Team’s Mission
To encourage the next generation of writers by recognizing their work and amplifying their diverse stories.
General Information
We Need Diverse Books (WNDB) has partnered with the Penguin Random House to manage the Penguin Random House Creative Writing Awards. The competition recognizes the unique voices of high school seniors across the country by providing scholarship awards in the amount of $10,000 for the following categories:
- Maya Angelou Award for Spoken Word Poetry
- Poetry
- Fiction/Drama
- Personal Essay/Memoir
One additional award of $10,000 will be awarded to a student from the NYC-area.
Literary compositions will judged by their technical merit; however, artistic expression is our core criterion. We are looking for writing with a strong, clear voice by authors who are daring, original, and unafraid to take risks. All judging will be under the supervision of We Need Diverse Books and Penguin Random House by a specially selected panel of judges.
Application Information
The 2020 application period is now closed. You can find more information on the Penguin Random House website.
Notification
Winners will be announced and posted on the Penguin Random House website by June 15, 2020. Payment of Scholarships Scholarship America will process scholarship award payments on behalf of Penguin Random House. All awards will be paid over four (4) years, and cannot be deferred beyond one year.
Revisions
Penguin Random House reserves the right to review the conditions and procedures of this scholarship program and to make changes at any time including termination of the program.
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