Introduction

In the last few years, books by young adults have flooded the Indian literary scene. There is a significant surge in the number of young authors published in India. To name a few- Zuni Chopra, Anusha Subramaniam, Melita Tessy, and Ayaan Kapadia are some of the best-selling authors in this category. Having made their debut in the literary world at a very young age, these young writers are bringing forth a new perspective with their stories.

They not only offer a huge variety in their writing, ranging from fantasy fiction to literary fiction but have also encouraged youngsters to explore creative writing as a hobby.   In The picture from L to R – Teen authors Insiya Patanwala, Zuni Chopra, and Anusha Subramanian are among the new talent being scouted by publishers.(Image Source: Satish Bate/HT)[/caption]

Recently, the Government of India has announced a new program called Mentoring Young Authors to hone the skills of young creative minds and mentor them to write in various genres like fiction, non-fiction, travelogues, memoirs, drama, and poetry. This scheme will ensure creating a pool of authors in 22 Indian languages who are ready to express themselves and project India on any international platform, as well as it will help in projecting Indian culture and literature globally. These works will be published and marketed on a national platform, apart from being translated into all the regional languages of India.

We have collated a list of places where you can submit children’s writings in India. This list includes magazines and contests to submit children’s writing in India.

Disclaimer:

1. HWR has only collated this list for reference purposes. Parents/ Young writers are advised to contact the magazines/ organizers directly before and after submission.
2. HWR does not have any role to play in the selection process for any of the magazines and/or contests mentioned below.
3. Please go through the submission guidelines/ contest guidelines carefully before sending in your submissions.
4. The list is dynamic and will be updated from time to time.
5. In case you are the editor/team member of a Children’s magazine in India OR organizing a contest for Children’s Writing in India, please let us know in the comments below to be added to the list.

Magazines to submit children’s writing in India

Bookosmia

Bookosmia is a creative platform for young minds.

• Submission Guidelines: https://bookosmia.com/submit-a-story-write-to-sara/
• Category of Submissions accepted: Poetry, Stories, Essays, Book Reviews, Travelogues, etc.
• Age category: Up to 18

Intellyjelly is a magazine dedicated to young budding writers in India

• Submission Guidelines: Faqs – iNTELLYJELLY
• Category of Submissions accepted: Poetry and Stories 
• Age category: 4-12 years old

Minute publishes quarterly and submissions are welcome year-round.

• Submission Guidelines: Submit – Minute Magazine
• Category of Submissions accepted: Poetry and Prose
• Age category: 14-25

The NorthEast Review magazine has a dedicated Children’s section called Moina Mel. They are open to submissions from all over the world. However, they particularly welcome submissions that relate to any aspect of the literature of any of the regions within the Northeast (of India).

• Submission Guidelines: https://northeastreview.wordpress.com/submit-your-work/
• Category of Submissions Accepted: Poetry, Stories, Essays, Book Reviews, Travelogues, etc.
• Age category: N.A

Kahani is an award-winning children’s literary magazine that showcases the best of South Asian culture through original storytelling, art, and activities.

• Submission Guidelines: Kahani Magazine ⋆ South Asian Literary Magazine for Children
• Category of Submissions accepted: Stories
• Age category: Upto 16 years

The Progressive Curriculum Management Council created the PCM magazine in 1991. It has been publishing stories, poems, articles, drawings, paintings, puzzles, riddles, and cartoons every fortnight for the last two decades.

• Submission Guidelines: pcm (pcmmagazine.com)
• Category of Submissions Accepted: Poems, stories, and essays
• Age category: 4-9 years
Know more about the Himalayan Kids Writing Workshop

Contests to submit children’s writing in India

Foyle Young Poets

• Submission Guidelines: About – Foyle Young Poets
• Category of Submissions Accepted: Poems
• Language: English
• Prize:  Winners receive amazing prizes including membership of The Poetry Society and a stack of poetry goodies. Winners also attend a week-long intensive Arvon writing course, where they develop their creative writing skills alongside fellow poets or benefit from poetry residencies at their school or distance-mentoring depending on their age and location.
• Last Date: July 31st, 2021
• Age category: 11- 17 years

RobinAge is an award-winning newspaper for children aged between 4-15 years. The Bright Sparks Awards are hosted every year for children with 39 prizes to be won.

