This page will list submission opportunities FAW receives and contests we hear about. Many of these will be in InkSpots also, but this is a way of making them available immediately. Non-FAW events may be placed here also.
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The CWC Bulletin has a new editor and is looking for submissions
The San Joaquin Valley Writers have announced a flash fiction contest, the subject being “Make us Want to Read More.” Details are on page 13 of the April newsletter, available here.
CWC Bulletin
The CWC is pleased to announce Susan Marquez Owen from the Sacramento branch has agreed to serve as the Editor-in-Chief of the CWC Bulletin. Susan is the former newsletter editor for the Sacramento branch of the California Writers Club. The next issue of the Bulletin will be released early in May. Susan will be accepting news items from the branches and specific member submissions (see below) by April 15.
A granddaughter of Mexican migrant farmworkers and great-granddaughter of Welsh coal miners, education was key to her life trajectory. After graduating from high school with highest honors, she won a full scholarship to Stanford University. There she earned a bachelor’s degree in International Relations and a master’s degree in English and American Literature with an emphasis on poetry. Susan worked as a developmental editor for Addison-Wesley Publishing Company. She also worked as an award-winning news reporter and foreign service correspondent for The Los Angeles Times, The San Francisco Chronicle, and The Oakland Tribune. Now retired, she writes poetry and short stories and is beginning her first novel.
CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
The next issue of the Bulletin will be released early in May. Susan will be accepting news items from the branch president or newsletter editors. Branch items should be limited to upcoming contests, workshops, conferences and special events. Events that are open to all members. Do not include monthly speakers or member announcements. Branch news items are due by April 15.
Susan is also accepting short prose, poetry, and essays from members and member announcements regarding a recent publication or award. Member submissions must follow the guidelines in the attached document (click on the document image below for a PDF with the submission guidelines). Member submissions are due by April 15. Get a PDF of the guidelines for member submissions
Editor@calwriters.org
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Jane Cleland will be speaking about her book “Beat the Bots” at the Marin branch on May 14.
If you missed her talk to us last year, you might be interested.
Here is further information. Click on the “Continue reading” link to go to their site for more.
NEW!!!
Here are the rules for the next Flash Fiction contest, to be held in April.
Flash Fiction Contest: First Love
The April 11, 2026 Flash Fiction Contest: First Love co-sponsored by the Fremont Cultural Arts Council, Fremont Area Writers, Infinity Care, NothingBundtCakes, and Half–Price Books, will be held on Saturday, April 11, 2026, from 10 am to 5 pm, once again hosted at Half Price Books, 39152 Fremont Hub, Fremont, CA
SUBJECT: This year’s theme is: First Love,
WRITE a story about First Love of 300 words or less, including the title using 12 point type or larger and written to fit on one sheet of 8-1/2 by 11 inch paper. Your name and contact information must be on the back of the submission or on a separate sheet of paper.
DEADLINE FOR ENTRIES: Received by Monday, April 6, 2026 at 11:59 pm for email entries, Tuesday, April 7, 2026, 12 Noon for mailed entries.
ENTRIES: Will be posted with the author’s name concealed at Half-Price Books, 39152 Fremont Hub, Fremont, CA 94538 on Saturday April 11, 2026, between the hours of 10:00 am and 5:00 pm.
VOTING: Will be done by persons entering Half-Price Books, getting a ballot, and entering their top five choices between 10 am and 5:00 pm on Saturday, April 11, 2026. All votes are counted equally.
WINNERS will be announced Saturday, April 6, 2026, at about 5:30 pm. in Half- Price Books and posted on the Fremont Cultural Arts Council website, shortly thereafter. Contestants do not need to be present to win, but we’d love to congratulate you in person, and get your picture!
PRIZES*: 1st place $60.00 cash plus $25 gift card; 2nd place $50.00 cash plus $25 gift card; 3rd place $40.00 cash plus $25 gift card; 4th place $30.00 cash plus $25 gift card; 5th place $20.00 cash plus $25 gift card. Voting ties will be combined with the next cash prize(s) amount and divided between the authors with the same number of votes.
One author will receive an award from the President Emeriti award of FCAC Past Presidents of a NothingBundtCake Trio.
- his contest is open to any age and residency.
- All entries must be written as First Love..
- Entries must be 300 words or less, including the title. Stories without a title will be given a generic title (eg First Love #1)
- Entries must be in English.
- Maximum of three entries per person.
- Submit each entry in 12 point (or larger) legible font, which will fit on a single printed 8 ½” x 11” sheet.
To submit by e-mail: Send your story as a Word-compatible or PDF attachment to fcacwriters@gmail.com. Include the author’s name and contact information in the body of the e-mail message.
To submit by postal mail: Mail your story to:
FCAC Flash Fiction Contest
c/o Fremont Cultural Arts Council
P.O. Box 1314
Fremont, CA 94538
Be sure the author’s name and contact information is on the back of the story, or a separate sheet of paper. Submissions must be received by e-mail or postmarked by 11:59 pm, Monday, April 6, 2026.
NOTE: Entries will NOT be accepted at Half-Price Books.
The FCAC reserves the right to reject entries that do not meet these criteria, or contain plagiarism, or subject matter that would be offensive to the general reader.
