Teeth by Phil Kaye
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“Fear of joy is the darkest of captivities.” In this Button Poetry video, Phil Kaye reads his poem “Teeth” at Gray Area in San Francisco.
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Genre: Poetry
Upcoming Contest Deadlines
Memorial Day weekend is upon us! Spend part of the holiday applying to contests with deadlines of June 13, 15, and 16. Four prizes are available for recent books of poetry, fiction, or nonfiction—including the Pulitzer Prize, which comes with a $15,000 award, and the Bard Fiction Prize, which offers $30,000 and a writer-in-residence appointment. There are several publication prizes for poetry or fiction manuscripts, along with a fellowship for a Maine writer. All contests offer a cash prize of $1,000 or more, and three do not require an entry fee. May the force be with you, writers!
42 Miles Poetry Award: A prize of $1,000, publication by 42 Miles Press, and 50 author copies is given annually for a poetry collection. David Dodd Lee will judge. Deadline: June 15. Entry fee: $25.
Bard Fiction Prize: A prize of $30,000 and a one-semester appointment as writer-in-residence at Bard College is given annually to a U.S. writer under the age of 40 for a published a book of fiction. Deadline: June 15. Entry fee: None.
Bitter Oleander Press Library of Poetry Award: A prize of $1,500 and publication by Bitter Oleander Press is given annually for a poetry collection. Deadline: June 15. Entry fee: $28.
Maine Arts Commission Maine Artist Fellowship: A fellowship of up to $5,000 is given annually to a poet, a fiction writer, a creative nonfiction writer, or a writer working in a genre beyond these categories who has lived in the state of Maine for at least one year. The fellow is expected to reside in the state for the year of the fellowship. Deadline: June 16. Entry fee: None.
New American Fiction Prize: A prize of $1,500, publication by New American Press, and 25 author copies is given annually for a book of fiction. Weike Wang will judge. Deadline: June 15. Entry fee: $25.
Pulitzer Prizes: Five prizes of $15,000 each are given annually for books of poetry, fiction, general nonfiction, U.S. history, and biography or autobiography (including memoir) first published in the United States during the current year. Deadline (for books published between January 1 and June 14): June 15. Entry fee: $75.
Towson University Prize for Literature: A prize of $1,000 is given annually for a book of poetry, fiction, or creative nonfiction by a current resident of Maryland who has lived in the state for at least three years. Books published within the past three years or scheduled for publication in 2022 are eligible. Deadline: June 15. Entry fee: None.
Western Connecticut State University Housatonic Book Awards: Three prizes of $1,000 each are given annually for books of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction published in the previous year. The winners also receive $500 in travel expenses to give a reading and teach a master class at Western Connecticut State University’s low-residency MFA program. Deadline: June 13. Entry fee: $25.
University of Akron Press Akron Poetry Prize: A prize of $1,500 and publication by University of Akron Press is given annually for a poetry collection. Adrian Matejka will judge. Deadline: June 15. 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, and creative nonfiction.
Our Teachers
Teachers play a vital role in the lives of children, making a lasting impression and providing memories carried into adulthood. It makes sense then that there are many poems written about teaching and lessons learned, such as “Why Latin Should Still Be Taught in School” by Christopher Bursk, “The Floral Apron” by Marilyn Chin, and “M. Degas Teaches Art & Science at Durfee Intermediate School, Detroit 1942” by Philip Levine. Write a poem about a beloved teacher of yours. Whether from a favorite class in school, a sports team, or your community, what was unique about this teacher? How has this mentor impacted your life decades later?
Deadline Nears for Boulevard Emerging Poets Contest
Boulevard is now accepting submissions for its annual Emerging Poets Contest. Designed to honor a poet who has not yet published a collection with a nationally-distributed press, the contest awards a cash prize of $1,000 and publication in Boulevard. The magazine’s editors will judge.
Submit three poems of any length with a $16 fee, which includes a one-year subscription to Boulevard, by June 1. All entries are considered for publication. Visit the website for complete guidelines.
Last year’s Emerging Poets Contest was judged by Ryan Smith, who selected winner Jennifer Conlon. Previous contest winners have included poets Alex Chernow, Elizabeth Hoover, and Tomás Q. Morín. Based in Saint Louis, Boulevard is a biannual literary magazine—available in print and online—that publishes contemporary fiction, poetry, essays, and interviews. Boulevard’s first issue, released in 1986, featured fiction by Nobel laureate Isaac Bashevis Singer, poetry by Kenneth Koch, and interviews with composers Philip Glass and Steve Reich. By its third issue in 1987, Boulevard had attained national bookstore distribution, which continues into the present.
