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Annual Writing Competition

The English Department holds a competition each year for prizes in writing. The prizes are cash awards ranging from $50 to $500. We encourage students from every department and school within Northwestern to compete according to the guidelines below.

Any original work is eligible, whether or not it has been written for a class. All comments by teachers on the course papers, however, should be removed, or the manuscript retyped. A legible photocopy is acceptable; handwritten work is not acceptable. Please follow these rules:

  1. Students may not enter competitions for which they are not eligible. 
  2. Students may submit only one work per genre. 
  3. The maximum length for essay and fiction is 20 pages; the maximum length for a 
    poetry manuscript is 10 pages or 3 poems. Students should submit only one copy of each work.

A cover sheet should be filled out and attached to each piece of work turned in. The author's name must not appear on the work itself. Work will be judged anonymously and identified afterward through the cover sheets. 

Manuscripts must be turned in to University Hall 215 by 3:00 p.m. on the due date. MANUSCRIPTS WILL NOT BE RETURNED.

Creative Writing Awards Eligibility

The EDWIN L. SHUMAN AWARD for CREATIVE NONFICTION ESSAY

ESSAY Any WCAS undergraduate

The EDWIN L. SHUMAN AWARD for FICTION

FICTION Any WCAS undergraduate

The DENTLER AWARD for BEST POEM is offered for one outstanding POEM

POETRY Any University Undergraduate

The FARICY AWARD for POETRY may be divided among two or more students

POETRY Any University Undergraduate

The ENGLISH DEPARTMENT PRIZE for FICTION

FICTION Any University graduate or undergraduate

The ENGLISH DEPARTMENT PRIZE for CREATIVE NONFICTION ESSAY

Any University graduate or undergraduate

THE HELEN G. SCOTT PRIZES for CREATIVE WRITING specific categories will vary

CREATIVE WRITING Any University undergraduate

Literature Awards Eligibility

The EDWIN L. SHUMAN AWARD for CRITICAL ESSAY

ESSAY Any WCAS undergraduate

The MAYO PRIZE is awarded for the best paper submitted each year in English 298

298 PAPER 298 students

The HARRIET GILLIAM MEMORIAL PRIZE for the best essay dealing with the psychological or psychoanalytic interpretation of a literary text.

ESSAY Any University undergraduate

The DENTLER AWARD for BEST ESSAY on poetry or poets

ESSAY Any University undergraduate

The HELEN G. SCOTT PRIZE for BEST CRITICAL ESSAY on LITERATURE, pre-1798

ESSAY Any University undergraduate

The HELEN G. SCOTT PRIZE for BEST CRITICAL ESSAY on AMERICAN LITERATURE

ESSAY Any University undergraduate

The HELEN G. SCOTT PRIZE for BEST CRITICAL ESSAY on LITERARY CRITICISM and THEORY

ESSAYAny University undergraduate

The HELEN G. SCOTT PRIZE for BEST CRITICAL ESSAY on GLOBAL ENGLISH

ESSAY Any University undergraduate

The HELEN G. SCOTT PRIZE for BEST CRITICAL ESSAY on BRITISH LITERATURE

ESSAY Any University undergraduate

The HELEN G. SCOTT PRIZE for BEST RESEARCH PAPER on LITERATURE

ESSAY Any University undergraduate

The ENGLISH DEPARTMENT PRIZE for CRITICAL NONFICTION

ESSAY Any University graduate or undergraduate

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In addition to the prizes listed above, the Department will annually present the following awards to students who have demonstrated continued excellence in their work in the English Department. Students should not apply directly for these prizes. 

Edwin L. Shuman Awards:

The Shuman Junior-year Award in Literature will be awarded to the best English Literature Major.

The Shuman Junior-year Award in Creative Writing will be awarded to the best junior English Major in Creative Writing. 

The Shuman Senior Award in Creative Writing will be awarded to the best senior English Major in Creative Writing.

The Shuman Senior Award in Literature will be awarded to the best senior major in English or American Literature.