Genre: Poetry

Just the Right Distance

The Time Is Now
4.14.26

In an essay recently published in the Evergreen Review, Eric Dean Wilson writes about discovering the playful use of metaphors in Robert Glück’s 1985 debut novel, Jack the Modernist. While considering what makes one work, Wilson recalls another writer teaching him about metaphor with a metaphor. “A metaphor, the writer said, is like a spark plug,” he says. “At just the right distance, the electrodes cause a spark to arc across the open air, igniting an explosion. The distance between the electrodes matters.” This week compose a poem that cycles through the process of creating an effective metaphor. You might start with the words, “A metaphor is like….” Allow yourself the freedom to play with language that might feel too convoluted as you gradually move toward the right combination to ignite a spark.

Annie Wenstrup and Lena Khalaf Tuffaha

Caption: 

In this event at the University of Arizona Poetry Center, Annie Wenstrup reads from her debut collection, The Museum of Unnatural Histories (Wesleyan University Press, 2025), and Lena Khalaf Tuffaha reads from her latest collection, Something About Living (University of Akron Press, 2024).

Genre: 
Poetry
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Annie Wenstrup
The Museum of Unnatural Histories
Wesleyan University Press
Lena Khalaf Tuffaha
Something About Living
University of Akron Press
University of Arizona Poetry Center
reading
2026

A Celebration of Arab American Heritage and National Poetry Month

Caption: 

In this New York Public Library event celebrating Arab American Heritage Month and National Poetry Month hosted in partnership with the Radius of Arab American Writers, poets Maha Hashwi, Ghinwa Jawhari, Lawrence Joseph, and Kamelya Omayma Youssef read from their work and discuss their writing in a conversation with senior librarian Reuben Gelley Newman.

Genre: 
Poetry
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New York Public Library
RAWI
Maha Hashwi
Ghinwa Jawhari
Lawrence Joseph
Kamelya Omayma Youssef
Arab American
National Poetry Month
2026

Ottoline Prize

Fence
Entry Fee: 
$25
Deadline: 
May 31, 2026
A prize of $5,000, publication by Fence Books (with distribution by Consortium), and 40 author copies is given annually for a poetry collection by a poet who identifies as a woman and/or female, including trans women and people of variable gender who were assigned female at birth (AFAB). The winner will also receive a two-week residency at the Eliot House in Gloucester, Massachusetts. Using only the online submission system, submit a manuscript of at least 50 pages with a $25 entry fee, which includes a two-issue subscription to Fence, by May 31. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Chapbook Prize

Two Sylvias Press
Entry Fee: 
$18
Deadline: 
May 31, 2026
A prize of $1,000, publication by Two Sylvias Press, and 20 author copies is given annually for a poetry chapbook. Kim Addonizio will judge. Submit a manuscript of 17 to 24 pages via e-mail with an $18 entry fee by May 31. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Poetry Book Prize

Gaudy Boy
Entry Fee: 
$10
Deadline: 
June 1, 2026
A grant of $1,500 and publication by Gaudy Boy, an imprint of the New York City–based literary nonprofit Singapore Unbound, is given annually for a poetry collection by a writer of Asian heritage residing anywhere in the world. Gwee Li Sui will judge. Submit a manuscript of 70 to 120 pages and a cover letter via e-mail with a $10 entry fee (to be sent separately via PayPal) by June 1. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Akron Poetry Prize

University of Akron Press
Entry Fee: 
$25
Deadline: 
June 15, 2026
A prize of $1,500 and publication by University of Akron Press is given annually for a poetry collection. Brenda Shaughnessy will judge. Using only the online submission system, submit a manuscript of 48 to 90 pages with a $25 entry fee by June 15. Visit the website for complete guidelines.
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book awards

New Writers Awards

Great Lakes Colleges Association
Entry Fee: 
$0
Deadline: 
May 25, 2026
Three prizes are given annually for first books by a poet, a fiction writer, and a creative nonfiction writer. The winners each receive an all-expenses-paid trip to several of the 13 GLCA colleges, each of which pays an honorarium of $500 to give readings, meet with students, and lead discussions and classes. Books published in 2025 and 2026 are eligible. Faculty members of the colleges will judge. Publishers may submit four copies of one book in each category by May 25. There is no entry fee. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Literary Prizes

Washington Writers’ Publishing House
Entry Fee: 
$28
Deadline: 
June 30, 2026
Two prizes of $1,500 each, publication by Washington Writers’ Publishing House, and 25 author copies are given annually for a poetry collection and a short story collection or novel. Additionally, a prize of $1,500, publication by Washington Writers’ Publishing House, and 25 author copies is given in alternating years for a poetry collection in translation or a book of creative nonfiction. This year the prize will be awarded in creative nonfiction. Winners are also invited to participate in readings at Politics & Prose in Washington, D.C. and the Writer’s Center in Bethesda, Maryland. Writers who live in Washington, D.C., Maryland, or Virginia are eligible. Using only the online submission system, submit a poetry manuscript of 70 to 100 pages, a novel or story collection of 150 to 250 pages, or a work of creative nonfiction between 150 and 250 pages with a $28 entry fee by June 30. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

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