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A prize of $1,000 and publication by Green Linden Press is given annually for a book of poetry, fiction, or creative nonfiction translated from any language into English. Christopher Nelson will judge. Submit a manuscript of at least 48 pages with a $25 entry fee by November 30. All finalists will be considered for publication. Visit the website for complete guidelines.
A prize of $20,000 is given annually for a unified and complete sequence of poems published in the United States in a print or online journal, a chapbook, or a book during the current year. Three finalists, including the winner, will receive $1,000 each. Submit four copies of at least 14 pages of poetry or a book-length sequence of poems published in 2025 and unified by subject, form, and style by December 15. There is no entry fee. Visit the website for the required entry form and complete guidelines.
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Green Linden Press is given annually for an innovative book of poetry “that questions the boundaries of genre, form, or mode while engaging the rich possibilities of lyrical expression.” Christopher Nelson will judge. Submit a manuscript of at least 48 pages with a $25 entry fee by November 30. All finalists are considered for publication. Visit the website for complete guidelines.
A prize of $1,000 is given annually for a poetry collection published during the current year. The winner is also invited to read at the Poetry Society of Virginia’s annual Spring Poetry Festival, held at the Virginia Military Institute in Lexington, Virginia, in April 2026. Self-published books are ineligible. Mattie Quesenberry Smith will judge. Submit three copies of a book no less than 50 pages in length that was published in 2025 with a $36 entry fee ($25 for current PSV members), which includes a one-year membership to the organization, by January 15, 2026. Visit the website for the required entry form and complete guidelines.
The author of no swaddle (University of Iowa Press, 2025) reflects on approaching uncertainty on the page.
“Forget about apples and oranges—nothing rhymes with orange anyway. Never mind those plums that William Carlos Williams sneaked from the icebox. The most poetic fruit of all is the blackberry,” writes A. O. Scott, critic at large for the New York Times Book Review, citing blackberry-inclusive works by poets such as Margaret Atwood, Emily Dickinson, Robert Hass, Seamus Heaney, Galway Kinnell, Yusef Komunyakaa, and Sylvia Plath. Compose a poem inspired by what you consider the most poetic fruit, describing the textures and tastes of your selection, and its associations in the world and in other works of art. Spend some time thinking about the name of the fruit itself, its sounds and component parts and etymological roots. Does conjuring words and phrases that recall the qualities of the fruit take your poem in a surprising or unexpected direction?
The author of no swaddle (University of Iowa Press, 2025) considers the legacies and influences of authors engaged in similar forms and topics.
