Apply to the Kurt Brown Prizes Today!

Bulletin Board

Thinking about attending a summer writers’ conference or fall workshop? Each year, the Kurt Brown Prizes awards $500 to three emerging writers in fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction to attend a writers’ conference, center, retreat, festival, or residency. The prizes are applied to fees for winners to attend one of the member programs in AWP’s Directory of Conferences & Centers. The three winners and six finalists also receive a one-year individual membership to AWP.

This contest aims to spread the word about the incredible work being done at local writing centers, conferences, festivals, retreats, and residencies. We hope you will take the time to visit our directory and explore them all. Many of our member programs now have great online opportunities.

Submissions are welcome via Submittable through May 14, 2021.

We’ll leave you with these words from our 2021 judges about the writers’ conferences that have meant so much to them.

Joshunda Sanders, Creative Nonfiction:
"The most special residency of my writing career so far was at Hedgebrook, an incredible oasis and sanctuary for women writers where I was introduced to the meaning (and display) of radical hospitality as an energizing, creative catalyst. The cottages and instructions for building a fire were perfect metaphorical and physical spaces to help me build virtual worlds, as well as remember actual events that the noise of the outside world had muted. The food and snacks were incredible. I also made lifelong bonds that continued to nourish me long after I (sadly) had to leave."

Richard Terrill, Poetry:
"I’m a slow writer, but in three weeks at the MacDowell one summer, I finished a good draft of about half of my memoir on being a jazz musician. Since I’d mentioned in my application that I’d be playing my saxophone, I was assigned to a music studio, the one farthest away from everyone else, so as not to disturb. The cottage had a wonderful grand piano, and on the wall was a board that every past resident had signed. I scanned it on arrival, and the first name I noticed was Aaron Copland. I found out later he wrote some of Appalachian Spring in this cabin. But I knew right away that I’d better get going . . ."

Erika T. Wurth, Fiction:
"I can't praise the Kenyon Review workshop enough. They had taken a piece of mine earlier, so they were already on my mind. They had been really supportive in that process. I hadn't applied to any workshops or conferences outside of AWP for years, as my initial experiences weren't ideal, and I realized that I needed to. I hadn't done the MFA route—I'd done a PhD in creative writing and literature, and though it had provided me a lot of time and space to develop my own aesthetic, I hadn't really developed a writing community there. So I applied to a number, and I did get into a few, but Kenyon was the most peaceful and fun experience imaginable. No drama. And though as an experienced writer I hadn't done anything like this for a long time, the workshop is generative—and it was so good for me. And the community was supportive and lovely."

We look forward to receiving your submissions!

The Bulletin Board is for informational purposes only. The English Department does not explicitly endorse any of the particular events or opportunities listed here.