call for submissions: the commuter
Electric Literature
SUBMISSION PERIOD: November 2 - 8, 2026 (or when they reach their cap of 375 submissions per genre for The Commuter.
INFO: The Commuter, Electric Literature’s home for flash, poetry, and graphic narratives, will both be open for submissions from Monday, November 2 to Sunday, November 8.
GUIDELINES FOR THE COMMUTER:
For Prose, submit one or more pieces, either standalone or connected, in a single document. The total word count should not exceed 1500 words. We encourage writers to push boundaries.
For Poetry, submit 4–6 poems in a single document, and please limit the page count to 8. Keep in mind that due to our digital platform, not all poems may render exactly as they appear in a PDF.
For Graphic Narrative, we are interested in both traditional and non-traditional forms of visual storytelling. Submit up to 3 pieces of narrative illustration, comics, mixed media narrative, or genre-negative oddments. For comics, each piece should contain a minimum of 3 panels. The total page count of your submission should not exceed 20 pages.
Please submit all genres in .doc, .docx, or PDF.
Please submit only once per category.
Work previously published in any form cannot be considered.
Please include your email address.
If your work is selected, we offer a total payment of $100.
Writers with a submission pending with Recommended Reading may still submit to The Commuter.
electricliterature.submittable.com/submit
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Individual Artist Residencies
Trillium Arts |📍Mars Hill, NC
DEADLINE: November 4, 2026 at 11:59pm
APPLICATION FEE: $0
INFO: Trillium Arts residencies offer secluded space for rejuvenation and creating in a beautiful, remote setting in the Blue Ridge Mountains. We are currently accepting applications for artists to attend in either April or October 2027. Trillium's location is ideal for an individual artist to complete an existing work, or develop and incubate new material. Facilities in the spring and fall months are best suited to the disciplines of literary arts, photography, and visual arts.
Note that the use of the Red Barn Studio is seasonal and it will not be available to individual artists in 2027. However, there is ample land and outdoor space available for ideation and research. We are currently unable to accommodate groups or collaboratives on the Trillium property. Individual artist residencies are a solo adventure during their time here and your residency will not overlap with other awarded artists. If an artist would like to bring collaborators, there are a variety of AirBnB’s available for rent in the immediate area. A list of recommended AirBnB’s is available upon request.
Who is eligible? Artists of various disciplines (writers, photographers, visual artists, choreographers) at any stage of their careers are invited to apply. Applicants must be at least 21 years old.
2027 RESIDENCIES INCLUDE:
A $700 cash honorarium
Private accommodations in a one-bedroom, ground floor suite. (Trillium Arts co-founders live upstairs but resident artists have a private entrance). View the accommodations HERE
Welcome reception with your hosts
Shared use of the grounds, including firepit, hot tub and waterfall area
Use of a variety of supplies and onsite creative spaces that include a contemplation gazebo and a 380’ square foot open air, covered workspace. Learn more HERE
Basic kitchen supplies and all household goods (towels, linens, paper products, etc.)
Access to high speed fiber optic internet
Laundry facilities
Mentorship services (optional for an additional fee)
Residencies take place in the spring and fall of each year and are one week of seven consecutive nights in length.
trilliumartsnc.org/artist-residencies
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SARABANDE CHAPBOOK PRIZE
Sarabande Books
DEADLINE: Extended to November 9, 2026 by 11:59pm
INFO: The Sarabande Chapbook Prize publishes two projects of poetry and hybrid work annually. Established in 2024, Sarabande’s 30th anniversary year, the prize celebrates Sarabande’s three-decade legacy of publishing highly distilled literary forms.
Winners receive $1,000, publication, and a standard royalty contract.
ELIGIBILITY: This contest is open to any poet writing in English. Employees and board members of Sarabande are not eligible. Works that have previously appeared in part in magazines or in anthologies may be included. Translations and previously published collections are not eligible.
SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS:
Manuscript must be anonymous
Manuscript must be typed, standard font, 12 pt., paginated
Length between 20-26 pages, single spaced
Multiple submissions are permitted if submitted separately, each with a submission fee. Edits to submissions will not be permitted, but any publications resulting from this contest will undergo a fully collaborative editorial process and copyedit. Simultaneous submissions to other publishers are permitted, but please withdraw your manuscript promptly if accepted elsewhere.
sarabandebooks.submittable.com/submit
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call for submissions: vol. 2 anthology
dykes day
DEADLINE: November 10, 2026
SUBMISSION FEE: $0
INFO: dykes day, celebrating lesbian literature in DC and beyond, seeks submissions and/or pitches to be considered for dykes day volume 2 anthology. all writing will be workshopped and publication process will be steady, accessible and overtime. if you want a home to transform your short stories, plays, poems, essays, erotica, and it is rooted in the politics of lesbianism and queerness; radicalization, non cisheteronormativity, transformation, collaborate on this project.
GENRES / FORMS: They seek poetry, prose, essays, longtorm, shortform, erotica, plays, vignettes, illustration, archival research and experimental or multimedia work.
THEMES: lesbianism, DC, home, food, city life, nightlife, gender, quaint life, spirituality, lineage, art, mental health/neurodivigence, monstrosity, language, archiving, ephemera, late capitalism, Al, sex, sex work, fantasy, technology, family, parenting, water, culture, friendship. whatever you've been writing!
Have something different? Send it. We're interested in work that expands literature across forms, including sound, performance, visual art, and moving image.
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES:
email dykesday@gmail.com
Length - There's no strict word count, but we want to include several pieces per writer. Ex. 1-3 longform, 3-10 shortforms, or a combination. For reference, our last play was about 3,000 words / 17 pages, while you can also submit a handful of
form.jotform.com/dykesday/submissions-and-edit-requests
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poetry prize
Nightboat Books
DEADLINE: November 15, 2026 at 11:59pm EST
ENTRY FEE: $28
INFO: Nighboat’s Poetry Prize is open to any poet writing in English, including international Anglophone writers. Previous book publication is not a consideration for eligibility. Poems published in print or on-line periodicals, anthologies, or chapbooks may be included, but the manuscript itself must be unpublished. Original work only; translations are not eligible for the prize.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST: Family members and former students of Nightboat editors may not submit to the contest. Students do not include interactions at short-term residencies or fellowships. Former employees of Nightboat Books, including interns, may not submit to the contest.
FORMAT: Minimum of 48 pages, paginated, no more than one poem per page. Please include a title page (we do not read submissions anonymously, so it’s fine to include your name), a table of contents, and an acknowledgments page if applicable. You’re welcome to include images in your manuscript, but please note that we are not able to print in full-color.
AI USE: Nightboat Books publishes work made by humans that challenges, transcends, and reinvents our literary landscape with radical imagination. If you choose to use AI in the creation of your manuscript, we ask that you disclose it and explain how and why.
SIMULTANEOUS SUBMISSIONS: Simultaneous submissions are acceptable. Please notify Nightboat Books immediately if your manuscript is accepted elsewhere.
MULTIPLE SUBMISSIONS: Submission of more than one manuscript is acceptable. Each manuscript must be submitted separately, each with a separate entry fee.
INTERNATIONAL SUBMISSIONS: We accept international submissions.
REVISIONS: The winner will have the opportunity to revise the manuscript before publication. No revisions will be considered during the reading period.
Winner(s) will be announced by April 2027. Winning collection(s) to be published Spring-Fall 2029.
MORE INFO: Email questions/comments to info AT nightboat.org, but please do not send your manuscript to this email address.
nightboat.submittable.com/submit
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Call for submission: Issue 4 - ‘For the Kids We Were’
HOMIES
DEADLINE: November 15, 2026 at 11:59pm
INFO: HOMIES is a Black literature and arts magazine born out of love, resistance, and the absolute talent of our people.
