The Best American Travel Writing 2020

Nowhere 2021 Prizes & Opportunities Schedule

Specifics for each event will be listed below this calendar as they go live. Read our general guidelines, applicable to every contest, here. For updates, s ubscribe to the Nowhere Writers' Room newsletter.

January 15, 2021, to February 28, 2021: The Nowhere Emerging Travel Writers' Prize

January 15, 2021, to February 28, 2021: The Nowhere Emerging Travel Photographers' Prize

March 1, 2021, to June 30, 2021: The Nowhere Spring Travel Writing Prize

July 1, 2021, to August 31, 2021: Open Call: Words & Photos

September 1, 2021, to December 15, 2021: The Nowhere Fall Travel Writing Prize

Compass Rose

Fall 2021 Travel Writing Prize

Read our general guidelines here .

Award-winning literary travel magazine Nowhere is accepting submissions for our annual Fall Travel Writing Prize. We are looking for novice and veteran writers of any stripe to send us stories that possess a powerful sense of people, place and time. Every submission will be read blind, so anyone can win!

Click here for contest details and to enter.

Spring 2021 Travel Writing Prize

Read our general guidelines here .

This contest is now closed. Thanks to writers who submitted their work! Please allow at least sixteen weeks for judging. Each entrant will be notified of our decision on their piece via Submittable, and we will announce the winner and finalists here, in our newsletter, and on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

If you're interested in having your work professionally reviewed, please visit our page for Nowhere Writers' Room Critiques.

Want to stay in the know about our upcoming prizes? Subscribe to the Nowhere Writers' Room newsletter.

2021 Emerging Travel Writers' Prize

Congratulations to Vero Lee for winning our second-annual Emerging Travel Writers' Prize! Vero won US$500 for her essay, "Frame."

2021 Emerging Travel Photographers' Prize

Congratulations to Marlon Paine for winning our first-ever Emerging Travel Photographers' Prize! Marlon won US$500 for his collection, "Dreams of Angara." We extend a warm congratulations to our finalists as well, whose work also will be published in Nowhere:

Tom Cohen, "Annapurna: A Hunt for Humanity Among the Holy High Himalayas"
Elisa Ferrari, "Searching for Hope in Sápmi"
Lynnette Oostmeyer, "That Ethiopian Light"
Samantha Runkel, "The Traveler's Daughter"
Darin Wahl, "The Forest Floor"

Fall 2020 Travel Writing Prize

Congratulations to Jax Connelly for winning our Fall 2020 Travel Writing Prize! Jax won US$1,000 for their essay, "11 Short Essays About Walking My Dog During COVID-19," coming soon to our site. We extend a warm congratulations to our finalists as well, whose work also will be published in Nowhere:

Mildred Barya, "Shuddering Expansion/Where Home Is" (nonfiction)
Bea Chang, "The River My Father Promised" (essay)
Ion Corcos, "'I Eat a Spoon of Halva, but You Will Eat Chicken,' She Said" (poetry)
Jessica Dessner, "The Principle Bitter" (poetry)
Aino Frilander, "Monuments of the American West" (essay)
Tracy Harris, "Cambodia" (essay)
Cheong Kim, "Hanoi: Where I Get My Just Desserts and One Good Story" (excerpt; memoir)
J.R Patterson, "The Thar Desert" (nonfiction)
Galen Perry, "Back To Mongold: A Fire Evacuee Returns" (essay)
Robert Silverman, "Berlin" (essay)

Spring 2020 Travel Writing Prize

Congratulations to Bonnie Costello for winning our Spring 2020 Travel Writing Prize! Bonnie won US$1,000 for her essay, "Sights on a Visit to Chile." We extend a warm congratulations to our finalists as well, whose work also will be published in Nowhere:

Wisteria Deng, "London Poem" (poetry)
Sean Julia Civale, "Bronte in the Right Before" (essay)
Mark Anthony Jarman, "Drunkards! I Molest You!" (nonfiction)
Anthony DeGregorio, "Poems En Route" (poetry)
Caleb Berer, "The Last Iftar" (nonfiction)
Christopher Impiglia, "The Ocean" (fiction)
Michelle DeLong, "Pray! Wash Your Hands. Germs and Jesus Are Everywhere" (nonfiction)
Nikhilesh Banerjee, "Two Short and One Long" (nonfiction)

**2020 Nowhere Emerging Travel Writers' Prize**

Congratulations to Elizabeth Muntean for winning our inaugural Emerging Travel Writers' Prize! Elizabeth won $500 for her nonfiction story, "Peace with the Devil," which was nominated subsequently for a 2021 Pushcart Prize and for inclusion in The Best American Travel Writing 2021. We extend a warm congratulations to our finalists as well, whose work also will be published in Nowhere:

Mahni Dare, "From Red Centre to Red Necks" (nonfiction)
Skye Kuppig, "The Coast of the Gods" (nonfiction)
Jenna McClelland, "Maelströms" (nonfiction)
Grace O'Donnell, "A Break to Büyükada" (nonfiction)
Trevor Ritland, "Frontera" (essay)
Joanie Schirm, "China, Through the Wandering Eyes of a Czech Jewish WWII Refugee" (nonfiction)
Kathryn Stam, "Elephant Crush" (nonfiction)

