By: Hannah Dineen

Do you like art or writing, or both? Do you have a ton of polished work that you are not sure what to do with? Do you wonder about competition opportunities for your creative work? Well if you do, you’re in luck. I have done the research and compiled a list of some of the most popular high school art and writing competitions, all free, or very close to being free. Regardless of where you are in your career as an artist of a writer, these competitions provide at worst a great goal to finish up work, or at best, a win! 

1. Scholastic Art and Writing (Art and Writing) 

The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards is a famous art and writing competition that has been around since 1923. Scholastic is presented by the Alliance for Young Artists and Writers and allows 7-12 graders a chance to win awards, scholarships, an opportunity to be in local exhibits, and publication. Scholastic boasts an impressive array of judges from Robert Frost to Judy Blume, with an average submission total of nearly 340,000 works. Scholastic also serves as the decider for the National Student Poet position and the Art.Write.Now Exhibition of New York City. Submission times vary due to location, but the deadlines are usually around the first or second week in December. 

2. Kenyon Review (Creative Writing, Nonfiction Short Stories, and Poetry) 

The Kenyon Review is a literary journal founded in 1939 and funded by Gordon Keith Chambers, the president of Kenyon College. The journal has been off and on again but was reestablished as a strong literary magazine in 1994. The Kenyon review offers a wide variety of writing competitions like the Patricia Grodd Poetry Prize for Young Writers, The Short Nonfiction Contest, and The Short Fiction Contest, with submissions deadlines ranging from November 30th to January 31st. 

3. Write the World (Writing) 

Write the World is a global community of young writers that offers a variety of writing prompts, editing support, and a great place to share writing with young people all over the world. Write the World offers a variety of publication opportunities for young writers, the most prominent being monthly prompt writing competitions. Each month, the website accepts submissions for their monthly themed competition (anything from poetry to nonfiction stories), and at the end of the month, the winners will be announced. The prizes vary from cash prizes to professional recognition. 

4. Emerging Young Artists 2019 Juried Exhibition (Art) 

The Emerging Young Artists 2019 Juried Exhibition is run by the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, and it highlights the work of incredible young artists in a competitive accepting artwork from students all around New England. The competition offers young artists a chance to be exhibited in the 2019 Juried Exhibition and is no easy feat to win. Submissions are on the eighteenth of December. 

5. Quill and Scroll (Documentaries, journalism, art) 

Quill and Scroll focus on journalism and often awards high school newspapers with prestigious journalistic awards. However, they also offer individual competitions boasting a list of thirty journalistic competition categories ranging from opinion writing to cartoons). Quill and Scroll is a great contest opportunity for high school artists, journalists, and filmmakers, and is a chance to win both certificates of recognition and potential scholarships. Quill and Scroll offer submissions until February fifth, 2020. 

6. L. Ron Hubbard Writers/Illustrators of the Future (Art, Science Fiction) 

No matter your view on Scientology, The L. Ron Hubbard Writer’s/Illustrators of the Future contest is no measly contest, it offers the opportunity to be judged by a panel of professional writers, and prizes from $500-$1000. The contest runs quarterly and accepts works of science fiction or fantasy prose up to 17,000 words, or science fiction illustrations. If you are interested in the genre of science fiction or fantasy, definitely consider this contest!