After a long hiatus, submissions for HOMIES Issue 4: For the Kids We Were are officially open. This issue centers on Black childhood: the little rituals, memories, and moments that made growing up feel like home.
We’re asking: What did your childhood smell like? What did Sunday dinner look like? What did you learn too early? And what did you believe about yourself before the world told you otherwise?
As we inch closer to bringing this issue to life, I want you to carry these questions with you. Sit with your memories. Call your cousins. Look through old photographs. Think about the songs that played in the house, the snacks you begged for at the corner store, the summers that felt endless, and the versions of yourself you’re still learning to love.
Whether your memories are sweet, complicated, tender, or a little bittersweet, there’s room for them here. Let’s make something that honors the kids we were, the people we’ve become, and the pieces of childhood we still carry with us.
SUBMISSIONS: Send us your poetry, essays (500-word max), short stories, photography, artwork, music, and anything else that feels true to you and your experience of Black childhood.
HOW TO SUBMIT: Send submissions@homiesmagazine.com. Please include:
– A short bio
– A photo (if you feel comfortable)
– Any social media handles you’d like us to tag.
homiesmagazine.com
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Foundation House Artist Residency Program
Foundation House |📍Greenwich, CT
DEADLINE: November 15, 2026 at 11:59pm EST
INFO: Applications are now open for our Winter 2027 Session!
WINTER SESSION DATES: January 29 - February 7, 2027
Foundation House, located in backcountry Greenwich, CT, will open its doors for 10 days to six residents, allowing residents the time and space for concentrated creation in beautiful and inspiring surroundings. Foundation House’s mission as a nonprofit center for learning is to focus on mental health, environmental, and social justice issues. To that end, we host residencies, workshops, lectures, and other meaningful gatherings on these topics.
At Foundation House, we believe that conversations about these critical topics are not complete without the input of creatives, and it is our privilege to be able to offer space for artists of all disciplines to work and therefore be a part of those conversations.
Each resident will be given a stipend, a private bedroom, and private or semi-private bathroom, all meals plus full kitchen access, and access to a studio space, a wide variety of common areas, and 75 acres of land to explore and enjoy. Residents will eat dinner together every evening to ensure that they are building relationships and familiarizing themselves with each other's work, facilitating feedback and collaboration. Our residency is a working residency. Accepted residents are expected to carry through with their proposed projects and create work that is aligned with Foundation House's mission.
Foundation House is committed to diversity and inclusion, and we prohibit discrimination and harassment of any kind.
Accepted applicants will hear back from us in around three to four weeks after applications close. Applicants will hear back from us either way, so if you have not heard from us yet it only means we have not finished reviewing. Please be sure to check your spam/junk folder if you do not hear back from us within the time period stated above.
Please note that, due to the limited time period between the close of applications and the start of the residency session, we are no longer able to accept applicants from countries that would require obtaining a visa for travel.
foundationhousect.org/artist-residency-application
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2026-2027 PJI Editor’s Prize for a BIPOC writer
Poetic Justice Institute
DEADLINE: November 15, 2026
ENTRY FEE: $0
INFO: Poetic Justice Institute is accepting submissions for the 2026-2027 PJI Editor’s Prize for a BIPOC writer, judged by Series Editor, Elisabeth Frost. The contest is open to poets with or without previous book-length publication.
PRIZE:
Winning book will be published by Fordham Press
Winner will receive $1,000, a one-on-on publicity consultation, and a virtual book launch through the PJI Event Series
GUIDELINES:
Manuscripts that do not adhere to these guidelines will not be read. We accept manuscripts ONLINE ONLY.
