2026 Rules, Guidelines, Prizes

Winning poems honor the theme, follow the guidelines, and speak from a place of authenticity. We are drawn to work that is intentional and imaginative—poems that breathe through personification, shimmer with alliteration, and unfold through figurative language, vivid imagery, and irony. Above all, we seek voices that approach their message with originality and insight, offering fresh, thought-provoking ways of seeing and saying what matters.

Theme

This year’s theme is “What We’re Carrying Now: We are seeking poems that center on personal loss, collective memory, survival, endurance, or the emotional weight of living in today’s social and political climate.

We are looking for writing that lingers and reminds us why poetry still matters. How have you been processing this moment in history? Bring us the weight you’ve been holding. Bring us the language that knows how to hold it.

This can look like a protest or a prayer, a memory or a breaking point, a quiet confession or a bold declaration.

Examples:

• Social/Political Climate (e.g., living through turbulent times)

• Identity & Selfhood (e.g., what it means to carry your identity, race, gender, culture, faith, in today’s world)

• Ancestry, Memory, Legacy (e.g., carrying the legacy of those who came before you, generational trauma/healing/strength)

• Survival & Resilience (e.g., small acts of survival, joy, rest, boundaries)

• Spiritual/Philosophical (e.g., Faith, purpose, or direction in uncertain times)

and so on…

How to Enter

• Subscribe to the mailing list here if you have not already.

• Read the rules and guidelines below.

• Submit your poem on or before 6/1/26.

• Email your Word Doc or PDF to yecheilyah@yecheilyahysrayl.com.

• To ensure you receive our response, set your spam filter to allow emails from yecheilyah@yecheilyahysrayl.com