'Louisiana Literature' sponsors annual poetry competition
Contact: Christina Chapple
3/30/07
HAMMOND – “Louisiana Literature,” Southeastern Louisiana University’s award-wining literary magazine, is seeking entries for its annual poetry competition.
Entries for the 21st annual Louisiana Literature Prize for Poetry, which includes a $400 award, must be submitted by April 20, said Editor Jack Bedell of Southeastern’s English Department faculty.
Bedell said all entries -- either a poem or group of poems -- will be considered for publication in “Louisiana Literature.”
For a $12 handling fee, which also earns a one‑year subscription to the journal, United States residents may enter one to five poems, totaling 250 lines, Bedell said. “Poems may be on any topic. All work must be previously unpublished, and a name and address must appear on each poem,” he said.
Along with entries, participants should send a check or money order payable to “Louisiana Literature” and a self-addressed, stamped envelope for contest results. Manuscripts cannot be returned, but entrants should send a second envelope if they want notification of receipt.
Entries should be mailed to Louisiana Literature, Poetry Contest, SLU 10792, Southeastern Louisiana University, Hammond LA 70402.
Southeastern began publishing “Louisiana Literature” in 1984. In 2004, the publication received a $10,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, allowing the journal to upgrade its format and expand Louisiana Literature Press, which was established in 1988.
“Louisiana Literature” spotlights both local talent and nationally recognized authors. Works first published in “Louisiana Literature” have regularly been reprinted in collections and nominated for prizes such as the National Book Award and the Pulitzer Prize. “Gleanings,” Shipley’s collection of award-winning poems published by Louisiana Literature Press, was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 2003.
For additional information about the contest or “Louisiana Literature,” contact Bedell at jbedell@selu.edu or 985-549-5756 or visit www.louisianaliterature.org.
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