⏳ Weekly Writing Contest | November 16: The Pathless Path
This week's guest judge is author Paul Millerd. Submit your entry by Friday, November 21st at 12pm ET/5pm GMT.
Welcome to the Weekly Writers’ Hour Contest!
This week’s contest invites you to write about leaving behind the map and stepping into the unknown.
** This is our final contest of 2025, but we’ll keep sharing weekly writing prompts through our winter break. We’d love to continue these contests in 2026, and if you would too, we’d love to hear from you. See more below. **
📝 PROMPT
Write about a moment when you (or a character) stepped off the expected road, or dreamed of doing so. What happened when you stopped following the map?
Unpublished pieces of 500 words or less in any genre are eligible.
Submissions are due by Friday, November 21st, at 5pm GMT / 12pm ET.
Keep reading for more information on prizes and FAQs – plus an introduction to this week’s guest judge, author Paul Millerd.
Happy writing!
The Writers’ Hour Magazine Team
Meet Our Guest Judge: Paul Millerd
Paul Millerd is an independent writer, freelancer, and digital creator. He is the author of The Pathless Path and Good Work. He has written online for many years and has built a growing audience of curious humans from around the world. He spent several years working in strategy consulting before deciding to walk away and embrace a pathless path. He is fascinated by how our relationship to work is shifting and how more people can live lives where they can thrive. Paul writes Pathless on Substack.
A Note from Our Editorial Team
This week’s invitation takes its cue from Paul Millerd’s The Pathless Path. Consider Paul’s questions: What are the possibilities for your life that you are afraid to consider? What might be beyond your current understanding of the world?
You might explore this literally or metaphorically: a character leaving a prescribed life, a speaker walking into the unknown, or a moment when your own story took an unexpected turn.
How to Submit:
Submissions should be made through our online submission platform, Submittable, and formatted as a Word Doc.
For more details, please read the full Contest Guidelines.
The winning entries will receive:
First Prize:
$65 USD (£50 GBP)
Publication in Writers’ Hour Magazine
3-months of London Writers’ Salon Silver Membership (£79 value)
*NEW* Hardcover of The Pathless Path ($95 value)
*NEW* Scrivener Writing Software (£55 value)
*NEW* 3-Month Chill Subs Better Membership (£25 value)
Commemorative Writers’ Hour trophy mug (priceless)
Second Prize:
Publication in Writers’ Hour Magazine
1-month of London Writers’ Salon Silver Membership (£29 value)
Third Prize:
Publication in Writers’ Hour Magazine
FAQs:
What genres can I write in?
All genres - fiction, nonfiction, poetry, etc - are welcome.Is there a word limit?
Your piece must be 500 words or less. Pieces that exceed this will not be considered. There is no minimum word limit.Do I need to submit in a specific format?
Please follow the instructions outlined in the Contest Guidelines.When is the deadline to submit?
Submissions are due by Friday, November 21st at 5pm GMT / 12pm ET / 9am PT. Submissions received outside this window will not be considered.When will the winner be announced?
The winner will be contacted via Submittable, and the winning entries will be published in Writers’ Hour Magazine by Saturday, December 13th.Can I submit a piece I’ve already published?
Only previously unpublished pieces are eligible for this contest. (Published means anything that has already been made publicly available in print or online.)Can I use AI tools (like ChatGPT) to help write my contest submission?
No. We do not accept any AI-assisted writing for contest entries. All submissions must be the author’s original work and human-generated. Use of AI will disqualify you from this and any future contests.
Congratulations to the winners of The Doorway!
We are thrilled to share the contest results for the week of October 19. Writers were invited to explore what it means to cross a threshold. Special thanks once again to our guest judge, Caroline Donahue.
First Place: Astral by Lowri Ponsford
Second Place: The Door That Waited by Pravy Jha
Third Place: To Fall into Godhood by Shantell Powell
Congratulations to the winners, and thank you to everyone who participated. It’s a pleasure to share these pieces with you, and we can’t wait to see what you create in the next contest!
PS - Final Contest of the Year!
This week is our final official contest of the year. We’ll pause prizes and guest judges until mid January while we rest, regroup, and dream up the next season of Writers’ Hour Magazine.
You’ll still receive a new creative writing prompt every Sunday. The weekly prompts will continue as always, inviting you to keep writing through the season.
If you’ve loved the Writers’ Hour Magazine this year, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Your support helps us organize exciting guest judges, offer prizes, champion emerging writers, and keep this community-powered publication running strong in the year ahead.
🔒 Paid Subscriber Perk: Editorial Feedback Lottery
This week, three paid subscribers will be chosen at random to receive personalized feedback from our editorial team on their contest submission.
How to enter the feedback lottery:
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