Poetry Award: 2012 Crab Orchard Series in Poetry First Book Award

2012 First Book Award ~ $3500 and publication

final judge: Chad Davidson

Below are the guidelines for the 2012 Crab Orchard Series in Poetry First Book Award, which will be open for entries on May 10, 2012 and close on July 7, 2012 (postmark and online submission deadline):

A first book of poems will be selected for publication from an open competition of manuscripts, in English, by a U.S. citizen or permanent resident who has neither published, nor committed to publish, a volume of poetry 48 pages or more in length in an edition of over 500 copies* (individual poems may have been previously published; for the purposes of the Crab Orchard Series in Poetry, a manuscript which was in whole or in part submitted as a thesis or dissertation as a requirement for the completion of a degree is considered unpublished and is eligible). Current or former students, colleagues, and close friends of the final judge, and current and former students and employees of Southern Illinois University and authors published by Southern Illinois University Press are not eligible.

The winner will receive a publication contract with Southern Illinois University Press, and will be awarded a $2000 prize. The winner will also receive $1500 as an honorarium for a reading at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale.

SUBMISSION PERIOD / DEADLINE: All entries must be postmarked or submitted online between May 10, 2012 and the end of July 7, 2012 (online entries will be accepted until 11:59:59 PM (CDT) on July 7, 2012). (For postal submissions since this is a postmark deadline, there is no need to send Express Mail, Fedex, or UPS. First Class or Priority Mail are preferred.) Please do not send revisions of either postal or online submissions; the winner will be given an opportunity to work with the series editor before the manuscript is delivered to SIU Press.

ENTRY FEE: $25.00 per entry for postal submissions; $28.00 per entry for online submissions through Submittable ($25.00 plus $3.00 online processing fee). Entry fees will not be refunded for manuscripts withdrawn by the author. All entrants will receive a year's subscription to CRAB ORCHARD REVIEW, beginning with the 2013 Winter/Spring CRAB ORCHARD REVIEW.

PAGE LENGTH: Manuscripts are recommended to be a minimum of 50 pages to a recommended maximum of 75 pages of original poetry.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR POSTAL SUBMISSIONS: Manuscripts should be typewritten, single-spaced. Include a Table of Contents. No more than one poem should appear on a page. Submit two title pages for the collection. The author's name, address, and daytime phone number should appear on the first title page only. The author's name should appear nowhere else in the manuscript. An acknowledgments page listing poems previously published in magazines, journals, or anthologies should be placed after the second title page. A clean photocopy is recommended, bound with a spring clip or placed in a plain file folder (no paper clips or staples please). Please do not send your only copy of the manuscript since manuscripts will not be returned, and please do not include illustrations. CRAB ORCHARD REVIEW and Southern Illinois University Press assume no responsibility for damaged or lost manuscripts.

All postal submissions must be accompanied by a $25 entry fee (check or money order). Please make your check out to "Crab Orchard Series in Poetry."

Please address postal submissions to:

Jon Tribble, Series Editor, First Book Award
Dept. of English, Mail Code 4503
Southern Illinois University Carbondale
1000 Faner Drive
Carbondale, IL 62901

Include a self-addressed, stamped envelope for notification of contest results. If you would like confirmation that the manuscript has been received, please include a self-addressed, stamped postcard as well.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR ONLINE SUBMISSIONS: Online entries should be sent through Submittable (there is an additional $3.00 processing fee for online entries, making the entry fee for each online entry $28.00). Payment for online submissions must be made online.

Please submit your file in .doc, .docx, .rtf, .txt, .pdf, .odt, or .wpf. 12-point font, Times New Roman or Times preferred. Manuscripts should be single-spaced. Include a Table of Contents. No more than one poem should appear on a page.

Submit a single title page with only the manuscript title in your file.

The author's name should appear nowhere in your file or in the file name.

In the place of the cover letter or biographical note in the submission process, an acknowledgments page listing poems previously published in magazines, journals, or anthologies can be included, but this SHOULD NOT be included in the manuscript file.

Please name your file the first eight letters of your manuscript title, with no spaces; for example, if your manuscript was titled "A Collection of Poems," your file would be titled "acollect" or "ACOLLECT" (either lower or upper case is fine). If your manuscript title has fewer than eight letters or uses numerals, use what you have. If you have a symbol or mark of punctuation as your title or as part of your title, spell out what it stands for and use the first eight letters of that; for example, if your manuscript was titled "Poems!," your file would be titled "poemsexc" for "Poems exclamation point."

All entrants submitting online through Submittable will be notified of the results via e-mail by October 1, 2012.

SIMULTANEOUS SUBMISSION: Manuscripts may be under consideration elsewhere, but the series editor must be informed immediately if a collection is accepted for publication. Entry fees will not be refunded for manuscripts withdrawn by the author.

Entrants are not to contact the final judge under any circumstances; all questions should be directed to Jon Tribble, Series Editor of the Crab Orchard Series in Poetry.

E-MAIL:jtribble(at)siu.edu (replace (at) with @ in sending email)