January 1 Deadlines
1/1/16 The Mississippi Review Prize Prizes: $1,000 and publication Fee: $15/$16 to the Mississippi Review
Mississippi Review Prize
118 College Drive #5144
Hattiesburg, MS 39406-0001
msreview@usm.edu
601-266-4321
Judge:
Notify: early March
3–5 poems: Our annual contest awards prizes of $1,000 in fiction and in poetry. Winners and finalists will make up next winter's print issue of the Mississippi Review. Contest is open to all writers in English except current or former students or employees of The University of Southern Mississippi. Fiction entries should be 1000-8000 words, poetry entries should be three poems totaling 10 pages or less. There is no limit on the number of entries you may submit. Entry fee is $15 per entry, payable to the Mississippi Review. Each entrant will receive a copy of the prize issue. No manuscripts will be returned. Previously published work is ineligible. Contest opens August 1.Entries should have "MR Prize," author name, address, phone, e-mail and title of work on page one. These are the complete contest guidelines. Online entry at site $16.
http://www.usm.edu/mississippi-review/contest.html

January 2 Deadlines
1/2/16 Gemini Magazine Poetry Open Prizes: $1,000, $100, (4x)$25, and publication Fee: $5 to Gemini Magazine
POETRY OPEN
Gemini Magazine
P.O. Box 1485
Onset, MA 02558
poetryopen@gemini-magazine.com
Judge: editors
Notify: February
Poems: Six finalists will be published in the February issue of Gemini. No restrictions on content or length. Simply send your best unpublished poems by e-mail or snail mail. PayPal at site. NO attachments. Do not include bio—just your poems and contact info. Enter as many times as you like; $5 fee for each batch of three poems.
http://www.gemini-magazine.com/poetryopen.html

January 14 Deadlines
1/14/16 Colorado Prize for Poetry Prize: $2,000 and publication Fee: $25/28 to Colorado Review
Colorado Prize for Poetry
Center for Literary Publishing
9105 Campus Delivery
Department of English
Colorado State University
Fort Collins, CO 80523
(970) 491-5449
creview@colostate.edu

Judge: Tyrone Williams

Notify: May
Book Manuscript: Manuscripts may consist of poems that have been published, but collections must not have been previously published as a whole. You may include an acknowledgments page (not required). Length 48 to 100 pages. Manuscripts may be double- or single-spaced. Online entry at site.
http://coloradoreview.colostate.edu/colorado-prize-for-poetry/

January 15 Deadlines
1/15/16 The 46er Poetry Prize Prizes: $400, $30 to honorable mentions, and publication Fee: $10 via PayPal
enter online
  Judge: editors
Notify: summer
Poems: The winner will receive $400 and publication in the Summer Issue. Entrants whose poems receive honorable mention will also have their poems published, and they will be awarded an honorarium of $30. Guidelines: Entrants may submit up to three original, unpublished poems. Simultaneous submissions are accepted if we are notified immediately should they be accepted for publication elsewhere. Entrants may pay on-line with PayPal. Submissions will be judged by The Adirondack Review editors. Winners will be announced during the summer.
http://www.theadirondackreview.com/contests.html

1/15/16 William Matthews Poetry Prize Prizes: $1,000, $250, readings, and publication Fee: $20 to Asheville Poetry Review
William Matthews Poetry Prize
c/o Asheville Poetry Review
PO Box 7086
Asheville, NC 28802
   Judge: Joy Harjo
Notify: February 1
Poems: Send 1-3 poems, any style, any theme, any length, with a $20 entry fee (payable to Asheville Poetry Review).
http://www.ashevillepoetryreview.com/the-william-matthews-poetry-prize

