Genre: Poetry

Writing Contest

Black Warrior Review
Entry Fee: 
$20
Deadline: 
August 1, 2025
Three prizes of $1,000 each and publication in Black Warrior Review are given annually for a poem, a short story, and an essay. Using only the online submission system, submit up to five poems of any length, a story of up to 7,000 words, or an essay of no more than 6,000 words with a $20 entry fee (fee waivers are available based on financial need) by August 1. All entries are considered for publication. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Oregon Literary Fellowships

Literary Arts
Entry Fee: 
$0
Deadline: 
August 8, 2025
Fellowships of $3,500 each are given annually to aid Oregon writers in initiating, developing, or completing literary projects in poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction. These include one Women Writers Fellowship and one Writers of Color Fellowship. In addition, two Oregon Literary Career Fellowships of $10,000 each are awarded to writers who demonstrate exceptional talent; one of these two fellowships is reserved for a writer of color. Using only the online submission system, submit up to 15 pages of poetry or no more than 25 pages of prose (with an artist’s statement and an impact statement for those applying for Oregon Literary Career Fellowships) by August 8. There is no entry fee. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Stories That Need to Be Told Contest

TulipTree Publishing
Entry Fee: 
$20
Deadline: 
August 9, 2025
A prize of $1,000 is given annually for a poem, a short story, or an essay that responds to the following prompt: “What if the only way to save yourself from this reality is to write yourself a new one?” The winner also receives a two-year subscription to the literary database Duotrope and publication in the annual Stories That Need to Be Told anthology. E-mail a poem of up to five pages or a story or essay of up to 10,000 words with a $20 entry fee (sent via postal mail or PayPal) by August 9. All entries are considered for publication. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Muriel Craft Bailey Memorial Poetry Award

Comstock Review
Entry Fee: 
$28
Deadline: 
July 15, 2025
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Comstock Review is given annually for a single poem. Carolyne Wright will judge. Submit up to five poems of no more than 60 lines each with a $27.50 entry fee (or $5 per poem via postal mail) by July 15. All entries are considered for publication. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Maine Artist Fellowship

Maine Arts Commission
Entry Fee: 
$0
Deadline: 
September 3, 2025
A fellowship of up to $5,000 is given annually to a poet, a fiction writer, a creative nonfiction writer, or a writer working in a genre outside these categories who is a resident of Maine and has lived in the state for at least one year. The fellow is expected to reside in the state for the year of the fellowship. Writers who are age 25 or older and are not enrolled in a degree-granting program are eligible. The fellowship committee can appoint a translator to assist in the review of work submitted in a language other than English. Using only the online submission system, submit up to five poems, stories, or essays of no more than eight pages each; an artist statement; and a résumé (or a brief bio) between July 23 and September 3. There is no entry fee. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Eugene Paul Nassar Poetry Prize

Utica University
Entry Fee: 
$0
Deadline: 
August 31, 2025
A prize of $2,000 is given annually for a poetry collection published during the current year by a resident of upstate New York. The winner will also give a reading and teach a master class at Utica University in spring 2026. Publishers or authors may submit two copies of a book of at least 48 pages published between July 1, 2024, and June 30, 2025, and a curriculum vitae by August 31. There is no entry fee. Visit the website for the required entry form and complete guidelines.

Most Wanted and Unwanted

The Time Is Now
6.17.25

To write their latest book, People’s Choice Literature: The Most Wanted and Unwanted Novels (Columbia University Press, 2025), Tom Comitta used data compiled from a specially designed national public opinion poll on literary preference and composed two novels: a formulaic, fast-paced thriller and an experimental epistolary sci-fi romance with elderly aristocratic tennis players as protagonists. Responses to the poll included preferences and aversions to attributes such as characters’ identities, genre, verb tense, setting, and point of view. Taking a cue from this project, jot down a brief list of what you would guess to be the most and least desired attributes of poetry, including rhyme, length, diction, and imagery. Write a “Most Wanted Poem” and “Most Unwanted Poem” based on your list. How do your own idiosyncrasies and thoughts around literary taste infiltrate each piece?

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