The deadline to enter the 2025 Best in Rural Writing Contest is fast approaching.
In its third year, the contest has grown in scope, in submissions, and the ability to prove that the most exciting writing probably comes from the countryside. The contest is front and center in helping lift up rural voices, bringing attention to deserving authors, ideas and explorations.
Submissions are received from all over the world, proving the rural experience to be diverse and varied. Last year’s winning entry, Jeremy Haworth’s short story “Blood Brother,” came from the midlands of Ireland, while the runner-up, Don Stewart’s essay “Rebounders,” hailed from the American South. Both writer’s submissions were published on The Milk House and The Daily Yonder, reaching a wide audience.
This year, the two finalist will also be published in the 2026 Best in Rural Writing print anthology, expected to be released late 2025/early 2026.
The overall winner for the 2025 Best in Rural Writing Contest will receive $500, and the runner-up $200. Entries are $10, or free for WRITER or SUPPORTER subscribers. Fiction and nonfiction under 7,000 words are accepted. If there are any problems or questions, please email RyanDennis@themilkhouse.org.
Like last year, ten shortlisted entries will be published on The Milk House website. Shortlisted entries will also receive a free WRITERS subscription to The Milk House.
The judge for the 2025 Best in Rural Writing Contest is Jamie Guiney, whose debut short story collection, The Wooden Hill (époque press), was shortlisted for the 2019 Saboteur Awards. His novel, The Lightning, will be published in 2026 with Bluemoose Books.
The Milk House would also like to encourage its supporters to check out The Daily Yonder, a rural news source that addresses some of the most pressing issues facing rural America. We are lucky to partner with an organization whose work we admire, and believe you will also find them to be a valuable resource.
Sharing your experience in writing is a bold and worthwhile act. It’s hard to draft a story or essay and not learn something more about yourself. More importantly, the world needs to hear from those living in the countryside. It needs to understand the particular challenges, joys, contradictions and fears inherent to the rural life, and that can only happen if they are shared from someone from who has lived them.
To find more details or to the enter the contest, visit the contest home page.