1/15/16 Andrés Montoya Poetry Prize Prizes: $1,000 and publication Fee: none
Francisco Aragón, Coordinator
Andrés Montoya Poetry Prize
Institute for Latino Studies
230 McKenna Hall
University of Notre Dame
Notre Dame, IN 46556
(574) 631-2882 Judge: Edwin Torres
Notify: February 1
Book manuscript: Biennial; the prize carries a cash award of $1000 and publication by the University of Notre Dame Press. The award is open to any Latino/a poet who has yet to publish a full-length book of poems. TWO copies of your manuscript must be submitted. Manuscripts must be of original poetry, in English, by one poet who is a citizen or permanent resident of the United States. There are no restrictions on the style of poetry or subject matter. Translations are not eligible. The manuscript must be a minimum of 50 numbered pages and a maximum of 100 numbered pages in length. All manuscripts must be paginated. Each new poem must start a new page. The manuscript should begin with unnumbered frontmatter: a title page that shows the book’s title and your name, address, telephone number, and e-mail address (if you have one); a table of contents; and (if applicable) a list of acknowledgements. There is no entrance fee. For more information, please call or write Francisco Aragón, Coordinator.
http://latinostudies.nd.edu/institute-centers/letras-latinas/andres-montoya-poetry-prize/

1/15/16 Third Coast Poetry Award Prizes: $1,000 and publication Fee: $16 to Third Coast
Third Coast Poetry Contest
Western Michigan University
English Department
1903 W Michigan Ave.
Kalamazoo, MI 49008-5331
editors@thirdcoastmagazine.com Judge: TBA
Notify: April
Poems: Submit up to three (3) previously unpublished poems at a time in ONE file. All manuscripts should be typed. Since the judging is blind, the author’s name and identifying information (including address, email, phone number, and bio) should only appear in the "cover letter" box; identifying information must NOT appear anywhere on the manuscript itself. Manuscripts with identifying information beyond the text of the work may be disqualified. Postal or online submission.
http://www.thirdcoastmagazine.com/contests/

January 17 Deadlines
1/17/16 WFOP Student Poetry Contest Prize: $50, $30, $20, and publication Fee: none
Jeanie Tomasko
6725 Century Ave.
Middleton, WI 53562
Phone (608) 836-8108 or e-mail wisstudentpoetrycontest@gmail.com with questions. Judge: Nick Demske
Notify:
1 poem: annual poetry contest for students attending public, private, or parochial schools or being home-schooled in Wisconsin: JUNIOR DIVISION (grades 6-8) and SENIOR DIVISION (grades 9-12). PRIZES: 1st $50, 2nd $30, 3rd $20; Honorable Mention in each division. Winners from each division will be published in the Wisconsin Poets' Calendar. A student may enter one original poem. Maximum length: 24 lines, including stanza breaks but not including the title. Longer poems will be eliminated. E-mail poem attached as a Word .doc to wisstudentpoetrycontest@gmail.com. Se site for rules and sample format. E-mail submission preferred.
http://www.wfop.org/s/Student-Contest.pdf

January 19 Deadlines
1/19/16 Omnidawn Open Poetry Book Contest Prize: $3,000 and publication Fee: $27
Omnidawn Open (Poetry Book Contest)
Omnidawn Publishing
1632 Elm Avenue
Richmond, CA 94805-1614
  Judge: Cal Bedient
Notify:
Book manuscript: Postal and online submissions are accepted from around the world with no citizenship limitations. Simultaneous submissions and multiple submissions are acceptable. Revisions are not allowed during the contests. Manuscript submissions for all contests must be original. (If you include quotes from other works in your manuscript, please be sure they are clearly attributed to the author either on the same page or in a “Notes” section at the back of the manuscript.) Manuscripts must be in English, although it is perfectly acceptable to include some text in other languages. Manuscripts must be previously unpublished, although individual poems in a manuscript are still eligible for this contest if they have been previously published in print or web magazines, journals, anthologies, or on a personal web site. (If you are including photographs or other graphic images in your manuscript, please contact us for guidelines.) NOT ELIGIBLE are translations; collaborations by more than one author; students, colleagues, or close friends of the judge
http://www.omnidawn.com/contest/poetry-contests.htm