Manuscripts must be previously unpublished, original and in English (no translations)
Manuscripts must be formatted for 8 ½ x 11 letter sized paper; pages must be numbered
Suggested length: 50-100 pages (approximate)
Manuscripts should include a table of contents and list of acknowledgments (if applicable)
Manuscripts may include images or graphic elements
Submissions must be .doc, .docx., or .pdf format
The poet’s name should not appear anywhere in the manuscript; any ms. that includes the author’s information will be disqualified
There is no entry fee
Manuscripts cannot be commented upon; no changes can be made after submission
Multiple entries are allowed, provided each submission complies with these guidelines
Notify us if another publisher accepts your manuscript after it is submitted via our online submissions manager or by contacting us at https://poetic-justice.org/contact
The PJI Prizes are not open to: students or employees of Fordham University; current or former students or friends of the prize judge or the series editor; past winners of a PJI/POL prize
Entries will be read anonymously
Works generated all or in part by AI are not eligible
JUDGING PROCESS: Manuscripts are read anonymously by a group of qualified poets/critics, selected by the series editor in conjunction with additional poet judges. If a reader recognizes a manuscript or knows its author, that manuscript is forwarded to a different reader or readers. Finalist submissions are read by the final judge and series editor over a period of weeks. We adhere to the CLMP Contest Code of Ethics.
RESULTS: Results will be announced in Spring 2027. Please check Submittable or poetic-justice.org for notification of winners and finalists.
QUESTIONS? Contact us at: https://poetic-justice.org/contact‘
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2026-2027 PJI Prize
Poetic Justice Institute
DEADLINE: November 15, 2026
SUBMISSION FEE: $28
INFO: Poetic Justice Institute is accepting submissions for the 2026-2027 PJI Prize, judged by Alicia Ostriker. The contest is open to poets with or without previous book-length publication.
PRIZE:
Winning book will be published by Fordham Press
Winner will receive $1,000, a one-on-on publicity consultation, and a virtual book launch through the PJI Event Series
GUIDELINES:
Manuscripts that do not adhere to these guidelines will not be read. Reading fees are non-refundable. We accept manuscripts ONLINE ONLY.
Manuscripts must be previously unpublished, original and in English (no translations)
Manuscripts must be formatted for 8 ½ x 11 letter sized paper; pages must be numbered
Suggested length: 50-100 pages (approximate)
Manuscripts should include a table of contents and list of acknowledgments (if applicable)
Manuscripts may include images or graphic elements
Submissions must be .doc, .docx., or .pdf format
The poet’s name should not appear anywhere in the manuscript; any ms. that includes the author’s information will be disqualified
The poet will be charged a non-refundable $28 fee ($25 reading fee + $3 online processing)
Manuscripts cannot be commented upon; no changes can be made after submission
Multiple entries are allowed, provided each submission complies with these guidelines (including paying a submission fee for each submission)
Notify us if another publisher accepts your manuscript after it is submitted via our online submissions manager or by contacting us at https://poetic-justice.org/contact
The PJI Prizes are not open to: students or employees of Fordham University; current or former students or friends of the prize judge or the series editor; past winners of a PJI/POL prize
Entries will be read anonymously
Works generated all or in part by AI are not eligible
JUDGING PROCESS: Manuscripts are read anonymously by a group of qualified poets/critics, selected by the series editor and final judge. If a reader recognizes a manuscript or knows its author, that manuscript is forwarded to a different reader or readers. Finalist submissions are read by the final judge and series editor over a period of weeks. We adhere to the CLMP Contest Code of Ethics.
RESULTS: Results will be announced in Spring 2027. Please check Submittable or poetic-justice.org for notification of winners and finalists.
QUESTIONS? Contact us at: https://poetic-justice.org/contact
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2027 Mentor Series for minnesota writers
The Loft Literary Center |📍Minneapolis, MN
DEADLINE: November 16, 2026 at 11:59 p.m CT
INFO: The Loft Literary Center invites Minnesota early career poets, fiction, creative nonfiction, and children's and young adult literature writers to apply to the 2027 Mentor Series in Poetry and Creative Prose. This program offers advanced criticism and professional development opportunities to twelve writers: three each in the genres of poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and children's and young adult literature.
