Passager is a nonprofit journal and book press that publishes authors over 50. We want to bring attention to older writers and to encourage imagination throughout our lives.
Thank you for submitting!
2019 Submission Guidelines
Deadline Extended: January 15, 2020
Judge: David Keplinger
Prize: $3,000
Applicant must be a U.S. Resident.
Applicant must be a living poet, age 70 or older, who has neither published, nor committed to publish a book-length collection of poems (30 poems or more) with a registered ISBN, either in the United States or abroad.
What counts as an ELIGIBLE manuscript:
– If some of the poems have appeared in a chapbook, of 25 poems or less, it is eligible.
– If the poems have been printed by a vanity press and given to family and friends, it is eligible.
What counts as an INELIGIBLE manuscript:
– If a book has been for sale at any venue.
– If a book has been self-published and sold on the internet (Amazon, for ex. or an author’s website).
Manuscript must be of original poetry, in English, by one poet. There are no restrictions on the style of poetry or subject matter. No translations.
Individual poems may have been previously published in journals or on the web.
Only one manuscript may be submitted per applicant.
Poets are not eligible to apply if they have studied poetry with the judge within the last three years.
Manuscript must be between 30 and 40 poems, typed single-spaced (unless the poems are meant to be presented using non-standard spacing). Multiple poems may not appear on a single page.
Manuscript must be paginated and contain a Table of Contents.
Online and hard copy submissions are accepted.
Online manuscripts must be .pdf files.
The entry fee is $25.
To assure anonymity:
The manuscript itself should not contain any information that would reveal the identity of its author. All contact information will be entered separately using the Submittable form. An acknowledgements page may be included.
Please do not include: explanatory statements, autobiographical statements, photographs, illustrations, or artwork.
Online applicants may verify the receipt of their manuscript by logging into Submittable. Passager assumes no responsibility for manuscripts not received due to user error.
Applicants may submit manuscripts elsewhere simultaneously but must notify Passager immediately if a manuscript is accepted for publication by another publisher.
Passager cannot consider manuscript revisions during the course of the contest. The winning poet will have an opportunity to revise before publication.
All applicants will be notified of the award results by email by March 1, 2020.
Passager will publish the winning manuscript in a paperback edition within one year of the judge’s decision.
All correspondence concerning the contest should be addressed to Passager, 7401 Park Heights Ave. Baltimore, MD 21208. Or email: editors@passagerbooks.com