Adult Writing Contest

Details for 2026 are coming soon!

Congratulations to the winners of the 2025 Adult Writing Contest:

FICTION
Matthew Stedman for
"They Come Knocking"

NONFICTION
Zachary Parker for
"101 Days"

POETRY
Shelby Arr for
"Broken Social Code"

We sincerely apologize for the delay in uploading the Adult Writing Contest entries.

We truly appreciate your patience and understanding. Thank you for supporting our local writers and for being part of this celebration of creativity.

Submission Guidelines

Creative Writing Submissions

Participants must be 18+ and a resident of Clark County, Nevada
Entry can be a short story (2,000 words or less), poem (45 lines or less), or nonfiction piece (2,000 words or less)
Must be digitally produced, double-spaced (except poetry) and submitted via email
Must be an original, unpublished work (has not appeared in physical form or on any digital platform); AI-generated content does not qualify.
Each page of the submission must have the title in the upper right corner and the page numbers on the bottom right corner
Up to two entries may be submitted per person
All submitted work should be "publication ready"
Submissions should be sent as Word or PDF attachments

What's next?

Judging

All entries will be ranked anonymously based on content, originality, and quality of expression
Writers do not receive feedback on their submissions
Judges' decisions are final

If selected

Writers will be asked to sign a licensing agreement which gives Henderson Libraries the right to publish and distribute selected work indefinitely
Authors will retain copyright of their individual work

Publication

Manuscripts will be published in the online zine New Beginnings, the library’s annual digital magazine
This anthology will provide local authors the opportunity to build name recognition and readership/viewership

Winners

There will be one winner in each submission category
Each winner receives a $50 gift certificate
Henderson Libraries will not be hosting a reception at this time. Winners will be asked for a photo op when they pick up their prize