This year, NüVoices is launching its first annual personal essay contest to encourage and honor non-fiction writing on China by underrepresented writers! In addition to cash prizes for our top picks, winners and runner-ups will have the chance to be published in our online magazine NüStories, which will be promoted on all our social platforms. Entry is free. Excited? So are we!
CONTEST OVERVIEW:
Our 2025 theme is “Chinese identity.” Have you grappled with Chinese-ness and what it means to be Chinese today, both within and outside of China’s borders? If so, we’d love to hear from you! We’re looking for personal essays of 1,200 words max. in the genre of creative nonfiction by self-identified women, non-binary and queer writers.
CASH PRIZES:
1st place: USD $100
2nd place: USD $70
3rd place: USD $50
HOW TO SUBMIT:
Please email a Word Doc with your essay (1,200 words max) and a short bio to nuvoices@protonmail.com with the subject “ESSAY CONTEST” by March 1st, 2025.
For reference, here are some examples of personal essays we’ve published in the past:
I returned to China to find my biological family and discover my cultural roots
Losing a Grandmother, Learning Her Language
Navigating my biracial identity as a Chinese-American living in China
The half-truths we tell in times of sickness
JUDGE: Jessie Lau, NüStories Editor-in-Chief
Jessie Lau is a writer and journalist from Hong Kong now based in London. A specialist on China and Asia, she covers human rights, politics and culture with a transnational feminist perspective. Her writing has appeared in The Guardian, The Economist, CNN, Foreign Policy, and others. She fronted the BBC Eye documentary “China’s Silenced Feminist” and executive-produced the short film “China’s Feminist Fightback” for the Channel 4 News show “Uncovered.” She’s a board member and editor at NuVoices.