Genre: Poetry

Blessing the Boats Selections

Boa Editions
Entry Fee: 
$0
Deadline: 
June 15, 2026
A prize of $1,500 and publication by Boa Editions is given annually for a poetry collection by a U.S.-based poet who is a woman of color, “including poets who identify as cis, trans, and non-binary people who are comfortable in a space that centers women’s experiences, regardless of citizenship.” Evie Shockley will judge. Submit a manuscript of 65 to 120 pages and a cover letter by June 15. There is no entry fee. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Barbara Mandigo Kelly Peace Poetry Award

Nuclear Age Peace Foundation
Entry Fee: 
$15
Deadline: 
July 1, 2026
A prize of $1,000 and publication on the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation website is given annually for a single poem that explores “positive visions of peace and the human spirit.” Submit up to three poems of no more than 30 lines each with a $15 entry fee by July 1. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Poetry Contest for Emerging Poets

Boulevard
Entry Fee: 
$18
Deadline: 
June 1, 2026
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Boulevard is given annually for a group of poems by a poet who has not published a poetry collection with a nationally distributed press. The editors will judge. Submit three poems of any length with an $18 entry fee, which includes a subscription to Boulevard, by June 1. All entries are considered for publication. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Chapbook Prize

Oversound
Entry Fee: 
$18
Deadline: 
May 31, 2026
A prize of $1,000, publication by Oversound, and 50 author copies is given annually for a poetry chapbook. Ari Banias will judge. Using only the online submission system, submit a manuscript of 15 to 30 pages with an $18 entry fee ($21 for a back issue of Oversound or a chapbook) by May 31. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Gravity of Kindness

The Time Is Now
4.7.26

Naomi Shihab Nye’s poem “Kindness,” which appears in her 1995 book, Words Under the Words: Selected Poems, begins: “Before you know what kindness really is / you must lose things….” The next two stanzas start similarly with: “Before you learn the tender gravity of kindness / you must travel…” and “Before you know kindness as the deepest thing inside, / you must know sorrow….” Compose a three-stanza poem that takes a cue from this parallel structure, starting the first line of each stanza with: “Before you know _____, you must _____.” Think about a quality, such as kindness, that you highly value and how your understanding of it has changed over time. What are the lessons you have learned and what do you hope to pass on to others?

Aurora Writers Workshop

May/June 2026

The 2026 Aurora Writers Workshop will be held from June 5 to June 7 at several locations throughout downtown Aurora, Illinois. The workshop will feature small-group craft workshops, a keynote address, a group dinner with a faculty reading, an open mic reading, and generative writing sessions for poets and fiction writers. The faculty includes poet Faisal Mohyuddin and fiction writer Meg Cass. Poet and fiction writer M. Rae Henry will give the keynote address. The cost of the conference, which includes one dinner and a continental breakfast on Sunday, is $200.

Type: 
CONFERENCE
Ignore Event Date Field?: 
no
Event Date: 
June 5, 2026
Rolling Admissions: 
yes
Application Deadline: 
June 27, 2026
Financial Aid?: 
no
Financial Aid Application Deadline: 
June 27, 2026
Free Admission: 
no
Contact Information: 

Aurora Writers Workshop, 1030 Northfield Drive, Aurora, IL 60505. Kristin LaTour, President.

Kristin LaTour
President
Contact City: 
Aurora
Contact State: 
IL
Country: 
US
Genre: 
Poetry
Fiction

Talismans

The Time Is Now
3.31.26

In a recent piece published on Literary Hub, Maggie Smith describes her writing space—the objects she considers talismans, the furnishings, and accessories that surround her as she works. Some notable items include: her clear desk from CB2, black Uni-Ball Vision Elite pens, an Audre Lorde postcard from a friend, a fortune cookie message, and a card from her high school English teacher. Compose a series of short poems that zero in on a few favorite tools or accoutrements that you like to use or have with you when you write. Include details of the brands, types, and personal touches of each item. What memories are associated with them? How can you combine functional physical descriptions in your verse with thoughtful reflections of what these objects bring to mind?

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