CAConrad and Diane Seuss
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In this virtual event for the Vocarium reading series sponsored by the Woodberry Poetry Room, CAConrad, author of AMANDA PARADISE: Resurrect Extinct Vibration (Wave Books, 2021), and Diane Seuss, author of the Pulitzer Prize–winning collection, frank: sonnets (Graywolf Press, 2021), read from their work following an introduction by poet Ariana Reines.
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Event Horizon
Last week scientists unveiled the first image of Sagittarius A*, the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way galaxy, the culmination of a decades-long astronomical quest. Located 27,000 light-years away, it is relatively small and constantly changing from minute to minute, appearing as a glowing donut-shaped ring in images. Consider this historic scientific achievement and write a poem inspired by the mysteries of black holes. For an idea on how to create a metaphor out of celestial phenomenon, read the poem “After Reading That the Milky Way Is Devouring the Galaxy of Sagittarius” by Erin Belieu.
Arhm Choi Wild Reads “All I Ever Wanted to Be Was Nothing at All”
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“I learned young to be the smallest bullseye.” Arhm Choi Wild, author of Cut to Bloom (Write Bloody Publishing, 2020), reads torrin a. greathouse’s poem “All I Ever Wanted to Be Was Nothing at All” in this Ours Poetica video, sponsored by Complexly and the Poetry Foundation.
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Brave Words: On Jan Beatty’s “Red Sugar” and Finding Courage in Poetry
Lesley Wheeler reckons with vulnerability, loss, and family through a close reading of Jan Beatty’s poem “Red Sugar."
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Upcoming Contest Deadlines
Now that summer is on the horizon, bring in the warm weather by submitting to contests with deadlines of May 30 or May 31. Prizes abound for fiction writers with six awards being offered for short story collections or novels; additionally, nine fellowships of $5,000 each, plus other perks, are available for emerging fiction writers living in New York City. All contests offer a cash prize of $1,000 or more and two do not require an entry fee. Good luck, writers!
Anhinga Press Prize for Poetry: A prize of $2,000, publication by Anhinga Press, and 25 author copies is given annually for a poetry collection. Erika Meitner will judge. Deadline: May 31. Entry fee: $25 ($28 for electronic submissions).
Autumn House Press Literary Prizes: Three prizes of $1,000 each and publication by Autumn House Press are given annually for a poetry collection, a book of fiction, and a book of creative nonfiction. Each winner also receives a $1,500 travel and publicity grant. Carl Phillips will judge in poetry, Venita Blackburn will judge in fiction, and Lia Purpura will judge in nonfiction. All entries are considered for publication. Deadline: May 31. Entry fee: $30.
BOA Editions Short Fiction Prize: A prize of $1,000 and publication by BOA Editions is given annually for a short story collection. Peter Conners will judge. Deadline: May 31. Entry fee: $25.
Center for Fiction Susan Kamil Emerging Writer Fellowships: Nine fellowships of $5,000 each, a one-year membership to the Center for Fiction in New York City, and a year of access to the Writers Studio writing space at the center are given annually to fiction writers living in New York City who have not yet published a book of fiction. Winners also have the opportunity to meet with editors and agents who represent new writers. Applicants who on June 1, 2022, will be enrolled in a degree-granting program or are currently under contract with a publisher for a work of fiction are ineligible. Deadline: May 30. Entry fee: none.
Elixir Press Fiction Award: A prize of $2,000, publication by Elixir Press, and 25 author copies is given annually for a short story collection or a novel. Anthony E. Varallo will judge. Deadline: May 31. Entry fee: $40.
Gival Press Novel Award: A prize of $3,000 and publication by Gival Press is given biennially for a novel. Deadline: May 30. Entry fee: $50.
Milkweed Editions Max Ritvo Poetry Prize: A prize of $10,000 and publication by Milkweed Editions is given annually for a debut poetry collection by a U.S. poet. Henri Cole will judge. Deadline: May 31. Entry fee: $25.
Southern Poetry Review Guy Owen Prize: A prize of $1,000 and publication in Southern Poetry Review is given annually for a single poem. Deadline: May 31. Entry fee: $20 (which includes a subscription to Southern Poetry Review).
University of Georgia Press Flannery O’Connor Award for Short Fiction: A prize of $1,000 and publication by University of Georgia Press is given annually for a collection of short fiction. Lori Ostlund will judge. Deadline: May 31. Entry fee: $30.
Writer’s Center First Novel Prize: A prize of $3,000 is given annually for a first novel published in the previous calendar year. Deadline: May 31. Entry fee: none.
Visit the contest websites for complete guidelines, and check out the Grants & Awards database and Submission Calendar for more contests in poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction.
Love Poems in Quarantine
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“To love a body not because it’s perfect but because it shelters you.” Watch this series of microfilms directed by Melissa Crespo featuring poems from Love Poems in Quarantine by Sarah Ruhl (Copper Canyon Press, 2022).
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