COLLEGE
WRITEATHONS
This fall, Jolt and ThingsBook are teaming up to give away over $10,000 in prizes to student writers.
- • November 7-8, 2026
- • November 21-22, 2026
- • December 5-6, 2026
What's a writeathon?
write·a·thon /ˈraɪtəˌθɑːn/ noun
A writeathon is a 24-hour writing challenge. With live leaderboards, mentorship and pep talks from real authors, and individual prizes up to $500, consider this the motivation you've been looking for to hunker down and finish that school paper or creative project you've been putting off.
Author Mentors
Published authors will give craft talks and encouragement throughout the writeathons.
Details
Writeathons will be held virtually over three weekends:• November 7-8, 2026
• November 21-22, 2026
• December 5-6, 2026
Each writeathon will begin on Saturday at 12 p.m. ET and end Sunday at 12 p.m. ET, with motivational author talks and office hours held throughout
No generative AI; writing tracked on Jolt to verify human authorship
Judges will review entries Sunday afternoon and prizes will be awarded Sunday eveningTracks
Prizes
Prizes will be awarded in two categories. The first category is word count leaders. This will be based on verified words written over the course of the writeathon.
The second category is the judges' selection. The judges will select a winner and up to three honorable mentions for each track, based on literary merit.
Schedule
Coming soon.
Frequently Asked Questions