THE PROGRAM: Twelve early career writers are selected through a competitive judging process to work intensively with eight nationally acclaimed writers of prose and poetry. The four local mentors spend an extended period of time working with the entire group and conduct genre-specific workshops and individual conferences with the three writers in their genres. The four visiting mentors come in for intensive weekends of craft seminars with the full group and individual manuscript conferences with the writers in their genre. All participants are featured in a public reading—three fellows with two mentors—throughout the course of the program.
ELIGIBILITY:
Work must be in the genres of fiction, creative nonfiction, children's literature, or poetry. Creative nonfiction may include memoir, personal essay, literary journalism, and biography. It does not include reportage, blogs, or opinion pieces.
You may apply in more than one genre, but can only win in one. If you are applying in more than one genre, you must submit different work samples for each application.
You must be a resident of Minnesota for a minimum of 12 months on the date of your application, which means you filed US federal taxes as a resident of Minnesota for 2025.
You must not have published (traditional or self-published) more than one book in any genre.
You may submit work previously published in magazines, journals, or anthologies.
Artists who have been in the field for longer than 10 years (excluding any time in a degree-granting program or time away from working as an artist due to circumstances–e.g., having children, caring for family members, long-term illness, etc.) are not eligible, even if they feel under-recognized. For more information, please see the Jerome Foundation's definition of an early career artist (https://www.jeromefdn.org/defining-early-career-emerging-artists). If you have artistic achievements (e.g. publications, fellowships, grant awards, etc.) preceding November 2016 and have taken time off from working as an artist at some point since earning these achievements to still qualify as an early career artist, please explain this gap(s) in more detail in your one paragraph Artistic Bio.
You must not be an enrolled part-time or full-time student in a degree-granting program (including K-12, college, graduate or post-graduate studies) at the time of the application and/or during the Mentor Series fellowship period.
If you are full-time tenured faculty at any college, university or institution of higher learning, you are not eligible.
Loft Mentor Series alumni are ineligible.
Board and staff members of the Loft Literary Center and/or the Jerome Foundation are ineligible.
Fellows are selected on the basis of the strength of their manuscripts and project plans and will receive an award of $2,800 that may be used to defray the potential costs of program participation (transportation, book purchases, child care, etc.). Fellows are required to prepare for and attend all program-related meetings, seminars, readings, workshops, manuscript conferences, and social activities. These activities are primarily in-person at the Loft Literary Center, with some virtual options. At least four activities throughout the year will take place during regular business hours.
All program dates are tentative and subject to change. Orientation for fellows is currently scheduled for mid-January of 2027.
If you have questions about eligibility, please send inquiries to awards@loft.org, or call 612-215-2593. More information is available on our website: www.loft.org. The last day to send an inquiry for it to be resolved before the application deadline is Nov. 12, 2026.
JUDGING PROCESS: The two mentors in each genre will confer and select three winners and two honorable mentions.
NOTIFICATION: Winners will be notified by the beginning of January 2027 by phone. All other applicants will receive an email.
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call for submissions: poetry + hybrid chapbooks
Abode Press
DEADLINE: November 30, 2026
INFO: Abode Press is currently seeking poetry and hybrid chapbook submissions. Please send us one manuscript only once per genre per reading period. Abode Press accepts and encourages simultaneous submissions, but please let us know immediately if a piece is accepted elsewhere.
CHAPBOOK GUIDELINES:
Poetry = up to 30 pages
Hybrid = up to 40 pages
Times New Roman or Garamond font. 12 pt. Double spaced.
Include a cover sheet, acknowledgements, and table of contents. Note: these do not count towards page count. The cover sheet should include your name, address, and contact information, such as your email address, and any trigger warnings our readers should be aware of. The acknowledgments need to contain the list of journals or magazines who have published any of the pieces in the chapbook. Please make sure you retain the rights to each piece beforehand or include a note of when rights will be reverted back to you.
