MAYDAY

Contests

Nonfiction Contest

Submissions are open for the 2022 MAYDAY Creative Nonfiction Prize. Winner receives $1,000 and publication. Deadline: Oct. 1, 2022.

  • Submit an essay (2000-7500 words) exploring the theme of Disappearance (of people, places, things, etc).
  • Entries must be previously unpublished. All entries will be considered for publication at MAYDAY.
  • Manuscripts must be in English. All styles, forms, and genres of creative nonfiction are welcome.
  • Multiple and simultaneous submissions are welcome. Each submission must be accompanied by a separate fee. Please notify MAYDAY immediately if your work is accepted elsewhere.
  • We read manuscripts blind, so please exclude identifying information from the manuscript itself. All relevant contact information is included in your Submittable file.
  • Reading fee: $20. Online submissions only, please.
The final judge this year is DARIN STRAUSS, bestselling author of several books, including the National Book Critics Circle Award-winning memoir Half a Life (Random House, 2011) and most recently the acclaimed novel The Queen of Tuesday: A Lucille Ball Story (Random House, 2020). Strauss is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, an American Library Association Award, and numerous other prizes. His books have been named New York Times Notable Books and Best Books of the Year by Entertainment Weekly, Newsweek, Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Amazon, Chicago Tribune, NPR, and others. Strauss is a clinical associate professor of writing at New York University and lives with his wife and children in Brooklyn.

Poetry Micro Chapbook Contest

Submissions for the MAYDAY Poetry Micro Chapbook Contest closed July 31. Editors are currently reading manuscripts and look forward to announcing a winner soon!

MAYDAY is excited about poetry that surprises us, that isn’t afraid to break traditional forms, that is expansive and bold. We love innovative, strong writing that trusts the reader and is true to its author regardless of genre. Send us a manuscript filled with poems that have achieved a balance of both craft and story so seamlessly that we cannot look away. We are committed to featuring a diverse range of content and authors, including LGBTQ+, BIPOC and international voices.

  • Winner receives $1000 prize.
  • Submission period is May 1-July 31.
  • The micro chapbook will be published at MAYDAY along with an interview with the winning poet.
  • To submit, please send 8-12 pages of poetry. Please also include a title page, acknowledgments, and dedication/epigraph.
  • Manuscripts should be a single Word or PDF document. Please use the title of your micro chapbook as your document name.
  • Individual poems from the manuscript may have been published previously in magazines or anthologies, but the collection as a whole must be unpublished.
  • In your cover letter, please include your name, contact information, a brief third-person bio, and a list of acknowledgments for previously published chapbook poems.
  • MAYDAY poetry editors will select the winning manuscript. Manuscripts centered around a unifying theme will be given preference.
  • The early bird submission fee is $10 (May 1-June 15).
  • The regular submission fee is $15 (June 16-July 31).
  • Simultaneous submissions are permitted. Please let us know immediately if your manuscript is accepted elsewhere while under our consideration.
  • All rights revert to the author after publication.