Submissions and Guidelines

Trio House Press sponsors two annual poetry manuscript awards:

The Trio Award for First or Second Book for emerging poets

The Trio Award for First or Second Book for emerging poets for a book of poems contributing in an innovative and distinct way to American poetry. 

Each award winner receives $1000 and twenty copies of their book. 

In 2023, Trio House Press launched its first creative nonfiction manuscript contest:

The Aurora Polaris Creative Nonfiction Award. 

Award winners receive $1,000 and twenty copies of their book.

Trio House Press offers an open submissions period each year for poetry manuscripts, which may vary from year to year.

SUBMISSION PERIODS:

November 1 through April 30: Trio Award and Louise Bogan Award

February 1 - August 30: Aurora Polaris Award

June 1 - June 30, 2023: Open Reading Period

Our submissions fee is $25 per manuscript for all award reading periods. We do not waive submission fees for contests, but do offer a fee-free option during our open reading period for poets with incomes of $50,000 or less per year.

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Judges are forwarded unmarked manuscripts for consideration. Relatives, close friends, and current or former students of judges are not eligible for publication. Information on guidelines and our current judges for all contests can be found at our website: http://www.triohousepress.org

Our submissions process adheres to and supports all ethical standards and guidelines outlined by the CLMP.

All manuscripts must be written primarily in English, and authors must reside primarily in the United States. We do not accept fiction.

Poetry manuscripts must be between 48-70 pages of poetry, written in English. Creative nonfiction manuscripts must not exceed 80,000 words.

Translations are not eligible for publication.

Manuscripts must be sent in a single word doc. or docx. file.

Include a cover letter with your bio in the cover letter option area.

Include an acknowledgement page of individual poems published within the manuscript. The manuscript as a whole must not be previously published. If you are submitting an essay collection for the creative nonfiction contest, please do the same with any essays that have been previously published.

Your name or other identifying materials must not appear anywhere else upon your manuscript for the award submissions.

Multiple submissions are accepted as long as a fee accompanies each submission.

Simultaneous submissions are accepted as long as we are notified immediately if your manuscript is chosen elsewhere.

Manuscripts may not be represented by an agent, and must be submitted by the author.

No edits can be made to manuscripts after you submit your manuscript. However, if chosen for award or publication, edits can be made prior to final proofs.

In the unlikely event that, due to unexpected illness or life events, a judge is unable to select an award winner, a member of the Trio House Press Editorial staff will select the award winner of the poetry awards. Trio House Press editors select all winners of the Aurora Polaris Award.

Your submission acknowledges that you understand and agree to all guidelines.