*We will not accept works that have been generated, edited, or created by AI tools. AI has a broad definition, and it is strictly prohibited. All submissions must acknowledge that AI was not used in the creation, editing, or revision stages of their submissions and a contract will also be signed to acknowledge this.*
WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR: Abode Press wants to read work that discusses identity, origin, and culture. Every abode is unique to the person who lives there. We want to read about the ghosts in your closet, the heritage that guides your cooking, the cultural emblems that decorate your walls. Because when someone invites you into their abode, they’re letting you see a piece of themselves. At Abode, we believe it’s important to prioritize these narratives to create a world with better empathy, understanding, and compassion for others.
*To clarify, we are not specifically asking for work that takes place inside of a home; we are simply curious about the people who live in them. *
CHAPBOOK PACKAGE:
If your chapbook is selected for publication, you will receive the following package:
100 book print run* (please make sure to apply understanding the limited print run)
10 author copies
200.00 USD advance
Professional book cover design done in house or with a freelance artist
Professional book design and layout
Marketing on all our social platforms
Author contract
Book will be submitted to national prizes, awards, and magazines for reviews and publicity
15% of royalties, paid each quarter, or until all books sold
As we apply for grants and secure donor funding, we aim to increase our author advances and more for our author packages. Help us improve our author chapbook package by donating to the Press here.
ABOUT ABODE PRESS: Abode Press is an intersectional, anti-racist 501(c)3 nonprofit publishing press based in Central, TX dedicated to uplifting underrepresented voices. Our values are rooted in intersectionality, anti-racism, anti-colonialism, and empathy. We are currently focused on authors based in the U.S. and especially love writers from Texas and the American South, though all are encouraged to apply.
abodepress.submittable.com/submit
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Georgia Poetry Prize
University of Georgia Press
DEADLINE: November 30, 2026
ENTRY FEE: $30
INFO: In partnership with Poetry@Tech at the Georgia Institute of Technology and the University of Georgia, the University of Georgia Press has established the Georgia Poetry Prize, a national competition that celebrates excellence in poetry. Each year, one manuscript is selected for publication with UGA Press and a prize of $1000.
The Prize is open to unpublished, original collections of poems written in English by residents of North America. Winners are selected through an annual competition. The prize has been established through a generous gift from Bruce McEver, a graduate of Georgia Tech and member of the Advisory Council of the University of Georgia Press, in memory of his late wife, Georgia McEver. All submissions materials must be anonymized.
SELECTION PROCESS: Manuscripts are first read by 2-3 preliminary judges, with these manuscripts being split evenly between the judges. The preliminary judges select five to ten finalists each (number of finalists is at the discretion of the main judge); the pool of finalist manuscripts is read by an annually designated chief judge, who makes the final selection of one winning manuscript and a list of up to four (4) runners-up. The author of the winning manuscript receives a cash award of $1,000, and their collection is subsequently published by the University of Georgia Press under a standard book contract. The winner has ten days to accept the award and ten days to sign the contract following receipt of the initial contract draft. If you have a question about your submission, please contact submissions@uga.edu.
ELIGIBILITY: The competition is open to writers in English, whether published or unpublished. Previous winners of this award are not eligible to win again. Writers must be residents of North America.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST: No submissions will be accepted if a submitter is related to the head Judge in any of the following forms: friends, family, colleagues, and current or former students. In service to that, the Press instructs submitters to refrain from submitting if they are related in any the aforementioned ways. The Press reserves the sole right to disqualify that submission without reimbursement of the entry fee if the submitter is in violation of the conflict of interest.
AI POLICY: Manuscripts that have employed the use of generative-AI during any stage of the writing process including, but not limited to, drafting, ideating, or editing will not be considered. AI grammar and spell check tools, such as Grammarly, are permitted, but any AI-use must be disclosed upon submission.
MANUSCRIPT GUIDELINES:
Manuscripts are recommended to be a minimum of 50 pages to a recommended maximum of 100 pages of original poetry. No more than one poem should appear on a page.
Please be sure manuscript pages are numbered.
Please include a table of contents.
