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.

In case you’ve missed it, please check out last week’s note to those who subscribe to The Practicing Writer 2.0, with some important updates that connect with these weekly posts here on Practicing Writing. I expect to continue publishing these “Markets and Jobs” posts here on the blog, for the foreseeable future, but henceforth, they may look slightly different, and arrive slightly later in the day, than you may be accustomed to.

• The Furious Flower Poetry Center at Virginia’s James Madison University “seeks qualified applicants for the position of Office and Communications Coordinator.” This full-time staff position has a listed salary range of $37,000- $41,500; application review begins March 24 (today!).
• The Republic of Letters, which “is dedicated to contests, debates, and polemics on literary and cultural themes,” has announced the prompt for its first contest: “Make The Case For An Historically Underestimated Writer.” Prize: “For the first contest, winning pieces will receive the princely sum of $100(it will be $50 for the next few rounds) and the piece will be posted on The Republic of Letters with all due ceremony and praise for you.” Deadline: “March 26 at the stroke of 11:59pm EST.”
• But, wait! There’s more, because that very same venue has also announced the prompt for its second contest: “‘Imagine The Best Case For The University System Ten Years From Now.’ Submissions for this one are due next Saturday, March 29….Accepted submissions win $50.”
• Midnight & Indigo, “a literary platform dedicated to short fiction and narrative essays by Black women writers,” is open for submissions of short stories and personal essays until March 30. Pays: $0.07 per word for short stories and $150 for essays.
• Until March 31, Tiger Bark Press is holding an open reading period “for full-length book manuscripts by American poets who identify as Black, as indigenous, or as people of color….Selected poets will be offered a standard publishing contract, with books scheduled for publication within one year of acceptance.”
• April 1 is the application deadline for residencies (to take place July-December) at the Cultural Center of New York Mills, Minnesota. “We provide stays of two to six weeks for artists at NO COST for room (solo occupancy of a one-bedroom house and access to studio space in our Cultural Center). Each artist provides her or his own transportation and board. There is no stipend.” (Hat tip: Funds for Writers.)
• Also with a deadline of April 1: “The MFA in Writing Program at Lindenwood University presents a Flash Nonfiction Contest for current undergraduate students–in any major, at any university/college/community college….The winner receives $100 and publication in issue 15 of The Lindenwood Review online literary journal.”
• Per this announcement on Bluesky, Outlook Springs has extended its deadline for creative-nonfiction submissions to April 1. Pays: $10 per flash piece (under 1,000 words), $25 for essays (over 1,000 words). “Payment via PayPal or Venmo.”
• “The Department of Creative Writing at The University of Texas at El Paso invites applications for a position as Assistant Professor of Instruction, non-tenure track, beginning Fall 2025. The department seeks a dedicated writer and educator who specializes in one primary genre—fiction, poetry, or creative nonfiction—while demonstrating experience in a second genre. The successful candidate will teach a combination of undergraduate and graduate courses. As an active member of the department, the candidate will mentor students, serve on committees, and participate in department-wide initiatives. Additionally, the candidate will assist the director of the Online MFA with student advising, making experience with online teaching and Blackboard an essential requirement.” Deadline: “Review of applications will begin April 1st and continue until the position is filled.”
• “The University of Maine at Presque Isle is seeking a tenure-track Assistant Professor of English, Creative Writing,beginning September 1, 2025, for an on-campus academic year (9 month) appointment. The successful candidate will teach Introduction to Creative Writing (for general education students as well as English majors) and upper-level workshop courses in Fiction, Poetry, and Screenwriting. Teaching responsibilities will also include first year writing and may include upper-level courses in other areas of interest as appropriate. Expertise in film desired but not required.” Deadline: “Review of applications will begin on April 18, 2025.”
• In Indiana, “the Creative Writing Program in the Department of English at the University of Notre Dame invites applications for a full-time one-year visiting assistant professorship in Creative Writing – Poetry to begin August 25, 2025. Secondary expertise in translation; multilingual or international writing; and/or hybrid forms is optimal.” Deadline: April 30.
• In Florida, “Eckerd College invites applications for a one-year, visiting position in Creative Writing and English with a specialization in the teaching of poetry, composition, and literary publishing, beginning August 2025.” Deadline: “Review of applications will begin on May 1, 2025, and will continue until the position is filled.”