Genre: Poetry

Upcoming Contest Deadlines

Thanks to the extra fraction of a calendar day it takes Earth to orbit the sun each year, you have this leap year’s compensation day to apply to awards with deadlines on February 28 and February 29! Use that temps perdu to submit to contests offering prizes including $22,000 and publication for a nonfiction manuscript-in-progress that “emphasizes innovation in form and content”; $3,000, publication, and 20 author copies for a first or second poetry collection; and two prizes of $2,000 for a poetry e-book and a fiction e-book that depict “cultural, historical, and sociopolitical aspects of the Black Diaspora.” Best of luck!

Association of Writers & Writing Programs
Award Series
 
Three prizes of $5,500 each and publication by a participating press are given annually for a poetry collection, a short story collection, and a novel. A prize of $2,500 and publication by a participating press is also given annually for an essay collection or a memoir. Deadline: February 28. Entry fee: $30 ($20 for AWP members). 

Austin Community College
Balcones Prizes
 
Two prizes of $1,500 each are given annually for a poetry collection and a book of fiction published during the previous year. English translations of works originally written in another language are accepted. Deadline: February 28. Entry fee: $25 for poetry and $30 for fiction. 

Black Caucus of the American Library Association
Self-Publishing Literary Awards
 
Two prizes of $2,500 each are given annually for a poetry e-book and a fiction e-book self-published during the previous year by an African American writer. The awards honor books that depict “cultural, historical, and sociopolitical aspects of the Black Diaspora.” Deadline: February 28. Entry fee: None.

Graywolf Press
Nonfiction Prize
 
A prize of $22,000 (comprised of a $20,000 advance and a $2,000 research stipend) and publication by Graywolf Press will be given biennially for a nonfiction manuscript-in-progress that “emphasizes innovation in form and content” by a writer who is not yet established in the genre of nonfiction. The editors will judge. Deadline: February 28. Entry fee: None. 

Little Tokyo Historical Society
Imagine Little Tokyo Short Story Contest
 
Two prizes of $500 each and publication in Rafu Shimpo and on the Discover Nikkei and Little Tokyo Historical Society websites are given annually for short stories that take place in the Little Tokyo district of Los Angeles and “capture the cultural spirit” of the neighborhood. One prize is given for a story written in English; the other is given for a story written in Japanese. Deadline: February 29. Entry fee: None.

Omnidawn Publishing
First/Second Poetry Book Contest
 
A prize of $3,000, publication by Omnidawn Publishing, and 20 author copies is given annually for a first or second poetry collection. Desirée Alvarez will judge. Deadline: February 29. Entry fee: $35. 

Red Hen Press
Women’s Prose Prize
 
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Red Hen Press is given annually for a book of fiction or nonfiction by a writer who identifies as a woman. Laila Halaby will judge. Deadline: February 28. Entry fee: $25.

Tupelo Press
Snowbound Chapbook Award
 
A prize of $1,000, publication by Tupelo Press, and 25 author copies is given annually for a poetry chapbook. All entries are considered for publication. Deadline: February 28. Entry fee: $25. 

Visit the contest websites for complete guidelines, and check out the Grants & Awards database and Submission Calendar for more contests in poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and translation.

Prayer by January Gill O’Neil

Caption: 

“Tonight I pray to the god / of small children and broken toys,” reads January Gill O’Neil from her poem “Prayer” in this installment of the P.O.P. series, shot and edited by Rachel Eliza Griffiths in partnership with the Academy of American Poets. O’Neil’s fourth collection, Glitter Road (CavanKerry Press, 2024), is featured in Page One in the March/April issue of Poets & Writers Magazine.

Genre: 

Single Poem Contest

Omnidawn Publishing
Entry Fee: 
$12
Deadline: 
April 12, 2024
A prize of $1,000 is given annually for a single poem. The winner also receives 20 copies of a letterpress broadside of the winning poem. Claire Marie Stancek will judge. Using only the online submission system, submit a poem of 8 to 24 lines with a $25 entry fee ($15 for each additional poem) by April 12. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

National Black Writers Conference

The 17th National Black Writers Conference (NBWC) was held from March 20 to March 23 at Medgar Evers College, City University of New York.

Type: 
CONFERENCE
Ignore Event Date Field?: 
no
Event Date: 
March 20, 2024
Rolling Admissions: 
yes
Application Deadline: 
June 12, 2025
Financial Aid?: 
no
Financial Aid Application Deadline: 
June 12, 2025
Free Admission: 
no
Contact Information: 

National Black Writers Conference, Center for Black Literature, Medgar Evers College, City University of New York, 1650 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11225. Charlotte Hunter, Chief of Staff. 

Charlotte Hunter
Chief of Staff
Contact City: 
New York
Contact State: 
NY
Contact Zip / Postal Code: 
11225
Country: 
US

Poetry Award

Moon City Press
Entry Fee: 
$27
Deadline: 
June 1, 2024
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Moon City Press is given annually for a poetry collection. The editors will judge. Using only the online submission system, submit a manuscript of at least 48 pages with a $27 entry fee by May 1. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Southampton Writers Conference

The 49th annual Southampton Writers Conference was held from July 10 to July 14 at the Stony Brook Southampton campus in Southampton, New York, located on the Atlantic coast 90 miles east of New York City. The conference featured workshops in poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction, as well as readings and an agent panel. The faculty included poets Billy Collins and Diana Khoi Nguyen, fiction writer Julia Phillips, fiction and nonfiction writers Matthew Klam and Frederic Tuten, and memoirist Nadia Owusu.

Type: 
CONFERENCE
Ignore Event Date Field?: 
no
Event Date: 
July 10, 2024
Rolling Admissions: 
no
Application Deadline: 
April 15, 2024
Financial Aid?: 
yes
Financial Aid Application Deadline: 
March 15, 2024
Free Admission: 
no
Contact Information: 

Southampton Writers Conference, Stony Brook Southampton, Chancellors Hall, 239 Montauk Highway, Southampton, NY 11968. (631) 632-5007. Christian McLean, Conference Director. 

Christian McLean
Conference Director
Contact City: 
Southampton
Contact State: 
NY
Contact Zip / Postal Code: 
11968
Country: 
US

Sewanee Writers’ Conference

The 34th annual Sewanee Writers’ Conference was held from July 16 to July 28 on the campus of the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee. The conference featured workshops, special topics classes, lectures, one-on-one meetings with faculty, and readings for poets, fiction writers, and nonfiction writers. The faculty included poets Marianne Chan, Eduardo C.

Type: 
CONFERENCE
Ignore Event Date Field?: 
no
Event Date: 
July 16, 2024
Rolling Admissions: 
no
Application Deadline: 
March 15, 2024
Financial Aid?: 
yes
Financial Aid Application Deadline: 
March 15, 2024
Free Admission: 
no
Contact Information: 

Sewanee Writers’ Conference, University of the South, 735 University Avenue, Sewanee, TN 37383. 

Contact City: 
Sewanee
Contact State: 
TN
Contact Zip / Postal Code: 
37383
Country: 
US

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