Please use a standard, easy-to-read font such as Times New Roman in twelve-point size.
Poems included in the submission may have appeared previously in magazines, anthologies, or chapbooks, but may not have been previously published in a book-length collection of the author’s own work.
Authors may submit more than one manuscript to the competition for consideration as long as no material is duplicated between submissions. Each submission will require a separate entry fee.
Manuscripts under consideration for this competition may be submitted elsewhere at the same time. Please withdraw your manuscript if it is accepted by another publisher and should no longer be considered for The Georgia Poetry Prize competition. Withdrawal can be completed via the submissions manager website. Entry fees are not refundable.
All manuscript materials must be anonymized. The intent of this contest is that manuscripts will be considered on the merits of the poetry and that judges will not be aware of the names or publication records of the authors. Judges will also not be privy to cover letters. Please do not include your name on the pages of the manuscript—only in the form boxes of the electronic submission manager. The first page of the manuscript should include the title of the collection only.
If any identifying information is included in the manuscript or material, the Press reserves the sole right to disqualify that submission without reimbursement of the entry fee. In service to that, the Press instructs submitters to refrain from identifying themselves in the pages of the manuscript and to exclude any previous publication acknowledgments; if a judge recognizes the work of the submitter, they will recuse themselves and the submission will be reassigned.
CONFIRMATION OF RECEIPT + NOTIFICATION: You should receive an e-mail confirmation immediately after submission. An announcement of winners and finalists will be sent to all entrants via e-mail in early March.
STATEMENT OF INTEGRITY: The University of Georgia is thoroughly committed to academic integrity in all of its endeavors, and the University of Georgia Press adheres to all University of Georgia policies and procedures. To help ensure the integrity of the competition, manuscripts are judged independent of authorial identity. Judges in The Georgia Poetry Prize competition are instructed to avoid conflicts of interest of all kinds.
georgiapress.submittable.com/submit
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call for poetry
The Langston Hughes Review
DEADLINE: December 1, 2026
INFO: The Langston Hughes Review is now accepting submissions for its special issue celebrating the centennial of Hughes’s first poetry collection, The Weary Blues, guest edited by poet Angel C. Dye.
All original poems inspired by Hughes and The Weary Blues are welcome.
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES: Send 1 - 3 poems to poetrylhr@outlook.com
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START A RIOT! Chapbook Prize
Foglifter Press x Still Here San Francisco
DEADLINE: December 1, 2026
INFO: In response to rapid gentrification and displacement of QTBIPOC+ literary artists in the San Francisco Bay Area, and in celebration of these communities’ revolutionary history, Foglifter Press and Still Here San Francisco joined forces to create a poetry chapbook prize for local emerging queer and trans Black writers, indigenous writers, and writers of color—the Start a Riot! Chapbook Prize (SAR!).
Each year, one chapbook author is awarded publication, a $3,000 prize, and $1,000 to support their book tour/promotion. The winner will work with Foglifter’s team to shape and bring forth the chapbook of their dreams—directly engaging with the editorial, design, production, and promotion processes—and cultivating skills, experience, and relationships that last long after publication. The winner will be announced in January, and will work with the team from January through June, culminating in a San Francisco, CA based launch event (with ASL interpretation) in conjunction with the chapbook’s publication in June.
In keeping with fair and ethical contest practices, all manuscripts remain anonymous throughout the reading & judging process for SAR! judges.
ELIGIBILITY:
Submitter must fulfill all of the following requirements to be eligible:
Submitter must be a QTBIPOC+ literary artist,
Submitter must be a current resident of the larger San Francisco Bay Area (Alameda, Napa, Santa Clara, Contra Costa, San Francisco, Solano, Marin, San Mateo, Sonoma counties), AND
Submitter must not have a previous full-length poetry book publication.
CONTEST GUIDELINES:
We are seeking previously unpublished manuscripts of poetry, including prose poetry, hybrid chapbooks and other experimental works.
