Intergenerational Voices of St. Louis – a storytelling workshop series and culminating public reading that aims to nurture a creative space for intergenerational dialogue and storytelling beteen varied age groups – starts this Fall 2023!” Applications remain open until September 30; the program confers a $300 honorarium.
• Reminder: We’re just past the month’s midpoint; plenty of opportunities included in our September newsletter remain open for submissions. Be sure that you haven’t missed them!
• In London, the Royal Society of Literature is advertising multiple jobs. Apply by September 29.
• Changes, “an independent publisher and 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in New York City, supporting poets through grant-making programs and book sales/publishing,” is hiring a managing editor. “The ideal candidate is someone who has the experience and skills required to act as a conductor for our small operation, overseeing production on various books and projects as well as the press and its operations as a whole….It would be our strong preference to find someone local for the role but we are open to discovering that the Managing Editor of our dreams lives somewhere other than New York City.” Compensation: “This is a part-time role, designed to fit with the schedule of someone who may have other work, studies, or responsibilities to attend to throughout the week. Pay is $25-50/hour depending on the applicant’s skills and experience. Our expectation is that it should take 4-8 hours of work each week to fulfill the duties of the role. Most of this time will be flexible, remote, and unsupervised, with the exception of one hour-long weekly team meeting which the Managing Editor will run. The Managing Editor will be expected to monitor inboxes and project management software regularly throughout the work week, and respond to emails promptly (i.e., at least once daily).” Apply by September 30.
• “One Story, Inc. is seeking to hire a part-time individual for the role of assistant editor. The position “requires approximately 8-12 hours of work per week.” Note: “This is a hybrid position. Candidates should be able to commit to one day of work per month in the One Story office in Brooklyn and to provide occasional assistance at One Story public events. This is a contract position paid at $1,000/month.” Application deadline: October 3.
• In Nebraska, “the department of English at Creighton University invites applications for a full-time, tenure-track assistant professor of creative writing with an emphasis on prose. The successful applicant will teach a 3-3 course load that includes introductory courses in composition, as well as upper division elective courses in their area of expertise, including fiction writing and the appreciation and study of literature at all levels of the curriculum, from first year writing to upper-level workshops for majors and participants in our new Creative Writing certificate. The position is part of a cluster hire across the College of Arts and Sciences, forming a multidisciplinary initiative focused on the topic of Race and Social Justice as a line of inquiry in teaching and/or research.” Deadline: “Applications received by Oct. 1, 2023 will be guaranteed full consideration; the search will continue until the position is filled.”
• “The Department of English at the University of Idaho seeks to hire an assistant professor of creative writing in Nonfiction, beginning August 2024. The candidate shall have a primary expertise in Nonfiction, with a secondary emphasis in Fiction.” Deadline: “Position remains open until filled, but applications received by October 15, 2023 will receive priority review.”
• In Alabama, “the Department of English and Philosophy at Auburn University at Montgomery (AUM) invites applications for a full-time, tenure track assistant professor in Creative writing….We seek a candidate with a publishing and teaching focus in creative nonfiction as well as a track record of publishing and teaching in additional genres, including poetry, playwriting, screenwriting, graphic novels, or comics.” Deadline: “Review of applications will begin as received with priority given to applications received by October 16, 2023. While the position will remain open until filled, AUM reserves the right to stop accepting applications once interviewing has begun.”
• In Arkansas, “the Department of English at Hendrix College invites applications for a tenure-track Assistant Professor position in Creative Writing to begin 1 August 2024. The successful candidate will teach poetry writing with a secondary field of creative nonfiction writing.” Deadline: “Review of materials will begin on October 16, 2023, and will continue until the position is filled.”
• “The Ohio University Department of English in the College of Arts & Sciences invites applications for one full-time Assistant or Associate Professor of fiction writing (tenure-track) as part of Ohio University’s Innovative Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility (IDEA) faculty hiring initiative. The appointment is set to begin August 16, 2024. The position is for a student-centered, innovative faculty member with a terminal degree (MFA or Ph.D.) in Creative Writing, English, or a closely associated field and at least one book of fiction published by or under contract with a nationally recognized press. Candidates should also have some secondary expertise in one or more of the following areas: screenwriting, playwriting, storytelling for new media, or digital writing. Preferred candidates will have substantial publication and/or production in their secondary expertise.” Deadline: application close date is October 23.
• In California, “Scripps College, a women’s liberal arts college with a strong interdisciplinary tradition, invites applications for a visiting assistant professor of English with a specialization in poetry and poetics for the academic year 2024-5. The position is potentially renewable for academic year 2025-26.” Deadline: “Review of applications will begin November 1, 2023, and continue until the position is filled.”
• In Vermont, “Bennington College invites applications for a full-time faculty position in Literature with a focus on Fiction and Black Studies. All members of Bennington’s Literature faculty are teacher-practitioners, and applicants should be dedicated to student-centered teaching and have published or have under contract (with a nationally recognized press) at least one book-length work of fiction. We are especially interested in candidates with expertise in such fields as African-American literature, and/or Afro-diasporic literature, and/or African literature.” Deadline: “Preference will be given to applications received by January 5, 2024.”
• “The Department of English in the College of Arts and Sciences at Texas Tech University invites applications for a full-time, 9-month tenure-track Assistant Professor in Creative Writing position, with a specialization in Poetry, to begin fall 2024.”