The Peseroff Prize Poetry Contest

 

• Submissions window: March 1—May 1

• Prize: $1000 and publication in our next forthcoming issue

• Fee: $10

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“Whenever something new develops in poetry, many will argue, ‘That’s not poetry.’ Think of the reception of William Carlos Williams . . . spoken word poets, poets who incorporate graphics, poets who write in code so robots can read them. It’s all poetry.” –Joyce Peseroff

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The Peseroff Prize honors Joyce Peseroff’s work as a poet, teacher, editor, innovator, and mentor. She helped found the MFA Program in Creative Writing at the University of Massachusetts Boston, served as its first director, and retired from teaching in 2014.

 

Submit up to three poems and a $10 entry fee. There are no restrictions on content or form: “it’s all poetry.” Poems should be previously unpublished. All entries will be considered for publication. We accept simultaneous submissions, but please notify Breakwater if submission is accepted elsewhere. 

 

2022 FINALIST JUDGE: torrin a. greathouse

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Winner and Finalists will be published in our next forthcoming issue.

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Please do not submit your work if you are associated with the MFA program at the University of Massachusetts, Boston or the Finalist Judge.

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The Breakwater Fiction Contest

 

• Submissions: October 1, 2022 - December 1, 2022

• Prize: $1000 and publication in our next forthcoming issue

• Fee: $10

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We are seeking submissions for pieces that breathe freshness to the form. We are interested in previously unpublished prose ranging from 1,000 - 4,000 words, each with a $10 entry fee. All entries will be considered for publication. We accept simultaneous submissions, but please notify Breakwater if submission is accepted elsewhere.​

 

2023 FINALIST JUDGE: Camille Bordas

 

Winner and Finalists will be published in Issue 33.

 

Please do not submit your work if you are associated with the MFA program at the University of Massachusetts, Boston or the Finalist Judge.