Poem-a-Day - Poems for Halloween, & More

The Academy of American Poets invites students living in the United States, U.S. Territories, or Tribal Nations, in grades nine through twelve to enter artwork to be considered for the 2022 National Poetry Month Poster Contest for Students. The winner will be selected by judges Rafael López, New York Times-bestselling illustrator and artist, and Nikki Grimes, New York Times-bestselling author and poet and recipient of the 2020 ALAN Award for outstanding contributions to young adult literature. 

One student’s winning artwork, which will incorporate “There is a poem in this place—” from Amanda Gorman’s poem, “In This Place (An American Lyric)”, will be featured on the official National Poetry Month poster in 2022. The Academy will distribute 100,000+ free copies of the poster to classrooms, libraries, bookstores, community centers, families, and individuals nationwide in time for the April celebration. The winning student will receive $1,000 in cash and prizes and be featured in American Poets magazine and on Poets.org, which reaches millions of readers each year. The judges will also select a runner-up to receive Honorable Mention and a $250 cash prize. 

Submissions are open now until November 15, 2021. The winner will be announced in January 2022.

For more information about the contest, including the full guidelines, visit: https://poets.org/national-poetry-month/national-poetry-month-poster-contest-students

Teen poets are invited to craft their own work and see it published in a chapbook that explores the theme of Afrofuturism in a free, virtual poetry workshop led by acclaimed author Sheree Reneé Thomas and hosted by Carnegie Hall. Register now through October 29. Afrofuturism and Afrofuturist speculative poetry centers Black culture, aesthetics, and ideas, creating works that speak from the margins and expand our world.

Young writers between the ages of fourteen–nineteen and residents of the US, can learn how to craft their own original works that explore the exciting themes of Afrofuturism. Over the course of three sessions, writers will learn how to read and perform their work and see it published in an original chapbook with other talented peers. In addition to workshop leader Sheree Renée Thomas, special guests will include some of the genre’s leading Afrofuturist poets like Linda D. Addison, Len Lawson, Gary Jackson, and Akua Lezli Hope.