TextShelf for Literary Contests & Writing Competitions
Managing writing submissions shouldn't mean drowning in email attachments.
Running a literary contest means juggling:
- Submissions scattered across inboxes — Email attachments, Google Drive links, physical mail
- Coordinating multiple judges is chaos — Who's reading what? When are reviews due?
- No visibility into review progress — Are we on track? Who's behind?
- Communicating with writers is manual — Status updates require individual emails
Most organizations manage this with email and spreadsheets. It works until it doesn't.
Structured Submission Collection
Writers submit through your portal. Everything lands in one place.
Easy Reviewer Assignment
Assign manuscripts to judges with a click. Set due dates and balance workloads.
Real-Time Progress Tracking
See who's reviewed, who hasn't, and what scores are coming in.
Built-In Communication
Notify writers of status changes automatically. Send updates without leaving TextShelf.
Document Annotation
Judges can highlight, comment, and score right in the manuscript.
Built from Experience
TextShelf was born from running an annual playwriting contest since 2018. We received hundreds of scripts from writers worldwide and needed a better way to coordinate reviewers, track submissions, and communicate with playwrights.
Seven years later, we've refined that system into a platform that works for:
- Playwriting competitions
- Fiction and poetry contests
- Literary magazine submissions
- Writing fellowship programs
We didn't build this from the outside—we built it because we needed it.
Pricing for Literary Organizations
- Unlimited workspaces
- 1,000 submissions
- 10 team members
- 5,000 submissions
- 25 team members
- Custom branding
Nonprofit discounts available.
Explore other use cases: