Live and virtual writing events seem to be slowing up as people take well-earned breaks. My live event last Sunday was canceled due to snow, so it’s been postponed until March 15. So, most of the info below relates to 2026 happenings, although there are a couple of earlier submission deadlines.
The annual CT Press Club Awards are open for submissions. First-place winners in each of the 64 categories of entry are automatically entered in the National NFPW Awards. Anyone who lives or works in Connecticut is eligible to enter, and work must have been published from January 1 through December 31, 2025. The early bird deadline is January 21 by noon, and the final book deadline is February 4. Categories include Advertising, website design, social media, specialty articles, books, and more. If you’re not in Connecticut, it’s likely your state press club will be part of the NFPW awards too, so check them out. More details here
Publisher Press 53 publishes two to three (2-3) short fiction collections and eight to ten (8-10) poetry collections each year by U.S.-based authors. They also run a monthly 53-word story contest that ends on the 15th of each month and has a different theme each month. I’m not sure what the January 15 contest has as its topic, but if you check at the link above at the end of this month, you should be able to find it. You can read November’s winning entry here (scroll down).
Fractured Lit is running a micro fiction contest until February 1 with cash prizes for the winners. (First-place winner $3,500 and publication, second- and third-place winners $600 and $400, respectively, along with publication.) They’re looking for stories of 400 words or fewer, and all entries will be considered for publication. Details here. They also offer optional feedback on your entry, but it wasn’t clear to me whether that would cost anything in addition to the $20 entry fee. Submit Now
On February 7, from 10:30-3:30pm ET, Midwest Writers is hosting Jane Friedman for their one-day masterclass on How Writers Can Earn a Living in the Creator Economy. Whether you write fiction, nonfiction, essays, or something else, this day-long masterclass will give you a framework for assessing where your audience is, how they prefer to support you, and which income models make sense for your stage of career. $99 More details and registration here.
Jane is also the speaker at a workshop called Get Your Author Brand in Order hosted by Writer’s Digest on February 12, from 1–2:30pm ET. She will show you how building a brand is ultimately a creative exercise that often involves telling a story about yourself. $89 Details and registration here.
The Indie Publishers of New England (IPNE) are holding their 14th Annual Virtual Conference from 
February 20-21. Online, independent publishers and industry partners will gather to exchange knowledge, resources, strategies, solutions, and more. This is for all indie publishers, including self-published authors and hybrid publishers interested in advancing their book publishing know-how. More details here.
The one-day in-person New Haven Writing Workshop will take place on March 27. The theme is How to Get Published, and in addition to workshops, there’s an optional chance to pitch to agents. Rendezvous members have attended and found it worthwhile. You can see their full event list here. The organizers (former editors at Writer’s Digest) hold these conferences in various US cities. $169 Register here.
The Westport Writers Workshop is holding its one-day Pitch and Publish Conference on March 21 next year at the Westport Library, in Connecticut. You can buy Conference Only tickets for access to the full day of programming, including panel discussions, Bite-Sized Insights, the keynote speaker (Helen Simonson, Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand), and the celebratory wrap party. ($385, or $310 if booked before January 1, 2026) For those looking to take a step toward publication, the Conference with Pitches ticket includes everything in the standard ticket plus the opportunity to submit five pages of your work in advance and pitch one-on-one for ten minutes each with two agents from top publishing houses. ($685 or $610 if booked before January 1, 2026.) Purchase Tickets here. Full details, including panels, speakers, etc, here.
Before the conference, WWW is offering some supplemental programming: Hook an Agent with Your Query Letter (March 7, $75) and How to Prepare Your Power Pitch (March 14, $75) – useful whether you attend the conference or not.
More resources to come on Monday!
