Our List of the Best Novella Competitions in 2024

Dec 18

This is our list of the best novella competitions in 2023. We’ll update it when new contests open. If you run a novella competition, please get in touch! Looking for more writing competitions to enter? Check out our ‘Big List of International Writing Competitions’.

What is a Novella?

Longer than a short story, shorter than a novel. One of the real differences between a novella and a novel is that novellas have fewer subplots. Their narratives are usually much more linear and have less complicated and fewer conflicts. Novellas usually don’t have chapters, either. They are often focused particularly on the character or characters, rather than having a complicated plot. Just like short stories, they typically have a singular focus.

Why Enter a Novella Contest?

Entering your novella into a contest can help get it seen by the right people, earn you a cash prize, give you valuable feedback on your work, and bring publicity and notoriety.

Best Novella Competitions in 2024

The Clay Reynolds Novella Prize 2024

Love writing short fiction? Our free 7 Day Story Writing Challenges take place throughout the year. There’s a £500 prize for each round and you can even get free feedback on your entry. Register now!

Novella-in-Flash Award 2024

HFC Book of the Year Contest 2024

HFC Book of the Year Award — **Prize: $2,000**

An exclusive book contest for Historical Fiction, including all subgenres of historical romance, mystery, fantasy, time travel, alternate history, YA/children, non-fiction, and novellas. We have sixteen categories with gold, silver, and bronze winners in each category. The top prize is chosen from the gold category winners and receives $2,000 in cash plus a stunning crystal trophy and our new prize - a one-of-a-kind leather-bound book of the winning book.
**Deadline:** 29th November, 2024
**Entry:** $65

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Best Indie Book Awards 2024

**Prize: Trophy**

The annual Best Indie Book Award® (or BIBA®) is an international literary awards contest recognizing self-published and independently published authors from all over the world. Entries are limited to independently (indie) published books, including those from small presses, e-book publishers, and self-published authors.
**Deadline:** 15th Aug, 2024
**Entry:** $60

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Black Orchid Novella Award 2024

**Prize: $1,000**

Novellas are an important part of Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe's opus. To celebrate this format, the Wolfe Pack and Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine have partnered to sponsor the Black Orchid Novella Award. Each entry must be an original, unpublished work of fiction that conforms to the literary tradition of the Nero Wolfe series.
**Deadline:** 31st May, 2024
**Entry:** free

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The Times/Chicken House Children's Fiction Competition 2024

**Prize:** **£10,000 advance**

We're looking for original ideas, a fresh voice, a diverse range of entries and stories that children will love! To enter, you must have written a full-length novel suitable for children/young adults aged between 7 and 18 years. We suggest a minimum of 30,000 words and ask that manuscripts do not exceed 80,000 words. The IET 150 Award will be awarded to a manuscript that celebrates Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths.
**Deadline:** 1st June, 2024.
**Entry:** £20

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Love writing short fiction? Our free 7 Day Story Writing Challenges take place throughout the year. There’s a £500 prize for each round, and you can even get free feedback on your entry. Register now!