Creative Writing Awards and Scholarships in the US

The United States offers numerous creative writing awards and scholarships that provide financial assistance and recognition to aspiring young writers. These opportunities support students in developing their talents and pursuing higher education in fields related to writing and literature.

Penguin Random House Creative Writing Awards

For over 30 years, Penguin Random House (PRH) has demonstrated its commitment to fostering the next generation of readers and authors by championing diverse voices and stories through the Creative Writing Awards. Since 1993, this program has awarded more than $3 million to public high school students. In 2019, PRH entered into an innovative partnership with We Need Diverse Books (WNDB) to further this mission.

Award Categories and Prizes

The Penguin Random House Creative Writing Awards recognize high school seniors nationwide across various categories:

James Baldwin Award for Fiction
Michelle Obama Award for Memoir
Amanda Gorman Award for Poetry
Maya Angelou Award for Spoken Word
Freedom of Expression Award
Chinua Achebe Award for Freedom of Expression
New York City Entrant Award (in recognition of the Creative Writing Awards previously being centered in New York City)

Six first-place recipients in these categories receive a $10,000 college scholarship to be put towards their college expenses. In addition, fifty honorable mentions receive “creativity kits,” which include a selection of Penguin Random House titles and writing resources.

Eligibility and Submission Guidelines

The contest is open to all high school seniors attending a public high school in the United States and its territories, who are planning to attend college in the fall. To apply for the Creative Writing Awards, applicants must submit one original literary composition in English in one of the specified genres: poetry, spoken word poem, fiction/drama, or personal essay/memoir.

Submissions must adhere to the following guidelines:

All submissions must be typed, double-spaced with a minimum 12-point font size, and no longer than 10 pages.
All literary submissions with multiple pages must be numbered with a page number and total number of pages (Ex. 1/3, 2/3, 3/3).
A four-page minimum is recommended in the fiction/drama genre.
All uploaded entries must be clear and legible.
Only one entry may be submitted to the competition.
All entries must be original works, free of plagiarism or copyright infringement.
Name the file with your Application ID# and the title of your entry.
All submissions must be uploaded in a PDF format, 2MB or smaller.

Only the first 1000 applications will be accepted.

Judging Criteria

Literary compositions are judged based on their technical merit, artistic expression, voice, and originality. The judging process involves a multi-level selection process under the supervision of We Need Diverse Books and Penguin Random House, with a specially selected panel of judges. Artistic expression is the core criterion. Judges are looking for writing with a strong, clear voice by authors who are daring, original and unafraid to take risks. Literary compositions are judged by their technical merit (25%); artistic expression (25%); voice (25%); originality (25%). The top 100 scoring applications will be deemed the potential winners. Penguin Random House and We Need Diverse Books committee will make the final selections. The decision of the judges is final.

Professional Development Opportunities

In addition to scholarships, Penguin Random House hosts a virtual development week each summer for the Creative Writing Awards winners. This immersive experience includes one-on-one virtual meetings with PRH editors, networking workshops, a panel on career opportunities in publishing, and fireside chats with PRH authors. The week concludes with a virtual awards ceremony.

Past winners have been invited to attend a virtual week of professional development, giving students the opportunity to meet publishing executives and Creative Writing Awards Alumnx, to gain insights into publishing, and to receive one-on-one mentoring with editors. PRH and WNDB also amplify and celebrate winners via social media and local media outreach.

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Past Winners

The Penguin Random House Creative Writing Awards have recognized numerous talented young writers over the years.

2025 Winners: Bailey Terrett, Emmet Schickele, Jaylen Hughley, Laila Asberry, Mahnoor Qazi, Sarah Escobedo
2024 Winners: Anika Bukkapatnam, Allison Curletto, Ella Ferrell, Sofia Hernandez, Kellen Hunnicutt, Amber Shen
2023 Winners: Madison Corzine, Isabella Rayner, Melissa Vera, Karen Yang, Gloria Blumenkrantz
2022 Winners: Sagar Gupta, Ife Martin, Kayla T. Xu, Eva G. Martinez, Arianna Steadman
2021 Winners: Ally Guo, Ajok Thon, Evelyn Lee, Chloe Cramutola, Tandika Somwaru
2020 Winners: Erika Whisnant, Ivana Cortez, Jeffrey Liao, Orlane Devesin, Maya Williams
2019 Winners: Kiora Brooks, Nora Carrier, Siobhan Cohen, Samantha Kirschman, Katherine Sanchez

The Chinua Achebe Award for Freedom of Expression

The Chinua Achebe Award for Freedom of Expression is a new creative writing prize honoring the celebrated author’s powerful legacy and is one of six creative writing awards given by Penguin Random House. This award recognizes outstanding work that embodies freedom of expression.

Impact of the Awards

Winning the CWA was one of a few key points growing up when I felt, unequivocally, that my writing made people want to listen to what I had to say. The CWA tells youth that they matter.

The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards

The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards have an impressive legacy dating back to 1923. The process begins across the country as young artists and writers in grades 7-12 submit work in 28 categories of art and writing to a network of regional affiliates who present award ceremonies and exhibits for selected works on a local level. Gold Keys, the highest awards, are then submitted from each region for national adjudication by luminaries in the visual and literary arts, some of whom are past award recipients. Students across America submitted nearly 340,000 original works last year.