The December 2025 edition of "Get Submitting" is a monthly hand-curated list of the top five contests, grants, scholarships, submission calls, and awards. We try to prioritize opportunities that are at least one of the following: open to all genres, local, free to apply, and/or committed to celebrating and supporting writers from historically marginalized communities. We do the research, so you have more time for what matters: the writing.

Submissions

Notch Magazine 

Fee: $0; Award: Publication plus compensation; Deadline: January 7th

Notch Magazine is accepting submissions in all mediums. Pieces up to 1500 words are preferred. Longer work is considered on occasion. Works in translation are welcome. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Reading Into Culture

Fee: $0; Award: Publication; Deadline: January 31st

Reading Into Culture welcomes all submissions of creative and non-fiction writing. We mainly publish essays, poems and short pieces of fiction. Poems must be under 200 lines and prose pieces under 2,000 words. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Contests & Prizes

The Dorset Prize for Poetry | Tupelo Press

Fee: $30; Award: $3,000 and publication; Deadline: December 31st

The Dorset Poetry Prize offers a cash prize and a 2 week-long residency in Port Angeles, WA, worth $1,500 in addition to publication by Tupelo Press, 25 copies of the winning title, and a book launch. Manuscripts are judged by Sabrina Orah Mark. Visit the website for complete guidelines.
 

Book Contest | Burnside Review Press

Fee: $25; Award: $1,000 and publication; Deadline: December 31st

Submit 50-100 pages of poetry to the Burnside Review.Poems may have appeared in journals and chapbooks but not in a full-length, single-author collection. All manuscripts will be read by the Burnside Review Press editors. At least ten finalists will be sent to the judge, Rick Barot. The editors may select an additional title from the submission pool for publication. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Fellowships

Martha's Vineyard Institute of Creative Writing Fellowships

Fee: $20; Award: Weeklong Conference Attendance (a $2,000 value); Deadline: January 19th

MVICW is committed to providing financial support to writers through their fellowship program. They are able to offer parent-writers, writers of color, educators, queer-writers, caregivers, emerging writers, and Vineyard writers the opportunity to attend the summer conference held by the Martha's Vineyard Institute of Creative Writing every year. Visit the website for complete guidelines.