Furious Flower Poetry Prize Contest Opens for Another Year of Submissions

The Furious Flower 2026 Poetry Prize Contest for Emerging Writers is now open for submissions. Submissions will be accepted through February 15, 2026. Poets with no more than one published book are invited to submit up to three poems for consideration. There is a $20 submission fee. 

The winner and honorable mention poets will receive $1,500 and $750, respectively, and will be invited to read as part of the Furious Flower Poetry Reading Series. The winner, honorable mention, and select finalists will also be published in Obsidian. 

The contest is judged by Major Jackson, the award-winning author of six books of poetry. He is the recipient of multiple fellowships, including fellowships from the Academy of American Poets, the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Jackson has received numerous prizes and has been honored by the Witter Bynner Foundation in conjunction with the Library of Congress. He lives in Nashville, TN, where he is the Gertrude Conaway Vanderbilt Chair in the Humanities at Vanderbilt University. He is also an elected member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in Literature. 

The Furious Flower Poetry Center is committed to ensuring the visibility, inclusion, and critical consideration of Black poetry in American letters and across educational curricula. Through programs, publications, and productions, the Center celebrates Black poetry’s rich global and national traditions, educates audiences about its historical and contemporary impact, and preserves its powerful legacy for future generations. We welcome submissions in conversation with the Center’s mission. 

Winners will be announced in April. More information, including eligibility requirements, submission guidelines, and past winners, can be found at: 
https://www.jmu.edu/furiousflower/poetryprize/index.shtml