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Some top-notch competitions to choose from this month:

The Cheshire Novel Prize has a lot to offer, starting with a first prize of £1,500 and a second prize of £500. The entry fee is £29, but this includes valuable feedback for ALL entrants. But you need to get a wiggle on, since the deadline is 1 May. Details: cheshirenovelprize.com

The Mairtin Crawford Award also has a deadline of 1 May and is for poems, and short stories up to 2,500 words. Entry fee is £6. Prizes: £500, plus a retreat. Details: belfastbookfestival.com

The Yeovil Literary Prize 2024. Novel prizes £1,250, £300 and £125. Enter up to 10,000 words, including 500-word synopsis. Entry fee £14.50. Short Story prizes £600, £250, £125. Stories up to 2,000 words. Entry fee £8. Children/Young Adult Novel prizes £600, £250 and £125. Enter 300 words plus 500-word synopsis. Entry fee: £12.50. Deadline 31 May. Details: http://www.yeovilprize.co.uk/

Bridport Prize 2024 for Short Story, up to 5,000 words. Prizes: ££5,000, £1,000, £500, plus 10x£100. Entry fee £14 per story. Peggy Chapman Andrews First Novel Award. Enter between 5,00 and 8,000 words from the beginning of the manuscript together with a 300-word synopsis. Prizes: £1,500 plus mentoring from The Literary Consultancy and advice from Headline and AM Heath literary agency; 3x £150 and manuscript appraisal by The Literary Consultancy. The competition is for manuscripts aimed at adult readers by unpublished British novelists. Entry fee: £24. Closing date 31 May. Details: https://bridportprize.org.

The 2024 MTP Short Story Competition for stories up to 3,000 words. The winner will receive £1,000 and there are second and third prizes of £500 and £250. Five runners up will receive £50 and all winners will be published in the MTP 2024 Anthology, the title of which will be based on the winning entry. Entry fee: £8 per story. Closing date: 31 May. Details: http://www.mtp.agency/competition

Frome Festival Short Story for stories between 1,000-2,200 words. Prizes: £700. Entry fee: £8. Closing date: 30 May. Details: fromeshortstorycompetition.co.uk

Bath Novel Awards for the first 5,000 words plus a one-page synopsis of a novel manuscript. Prizes £5000. Entry fee: £29.99. Closing Date: 31 May. Details: bathnovelaward.co.uk

Good Luck with those entries – but do please remember to check all entry details carefully.

Here are a couple of extra competitions to add to your wish-list:

The Goldfinch Novel Award 2024 for unpublished novelists who do not have a literary agent. The winner will receive £300 and an invitation to join the Goldfinch writer community, which includes a free place on their Creative Writing Course. Send the first 5,000 words plus a one-page synopsis. Closing date 15 May. Website: http://www.goldfinch-books.com/novel

Daniel Goldsmith is inviting submissions for the First Novel Prize 2024 for unpublished and self-published writers. Manuscripts should be at least 50,000 words long. The first prize is £1,000 and there is a shortlist prize of £500. Send “an opening extract and a synopsis, up to 5,000 words in total. Entry fee is £25. Closing date 31 May. Details: http://www.firstnovel.co.uk/