Black Writing Bulletin #12 - Publishing and Employment Opportunities
Get paid for your writing.
Hello Creatives!
We’re back with another collection of writing opportunities. Spring is here. This week, I’m highlighting our Black and Queer Spring Writing Workshops. These workshops are designed for Black and queer content creators ready take their work seriously and finish strong. The sessions run on Saturdays through the month May (May 10, 17, 24 & 31) and are a great opportunity to get in some focused writing time while building community. The cost is $25/session or $90 for all 4. Spots are limited. Sign up now at this link.
Whether you’re wrapping a manuscript or refining an essay—we’re here to support your story.
And don’t forget to head over to the main Substack page to view previously shared opportunities.
- Daren
Fiction Submission Opportunities
WAYWORDS LITERARY JOURNAL
Issue 19 is open to themes of “mountain” in poetry or fiction. Editors’ advice: a mountain could be desolate or teaming with life; it could be a struggle, an idea, or a large thing in an otherwise small space. It could also be a hurdle or something to conquer. Send fiction (up to 5,000 words) or poetry (up to 15 lines, limit two per writer). Call closes May 20. Required Title Information must be included at the start of your document body, aligned left: Name or Pseudonym, email address Entry Title WayWords Word or Line Count Submissions without correct Title Information as listed above will be rejected unread. Submissions including fanfiction, religious, political, or erotic content will be rejected unread. Please do not submit AI-assisted or generated content. Please try to avoid subjects of abuse or suicide. Recovery subjects are welcome! Submissions accepted through Duosuma, Email, and Dropbox.
Deadline: May 20, 2025
Submission Fee: Free
Details here.
FOUR TULIPS PUBLISHING, LLC
Four Tulips accepts submissions for poetry, short fiction, and creative non-fiction following the guidelines detailed below. We are interested in vivid language and concrete imagery. Include your full name, the title of your submission, your email address, and a short 150-word bio. We do not accept submissions previously published in other publications, including those that have been self-published. We do, however, accept submissions previously published on personal blogs. General submissions are reviewed on a rolling basis. All submissions for contests will receive either an acceptance or rejection notification. Please review the contest page for themed submissions.
Deadline: June 30, 2025
Submission Fee: Free
Details here.
Non-Fiction Submission Opportunities
FOUR TULIPS PUBLISHING, LLC
Four Tulips accepts submissions for poetry, short fiction, and creative non-fiction following the guidelines detailed below. We are interested in vivid language and concrete imagery. Include your full name, the title of your submission, your email address, and a short 150-word bio. We do not accept submissions previously published in other publications, including those that have been self-published. We do, however, accept submissions previously published on personal blogs. General submissions are reviewed on a rolling basis. All submissions for contests will receive either an acceptance or rejection notification. Please review the contest page for themed submissions.
Deadline: June 30, 2025
Submission Fee: Free
Details here.
Poetry Opportunities
BROADSIDED - SWITCHEROO
Broadsided is seeking submissions of poetry and short prose that respond to Regin Igloria's digital collage, Morning Meditation. The winning entry will be published on June 1, 2025 as a Broadsided collaboration to enliven the doors, utility poles, bus stops, and walls of the world. Submission guidelines and details follow. In The Switcheroo, writers respond to the work of a Broadsided visual artist, rather than the other way around. Because the art and literature will be presented together, in a single broadside, we encourage you to consider how strangeness might emerge from their juxtaposition. The writing does not need to describe the image. Together, writing and art will create a unique whole.
Deadline: May 1
Submission Fee: $3
Details here.
WAYWORDS LITERARY JOURNAL
Issue 19 is open to themes of “mountain” in poetry or fiction. Editors’ advice: a mountain could be desolate or teaming with life; it could be a struggle, an idea, or a large thing in an otherwise small space. It could also be a hurdle or something to conquer. Send fiction (up to 5,000 words) or poetry (up to 15 lines, limit two per writer). Call closes May 20. Required Title Information must be included at the start of your document body, aligned left: Name or Pseudonym, email address Entry Title WayWords Word or Line Count Submissions without correct Title Information as listed above will be rejected unread. Submissions including fanfiction, religious, political, or erotic content will be rejected unread. Please do not submit AI-assisted or generated content. Please try to avoid subjects of abuse or suicide. Recovery subjects are welcome! Submissions accepted through Duosuma, Email, and Dropbox.
Deadline: May 20, 2025
Submission Fee: Free
Details here.
