Academy of American Poets

Established in 1975, the Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize is a $25,000 award that recognizes the most outstanding book of poetry published in the United States in the previous calendar year. The prize includes a ten-day residency at Glen Hollow in Naples, New York, and distribution of the winning book to hundreds of Academy of American Poets members.

The Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize honors the memory of Lenore Marshall (1897-1971), a poet, novelist, essayist, and political activist. She was the author of three novels, three books of poetry, a collection of short stories, and selections from her notebooks. Her work appeared in such distinguished literary magazines as The New Yorker, The Saturday Review, and Partisan Review. In 1956 she helped found the National Committee for a Sane Nuclear Policy, the citizens’ organization that lobbied successfully for passage of the 1963 partial nuclear test ban treaty. In 1994, the Academy was selected by the New Hope Foundation to administer the award.

Submissions are accepted January 1, 2023 through May 15, 2023 (11:59 p.m. ET). The judges for the 2023 Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize are Shane McCrae, January Gill O’Neil, and Monica Youn.

For questions, please contact awards@poets.org.


2023 Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize Eligibility Guidelines

• Any poet who meets one of the below criteria on the date of the application deadline, in any given year, is eligible: U.S. Citizen; resident of the United States for the ten-year period prior to the submission deadline, or; Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) status, Temporary Protected Status (TPS), Legal Permanent Status (LPS), or any subsequent categories designated by the U.S. authorities as conferring similar enhanced status upon non-citizens living in the United States.
• Books must be submitted in the year after their publication, which means that books published in 2023 may not be submitted for consideration until 2024.
• The 2023 contest is open to any book of original poetry, in English, published in the United States during 2022 in a standard edition (48 pages or more) by a living poet.
• Self-published books are not eligible.
• Translations and new editions of previously published books are not eligible.
• Publishers may submit as many titles as they wish.
• To submit an entry, publishers must upload a PDF copy to Submittable. A $75 entry fee and completed entry form via Submittable signifying the publisher’s acceptance of these guidelines is required for each title submitted. 
• The winner will be announced in September 2023.
• The Academy of American Poets agrees to purchase approximately two hundred copies of the winning book for distribution to its members. The Academy may purchase additional copies of the book for its own use, but not for resale. No royalties will be paid to the author on the copies purchased by the Academy. The publisher agrees to sell to the Academy of American Poets the number of copies requested at a standard paper, printing, and binding, or at-cost discount.
• The decisions of the Academy of American Poets as to eligibility are final. Books will not be returned.

Please note: By law the Academy of American Poets must report cash prizes awarded to individuals to the Internal Revenue Service. If individuals have a Social Security Number (SSN) or an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), the individual will receive a 1099. If the individual does not have an SSN or ITIN, the individual will receive a 1042 and could be subject to a withholding of a percentage of the cash prize.

Offered since 1954, the James Laughlin Award is given to recognize and support a second book of poetry forthcoming in the next calendar year. The award was endowed in 1995 by a gift to the Academy from the Drue Heinz Trust. It is named for the poet and publisher James Laughlin (1914-1997), who founded New Directions in 1936.

The winning poet receives a prize of $5,000, an all-expenses-paid weeklong residency at The Betsy Hotel in Miami Beach, Florida, and distribution of the winning book to approximately one thousand Academy of American Poets members.

Submissions are accepted from January 1, 2023 to May 15, 2023 (11:59 p.m. ET). The judges for the 2023 James Laughlin Award are Leila Chatti, John Murillo, and Sam Sax.

For questions, contact awards@poets.org.


2023 James Laughlin Award - Eligibility Guidelines

• The James Laughlin Award is given to honor a second full-length print book of original poetry, in English, by a living poet, forthcoming in the next calendar year.
• Any poet who meets one of the below criteria on the date of the application deadline, in any given year, is eligible to apply: U.S. Citizen; resident of the United States for the ten-year period prior to the submission deadline, or; Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) status, Temporary Protected Status (TPS), Legal Permanent Status (LPS), or any subsequent categories designated by the U.S. authorities as conferring similar enhanced status upon non-citizens living in the United States.
• To be eligible, a book must be under contract with a U.S. publisher and scheduled to be published between January 1, 2024, and December 31, 2024. Winning books must be published by December 31, 2024.
• To be eligible, an author must have published one book of poetry in a standard edition (48 pages or more). The publication of chapbooks (less than 48 pages) does not disqualify an author.
• Entries must be at least 48 pages total (suggested length: 48 to 100 pages).
• Entries must be submitted in manuscript form (or page proofs) so the jury can review them without considering the books’ design. Galleys will not be accepted.
• To submit an entry, publishers must upload a PDF copy of the manuscript to Submittable. A completed entry form via Submittable signifying the publisher’s acceptance of these guidelines is required for each title submitted.
• There is no fee to enter.
• The winner will be announced in September 2023.
• The author’s name should not be included in running heads or appear on any page. Acknowledgements may be included.
• Submissions are welcome from small presses, university presses, and trade publishers that have previously published at least four books of poetry.
• Translations and new editions of previously published books are not eligible.
• Each entry must be accompanied by a completed entry form via Submittable signifying the publisher’s acceptance of these guidelines. The winner will be announced in September.
• The Academy of American Poets agrees to purchase approximately one thousand copies of the winning book for distribution to its members. The Academy of American Poets may purchase additional copies of the book for its own use, but not for resale. No royalties will be paid to the author on the copies purchased by the Academy of American Poets. The publisher agrees to sell to the Academy of American Poets the number of copies requested at a standard paper, printing, and binding, or at-cost discount.
• The publisher agrees to announce and publish the winning book as the Academy of American Poets James Laughlin Award Winner. The publisher also agrees to include a seal on all of the books, identifying the winning book as such. The Academy of American Poets will provide the publisher with the seal design as an electronic file. Any subsequent reprintings of the book must comply with the aforementioned stipulations.
• The decisions of the Academy of American Poets regarding eligibility are final.

Please note: By law the Academy of American Poets must report cash prizes awarded to individuals to the Internal Revenue Service. If individuals have a Social Security Number (SSN) or an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), the individual will receive a 1099. If the individual does not have an SSN or ITIN, the individual will receive a 1042 and could be subject to a withholding of a percentage of the cash prize.