The $2,000 Conger Beasley Jr. Award for Nonfiction
Ends on
Deadline: May 18, 2026
Guidelines
Upload your writing online by midnight (CST) Monday, May 18th. Please read guidelines carefully to ensure best service. Submit with each entry: $24 entry fee for each manuscript submitted. A one-year digital subscription is included in the price of the first entry. Please include one cover sheet stating the genre (nonfiction) and the tile of the essay. Your personal information should not appear anywhere on the entry. The name of the file you upload should be the title of the essay you are entering into the contest.
Rules & Notes
- Simultaneous submissions of unpublished entries are accepted with proper notification upon acceptance elsewhere.
- Essay entries may not exceed 8,000 words.
- Multiple entries are accepted with appropriate fees.
- No substitutions after submissions. No refunds will be offered for withdrawn material.
- No postal entries will be accepted. All entries must be submitted online through our submission manager, Submittable.
- Current students and employees of the University of Missouri-Kansas City and current volunteer members of the New Letters’ staff are not eligible.
Timeline
- Finalists are notified in August, after preliminary judging.
- Final judging selects one winner and one runner-up in each category, announced in October.
- Judges have the option to select work for second runner-up and honorable mentions.