2026 CRAFT Award for Excellence

2026 CRAFT Award for Excellence

February 9, 2026 – April 12, 2026

$5,000 Awarded

CRAFT’s mission since day one has been to explore how writing works and to celebrate the art of prose. With that goal in mind, we are introducing the CRAFT Award for Excellence, honoring the very best in each of our creative prose genres: Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, Flash Fiction, and Flash Creative Nonfiction.

Each genre will award one winner the CRAFT Award for Excellence, selected by CRAFT’s editors; these winners will receive a $1,000 prize, online publication, reMarkable Paper Pro tablet & set up, and a CRAFT plaque commemorating your win. Two editors’ choice selections from any genre will receive $500 and online publication.

Show off your setting skills, dazzle us with snappy dialogue, render us spellbound with your lyricism. Whatever your craft, our only requirement is excellence. 

GUIDELINES:

• The 2026 CRAFT Award for Excellence opens on February 9 and closes on April 12.
• CRAFT submissions are open to all writers, emerging and experienced.
• Submit up to 5,000 words of Short Fiction or Creative Nonfiction, or up to 1,000 words per piece of Flash Fiction or Flash Creative Nonfiction. Please, no excerpts.
• Submissions containing flash only may include up to two pieces per submission. Include both pieces in one document.
• This contest requires a $20 entry fee per submission.
• Writers from historically marginalized groups will be able to submit for free until we reach fifty free submissions.
• We allow multiple and simultaneous submissions. Each submission must be accompanied by a separate reading fee. Writers, please notify us and withdraw your submission if your piece is accepted for publication elsewhere.
• Submit previously unpublished work only—we do NOT review reprints (including work posted on blogs, personal websites, social media, et cetera). Reprints will be automatically disqualified.
• International submissions are allowed. Work must be written primarily in English, but some code-switching/meshing is warmly welcomed.
• No translations, please.
• We review literary prose but are open to a variety of genres and styles—our only requirement is that you show excellence in your craft.
• Please double-space your submission and use Times New Roman 12.
• Please include a brief cover letter with your publication history and any content warnings (if applicable).
• We do not require anonymous submissions. 
• The winner will be asked to contribute an author’s note, or mini craft essay, that discusses their artistic choices in their piece. The note will be published with the winning work.
• All entries will also be considered for publication in CRAFT.
• Please review our values before submitting.
• AI-generated or -assisted submissions will be automatically disqualified.
• Unless you’ve already secured the necessary permissions, please do not include quoted song lyrics in your submitted work.
• We are always happy to answer any questions. Email us: contact@craftliterary.com.

AWARDS:

• One winner in each genre will receive a $1,000 prize, reMarkable Paper Pro tablet & set up, and a CRAFT plaque commemorating your win.
• Two total editors’ choice selections will receive a $500 prize.
• The all six finalists will be published in CRAFT.
• Each publication will also include an author’s note (craft essay) by the writer.

FINE PRINT:

• Friends, family, and close associates of the CRAFT editorial staff are not eligible for this award.
• Our collaboration with editorial professionals in the judging of our contests and the awarding of our prizes does not imply an endorsement or recognition from their agencies, houses, presses, universities, et cetera.
• Read our extensive archive of publications in Short Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, Flash Fiction, and Flash Creative Nonfiction for examples of work published in the past.
• The results will be announced in August and the finalists will be published in September 2026.

OPTIONAL EDITORIAL FEEDBACK:

You may choose to receive editorial feedback on your work. We will provide marginal notes, as well as a two-page global letter discussing the strengths of the writing and the recommended focus for revision. While editorial feedback is inherently subjective, our suggestions are always actionable and encouraging. We aim to have feedback completed within twelve weeks from the close of the contest. Work that we critique is not eligible for submission to future CRAFT contests, but can be revised and resubmitted in our general categories for further consideration.

OUR AWARD PARTNER:

At reMarkable, we’re emulating paper. That's why our paper tablets feature a tactile, high-friction surface, making them feel and sound just like writing on paper. It’s why our software is minimalistic and free from unnecessary complexity. So that they can be a natural extension of the best medium for creativity and productivity.

Today, we give people the ability to create powerful systems for capturing ideas and organizing and refining their notes across multiple devices, making it easier than ever to combine these elements in ways the humble notebook could never dream of.

We strive to make products that take a human-centric approach to new technology. Everything we make is distraction-free by design. Without notification alerts, ads, or pop-ups that might disturb your train of thought or cloud a moment of perfect clarity.

With reMarkable, we wanted to create a haven for thinking. A set of focused tools that can make the rest of the world disappear so that only ink, paper, and ideas remain. Regardless of if you prefer handwriting, typing, or combining them in a single workflow.

In short: It’s like paper, but better.