North American Review Short Story Prize

A project of North American Review (see other related projects).

About

From 1990 until 2014, the biannual journal Short Story published a grab bag of short stories, critical articles, essays, interviews, and book reviews. It represented a unique contribution to the literary world. Well, it’s back—with a new look and vision under the auspices of the North American Review.
For a time, the two publications shared an institutional home at the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls, Iowa, and after a more than decade-long hiatus, the NAR is reviving its sister journal as an annual to make a home for an eclectic range of short fiction, craft essays, and other story-related material.
In order to create space for a wide range of different kinds of stories, Short Story returns with an eye toward plot and a strong narrative arc and an emphasis on entertainment. Our promise is to be a venue open not only to literary stories, but also westerns, rom-coms, thrillers, horror stories, crime stories, sci-fi stories, tales, yarns, and other narrative modes, forms, and genres.

Fees Notice: This project charges fees (or requires purchases) for all submissions.
The fee is USD $23 (above average for contests).

Country of Publication

United States

Publication Medium & Contest Frequency

Print Publication Print Publication: Awarded 1 x per year

AI Policy

Human-created work only; no AI use allowed

7 members set this contest as a Favorite.

Statistics Synopsis

Slower: North American Review Short Story Prize's overall average response time is slower than most contests.
More Approachable: North American Review Short Story Prize's overall acceptance rate is higher than most contests.
More Responsive: North American Review Short Story Prize's overall rate of non-response is lower than most contests.

Learn more about our statistics

Fiction Temp Closed

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience.

Genres:

Open to all/most Genres, including:
General

Lengths:

Short Story: 2,500 - 7,500 words.
Novel Excerpt: 2,500 - 7,500 words.

Styles:

Open to all/most Styles, including: Literary, Mainstream.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics.

Winner's Prize:

Professional payment (5 or more US cents per word) Professional payment. Details: USD $1,000 winning prize.

Submissions:

Method: Submittable submission manager.
Reprints: Reprints are NOT allowed.
Simultaneous submissions: Simultaneous submissions are allowed.
Multiple entries: Multiple entries are allowed.
Media: Text.

Always check guidelines for details and restrictions. If you aren't familiar with these terms, see our glossary.

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Go to contest webpage

Report:
Submission/Response
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New Cover Art

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North American Review Short Story Prize Submission Statistics

The statistics in this section are compiled from submission reports sent to us through our submission tracker. They are not provided by the publication's editors/staff or by Duotrope's admins. Information in this section is updated a few times per day. Learn more about the statistics.

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Accuracy

We have received 23 reports from 22 different members within the past 12 months, not including pending responses (see below). The more responses reported, the more accurate the information.

Days Reported

80 min | 143.9 mean avg | 136.0 median | 194 max days (27.2 std dev)

Responses

91.31 %

Acceptances:

8.70 % of submissions accepted (89.0 avg. days per acceptance) | 9.09 % of submitters accepted

Rejections:

82.61 % (150.6 avg. days per rejection) | 0.0 % personal, 63.2 % form, 36.8 % unspecified

Non-Responses

0.00 %

Lost/Returned:

Never Responded:

Withdrawals

8.70 % (119.5 avg. days per withdrawal)

Pending

2 responses are pending (188 min | 190.0 mean avg | 190.0 median | 192 max days waiting | 3.1 std dev) from 2 different members

Other Information

The most common submission fee paid: USD $23.00.
Most submissions are acknowledged on the same day.
Most recent response reported was received on 14 Aug 2026.
Responses have been received for submissions sent as recently as 01 Apr 2026.
Date compiled: 14 Sep 2026 18:50 UTC (2 hours, 48 minutes ago).

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Your Submissions

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Before Submitting

We cannot guarantee that the information on this page is correct. It is not unusual for publications to evolve or close without notice. We do our best to keep up, but it isn't always possible. Duotrope listings do not imply endorsement or recommendation of the project being listed. Before submitting, you should use your own judgment to determine whether the project meets your standards.

Always read the full guidelines provided by the publisher.
Try to read at least one previous publication to get a better idea of what the editor would like to see.
Unless the publisher's guidelines state otherwise, always use industry standard manuscript formatting.
Be professional, patient, and persistent.

Dates

Last Updated: 22 Aug 2026

We check their guidelines for changes every four weeks, and we audit the listing twice a year.