Contest Submission
All entrants must complete a contest submission form and must be enrolled students at Emory University or Oxford College.
If you are entering more than one contest, you must fill out a separate form for each submission.
Entrants' names must not appear on the submitted work. Contest entries not in the correct format will be rejected. Submissions cannot be returned.
Spring 2026 Deadline: Friday, February 27 at 11:59pm
Email each entry as ONE document in Word format (form and submission) to Assistant Director Nora Lewis. Entries for multiple genres may be submitted in the same email but in separate files. The use of AI in any capacity is strictly prohibited.
Include “contest” in the email subject line.
Please see the submission form for details and award amounts. Winning students will read from their work at Awards Night in April.
Former prize winners are eligible to enter but must submit works new to the competition.
Available scholarships can be found here.
2026 Contest Judges
Poetry Contests: Nicholas Goodly
Artistine Mann Award in Fiction: Justin Haynes
Artistine Mann Award in Creative Nonfiction: Maggie Mertens
Artistine Mann Award in Playwriting: To be announced
Agnes Nixon and Kiki McCabe Prize for Screenwriting: Dennis Hauck
Guidelines
Guidelines for Poetry Contests
- Artistine Mann Award in Poetry (undergraduate students)
- Academy of American Poets Prize (undergraduate and graduate students)
- No more than three poems, or one long poem, may be submitted; total length of submission may not exceed six pages.
- Each poem must start on a new page.
- Entries must be typed and may be single-spaced.
- Graduate students are only eligible for the Academy of American Poets Prize.
- Submissions by undergraduates will automatically be entered in both contests.
Guidelines for Artistine Mann Award in Fiction
- Only one story may be submitted.
- The story cannot be longer than 25 pages, typed and double-spaced.
- All pages must be numbered.
Guidelines for Artistine Mann Award in Creative Nonfiction
- Only one creative nonfiction piece may be submitted.
- The creative nonfiction piece cannot be longer than 25 pages, typed and double-spaced.
- All pages must be numbered.
- NOTE: Research papers and journalistic pieces are not accepted. If you are eligible, consider applying for the Grace Abernethy Scholarship (nonfiction) and/or the Tom-Chris Allen Scholarship.
Guidelines for Artistine Mann Award in Playwriting
- Only one full-length play may be submitted.
- A one-paragraph synopsis of the play must be included on the first page.
- 25-page minimum.
- The play must be typed and in proper playscript format.
- All pages must be numbered.
- The play may be original material or an adaptation.
Guidelines for Agnes Nixon and Kiki McCabe Prize for Screenwriting
The Agnes Nixon and Kiki McCabe Prize for Screenwriting is to award an undergraduate student who shows promise in screenwriting. The Prize was donated by Cathy McCabe to honor her late mother, Kiki McCabe, and her aunt, Agnes Nixon, both Emmy Award-winning writers for daytime television.
- Only one screenplay may be submitted.
- A one-paragraph synopsis of the screenplay must be included on the first page.
- No page limit.
- The screenplay must be typed and in proper screenplay format.
- All pages must be numbered.
- If the screenplay cannot be converted to Word format, a PDF is acceptable.
- The screenplay may be original material or an adaptation.