FOUR TULIPS PUBLISHING, LLC
Four Tulips accepts submissions for poetry, short fiction, and creative non-fiction following the guidelines detailed below. We are interested in vivid language and concrete imagery. Include your full name, the title of your submission, your email address, and a short 150-word bio. We do not accept submissions previously published in other publications, including those that have been self-published. We do, however, accept submissions previously published on personal blogs. General submissions are reviewed on a rolling basis. All submissions for contests will receive either an acceptance or rejection notification. Please review the contest page for themed submissions.
Deadline: June 30, 2025
Submission Fee: Free
Details here.
Contests, Awards, and Fellowships
THE LASCAUX PRIZE IN SHORT FICTION
Stories may be previously published or unpublished, and simultaneous submissions are accepted. True stories are welcome as long as they’re written in a narrative style. Writers may enter more than once, and as many as three stories may be submitted per entry (all pasted into one document). Individual story length should not exceed 1,000 words. All genres and styles are welcome. Judges are the journal’s editors. Writers retain all rights to their work at all times.
Deadline: June 30
Entry fee: $15
Prize: $1,000, a bronze medallion, and publication in The Lascaux Review
Details here.
FLASH TAKES FLIGHT - SANTA CLARA REVIEW
Welcome to Flash Takes Flight! We are excited to announce that we are running a flash fiction and flash creative nonfiction contest for the chance to win cash prizes as well as publication in the Santa Clara Review! The first prize winner will be awarded $200, the first runner-up will be awarded $100, and the second runner-up will be awarded $50. The contest winner will be published in the 2025 fall issue of the Santa Clara Review. All other work will be considered for publication. We are pleased to announce that Claudia Monpere will be the final judge of the contest! Claudia Monpere is a Teaching Professor of creative writing at Santa Clara University who earned her MFA at San Francisco State University. She was the winner of the 2024 New Flash Fiction Prize from New Flash Fiction Review and the 2024 Refractions: Genre Flash Fiction Prize from Uncharted Magazine. Additionally, her story "Solar Flare" received the 2023 Smokelong workshop prize and appeared in Best Small Fictions 2024. Her flash fiction has appeared in many literary magazines, including Split Lip, Craft, SmokeLong Quarterly, Trampset, Atlas and Alice, Milk Candy Review, and The Forge.
Deadline: May 16, 2025
Entry Fee: $10
Prize: 1st prize: $200, 2nd prize: $100, 3d prize: $50
Details here.
LAMBDA SPECIAL AWARDS
In addition to the Lammy Awards, Lambda Literary hosts a number of special prizes recognizing the outstanding contributions made by individuals to LGBTQ+ literature, culture, and community. These cash prizes are made possible by the generosity of our donors and announced around the Lammys. The special prizes being offered in 2025 can be found in the table of contents or by scrolling this page. Submissions are now open thru May 16. Use the button in the Submission Status box or those associated with each prize to go to our Submittable portal. Learn more here.
Deadline: May 16, 2025
Entry Fee: free
Prize: $1,500 - $5000
Details here.
CRAFT 2025 SHORT FICTION PRIZE
The short story is a literary staple, one with its own hallmarks of structure and paragons of form. However, the short story can also employ an infinite array of guises, settings, and perspectives. For the CRAFT 2025 Short Fiction Prize, we’re once again looking for the most compelling short stories that have yet to be published. Here’s what Guest Judge Halle Hill would like to see:
When I am reading short fiction, I am looking for bravery and something wrestled with on the page. I like texture, family, space, land, and bodies interacting in a strong key. I like humor and oddity. I like stories that “open” for me. When I teach, I encourage students to consider what they can offer up for the work; that is, greater sensitivity, a strong sense of sound, attention to the senses, or exquisite detail work. I am looking for tight sentences that string along into the next sentence and the next—I want to be pulled through. I want to read both the heart and the mind. And I like to see a sense of intention in a story. No lessons or polemics, but rather a connection to something human and urgent. I love prose that sings like poetry. I want stories that make me linger after I am finished with them. Send me your best and brightest!
The first-place winner will receive a $2,000 award, online publication, and our writerly Tech Bonus worth up to $500! The second- and third-place finalists will receive $500 and $300, respectively, along with online publication. The CRAFT 2025 Short Fiction Prize opens on March 18 and closes on May 18.
Deadline: May 18, 2025
Entry Fee: $20
Prize: $2,800
Details here.
