Uncharted Magazine Novel Excerpt Prize | Judged by Micaiah Johnson | $3000 Awarded! | Free for Writers of Historically Marginalized Groups

We invite writers to submit to the 2026 Uncharted Magazine Novel Excerpt Prize from March 30 to May 31, 2026. 

NOTE: This category is for writers of historically marginalized groups only. If you do not identify as a writer from a historically marginalized group, please submit here. 

There’s something enthralling about stories carved from longer works that have a sense of purpose and stakes, a feeling of depth and emotion. We love excerpts that show your character battling the antagonist and themselves, making choices with consequences. Give us your high stakes, your rock-bottoms, your inciting incidents and climaxes, and those spaces where your characters burst into our imaginations!

We're looking for the best 5,000 words or fewer from your novel in progress. We love to read opening chapters, climaxes, and anything in between. Give us those scenes full of tension, crackling dialogue, and worlds we’ve never even imagined. Give us a chance to read the most captivating section of your novel—and make us want to read more!

We're thrilled to partner with Micaiah Johnson, who will choose three prize winners from a shortlist. The three cowinners of this prize will each receive $1,000, online publication, and a forty-five-minute consultation with Mark Gottlieb, an Executive Vice President and Literary Agent with The Trident Media Group. All entries will be considered for publication.

Micaiah Johnson is the Compton Crook and Carl Brandon Award-winning author of The Space Between Worlds. Her debut novel was a Sunday Times Bestseller, an Editors’ Choice at The New York Times and was named one of best books of 2020 and one of the best science fiction books of the last decade by NPR. Her follow-up novel, Those Beyond the Wall, has been named one of NPR’s Best Books of 2024 and was a finalist for the Ursula Le Guin Prize. In her academic life she studies race, the unhuman, and death, topics she will be exploring in her upcoming horror debut, The Unhaunting. 

GUIDELINES

The deadline for entry is May 31, 2026. We will announce the winner and finalists within fourteen weeks of the contest’s close. All writers will be notified when the results are final.

• Writers may submit any section of their novel that is 1,001–5,000 words in length per entry. 
• Please send novel excerpts (fiction) only—5,000 word count maximum.
• We only consider unpublished work for contests—we do not review reprints, including self-published work (even on blogs and social media). Reprints will be automatically disqualified. Both the excerpt and the novel must be unpublished. (The full novel does not need to be completed.)
• Simultaneous submissions are okay—please notify us and withdraw your entry if you find another home for your writing.
• All entries will also be considered for publication in Uncharted Magazine.
• Double-space your submission and use Times New Roman 12 (or larger if needed).
• Please include a brief cover letter with your publication history (if applicable).
• To ensure the protection of our volunteer readers and to keep Uncharted a safe space, please let us know in your cover letter if your work can be triggering in any way. This information will have no bearing on your submission or our decision—we just want to ensure the best possible environment for our readers. Thank you for your understanding.
• We only read work in English, though some code-switching/meshing is warmly welcomed.
• We do not read anonymous submissions. However, shortlisted stories are sent anonymously to the guest judge for review.
• Work generated by AI will be automatically disqualified.

Some Submittable Hot Tips:

• Please be sure to whitelist/add this email address to your contacts, so notifications do not get filtered as spam/junk: notifications@email.submittable.com.
• If you realize you sent the wrong version of your piece: It happens. Please DO NOT withdraw the piece and resubmit. Submittable collects a nonrefundable fee each time. Please DO message us from within the submission to request that we open the entry for editing, which will allow you to fix everything from typos in your cover letter to uploading a new draft. The only time we will not allow a change is if the piece is already under review by a reader.

FAQ

Q: What am I supposed to write in my cover letter?

A: Think of your cover letter as a brief author bio, that is, what you would like posted on our site should your piece be selected for publication. Don’t overthink it; we just want to know a little about you! Most writers choose to include publication history or something about the excerpt that is being submitted. Note that you can include personal or identifying information in your cover letter.

Q: When can I expect to hear back about my excerpt?

A: Regardless of acceptance or decline, you will hear back from us, we promise. You can expect a status update within twelve to fourteen weeks from the close of the contest. Every submitter is notified of a decision, and we send out responses once a submission doesn't advance to the next round. We'd also encourage you to follow us on social media as we publicly announce winners and contest opportunities there.

Q: Are prologues acceptable?

A: You can absolutely submit your novel’s prologue as long as the entire submission is under 5,000 words.

Q: Do you accept submissions from writing teams?

A: Yes! However, you would need to designate one person as the submitter—or maybe create a joint Submittable account. We love to see teams enter their work, as long as you all understand that you'd be splitting the prize if the submission was selected as one of the winners.

Q: Who retains the rights to my work, and will I be able to query my novel later?

A: We're not able to speak for every publisher, but since we're not publishing your work in its entirety, future publication should not be a problem. Rights also revert back to the author after ninety days. If an opportunity arises for you to publish your work before these ninety days, we are happy to revert rights back to you sooner.

Good luck and happy writing!