The annual submission period is March 1 – April 15.
Current (2011-12) guidelines:
SEVEN KITCHENS PRESS announces the 2011 ROBIN BECKER CHAPBOOK PRIZE for an original, unpublished poetry manuscript in English by a Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgendered or Queer writer.
Prize: 50 copies (a $350 value).
Submission deadline: Postmarked between March 1 and May 15 of each year.
Eligibility: Open to all L/G/B/T/Q poets writing in English (no translations, please).
Please note: Two manuscripts will be selected as co-winners: one by a writer with no previous book or chapbook, and one by a writer with previous book or chapbook publication.
Please read the guidelines carefully; the complete guidelines are posted on the Seven Kitchens site and we are not responsible for other versions of the guidelines that may be posted, in whole or in part, elsewhere.
COMPLETE GUIDELINES:
Any poet who identifies as L/G/B/T/Q is eligible to submit to the Robin Becker Chapbook Prize.
* The manuscript itself need not address L/G/B/T/Q themes, though such work is welcome.
* The final judge for this year’s series is Judith Barrington.
Submit a paginated manuscript of 16-24 pages (plus front matter such as table of contents, acknowledgments, or notes).
* Include two cover pages: one with the manuscript title, author name, address, e-mail and phone number; the second cover page should have the manuscript title only.
* Include a table of contents page, if appropriate.
* The collection may contain a series of poems or one single chapbook-length poem.
* Include, if applicable, an acknowledgments page for work previously published.
* Please include, on a separate page, a brief (100-150 words) biographical note, including a statement of any previous book or chapbook publication.
The author’s name must not appear in the manuscript.
* Collaborative works are accepted. Should a winning manuscript be collaboratively written, the author copies will be shared equally.
* All manuscripts will be blind judged, meaning all identifying material will be separated from the manuscripts as they are logged in.
* Manuscript titles and their log numbers will be posted on the Seven Kitchens website [http:// sevenkitchenspress dot wordpress dot com] as they are processed.
Simultaneous submissions are accepted, but please notify us promptly by email if your manuscript is accepted elsewhere.
* Submissions must be posted between March 1 and May 15, 2011.
* The winning manuscripts will be announced on or before August 15, 2011 and will be published in early 2012.
* Manuscript finalists will also be announced, and may be eligible for publication by Seven Kitchens Press.
Manuscripts will not be returned. E-mailed submission is preferred, but you may send via regular mail.
* If sending by mail, do not staple or bind your manuscript; please use a binder clip and mail flat in an 8.5 x 11 envelope. Please do not use expedited delivery services; your postmark date is sufficient to ensure your entry qualification, and we will allow 7-10 days for receipt of all mailed entries after May 15. Use First-Class Mail and consider spending the money you’ve saved on a chapbook from a small, independent press! Mail your manuscript to: Seven Kitchens Press, Robin Becker Chapbook Prize, PO Box 668, Lewisburg PA 17837.
* If you are sending by e-mail, please send one document in Microsoft Word format (.doc or .docx files); you must include the words “Robin Becker Chapbook” in the subject line of your e-mail to get past our spam filter. Send to sevenkitchens at yahoo dot com.
* Include a $12 reading fee with each manuscript (multiple submissions are welcome). IMPORTANT: Checks should be made payable to Ron Mohring. Online payment may be made via PayPal to seven kitchens at yahoo dot com. It is okay to send the ms. via e-mail and the check separately by regular mail.
* Each entrant will receive one copy of either winning chapbook (entrant’s choice of which title), to be published in early 2012.
* Each co-winner will receive fifty (50) copies of her or his chapbook. Additionally, the publisher will distribute ten review copies and will solicit online reviews of each title.
ABOUT THE JUDGE: Judith Barrington is the author of three poetry collections, a prizewinning memoir, and a text on writing literary memoir. The poetry books are: Horses and the Human Soul, History and Geography, and Trying to be an Honest Woman. She has also recorded a CD of selected poems titled Harvest. Prose books are: Lifesaving: A Memoir (winner of the Lambda Book Award and finalist for the PEN/Martha Albrand Award for the Art of the Memoir), and Writing the Memoir: From Truth to Art which is used in numerous writing programs. Most recently, she has published two poetry chapbooks: Postcard from the Bottom of the Sea (8th Mountain Press) and Lost Lands (selected by Robin Becker as winner of the inaugural Robin Becker Chapbook Prize).
ABOUT THE SERIES:
This chapbook series honors Robin Becker, whose continuing accomplishments as a poet, professor, and mentor of lesbian and gay writers deserve wider acclaim. Becker serves as poetry editor for the Women’s Review of Books and is a professor of English and Women’s Studies at Pennsylvania State University. She is the author of six collections of poems, including Giacometti’s Dog (1990), All-American Girl (1996), The Horse Fair (2000), and Domain of Perfect Affection (2006), all from the University of Pittsburgh Press, and of the chapbook Venetian Blue (Frick Art & Historical Center, 2002).
More information here.
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