Saint Louis University's 1818 Writing Competition honors grades 9-12 literary achievement in three genres: short fiction, poetry and creative nonfiction.

2023 Competition Guidelines

Genre

This year, the committee will be accepting short fiction submissions.

Submission Requirements

Submissions must be in Times New Roman, may not exceed 5,000 words, and should be saved as a Word document or PDF. Each student may only submit one piece for consideration. The document title should include the student’s last name and piece title. Finally, please include a header at the beginning of your submission that contains the following information: 

• Student First and Last Name  
• Student Email  
• 1818 Teacher Name(s)  
• School Name 
• Title of Submission

To participate in this contest, please send your piece of creative nonfiction via email to savanah.warners@slu.edu with “1818 Contest Submission” in the subject line. The deadline for submissions is March 6 at 11:59 p.m.  Judging will begin the following week, and winners will be announced via email.  

Eligibility

All students enrolled in Saint Louis University's 1818 high school dual credit courses are eligible to participate in the SLU Undergraduate Writing Award: 1818 High School Edition.

Prizes 

• First Prize: $200
• Second Prize: $150
• Third Prize: $100

First-, second- and third-place winners will also receive a certificate and St. Louis Literary Award merchandise. The winners must respond to their email in order to receive these winnings. 

Assistance

If you have questions, please email savanah.warners@slu.edu.