Howling Bird Press, the publishing house of Augsburg University’s MFA in Creative Writing, offers an annual prize that results in book publication. As a teaching press, we are staffed by graduate students enrolled in our Publishing Concentration and undergraduate students from Augsburg. Our prize alternates genres annually, from poetry to fiction to nonfiction.
From April 2 through August 21, 2023, we are accepting submissions in poetry. The press welcomes innovative, original work from established and emerging authors. The competition is open to all writers in English living in the U.S. Manuscript length should be between 48 to 72 pages. File formats should be either Word .doc or .docx. Pages should be numbered; include author's name and address.
Include a cover letter in the form provided online, and list contact information and a short (100 to 200 word) bio. There is a $25 entry fee. Current and former students of Augsburg's MFA in Creative Writing are ineligible, as are current faculty and staff of Augsburg University. The winner is announced in January 2024. The winner receives $2,500 and book publication in fall 2024.
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Howling Bird Press, the publishing house of Augsburg College’s MFA in Creative Writing, seeks submissions for its 2024 Book Prize in Poetry. The press welcomes innovative, original work from established and emerging authors. The competition is open to all writers in English living in the United States. The author of the winning manuscript receives a cash award of $2,500 and book publication by Howling Bird Press.
Contest Guidelines
- Submission period: April 2–July 31, 2023
- Online submission, including $25 entry fee, should be made through Submittable.
- MFA faculty and publishing students will serve as judges
- Winner will be announced in January 2024
- Manuscripts should be between 60 to 80 pages long.
- The book should be a collection of poems by a single author.
- Poems in the collection may be previously published, but the collection itself should be previously unpublished (i.e., book reprints are not eligible).
- Manuscript pages must be numbered.
- Table of contents should be included.
- An acknowledgments page listing previous publication credits should be included.
- 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 Howling Bird Press competition. Withdrawal can be completed via the Submittable manager website. Entry fees are not refundable.
- Current and former students of Augsburg's MFA in Creative Writing are ineligible, as are current faculty and staff of Augsburg University.
- Posthumous manuscripts are ineligible