Contest Info:

The Creative Writing Collective (CWC) is hosting a Graduate Student Writing Contest focusing on short prose and poetry.

Who is Eligible?

Graduate students of any discipline or major who are members of ACCUTE by Congress 2026. Participants who are not ACCUTE members must become members by the contest submission deadline (April 10, 2026).

What can be Submitted?

Participants may submit one piece of short prose and/or one poem. Submissions must be unpublished and must not be under consideration at other contests or publications. Prose submissions must be a maximum of 2500 words and can be fiction or creative nonfiction. Poems should be no longer than 500 words.

Adjudication and Prizes:

The entries will be judged by the CWC executive committee. Monetary prizes of $150 are available for the writer of the winning short prose piece and the writer of the winning poem. Monetary prizes of $50 are available for two honourable mentions in each category. The winner and the four honourable mentions will be invited to read excerpts of their work in-person at Congress 2026, if they choose. The winning prose piece and poem will also be published in ACCUTE’s newsletter, The Angle.

Submission Guidelines:

Entries must be submitted as a Word document or PDF and labelled as “CWC CONTEST_STORY or POEM TITLE.” No identifying personal information should be included in this document.

In a separate Word document or PDF, please provide a cover sheet, which includes your full name, story or poem title, academic institution, mailing address, email address, and phone number. Email submissions and cover sheet to Dr. Maria Cichosz at maria.cichosz@utoronto.ca with the email subject “CWC: Contest Submission.”

Timeline:

The deadline to submit entries is April 10, 2026.

Monetary Prizes must be claimed by the end of the ACCUTE 2026 Conference

For more details or questions, contact Dr. Maria Cichosz at maria.cichosz@utoronto.ca.