Each year, AWP offers three annual scholarships to emerging writers who wish to attend a writers’ conference, center, festival, retreat, or residency. The scholarships are applied to the event or workshop fees of the winners’ chosen program. Winners and six finalists also receive a one-year individual membership in AWP. Visit our website more information and a list of past winners. 

Eligibility Requirements

Previous recipients of WC&C scholarships, and former or current students of the judge are not eligible to submit.  

 Guidelines

• Writers’ names must not appear on the submissions.
• For fiction, one short story (or novel excerpt) up to 25 pages will be considered. Fiction must be double-spaced and presented in manuscript form with 12-pt font.
• For poetry, up to 10 pages will be considered. Each new poem must start on a new page.
• For creative nonfiction, up to 25 pages will be considered.
• You may enter in more than one genre, and you may also enter multiple manuscripts in one genre, provided that each submission is accompanied by its own entry fee.
• A $10 reading fee must accompany each submission.
• Please send us your best unpublished work.

Submissions

Submissions are accepted between December 1 and March 30 of each year. Submissions are only accepted online via Submittable. Mailed-in submissions will not be accepted nor returned.

Winners

All winners will be notified by email by May 15 and announced on AWP’s website and in the AWP Annual Conference & Bookfair program. Three winners will each receive a $500 scholarship to attend a WC&C member program. Winners have one year to use their prize, and funds are paid directly to the selected program. Member conferences reserve the right to determine participants in their programs; winning does not guarantee admittance to any program.