Positions and Residencies
OPERATIONS AND DEVELOPMENT STAFF MEMBER
Ugly Duckling Presse
The Operations & Development staff member is responsible for managing UDP’s day-to-day financial operations, development, and administrative tasks; creating a yearly organizational budget and proposal for the Board of Directors; providing budget and cash flow updates to the Board of Directors; managing payroll, cash flow, insurance audits and payment, tax filings, royalty payouts, and more; performing grant writing and award administration for government and foundation grants; cultivating individual donors, in collaboration with the Board of Directors; co-planning the annual fundraising campaign with other staff members and the Board of Directors; helping staff and plan events; and more. This is an in-person, part-time position that requires 18 hours of work per week and pays $28 per hour. It is based at the UDP studio in Gowanus, Brooklyn, and has a start date of June 30. Interested applicants should email a resume, cover letter, and two references in a single PDF to Marine Cornuet at office@uglyducklingpresse.org by April 20.
Deadline: April 20, 2025
Payment: $28/hour
Details here.
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF ENGLISH: CREATIVE WRITING
Winona State University
Teach creative writing courses in multiple genres, as well as composition and literature courses; Instruct courses in varied locations, at varied times, and via various media commensurate with department and university needs, which includes physical presence on campus; Engage in scholarly research or creative achievement to enhance knowledge of field; Provide evidence of continuing preparation and study in the field to enhance teaching abilities; Contribute to student growth and development including student advising; Provide service to the university and community including the program, the department, the college, the university, and the greater community; Support Winona State University's mission to enhance the intellectual, social, cultural, and economic vitality of the people and communities we serve.
Deadline: April 21, 2025
Payment: $64,066 - $186,015; Commensurate with Rank and Experience
Details here.
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Writers & Books
The Executive Director is responsible for ensuring WAB’s fiscal health, sustainability, and growth; facilitating effective governance by providing guidance and support to an engaged, active Board of Directors; representing WAB to internal and external stakeholders as a dynamic ambassador for the organization; providing leadership on program planning, advocacy, marketing, and promotional activities to advance organizational goals; managing personnel and staffing; overseeing all activities relating to the efficient operation of WAB’s two brick-and-mortar facilities; developing and implementing protocols and systems for internal program control and fiscal accountability; creating an annual budget for Board approval and overseeing its effective implementation; overseeing the planning, development, execution, and evaluation of programs and initiatives to ensure artistic excellence, visibility, accessibility, and inclusion; and more. This is a full-time, hybrid position based in Rochester, New York, that pays a salary of $75,000 to $78,000. It starts on September 2, 2025. Interested applicants should email a resume and cover letter in a single PDF attachment to EDsearch@wab.org with the subject line “Executive Director” by April 30.
Deadline: April 30, 2025
Payment: $75,000 - $78,000
Details here.
COORDINATOR, CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS
Scholastic
The Communications Coordinator will report to the Director of Corporate Communications supporting the earned media team to ultimately provide the best external communications support cross-divisionally. This is an entry level position and a coordinator must posess good interpersonal skills, with a strong sense of good judgement and discretion around proprietary information. The ideal candidate is eager to hone the core skills and learn the tasks needed for successful projects and campaigns including organizational and research skills, and the ability to adapt to new assignments and deadlines. This candidate wil be asked to take a writing test and demonstrate the ability to become a strong writer and communicator.
Deadline: Until position is filled
Payment: $48,800 - $50,000
Details here.
WRITER, ADVANCEMENT COMMUNICATIONS
Bentley University
The Writer, Advancement Communications is an exceptional writer who creates compelling and persuasive materials in support of donor relations and philanthropic priorities at Bentley University. Reporting to the executive director of Advancement Communications within University Advancement (UA), and working in close partnership with frontline fundraisers, donor relations and other University Advancement colleagues, they will be a collaborative, strategic, motivated and deadline-oriented team member who can translate institutional priorities to inspire philanthropy and engagement. The writer will create high-quality material for use across UA including major gift proposals, cases for support, stewardship reporting, fundraising collateral and more.
Deadline: Until position is filled
Payment: Salary not specified
Details here.
TUPELO PRESS GENTLE HOUSE PAID RESIDENCIES
Port Angels, WA
In 2023 Gentle House was donated to Tupelo Press to serve as a writing residency on the Olympic Peninsula. Since then, we've hosted over 22 writers and artists to this sweet house, situated in a quiet neighborhood in the foothills of the Olympic National Park. We strive to give the writing resident the creative space and time to work without the distractions of daily life. We offer a private room in “Gentle House,” a 130 year-old farmhouse with peekaboo views over the Salish Sea and full views of Olympic National Park, Hurricane Ridge, and the Pacific Ocean. Each room also serves as a studio with desk, chair, lighting, bookcase and other writing-related amenities. A downstairs living room offers a common area with additional writing spaces. Please note that Gentle House is not yet fully accessible. (We hope to have Gentle House fully accessible in the future.) Residency Options: One week stay - $750 Two week stay - $1,250. To Apply email Tupelopublisher@gmail.com.