January 25 Deadlines
1/25/16 The Joan Leiman Jacobson Poetry Prizes Prizes: $500(x4) and reading at The Poetry Center Fee: $12 to the 92nd Street Y
"Discovery"/Boston Review Poetry Contest
Unterberg Poetry Center
92nd Street Y
1395 Lexington Avenue
New York, NY 10128
  Judges: various
Notify: March
10 pages: Open to poets who have not published a full-length poetry collection. Poets who have published chapbooks of less than 42 pages or in editions of less than 500 are still eligible to apply. Poets who have a book contract at the time of submission or who are subsequently awarded a book contract are not eligible for the contest if their book is scheduled for publication before fall 2016. Submissions consist of a typed ten-page manuscript. At least two of the submitted poems must be one page in length. Do not submit multiple poems per page. Individual poems that have been or will be published in periodicals or anthologies may be submitted; however, at least two of the submitted poems must be unpublished. NO personal identification should appear on any of the poems; no copyright attributions for previously published poems should appear on the poems. All poems must be original and in English. Translations are not eligible. No contestant may submit more than one entry, and manuscripts by more than one author will not be accepted. No corrections can be accepted after receipt of the submission. Entries must be received by 5 pm on Fri, Jan 23. An entry fee of $12 must accompany the submission. Contest entries and fees may be submitted online or mailed.
http://www.92y.org/discovery

January 27 Deadlines
1/27/16 Meridian Editor's Prize Contest Prizes: $1,000 and publication Fee: $8.50 online
online only     Judge:
Notify: March
Poems: Poets may submit up to 4 poems, two submissions per entrant. $8.50 fee includes 1-year e-subscription. Enter via Submittable. All submissions will be considered for publication. Current UVA students, staff, and faculty are NOT eligible. Former Meridian staff are not eligible. (If you've been on our masthead, don't enter.) Friends, relatives, and former teachers and students of current Meridian staff or its advisor are not eligible.
http://readmeridian.org/contests.html

January 31 Deadlines
1/31/16 Rita Dove Award Prizes: $1,000, $150 Fee: $15 online
online only     Judge: Blas Falconer
Notify: March
Poems: 3 unpublished poems, any style. Author’s name and address must appear on a cover page only. If your name appears on your submission, it will be immediately disqualified. This is incredibly important in our CNF category: please carefully proofread your piece to ensure that your name does not appear in your submission. Submit: a cover page with your name, address, telephone, email, genre, word count (for prose), and the title(s) of the work(s), and contest fee. You may enter the contest as often as you’d like, in as many categories as you’d like. Each submission requires the contest fee, and should be submitted as a separate entry.
https://center4womenwriters.submittable.com/submit

1/31/16 The Kenneth and Geraldine Gell Poetry Prize Prizes: $1,000, fellowship, and publication Fee: $25 to Writers & Books
Gell Prize
Writers & Books
740 University Ave.
Rochester, NY 14607
585-473-2590 Judge: Stephen Dunn
Notify: April 7
Book manuscript: Open to poets who are citizens or legal residents of the United States, are at least 18 years of age, and are not employees or relatives of employees of Writers & Books, Inc. Manuscripts must be postmarked September 1, to January 31, 2014. Manuscripts cannot be accepted by email. Submit a book-length manuscript of poems (no illustrations), 50 to 100 pages in length. Download the entry form, fill it out, and attach it to your manuscript. Manuscripts must be the author’s own original work. No translations, please. Include an entry fee of $25 (non-refundable) by check or money order payable to Writers & Books. If you send more than one manuscript, each must be accompanied by a separate entry form and a separate check. Each manuscript must include two cover pages. The first must have the book’s title, author’s name, and all the author’s contact information. The second must have the book title only, with no author’s name and no contact information. Do not include a bio note, or any other feature that might include the author’s real name or pen name. Format: Use regular white 8 ½ X 11” paper, black ink, with font of 11 or 12 points. One poem per page. Use double space or space-and-a-half—please no single-spaced manuscripts. Absolutely no handwritten manuscripts will be accepted. You must notify Writers & Books immediately by phone or by mail if your manuscript wins another competition, or is accepted for publication elsewhere. Poems in your manuscript may have been published in magazines, journals, on line, in anthologies, or in a chapbook. But the manuscript as a whole must be unpublished as a single book. Previously self-published books are not eligible. Include SASP if you want to be assured that the manuscript has been received. Include a self-addressed, stamped No. 10 business envelope if you want to receive contest winner notification. Once a book has been sent, do not send changes or new pages for insertion. If your manuscript wins, you will have a chance to make changes before publication. Manuscripts will not be returned; do not send postage stamps or mailer for the return of a manuscript.
http://www.wab.org/gell-poetry-prize/

