Deadline: Rolling
Every year, the University of Arkansas Press accepts submissions for the Miller Williams Poetry Series and from the books selected awards the $5,000 Miller Williams Poetry Prize in the following summer. For almost a quarter century the press has made this series the cornerstone of its work as a publisher of some of the country’s best poetry. The series is edited by Patricia Smith. The deadline for the 2022 Prize is September 30, 2020. For more information visit uapress.com. Michael McGriff was named 2021 Miller Williams Poetry Prize Winner.
Books
Contest :: Interim’s 2020 Test Site Poetry Prize
Deadline: December 15, 2020
Submit your manuscript to Interim’s 3rd annual Test Site Poetry Contest! As our series title suggests, we’re looking for manuscripts that engage the perilous conditions of life in the 21st century, as they pertain to issues of social justice and the earth. The winning book will demonstrate an ethos that considers the human condition in inclusive love and sympathy, while offering the same in consideration of the earth. Because we believe the truth is always experimental, we’ll especially appreciate books with innovative approaches. The winning book will be chosen by the series editor and advisory board, which includes poets Sherwin Bitsui, Donald Revell, Sasha Steensen and Ronaldo Wilson. The winner will receive $1,000 and their book will be published by University of Nevada Press in 2021.
September 2020 eLitPak :: LitNuts: Crazy About Books
Coming September 21, the LitNuts eNewsletter promotes books from independent presses. A special offer is now available for authors! Subscribe to the newsletter (it’s free!) and indicate that you are an author. We’ll send you discount codes for free and discounted advertising that can be used during our launch, now through January 2021.
Call :: Anthology Seeks Written Content about Madonna
Deadline: October 15, 2020
Are you a fan of pop-singer Madonna? We’re seeking original stories about the impact she’s had on individual lives. Submissions should be 1500-3500 words. Feel free to supplement with photos with Madonna, photos dressed like Madonna, or other related materials. We pay $25 for selected submissions. Contributing authors will receive a free copy of the published book. A portion of proceeds will go to the non-profit organization founded by Madonna “Raising Malawi”. Contributing authors will be required to sign a contract. Submissions must be in English: anthologysubmit@gmail.com. Work must not have previously appeared in print. We check for and report plagiarism. This anthology will be edited and published by Heather Turman and LeeAnn Tooker.
Contest :: The Wishing Jewel Prize
Deadline: November 30, 2020
The Wishing Jewel Prize honors a manuscript that challenges expectations of genre, form, or mode while engaging the rich possibilities of lyrical expression. Named for an essay in Anne Carson’s innovative book Plainwater, we look forward to work that questions the boundaries of what poems and books can be. Contest awards $1,000 and publication. All finalists considered for publication. Reading fee: various. For more information visit our Submissions Manager.
Contest :: Third Annual Minds on Fire Open Book Prize
Deadline: October 31, 2020
Conduit Books & Ephemera’s third annual open book prize is accepting manuscripts. If you have a manuscript or know someone who does, please give them a shot. Open to any poet writing in English regardless of previous publication record, the prize seeks to represent the best contemporary writing in high quality editions of enduring value. Prospective entrants are encouraged to familiarize themselves with Conduit, which champions originality, intelligence, irreverence, and humanity. Previously unpublished manuscripts of 48-90 pages should be submitted through their Submittable page or via the USPS. Please visit www.conduit.org/book-prizes for details.
Call :: Driftwood Press Open to Submissions Year-round
John Updike once said, “Creativity is merely a plus name for regular activity. Any activity becomes creative when the doer cares about doing it right, or better.” At Driftwood Press, we are actively searching for artists who care about doing it right, or better. We are excited to receive your submissions and will diligently work to bring you the best in full poetry collections, novellas, graphic novels, short fiction, poetry, graphic narrative, photography, art, interviews, and contests. We also offer our submitters a premium option to receive an acceptance or rejection letter within one week of submission; many authors are offered editorships and interviews. To polish your fiction, note our editing services and seminars, too. We pay our contributors.
Contest :: 2021 Press 53 Award for Short Fiction
Deadline: December 31, 2020
Awarded to an outstanding, unpublished collection of short stories. Reading Fee: $30. Award: $1,000 cash advance, publication, and fifty copies. Enter: Submit online with Submittable or by mail from September 1–December 31, 2020. Press 53 publisher and Editor-in-Chief Kevin Morgan Watson will serve as the only judge. Winner and finalists announced by May 1, 2021; advance review copies sent to major reviewers and outlets; publication in October 2021. Complete details at our website.
Call :: Have a Great Idea for a Book?
Deadline: September 30, 2020
Tolsun Books is looking for a great idea to turn into a manuscript for publication. Please submit an informal query letter describing a literary project made from parts (poems, stories, essays, hybrid) that you’d like to develop into a full-length book in close collaboration with our editorial team. In the same document, include a small sampling of representative work that you intend (in some form) to be included in the final manuscript. We are accepting queries only from authors currently residing in the United States who have one or no books previously published or forthcoming in the proposed manuscript genre/form (poetry, fiction, nonfiction, etc.). Submission fee is $10. tolsunbooks.com
Contest :: 2020 Charles B. Wheeler Poetry Prize from The Journal
Deadline: October 5, 2020
Charles B. Wheeler Poetry Prize. Submissions open September 1, 2020. Judge Marcus Jackson will select one full-length manuscript for publication by Mad Creek Books, the trade imprint of The Ohio State University Press. In addition to publication under a standard book contract, the winner receives the Charles B. Wheeler prize of $2,500. A nonrefundable fee of $23.00 (or $11.50 for BIPOC poets) will be charged for each entry. All entrants receive a one-year subscription to The Journal. Visit our contest page for guidelines. (If it is a hardship to meet the entry fee, contact our editor (prize@thejournalmag.org) to discuss options.)
Contest :: Interim Accepting Manuscripts for Test Site Poetry Contest 2020
Deadline: December 15, 2020
Submit your manuscript to Interim’s 3rd annual Test Site Poetry Contest! As our series title suggests, we’re looking for manuscripts that engage the perilous conditions of life in the 21st century, as they pertain to issues of social justice and the earth. The winning book will demonstrate an ethos that considers the human condition in inclusive love and sympathy, while offering the same in consideration of the earth. Because we believe the truth is always experimental, we’ll especially appreciate books with innovative approaches. The winner will receive $1,000 and their book will be published by University of Nevada Press in 2021.