2026 WP&I Poetry Contest

Deadline: MARCH 15, 2026
 

Entry fee: $10 Academy members / $15 non-members
 

• First-place winners of the Wisconsin People & Ideas Poetry Contest will receive a one-week artist residency at Shake Rag Alley Center for the Arts in Mineral Point.
• Winners will receive a prize of $500 for first place, $250 for second place, and $100  for third place.
• All winners are invited to read their work at the 2025 Wisconsin Book Festival.
• 1st-3rd-place winning works will be published in print and online issues of Wisconsin People & Ideas magazine. 
• Honorable mention pieces selected by the lead judge will be published in subsequent issues of the magazine.

Eligibility 

• Authors must be age 18 or older and reside or attend school in Wisconsin. All submissions must be original and previously unpublished work, whether online or in print.

• Current Wisconsin Academy staff, board, and Foundation board members are not eligible. 

Submission Guidelines

• One entry consists of 1-3 poems. You may submit multiple entries, and each additional entry requires paying a contest fee.
• Please include a cover page with the author's name, address, phone number, email address, and poem titles
• One (1) poem per page, up to three (3) poems per submission
• Typed, single-spaced
• 12-point clearly readable font. For example: Times New Roman, Garamond, etc.) 
• 45 lines maximum per poem (including lines between stanzas).
• Please do not include your name on the manuscript pages. 

Print or electronic submissions will be accepted. 

Electronic Submissions

Electronic submissions (and judging) will be managed via AirTable. After registering, participants will receive a link to submit their manuscript.