Hybrid chapbooks including photos or illustrations are welcome. Submitting poets must have copyright rights for multi-modal components.
The manuscript should be unpublished as a whole, although individual poems may be previously published.
The manuscript be must at least 15 pages and at most 25 pages.
When preparing your manuscript, remove all identifying information, including acknowledgments. There should be one title page with the name of the chapbook only.
Microsoft Word doc preferred; PDF also accepted
Work generated by AI will be automatically disqualified.
In keeping with fair and ethical contest practices, all manuscripts remain anonymous throughout the reading & judging process for SAR! judges.
KEY DATES:
Production Timeline & Important Dates:
Submissions: September 1 to December 1, 2026
Author Contact & Info Deadline: January 15, 2027
Copy-Edit Deadline: February 15, 2027
Author Copy-Edit Deadline: March 1, 2027
Cover Design Complete: March 15, 2027
Final Proof Deadline: April 1, 2027
Chapbook sent to printer: April 15, 2027
Chapbook Release: June 1, 2027
Event materials and information for ASL interpreter request: May 15, 2027
Chapbook Release Party: June 15, 2027 (estimated)
Publicity period: February 1, 2027–June 1, 2027
Folio for winner and runners up will be published in 12.1 print issue
foglifter.submittable.com/submit
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Neville Dawes First Book Prize for emerging caribbean poets
Kwame Dawes x Calabash International Literary Festival Trust
DEADLINE: December 1, 2026 by 11:59pm
ENTRY FEE: $0
INFO: The Neville Dawes First Book Prize celebrates the work of an emerging Caribbean poet with a $1,000 USD cash prize and publication of a full-length manuscript by the University of Nebraska Press. Run annually, the contest is open to emerging Caribbean poets who have not yet published a full-length book of poetry. Poets may reside anywhere globally, as long as they are of Caribbean origin. There is no reading fee to submit to the prize.
Neville Dawes (1926-1984) was born in Nigeria of Jamaican parents but grew up in rural Sturge Town in Jamaica. He studied for an MA at Oxford (Oriel College) and later taught in Jamaica, Ghana, and Guyana. He wrote two novels, The Last Enchantment and Interim and a critical work, Prolegomena to West Indian Literature. Another book, Fugue and Other Writings, brings together his poetry, short stories, autobiographical writing and literary criticism. He was appointed Director of the Institute of Jamaica on his return to Jamaica and established the Institute’s short-lived but important publishing programme. Always a Marxist, he was deeply immersed in Africa, in English Literature, and in his nationalist identification with the rural Jamaican working class. His writing is located within these poles. Neville Dawes is the father of author and editor Kwame Dawes.
The Neville Dawes First Book Prize for Emerging Caribbean Poets will only accept “first book” submissions from Caribbean writers who have not published a book-length poetry collection. This includes self-published books if they were sold online, in stores, or at readings. Writers who have edited and published an anthology or a similar collection of other writers’ work remain eligible.
A Caribbean writer is taken to mean someone who was born in the Caribbean, who is a national or resident of a Caribbean country, or whose parents are Caribbean.
Only poetry submissions in English can be considered. Work translated from another language to English is accepted, but a percentage of the prize will be awarded to the translator.
No past or present paid employees of the University of Nebraska Press, Akashic Books, or current faculty, students, or employees of Brown University are eligible for the prizes.
MANUSCRIPT GUIDELINES:
Poetry manuscripts should be at least 50 pages long.
The author’s name should not appear on the manuscript. All entries will be read anonymously. Please include a cover page listing only the title of the manuscript (not the author’s name, address, telephone number, or email address). An acknowledgements page listing the publication history of individual poems may be included, if desired. No application forms are necessary.
Eligible writers may submit more than one manuscript.
While we have no specific formatting rules, we suggest sending your manuscript in Times New Roman or Arial, 12-point font, single-spaced. We also prefer one poem per page, meaning a new poem does not begin on the same page on which another ends.
QUESTIONS? Please direct questions to cpbsc@brown.edu.