Fall 2019 Travel Writing Contest

Congratulations to Christopher Fenton for winning our Fall 2019 Travel Writing Contest! Christopher won $1,000 for his nonfiction story, "Stoian," which was nominated subsequently for a 2021 Pushcart Prize. We extend a warm congratulations to our finalists well, whose work also will be published in Nowhere:

Robert Andersen, "Mare Nostrum" (essay) (nominated for a 2021 Pushcart Prize and for inclusion in The Best American Travel Writing 2021)
Maeve Bruce, "The Long View" (nonfiction) (nominated for inclusion in The Best American Travel Writing 2021)
Tim Hannigan, "A Border Incident" (nonfiction)
Bob Kunzinger, "Exiles and Dissidents" (nonfiction)
Linda Parsons, "Cuba Suite" (poetry)
Pamela Manché Pearce, "Blue Crete II" (nonfiction) (nominated for inclusion in The Best American Travel Writing 2021)
Don Schofield, "After the Firestorms" (poetry)
Diane Simmons, "Principles! You're Making a Killing on Them!" (nonfiction)
Alan Sincic, "The Harvest" (fiction)
Natalie Wang, "Mindgames" (fiction)
Sharon White, "Sightings" (essay) (nominated for inclusion in The Best American Travel Writing 2021)

Spring 2019 Travel Writing Contest

Congratulations toAnna Kortschak for winning our Spring 2019 Travel Writing Contest! Anna won $1,000 for her story, "History Lessons," which was nominated subsequently for a 2021 Pushcart Prize and for inclusion in The Best American Travel Writing 2021. We extend a warm congratulations to our finalists well, whose work will be published in Nowhere:

Allison Adair
Sofia Batchelor
Mark Burgess, "Salta"
Suzanne Frank, "All on the Same Blue Planet"
Genni Gunn, "Birth Stones" (nominated for inclusion in The Best American Travel Writing 2021)
Richard Hague, "Proofs of Gravity"
Johnny Kane
Kevin King
Travis Nagy
"Chasing Heights," I. L. Sherman (nominated for inclusion in The Best American Travel Writing 2021)
Lucretia Stewart, "The Naxos Animal Welfare Society"

Fall 2018 Travel Writing Contest

Congratulations to Stacey Engels for winning our Fall 2018 Travel Writing Contest! Stacey won $1,000 for her story, "Pompeii '87-'01-'17." We also nominated the piece for a 2020 Pushcart Prize and The Best American Travel Writing 2020. We extend a warm congratulations to our finalists well, whose work will be published in Nowhere:

Shawn Allen
Matthew Di Paoli
Michael Fischer (nominated for a 2020 Pushcart Prize)
Richard Hague (nominated for a 2020 Pushcart Prize)
Robert Howe
William C-F Long (nominated for a 2021 Pushcart Prize)
Lou Morrison (nominated for a 2020 Pushcart Prize and The Best American Travel Writing 2020)
Alison Morse
Cherene Sherrard
Rob Magnuson Smith (nominated for a 2020 Pushcart Prize and T he Best American Travel Writing 2020)
Kelly Watt

Spring 2018 Travel Writing Contest

Congratulations to Patricia Striar Rohner for winning our Spring 2018 Travel Writing Contest! Patricia won $1,000 for her story, "A Day in Crown Heights." We extend a warm congratulations to our finalists well, whose work will be published in Nowhere:

Brandon Cook
Margaret Hedderman (nominated for he Best American Travel Writing 2020)
Jamie Shrewsbury
Alise Caroline Wascom

"This Land Is…" Travel Writing Contest

Congratulations to McKenzie Long for winning our inaugural contest supporting public lands! She takes home $250 for her story, "The Alphabet Effect." Hats off as well to our finalists, each of whom has won an America the Beautiful National Parks & Federal Recreational Lands Annual Pass, valued at $80, and whose work will appear in Nowhere:

Sarah Booher
Blaire Briody
Justin Florey
Chris Waltz

Fall 2017 Travel Writing Contest

Congratulations to Kelsey Camacho for winning the Fall 2017 Travel Writing Contest! Kelsey won $1,000 for her story, "Gå Fram." We also congratulate our finalists, whose work will appear in Nowhere:

Michael Boushee
Jane Breakell
Linda Dittmar
Susanna Forrest
Russell Helms
Marya Hornbacher
Susan Roether (nominated for a 2020 Pushcart Prize)
Honor Vincent
Marjory Woodfield
Courtney Zoffness

Congratulations to Piers Smith for winning the Spring 2017 Travel Writing Contest! Piers won $1,000 for his story, "Walk Like an Egyptian." Congratulations also go to our finalists:

Diana Spechler
Beejay Silcox
Marion Pont
Kathryn Paulsen
Dominic Gerard

Big congrats to David Zoby for winning the Fall 2016 Travel Writing Contest! David won $1,000 for his story, "Some Vague Stars to the South." Congratulations also go to our finalists:

Jessica Lipnack
Hillary Kaylor
Anna Wallace-Thompson
Alia Volz

Spring 2016 Travel Writing Contest Winners

Congratulations to Richard Hague for winning the Spring 2016 Travel Writing Contest. Richard won receive $1,000 for "A Day and a Night on the Late Big Bone." Also, congrats to the following finalists, whose stories also will appear in Nowhere:

Katie Leonard
Kali VanBaale
Amalia Gladhart
Pamela Dae
Christopher Scott
Lara Tupper
Maggie Pahos
Andrew Wailes