Sheila-Na-Gig Editions Poetry Chapbook Contest: On Hiatus until 2024

The Sheila-Na-Gig Chapbook Contest will resume in 2024.

Sheila-Na-Gig Editions invites entries for its chapbook-length poetry manuscript contest May 1-31 yearly.

Please follow the guidelines below to be eligible for the contests:

Submit a chapbook-length poetry manuscript (20-40 pgs — not including front and back matter) via Submittable. Manuscripts will not be considered via email or snail mail.
Poems may be previously published in journals or online, if you own the rights for reprints.
Simultaneous submissions accepted. Please notify us immediately if your manuscript is accepted elsewhere. Reading fees are not refundable.

Work will be judged on the merits of the manuscripts alone. Please help us judge the work anonymously by following these next guidelines carefully:

DO NOT include a bio or formal cover letter.
DO NOT include an acknowledgments page for previously published work. If your manuscript is selected for publication, you may send along this information later.
DO NOT include your name ANYWHERE on your manuscript or in the Submittable title of your submission. Submissions that reveal authors’ identities will be disqualified, and fees will not be refunded.
NO NOT include more than 3 poems that have been published by Sheila-Na-Gig online. If your manuscript is selected, you may include other poems we have published. Please DO NOT include any poems that have won an award from Sheila-Na-Gig online or any that have been nominated for Pushcart or Best of the Net prizes by Sheila-Na-Gig online.

THE PRIZE:

- The selected manuscript will be published by Sheila-Na-Gig Editions. For a sample volumes, check out https://sheilanagigblog.com/sheila-na-gig-editions/

- $500 honorarium + 50% royalties

- 25 copies of the published manuscript (and 55% discounts on future orders)

- All participants will receive a copy of the winning volume upon publication. International participants will receive pdf copies.

THE READING FEE: $20.00

THE SUBMISSION PERIOD: May 1-31 yearly

THE JUDGES: Hayley Mitchell Haugen, Founder & Editor, Sheila-Na-Gig online & Sheila-Na-Gig Editions: https://sheilanagigblog.com/about/ will select the top 10 manuscripts. The final selection will be made by an invited judge familiar with Sheila-Na-Gig online and Sheila-Na-Gig Editions.

RESPONSE TIME: We will strive to make final decisions by September 1 each year.

THE FINE PRINT: Sheila-Na-Gig Editions reserves the right to not select a winning manuscript. In the case of this unlikely event, reading fees will be refunded. We really want to publish manuscripts, however! Familiarize yourself with the works on Sheila-Na-Gig online to get a sense of our aesthetic. We publish well-crafted free verse poetry and especially seek poems with excellent imagery and a strong sense of voice. Chapbooks should also include a consistent theme.