How to Enter
Entries will be accepted Dec. 2, 2025-Jan. 6, 2026.
The winners are expected to be announced the week of Feb. 23, 2026.
The four winning writers will receive a free registration to the March 26-28, 2026, Erma Bombeck Writers’ Workshop, $1,000 and publication of their essays online and in the workshop’s program. A select number will receive honorable mentions, $100 and publication of their essays online.
Betsy Bombeck, Erma's daughter, and Beth Macy will serve as finalist judges for the humor and human interest categories, respectively. Macy is a journalist and author whose 2018 book, Dopesick, was shortlisted for the 2019 Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction.
Betsy Bombeck will keynote the awards ceremony, which is slated for 7 p.m. on March 25 at Woodbourne Library, 6060 Far Hills Ave., Centerville, Ohio 45459. It's free and open to the public, but registration is required.
In 2024, 480 writers from five countries, 48 states and the District of Columbia entered previously unpublished essays in humor and human interest categories — roughly 216,000 words.
Enjoy the winning essays from previous competitions.