The 2026 Bougainvillea Poetry Prize
The 2026 Bougainvillea Poetry Prize
FlowerSong Press invites submissions for the 2026 Bougainvillea Poetry Prize. This annual award honors a full-length poetry collection that engages with the realities of working-class life—poverty, labor, financial insecurity, inequity, and precarity.
We seek manuscripts that illuminate, document, or advocate for the lives of working people. We especially encourage submissions from writers of working-class backgrounds. BIPOC and LGBTQ+ poets are strongly encouraged to submit. All styles and forms are welcome.
The prize honors the memory of Irma (1939–2010) and Alfonso Gomez (1938–2021) of Brownsville, Texas, Mexican-Americans who raised seven children while working in such jobs as cashier, ice worker, homemaker, truck driver, migrant farmworker, painter, and custodian, among many others.
Prize: $500, publication by FlowerSong Press (2027), 10 author copies, and promotion
Entry Fee: $15 per manuscript
Deadline: June 30, 2026 (11:59 PM CST)
Guidelines:
Submit a full-length poetry manuscript (60–120 pages)
Manuscript must be unpublished as a whole (individual poems may have been published)
Work should be primarily in English (other languages may be incorporated)
PDF submissions only
Black-and-white images only, with full rights
Simultaneous submissions allowed (notify us if accepted elsewhere)
Multiple submissions allowed (each requires a separate fee)
No translated manuscripts
Selection Process:
Manuscripts are read by the editorial staff of FlowerSong Press. A small group of semifinalists will be selected, from which finalists and a winner will be chosen. Finalists will be announced prior to the winner.
IF SUBMITTING BY EMAIL, SEND TO EDITOR@FLOWERSONGPRESS.COM
WE WILL GIVE YOU OPTIONS TO PAY THE $15 FEE