1/31/16 Grayson Books Chapbook Contest Prizes: $500, 50 chapbooks, and publication Fee: $20 to Grayson Books
Grayson Books
PO Box 270549
West Hartford, CT 06127
  Judge: Vivian Shipley
Notify:
Chapbook manuscript: 16-24 pages of poetry, two cover sheets (one with contact information and one anonymous). SASE for results only. Simultaneous submissions are permissible if we are notified immediately upon acceptance elsewhere. Online entry at site.
http://www.graysonbooks.com/contest.html

1/31/16 Hippocrates Prize for Poetry and Medicine Prizes: £5,000, £5,000, £500, and publication Fee: £7 to Hippocrates Prize
The Hippocrates Prize
c/o The Fellowship of Postgraduate Medicine
12 Chandos Street
London W1G 9DR
UNITED KINGDOM
  Judge: various
Notify: May
Poems: No more than 50 lines in length and not previously published in any form. They must be by a living poet, written in English and should not be translations of another writer’s work. Enter online at site.
http://www.hippocrates-poetry.org/

1/31/16 Lynda Hull Memorial Poetry Prize Prizes: $2,000 and publication Fee: $20 to Crazyhorse
online only
  Judges: Khaled Mattawa
Notify: June 1
Poems: Enter online only, during January. Up to three poems. Reading fee includes one-year/two-issue subscription. More than one manuscript may be entered; subscription extends by one year per entry. All manuscripts must be original and previously unpublished; all are considered for publication. If mailing, include name, address, e-mail, and telephone number on a cover page; do not include identifying information on the manuscript, as all entries are reviewed anonymously.
http://crazyhorse.cofc.edu/prizes/

1/31/16 The Iowa Award Prizes: $1,500, $750, and publication Fee: $20 to The Iowa Review
enter online
  Judge: TBA
Notify: late April
Poems:  Submit up to 25 pages of prose (double-spaced) or 10 pages of poetry (double or single; one poem or several). Work must be previously unpublished. Simultaneous submissions are fine assuming you inform us of acceptance elsewhere. All submissions will also be considered for the Tim McGinnis Award, given for the most surprising and unusual work of the year. Manuscripts must include a cover page listing your name, address, e-mail address and/or telephone number, and the title of each work, but your name should not appear on the manuscript itself. Enclose a $20 entry fee (checks payable to The Iowa Review). Add $10 for a year's subscription (optional). Label your envelope as a contest entry, e.g.: "Contest: Poetry." Postmark submissions between January 1 and January 31. Enclose a #10 SASE for final word on your work. Online entry at site.
http://iowareview.uiowa.edu/rules

1/31/16 Main Street Rag Poetry Book Award Prize: $1,200, 50 copies, and publication Fee: $25/27
Main Street Rag
PO BOX 690100
Charlotte, NC 28227-7001
 

Judge:

