In the wake of the #MeToo movement against sexual assault and harassment, a new book prize is seeking thrillers in which “no woman is beaten, stalked, sexually exploited, raped, or murdered.” Submit your manuscript to the Staunch Book Prize, the writing contest for our times. 

If you have an unpublished and unrepresented literary novel, two small presses offer an opportunity within the next few months. Coffee House Press has open submissions right now, while the Restless Books Prize for New Immigrant Writing is sponsoring a fiction contest.

If you write horror stories, now is your chance to scare up a book deal. The Inkshares 2017 Horror Contest will publish three or more manuscripts based on their popularity and judges’ choices. The contest is open until Halloween.

The Chicago Tribune is now accepting short stories for the 2017 Nelson Algren Literary Awards. It is seeking original and unpublished short stories no longer than 8,000 words. To enter your story in the competition, it must be entirely fictional and not based on actual person, whether living or not.

If you write thrillers, this competition sponsored by St. Martin’s Press might be just the thing for you. The Big Five imprint will choose five winners in the writing contest promoting “A Divided Spy,” a new novel by Charles Cumming.

It’s true that the one thing constant in life is change, but which one has affected you the most? Whether it’s a move to a new city or a divorce or a career switch, Real Simple magazine is looking for stories about dramatic change for its ninth “Life Lessons” essay contest. Deadline for submission is Sept. 9, 2016.

Although WOW! is primarily for women, its 2016 Flash Fiction Contest is open to both men and women who write short stories in English from anywhere in the world. The contest is limited to the first 300 entries, so enter now.

The Chicago Tribune is looking for original and unpublished short stories no longer than 8,000 words for the Nelson Algren Literary Awards. A grand prize of $3,500 and possible publication in the newspaper will be awarded to one winner. Nine other prizes will also be given.

Ink Smith Publishing is seeking entries for its first annual contest—the 2015 ISP Book Publishing Awards—for unpublished science fiction, horror, and fantasy manuscripts written in English. The publisher will pick a first-, second-, and third-place winners for each of the three genres and give away a total of $4,000 worth of prizes, which include a three-year publishing contract and a full marketing campaign and book tour.

Kensington Publishing Corp. is sponsoring a writing contest and accepting submissions for its Lyrical Press imprint. If you have an unpublished romance, suspense/thriller, young adult, or new adult manuscript, get ready to submit. In the spirit of full disclosure, I should say that Kensington’s Lyrical Press is the publisher of my debut romance book, “In His Corner,” which will be released on April 14.