Coming Soon: The University of Iowa Alumni and Friends 48-Hour Flash Writing Contest
January 16–18, 2026
Mark your calendars for our Flash Writing Contest—a free, online short story competition for a variety of age groups. You don’t have to be an Iowa Writers' Workshop graduate or an accomplished author to join in the fun.
Contest Details
The contest begins on Friday, Jan. 16, 2026, at 4 p.m. CST, and runs through Sunday, Jan. 18, 2026, at 4 p.m. CST. At the contest’s start, we’ll provide a genre, character (e.g., bus driver), and specific object to incorporate into your story. The rest is up to you.
Submissions must be 1,000 words or less and composed in their entirety during the contest period. All entrants will receive the same writing prompts.
The contest is free and open to UI alumni, students, faculty, staff, and friends from each of the following age categories:
- Grades 3 & 4
- Grades 5 & 6
- Grades 7 & 8
- Grades 9–12
- Current University of Iowa Students
- Adult, University of Iowa Alumni
- Adult, Friends of the University
We will select one winner from each category and post the winning entries (along with honorable mentions) on the Write Now website on Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026.
Winners’ Prizes
Winners in each of the grade-school categories will receive an Iowa-themed writing prize pack and a $25 Bookshop.org gift card.
Winners in the current UI student category and both adult categories will each receive an Iowa-themed writing prize pack, a $50 Bookshop.org gift card, and a handcrafted wooden pen carved from the branch of a tree that is located on the University of Iowa campus.
Learn More
Deadline and Submission Format
- Deadline: You must submit your completed story by Sunday, Jan. 18, 2026, at 4 p.m. CST. All entries not received by the University of Iowa Center for Advancement by that time will be ineligible.
- Length: The maximum length for each short story is 1,000 words. Entries with more than 1,000 words will be disqualified.
- File format: You must upload your short story as a Word document (.doc), text file (.txt), or rich text format document (.rtf). Stories submitted in Apple’s Pages format will not be accepted. The name of the file must be the title of the story. For example, if the title of your story is “Autumn,” then the name of your file must be “Autumn.doc,” “Autumn.txt,” or “Autumn.rtf.”
- Font: Submissions must be typed in 12-point Courier, New Courier, or Times New Roman typeface.
- Anonymity: Your name must not appear anywhere in the short story document; you will only submit your name on the web entry form.
- How to submit: You must upload your short story through the contest website or submit it via email to write.now@foriowa.org.
Before the contest begins, enjoy some of these amazing writing samples from your fellow Hawkeyes. Check out entries from past winners and explore the University of Iowa’s writing resources to inspire your own creativity.