THE ANNETTE ALLEN POETRY PRIZE HAS JOINED THE LOUISVILLE REVIEW!
SUBMISSIONS OPEN OCTOBER 1 THROUGH DECEMBER 31, 2026
First prize is $100 + publication of a previously unpublished poem in The Louisville Review. Two Finalists receive $50 each. All university and college students, both graduate and undergraduate, residing in the Louisville, Kentucky metro area are eligible, including students in Southern Indiana. Students from all disciplines are encouraged enter. We enthusiastically welcome entries from writers of all backgrounds, abilities, and identities, including minority, indigenous, and LGBTQ+ writers. We value poetry that draws on diverse perspectives, and we welcome poetry in a variety of registers, modes, and styles. Judge reads all submissions blind, and each poem is judged entirely on its own merit.
The Annette Allen Poetry Prize is funded through the generous support from family and friends of Annette Allen and alumni of the Humanities PhD Program at the University of Louisville. Accepting tax-deductible donations here:
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
• Open to all university and college students residing in the Louisville Metro area, graduate and undergraduate, in all departments and programs.
• One Winner receives a cash prize of $100 and publication of their winning poem in The Louisville Review.
• Two Finalists receives a cash prize of $50.
• Two Honorable Mentions will receive a copy of Allen’s poetry collection, The Cruel Radiance of What Is (2019).
• All awarded writers will read at the Annette Allen Poetry Prize Celebration Reading at the 54th Annual Louisville Conference on Literature and Culture at the University of Louisville, in February 20, 2027 (date TBD).
• Students may submit one manuscript containing 1-5 previously unpublished poems.
• Students from all disciplines are encouraged to write and submit poems—no prior poetry experience is required!
• Students are encouraged to submit poetry that engages the arts and/or humanities. Such poems might incorporate reflections on or, descriptions of, visual art, music, literature, ecology, environment, identity, gender, history, dance, myth, philosophical texts, etc.
• We enthusiastically welcome submissions from writers of all backgrounds, abilities, and identities, including minority, indigenous, and LGBTQ+ writers. We value poetry that draws on diverse perspectives, and we welcome poetry in a variety of registers, modes, and styles.
• Judge reads all submissions blind. Entries are evaluated solely on the quality of the work submitted.
• Notifications will be sent to all entrants at the beginning of the spring 2027 semester.
• All submissions thought Submittable only (Submittable is 100% free to use).
• We do not accept submissions containing any content generated by artificial intelligence (AI) tools. AI-generated or augmented manuscripts are ineligible.
THE ANNETTE ALLEN POETRY PRIZE
was established in 2021 in honor of the late Dr. Annette Allen. Allen was instrumental in founding the Humanities PhD Program at the University of Louisville in 2002 and was a beloved mentor who advised numerous graduate theses and dissertations in many fields, most notably in creative writing. A poet as well as an academic, Dr. Allen published widely in poetry anthologies and literary journals, including The Louisville Review, and authored three books of poems. Allen’s highly interdisciplinary poetry, which frequently engaged the arts and humanities, serves as inspiration for this award.
was established in 2021 in honor of the late Dr. Annette Allen. Allen was instrumental in founding the Humanities PhD Program at the University of Louisville in 2002 and was a beloved mentor who advised numerous graduate theses and dissertations in many fields, most notably in creative writing. A poet as well as an academic, Dr. Allen published widely in poetry anthologies and literary journals, including The Louisville Review, and authored three books of poems. Allen’s highly interdisciplinary poetry, which frequently engaged the arts and humanities, serves as inspiration for this award.
The Louisville Review has published a poem by the winning student writer in our pages and served as an organizing partner of the the Annette Allen Poetry Prize since it was established in 2021 by a committee of graduate students and alumni of the doctoral program in Humanities at the University of Louisville, Lynda Mercer, Flora K. Schildknecht, Robert Eric Shoemaker, and Diana Wilder.
The full adoption of the Annette Allen Poetry Prize by The Louisville Review ensures that the prize will continue annually. Institutional partners at The University of Louisville include The Louisville Conference on Literature and Culture, the Writing Center, and the Women’s Center.
Visit annetteallenpoetryprize.org to learn more about the history of the Annette Allen Poetry Prize, view photos from the readings, and read Allen’s poetry.
Reading at the 53rd Louisville Conference on Literature and culture, 2026