• Submission Guidelines: Creative Writing, Art & Poetry Contest for Kids (robinage.com)
• Category of Submissions Accepted: Fiction stories, poetry and artwork
• Language: English
• Prize: Prizes will be awarded to three top schools for quality and quantity of entries received and to the top three entries in each contest category for each age group
• Last Date: February 28th, 2022
• Age category: Upto 16 years

Storymirror- Summer Times Fun

• Submission Guidelines: Summer Writing Fun | Participate in the competition | StoryMirror
• Category of Submissions Accepted: Story and Poetry
• Language: English, Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, Odia & Bangla.
• Prize: Top 2 winners in each category and language will receive StoryMirror shop voucher worth Rs. 100/- and their content will be featured on Do with Lit Instagram page.
• Last date: May 14th, 2021
• Age category: Under 18

KidsEvent is an online platform that hosts a variety of contests for kids across age groups.

• Submission Guidelines: KidsEvent.in – Kids Online Competitions and Activity Platform, India.
• Category of Submissions Accepted: Essays
• Language: English
• Prize:3 winners will get medals and certificates for all participants
• Last date: May 28th, 2021
• Age category: Upto 16 years old

JASNA (Jane Austen Society of North America) conducts an annual student Essay Contest to foster the study and appreciation of Jane Austen’s works in new generations of readers.

• Submission Guidelines: Essay Contest » JASNA
• Category of Submissions Accepted: Essays on “Jane Austen in the Arts”.
• Language: English
• Prize:  First Place:  $1,000 scholarship and free registration and two nights’ lodging for JASNA’s upcoming Annual General Meeting (Transportation to the conference is not provided.) | Second Place:  $500 scholarship | Third Place:  $250 scholarship |Winners and their mentors each receive a one-year JASNA membership. In addition, each winner receives a set of Norton Critical Editions of Jane Austen’s novels. The winning essays are published on their website.
• Last date: June 1st, 2021
• Age category: Up to 21 years old

Jock Locke Essay Competition

• Submission Guidelines: 2021 Essay Competition | johnlockeinstitute
• Category of Submissions Accepted: Essays on any one of these subjects: Philosophy, Politics, Economics, History, Psychology, Theology, and Law.
• Language: English
• Prize: The prize for each winner of a subject category, and the winner of the Junior category, is a scholarship worth US$2000 towards the cost of attending any John Locke Institute program, and the essays will be published on the Institute’s website. The candidate who submits the best essay overall will be awarded an honorary John Locke Institute Junior Fellowship, which comes with a US$10,000 scholarship to attend one or more of our summer schools and/or gap year courses.
• ​Last date: June 30th, 2021
• Age category: Up to 18 years old

Plowns is an app made to help parents and kids have fun together. They host write-ups and artworks of kids and also conduct contests where they can win prizes.

• Submission Guidelines: Plowns — kids create, parents share
• Category of Submissions Accepted: Stories, essays and poems
• Language: English
• Prize: N.A
• Last date: N.A
• Age category: Up to 16 years old

Prizdale Times, India’s leading children’s magazine for school students, young writers, and budding artists, is organizing a free creative writing contest. 

• Submission Guidelines: https://prizdaletimes.com/category/events/competitions/
• Category of Submissions Accepted: Essay on ‘What if humans had tails’ (Word Limit: 500 words)
• Language: English
• Prize: The work of the top three winners in each category will be published on www.PrizdaleTimes.com. The winners will also receive e-Certificates.
• Last date: May 10th, 2021
• Age category: Open to Middle (Class 5 to 8) and Senior (Class 9 to 12) groups

Young Talento hosts innovative contests to showcase young talents.

• Submission Guidelines: Tagore (youngtalento.com)
• Category of Submissions Accepted: Poetry or Song on May Day
• Language: English
• Prize: All the participants and winners will get an e-certificate.
• Last date: May 31st, 2021
• Age category: 5-15 years old

Wizkids Carnival organizes various contests for kids in different categories

• Submission Guidelines: Terms and Conditions | wizkidscarnival.com
• Category of Submissions Accepted: Essays, Stories, and poems
• Language: English
• Prize: N.A
• Last date: N.A
• Age category: Upto 15.

If you are 15+ you can also consider sending in your poems/ short stories/ essays to various literary magazines listed HERE.

So, make the most of these holidays. Read and Write. Then write and read some more. 

Hope this list inspires the young writer to write and get published.