San Joaquin Valley Writers Presents Their
Biennial Writing Contest:
“Make Us Want to Read More”
We are pleased to announce SJVW’s biennial writing contest for CWC members. For 2026, the theme is “Make Us Want to Read More.” As we often hear, if you don’t grab agents—or any reader, for that matter—from the very beginning, you will lose their interest and they won’t continue reading. With this idea in mind, the contest this year is focused on openings for prose fiction, non-fiction, and poetry. We want to see how you hook the reader early on—how you make the reader say, “Okay. I like this! I’m hooked!”
All entries are limited to 300 words or fewer. Submission deadline is May 1, 2026. For complete details and submission information, visit www.sjvalleywriters.org/contest
Submit at https://68fcslhbb.cc.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001cPPeg-_pkMbX-4JwVAxK90YkQJVW5OFl0h_7bG8MOspNzh6F53D_MOr4P-Eb-4Dmochn-abvY9WDtHRJVKJeUevKequf-v3v0dJSdUmPdYXBqS2VXt3oAfPbp-PaX0r1Np9o8B3olhbRc-YaUFiGTQPWqLh8pbfmOzqJWkKzsoCha4Lkw8i3rA==&c=uEWGJ9Rnv1kbnqWIFJvYpqsj8eKI5oFxvHqVf0KY2XPUQuopl7ccqQ==&ch=hRPmP3YyGDOf_L0b06cBkxNIE9myZ_BoinCk95Et71qY-zIoFhzlOA==
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New poetry contest from CWC
The Smalls TooA BIG contest for small poems and prose |
Mark your calendars for Feb. 15!Announcing a statewide CWC poetry and prose contest beginning on February 15 – March 15, inviting your submissions of 8-line poems or 75-word prose. AWARDS
Winning and selected poems/prose will also appear in a forthcoming publication. Billy Collins, past Poet Laureate of the U.S.A writes in his book, Musical Tables, “Whenever I pick up a new book of poems. I flip through the pages, looking for small ones. Just as I might trust an abstract painter more if I knew he or she could draw a credible chicken, I have faith in poets who can go short.” Here is an example of one of his poems from this book: Falling Asleep Walking backwards into a dark forest, I sweep my footprints out of existence with a large weightless branch GENERAL GUIDELINES
JudgesLes Bernstein, head judge, is an award-winning poet and anthologist whose poems have appeared in journals and anthologies in the United States and internationally. Her full-length book, Loose Magic, was reviewed by the Los Angeles Review of Books and is available on Amazon.
Robin Gabbert has poems published in local, state, and international anthologies. Her books include—The Clandestine Life of Paintings, in Poems and a new book Somehow, I Haven’t Drowned published by Blue Light Press. www.robingabbert.com For questions, please contact Les Bernstein at lessieb13@yahoo.com |
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Tom Howard/Margaret Reid Poetry Contest |
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To enhance the presentation of our Tom Howard/Margaret Reid Poetry Contest winners, we commission original artwork to go with their poems. This is an extra benefit of winning and incurs no expense on the poet’s part. Please enjoy selected illustrations below. This year’s contest will award the Tom Howard Prize of $3,500 for a poem in any style or genre, and the Margaret Reid Prize of $3,500 for a poem that rhymes or has a traditional style. Ten Honorable Mentions will receive $500 each (any style). The top 12 entries will be published online. The top two winners will also receive two-year gift certificates from our co-sponsor, Duotrope. Submit three poems for one $25 entry fee. Both published and unpublished poems are welcome. Enter online via Submittable. Poets from most countries are eligible. Length limit per poem: 250 lines. Deadline: October 1. Winning Writers is one of the “101 Best Websites for Writers” (Writer’s Digest, 2025). |
Half Price Books Flash Fiction Contest
Watch here for information on the Spring 2026 contest. No information yet. Here is the information from the last contest.
As of August 22, here is the current information on the next contest. Submissions are due September 22. This information comes from Al Menard.
The email address for submissions is
The FCAC Flash Fiction Contest will be held on Saturday, September 27, 2025, from 10 am until 5:00 pm, with awards issued about 5:30 pm on Saturday, September 27. This event is sponsored by the Fremont Cultural Arts Council, the Fremont Area Writers, Half Price Books at the HUB, Jack’s Brewery at the HUB, and Infinity Care. The contest is open to anyone writing a 300-word or less story about the theme “THE FRIENDLY GHOST”. The story must be on one page of an 8-1/2 by 11 inch standard piece of paper with the author’s name and contact information on the back or on a separate piece of paper. The deadline to enter a story is midnight, Monday, September 22, 2025. The entries will be put on a colored paper background and displayed through out Half-Price Books at the HUB in Fremont, Everyone who enters the store between 10 am and 5 pm can pick up a ballot to vote for their top five stories. We accept up to three entries per author. We have had winners as young as 11 and as mature as 90+ years of age. We normally receive over 50 entries for this contest, so it is a good idea to capture the reader’s interest in the first sentence.
Note we’re a sponsor this year. We’ve had winners in the past, so start working on your submissions!
August 12: Here is a workshop on story telling in San Francisco:
