Hunger Mountain is CLOSED for general submissions for our next print issue #23, guest edited by Natalie Scenters-Zapico, Yamile S. Méndez, and James Scott.
Our reading period for general submissions is open from May 1 through October 15.
We are currently OPEN for contest submissions. The submission period for 2018-2019 contests is from October 1 to March 1.
Contest Guidelines:
All contests have a fee of $20 per entry. Please don't include your name on any entries; we read contest entries blind. First places winners receive $1000 and publication in Hunger Mountain online. Runners-up receive $100 and publication. Current students at Vermont College of Fine Arts are not eligible. All other writers are eligible. We only accept postal mail in exceptional circumstances; please query Editor Erin Stalcup at erin.stalcup@vcfa.edu if you have a situation that requires you to mail your submission.
- Howard Frank Mosher Short Fiction Prize. This is a prize for fiction, up to 10,000 words. We welcome all types of fiction by all writers. The winner receives $1000 and online publication.
- Katherine Paterson Prize for Young Adult and Children's Writing. Enter Young Adult, Middle Grade, or Picture Book (or Writing for Young Children) manuscripts, up to 10,000 words. Entries can be complete stories or nonfiction writing, or excerpts from novels or longer manuscripts. We'll announce one overall winner, as well as winners in each of the categories (YA, MG, PB). The overall winner receives $1000. The category winners receive $100 each.
- Hunger Mountain Creative Nonfiction Prize. This is a prize for creative nonfiction, up to 10,000 words. We welcome all essays, memoirs, and other creative nonfiction, by all writers. The winner receives $1000 and online publication.
- Ruth Stone Poetry Prize. Please enter up to three poems per entry. There is no word count for poetry. Please put all three poems in one document--you'll only be able to upload one document per entry. The winner receives $1000 and online publication.
- International Young Writers Prize. Our brand new prize for high school aged writers from any U.S. states and any country in the world. Enter fiction (up to 5,000 words), nonfiction (up to 5,000 words), poetry (3 poems per entry), or writing for children (up to 5,000 words) manuscripts. We'll announce one overall winner, as well as finalists in each category. The overall winner receives $100 and online publication.
General Submission Guidelines:
When submitting, there is a $3 maintenance fee for using Submittable, roughly the same cost as envelopes, printer ink, and postage for mailing a prose piece or three poems and an SASE. This submission fee is necessary for us to pay operating expenses. We're grateful to our submitters for being part of the community that keeps Hunger Mountain in print. If our submission fee is economically impossible for you, please query Editor Erin Stalcup at erin.stalcup@vcfa.edu for a submission alternative.
We do happily waive the fee for subscribers. If you’ve subscribed, purchased a copy of Hunger Mountain in the past year, or have contributed to Hunger Mountain previously, please submit free of charge by choosing the "Subscribers and Contributors" category.
We recommend that you read back issues of Hunger Mountain before submitting. Browse our online work, subscribe, or order back issues of the print journal.
Please scroll down and choose the genre category for your submission.
Click on the "Submit" button below to purchase an issue. Thank you!
*Note: International orders that need to be shipped outside of the U.S. will receive one print issue.
Click on the "Submit" button below to purchase a subscription. Thank you!
Deadline: March 1.
Please enter your original, unpublished piece under 10,000 words. Your entry may be a short story or a book/novel excerpt, but if it's a novel excerpt it should really stand alone.
Feel free to include a brief synopsis if your entry is a novel excerpt. Your name and address should not appear on the story; we read contest entries blind.
Please let us know if this piece is intended for Young Adult, Middle Grade, or younger audiences. Be sure to include the cover letter separately in the comments section, and not with the manuscript itself, since we read entries blind. Previously published submissions are not eligible for the contest. Please send original, unpublished work.
For more guidelines visit http://hungermtn.org/contests/katherine-paterson-prize/
Deadline: March 1.
Please enter one original, unpublished story under 10,000 words. Your name and address should not appear on the story itself; we read contest entries blind.
Feel free to include a brief cover letter or bio in the comments section, but not as part of the manuscript itself.
For more guidelines visit http://hungermtn.org/contests/howard-frank-mosher-short-fiction-prize/.
Deadline: March 1.
Please enter an original unpublished piece of creative nonfiction, no more than 10,000 words. We welcome an array of traditional and experimental work, including, but not limited to, personal, lyrical, and meditative essays, memoirs, collages, rants, and humor.
Previously published submissions are not eligible for the contest. Please send original, unpublished work.
Your name and address should not appear on the essay itself; we read contest entries blind.
For more guidelines visit http://hungermtn.org/contests/creative-nonfiction-prize/.
Deadline: March 1.
Hunger Mountain is pleased to announce its new International Young Writers Prize! This contest is open to only high school student writers (ages 13-18) from around the world, and all genres of creative writing: fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and writing for young adults and children. Students in Vermont College of Fine Arts’ MFA Program in Writing & Publishing will judge submissions and choose an overall winner, as well as a finalist in each genre. The winner will receive $100 and online publication, and the finalists' names will be listed online.
Our goal with this prize is to foster the next generation of creative writers, and to encourage young people to make their voices heard. We look forward to reading your best work.
We accept, per entry:
- One short story of up to 5,000 words
- One essay of up to 5,000 words
- One document with up to 3 poems included
- One piece of writing for children of up to 5,000 words
Your name and address should NOT appear on the story itself; we read contest entries blind. You may enter multiple submissions, but please limit to one entry per genre category.
Feel free to include a brief cover letter or bio in the comments section, but not as part of the manuscript itself.
For more in-depth guidelines, visit https://hungermtn.org/contests/international-young-writers-prize/.
Deadline: March 1.
We are currently accepting poetry to be considered for the annual Ruth Stone Poetry Prize. We will accept any style, form, or theme of poetry.
Previously published submissions are not eligible for the contest. Please send original, unpublished work.
Your name and address should not appear on the document itself; we read contest entries blind.
For more guidelines visit http://hungermtn.org/contests/ruth-stone-poetry-prize/
Please submit up to 3 poems in one entry (all three poems in one Word document).
If you're a subscriber or a recent contributor to Hunger Mountain, we invite you to submit your poems, stories, essays, and children's lit here, and we will waive the $3 maintenance fee!
Please note in your cover letter if you are submitting for general submissions or for a specific contest.