Notify: April
Book Manuscript: Winner receives publication, 50 copies of the published book, and $1200. Runners up will also be considered for publication. Guidelines: Send between 48 and 84 pages of poetry, 8.5 X 11, no more than one poem per page, 12 point type in an easily readable font like Arial or Times New Roman. (Do not include Table of Contents in page count.) Include 2 Title Pages: One with the TITLE ONLY, one with the title plus author’s name and complete contact information. Author’s name should not appear anywhere else in contest entry. Do Not include Dedication and/or Credits/Acknowledgements pages in entry. Announcement of winners will be sent out via email and posted online. No Manuscripts will be returned, so please DO NOT send a manuscript return envelope. No restriction on content style or subject–we’re looking for the best manuscript. Although MSR frowns on simultaneous submissions for our magazine, it is acceptable for book contests. Upon notification, however, winner must immediately withdraw his/her manuscript from consideration elsewhere. All checks should be made payable to Main Street Rag. DO NOT USE US Postal Service Media Mail. The USPS has changed its standards for Media Mail and is enforcing it much more readily than it once did. First class is your best option. DO NOT staple or bind manuscripts in any way. We have HUNDREDS of clips here from years of submissions and remove anything that comes in a binder or folder and throw away the binder or folder. If you want to pay for those materials and the additional shipping to get the manuscript here only to have it thrown away, that’s your choice. All manuscripts go to readers in the same format. DO NOT send anything that must be signed for (Signature Receipt or Express Mail) since it means having to stand in line to receive it and we don’t have time for that–particularly on the days immediately preceding and immediately after the postmark deadline.
http://03c9c48.netsolhost.com/WordPress/contests/the-main-street-rag-poetry-book-award/

1/31/16 New Millennium Writing Awards Prizes: $1,000 and publication Fee: $20 to New Millennium Writings
enter online
Don Williams, editor Judge:
Notify:
3 poems: $1,000 for best Story; best Poem; best Nonfiction; best Short-Short fiction. No restrictions as to style or content. Winners and selected finalists published in NMW, which you will receive for entering. Winners will also be published online at this web site. Send any time between now and midnight of January 31. Simultaneous & multiple submissions welcome. Each Fiction or Nonfiction is a separate entry and should total no more than 6,000 words. Each Poetry entry may include up to three poems, not to exceed five pages total. Put name, address and category entered on the first page.
http://submit.newmillenniumwritings.org/

1/31/16 $500/500 OddContest Prizes: $500 adult/$50 youth, convention membership; books to top 3 places Fee: $10 to OdysseyCon (none for youth contest)
OddContest (to send check; e-mail entry only!)
Odyssey Con
P.O. Box 7114
Madison, WI  53707
(608) 566-9087
contest@odysseycon.org
Judge: John Joseph Adams
Notify: March 1
Speculative prose poem/flash fiction: For an unpublished speculative (science-fiction, fantasy, horror, magic realism, etc.) work in paragraph format, 500 words or less. Blind judging; preliminary readers will select the top ten manuscripts in each division to be sent to the final judge. Winners notified and results posted by March 1. Winning poems/stories will be read at OdysseyCon. Publication is not offered; multiple an simultaneous submissions are welcome, but please withdraw your work immediately if it is published elsewhere before the notification date. PayPal to treasurer@oddcon.com, or mail a check. E-mail your story or poem (maximum length 500 words), either pasted into the body of the e-mail or attached as a .doc or .rtf, to contest@odysseycon.org. Please put your last name, first initial, and CONTEST: Youth or CONTEST: Adult in the subject line. Be sure to include your name, date of birth if Youth entry, mailing address, phone number, and the name/e-mail under which payment was made, if it is not the one you are using to enter. Receipt of entry will be acknowledged within 3 days.
http://odysseycon.org/contest/contest.html

1/31/16 Orlando Prize Prizes: $1,000 and publication Fee: $15 via PayPal
enter online
  Judge:
Notify: April 1
Poem: $1,000 for best Story; best Poem; best Nonfiction; best Flash-fiction. Multiple submissions welcome. 36-line maximum per poem.
http://aroomofherownfoundation.org/awards/

