Genre: Poetry

Common Words

2.25.25

According to the Oxford English Corpus, a text corpus of twenty-first-century English with over two billion words collected from online and print sources produced by Anglophone countries, time, person, year, way, and day are the top five most common nouns in the English language. Browse through lists of the most common words, whether nouns, verbs, adjectives, prepositions, pronouns, or articles. Instead of making use of unusual language, write a poem that revolves around playing with the most common ones. Experiment with how you might be able to manipulate unconventional repetition, syntax, spacing, or grammar to express fresh and unexpected meanings.

Evie Shockley at Smith College

Caption: 

In this event hosted by the Boutelle-Day Poetry Center at Smith College, Evie Shockley reads a selection of new poems, as well as some from her latest poetry collection, suddenly we (Wesleyan University Press, 2023), and discusses her vision for solidarity in these times in a conversation with Yona Harvey.

Genre: 

Patrycja Humienik

Caption: 

In this episode of Tightwires with host Hiba Tahir, poet Patrycja Humienik talks about navigating grad school and writing, identity, and her debut collection, We Contain Landscapes (Tin House, 2025), which is featured in Page One in the March/April issue of Poets & Writers Magazine.

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Adrienne Rich Award for Poetry

Beloit Poetry Journal
Entry Fee: 
$15
Deadline: 
April 30, 2025
A prize of $1,500 and publication in Beloit Poetry Journal is given annually for a single poem. Using only the online submission system, submit up to three poems totaling no more than 10 pages with a $15 entry fee by April 30. All entries are considered for publication. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Book Award

Noemi Press
Entry Fee: 
$25
Deadline: 
May 1, 2025
A prize of $2,000 and publication by Noemi Press is given annually for a poetry collection. The editors will judge. Using only the online submission system, submit a manuscript of any length with a $25 entry fee by May 1. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Wergle Flomp Humor Poetry Contest

Winning Writers
Entry Fee: 
$0
Deadline: 
April 1, 2025
A prize of $2,000, a gift certificate for a two-year membership to the literary database Duotrope, and publication on the Winning Writers website is given annually for a humorous poem. A second-place prize of $500 is also awarded. Jendi Reiter and Lauren Singer will judge. Unpublished and previously published works are eligible. Using only the online submission system, submit a poem of up to 250 lines by April 1. There is no entry fee. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Hudson Prize

Black Lawrence Press
Entry Fee: 
$30
Deadline: 
March 31, 2025
A prize of $1,000, publication by Black Lawrence Press, and 10 author copies is given annually for a collection of poems, short stories, essays, or hybrid work. The editors will judge. Using only the online submission system, submit a poetry manuscript of 45 to 95 pages or a prose manuscript of 120 to 280 pages with a $30 entry fee by March 31. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Poetry Prize

Oberon
Entry Fee: 
$18
Deadline: 
April 10, 2025
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Oberon is given annually for a single poem. Submit up to three poems of no more than two pages each with an $18 entry fee, which includes an issue of Oberon, by April 10. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Annual Writing Competition

Writer’s Digest
Entry Fee: 
$20
Deadline: 
May 5, 2025
A prize of $5,000, an interview in Writer’s Digest, and an all-expenses-paid trip to the Writer’s Digest Annual Conference is given annually for a single poem, a short story, or an essay (among other categories). Four prizes of $1,000 each and publication on the Writer’s Digest website are also given for a rhyming poem, a non-rhyming poem, a short story, and a personal essay. Using only the online submission system, submit a poem of up to 40 lines, a story of no more than 4,000 words, or an essay of up to 2,000 words by the early bird deadline of May 5. The entry fee for poetry is $20 ($15 for each additional poem); the entry fee for prose is $30 ($25 for each additional entry). Visit the website for complete guidelines.

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