Date: Dates varied
Entry Fee: $750 - $1,250
Details: E-mail tupelopublisher@gmaill.com
Events
SOUTHAMPTON WRITERS CONFERENCE
Held in Southampton, New York, on the campus of Stony Brook Southampton, we offer five immersive days of high-level workshops, lectures, and panel discussions led by acclaimed authors, editors, and industry professionals. Participants can hone their craft in fiction, poetry, memoir, children's lit, and more. In and out of the classroom, the conference fosters a supportive environment, encouraging collaboration and creative growth. Open mics and social events provide opportunities for attendees to build community. We've got brilliant workshop leaders and guest writers, but they're just part of the equation. You'll find beautiful beaches to inspire you, kind classmates to encourage you, and great lectures to expand your creative vision. The Southampton Writers Conference is a place where writers can come together, share ideas, enjoy each other—and yeah—produce the best damn work they possibly can.
Date: July 9-13
Entry Fee: $950 - $1300
Details here.
MARTHA'S VINEYARD SUMMER WRITER'S CONFERENCE
Martha's Vineyard
The Martha’s Vineyard Summer Writers’ Conference brings together writers from around the world with the central belief that we can all learn from one another. Our program offers week-long classes on the craft of fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction, evening readings, panel discussions, and individualized manuscript sessions. Attendees study with award-winning Visiting Authors & Poets and celebrate writing on the beautiful island of Martha's Vineyard. For those interested in individualized feedback, we offer Manuscript Sessions with our Visiting Authors and Poets. These one-on-one sessions allow attendees to get individualized feedback on their works-in-progress as well as advice on how to seek publication. Our goal is to provide a nurturing place to create. While our panel discussions and Literary Journal Seminar address the process of seeking publication, the central focus of our conference is on generating new work and exploring the projects you’ve been longing to complete
Date: June 1-8 & June 15 - 20
Entry Fee: $2,000
Details here.
2025 ASPEN WORDS SUMMER WORDS WRITERS CONFERENCE
Snowmass Village, CO
Recognized as one of the nation’s top literary gatherings, Summer Words is a six-day celebration of words, stories and ideas held annually in an idyllic Rocky Mountain setting. Summer Words 2025 will return to Snowmass Village, Colorado, a vibrant community just 9 miles from Aspen, with incredible mountain vistas in addition to 2.8 million adjacent acres of wilderness open for activities and exploration. Snowmass is home to 30+ restaurants, shopping, unique special events and music. Full faculty lineup and workshop descriptions will be announced in early 2025!
Date: June 22 - 27
Deadline: open until capacity reached
Entry Fee: $650 - $1,925
Details here.
KAUAI WRITER'S CONFERENCE
Kauai, HI
Now in our eleventh year, the Kauai Writers Conference has grown to be widely regarded as one of the most meaningful and enjoyable writing and publishing events in the US. Twenty-one leading authors will teach four-day master classes on all aspects of the craft of writing. Fifteen carefully selected literary agents and editors come in search of new authors to represent. This year's authors include: Curtis Sittenfeld, Janelle Brown, Ariel Lawhon, Steven Rowley, Rebecca Makkai. Liz Moore, Jeanine Cummins, Joshua Mohr, Jean Kwok, Sadequ Johnson, Christina Baker Kline, Meg Wolitzer, Paula McLain, John Searles, Priya Parmar, lyn Liao Butler, Laura Lentz, Danielle Trussoni, Patti Callahan Henry and Ali Hazelwood.”
Dates of Conference: November 10-16
Entry Fee: $795
Details here.
NEW YORK CITY POETRY FESTIVAL
Governor's Island, Nolan Park
Every summer, The Poetry Society of New York (PSNY) transforms Governors Island into a sun-drenched poetry wonderland for the New York City Poetry Festival (NYC PoFest). For two unforgettable days, poets and poetry lovers of all kinds gather to shout poetry to the skyline, explore interactive art, snack on Smorgasburg-level treats, and immerse themselves in the magic of words. This year’s theme, Poetopia: Reimagining Poetic Futures, invites festival-goers to co-create a world where poetry is a communal resource, hierarchy dissolves, and language is truly free. With eight stages, headliner readings, live performances, open mics, vendor villages, and immersive experiences, NYC PoFest is a place where poetry comes alive in every form imaginable.
Date: July 12 & 13, 11:00am - 6:00pm
Entry Fee: $0-$55
Details here.