1/31/16 The (Quadrennial) Leap Day Flash Fiction Prize Prizes: $1,000, (5x) $50, and publication Fee: $20
enter online
  Judge: David James Poissant
Notify: February 29
Flash: No genre or form restrictions. We love traditional flash, genre flash, strange flash—all flash fiction, really. We do not love erotica, gratuitous violence for the sake of violence, profanity for the sake of pro—well, you get it. Let's keep our edginess purposeful. Up to 1,000 words per entry. The number of stories is up to you, but entries exceeding 1,000 words will not be read. Your best story should be your entry. If you have more than one "best" story (perhaps in multiple genres?), and you can fit them in one entry, go nuts. We will carefully read and consider everything you give us. 12-pt font, double-spaced. IMPORTANT: Absolutely no identifying information in the file name or the document itself. Your entry fee goes a little further at The Indianola Review. We will provide feedback on every submission received. If you submit multiple stories in one entry, we will comment on what we considered to be the strongest story. This service is optional. 
http://aroomofherownfoundation.org/awards/

1/31/16 Poetry Center Book Award Prizes: $500 and reading Fee: $10 to The Poetry Center
The Poetry Center/SFSU
Book Award
1600 Holloway Avenue
San Francisco CA 94132
  Judge:
Notify:
Published book: To a single outstanding book of poetry, published in the past year. The Poetry Center Book Award carries a $500 prize and an invitation to read, along with the award judge, at The Poetry Center in San Francisco. Entrees will be accepted for the award from July 1 to January 31. Published original books by a single author (no collaborative works, anthologies, or translations) must be copyrighted in the past year. Entries can be submitted by publisher, author, or by a reader. An entry fee of $10 per book (all which is paid directly to the award winner and award judge) must accompany each book. Please include a cover letter listing the author's name, book title(s), name of person or publisher issuing check, and check number. Checks should be payable to "The Poetry Center." The judge for the award will not be announced in advance.
http://poetry.sfsu.edu/content/poetry-center-book-award

1/31/16 The Winter Anthology Prize: $1,000 Fee: $11 to The Winter Anthology
The Winter Anthology
20 Nielsen Lane
Lenox, MA 01240

 

Judge: Richard Kenney
Notify: late winter
Poems: Please send up to 50 pages in any genre (a book or book-length manuscript somewhat over 50 pages is acceptable). Send writings of which you are the sole author and that were not written earlier than 1999. Published and unpublished writings are equally welcome. To get a sense of our aesthetics, see our inaugural volume at winteranthology.com. All work will be read by the editors, with finalists judged. Multiple entries are welcome, as are entries including a mix of genres. The final decision will be announced here in late autumn. In the event that none of the entries meet our standards, no winner will be declared. The winner will be published in The Winter Anthology and receive a $1000 honorarium. Finalists will also be considered for publication. To enter by mail, send your writing and a $10 check made out to The Winter Anthology; to enter electronically, go to thewinteranthology.submishmash.com/submit
http://winteranthology.com/?vol=5&page=contest

1/31/16 Writers @ Work Fellowship Competition Prizes: $1,000, $250, $200, and conference tuition Fee: $25
online only
  Judge: Tarfia Faizullah
Notify: April
Poems: Submit up to six unpublished poems (10-page maximum). Eligibility: Any writer who has not yet published a book-length volume of original work in the genre in which they submit a manuscript; Unpublished work only. Work appearing in online journals is considered published. Work on personal websites or blogs is considered unpublished; Previous winners are not eligible in the genre in which they have won; Board members are prohibited from submitting manuscripts during their tenure on the board; Current and former students of the judges are ineligible to submit in those categories. You may enter multiple submissions per category and/or submissions in multiple categories. A reading fee is required for each entry.
http://www.writersatwork.org/wp/?page_id=6