Category Archives: Contest

Any contests Accents Publishing runs, whether it’s to publish new chapbooks or book giveaways.

James Baker Hall Book Award for Creative Nonfiction

Accents Publishing is pleased to continue the partnership with the James Baker Hall Foundation for the prestigious yearly James Baker Hall Book Award. The 2026 edition of the award will honor an unpublished, book-length manuscript of Creative Nonfiction by a Kentucky author at any stage of their career. Creative Nonfiction may include memoir, personal essays, biography, travel writing, and other forms grounded in factual storytelling.

We define Kentucky author as someone who lives in Kentucky, has lived in Kentucky, has strong ties to Kentucky or whose work features a prominent Kentucky theme. The author of the winning manuscript will receive a $3000 award and the manuscript will be published the following year by Accent Publishing, with the standard Accents Publishing contract.

The winner of the inaugural James Baker Hall Award was Wesley Houp for his poetry book, Strung Out Along the Endless Branch, which was selected by Greg Pape.

The 2026 award went to the short story collection Honeysuckle Season by Willie Davis, selected by Toni Ann Johnson.

Fees: None. There is no submission fee.

Eligibility: Writers 18 or older. Current students of the judge, as well as personal friends and family may not submit.

Manuscript preparation: The submitted manuscript must be anonymous. The author’s name should not appear anywhere in the text.

Deadline: Manuscripts can be submitted between April 1st and June 30th. Winner and finalists will be announced in the Fall.

Award: $3000 plus publication with the standard Accents Publishing contract.

Submission: Only electronic submissions will be considered. Email your anonymous manuscript to accents.publishing@gmail.com. Include a brief bio in the body of the email.

Judging: Kentucky Writers Hall of Fame inductee Richard Taylor will be the final judge.

Results from 2023 Local Accents Contest

Dear Poets,

First, thank you to everyone who submitted poems to the 2023 Local Accent Contest.

Second, please accept our deepest apologies for taking us three extra months to announce the results.

Third, to say that it was difficult to decide on a winner and finalists would be an understatement. Amazing poems landed in the Accents’ inbox and we delighted in the talent and craft of the work we considered.

We’re happy with our choices and thrilled to announce that Lexington-based poet Renee Rigdon‘s poem “Thoughts &” won the Local Accent Contest.

The finalists, in alphabetical order by last name:

“On Burning the Hijab” by Sylvia Ahrens
“Jones Women” by Libby Falk Jones
“clean (n.)” by Jay McCoy
“The Lie” by Leslie Moise
“Broken Ghazal for a Yet-Unbroken Porch Lamp, Purchased Fall 2019” by Jason McKinley Williams
“Will Heaven Heal My Broken Heart or Do They Just Administer Local Anesthesia?” by Mike Wilson

Watch our blog and YouTube for an interview with Renee and for a post with the winning poem!

Yours,

Katerina

2023 Local Accent Poetry Contest

Local Accent Poetry Contest

Prize

The winner will receive $150.00. The winning poem will be published on the Accents Publishing Blog and the author will be interviewed on the Accents YouTube channel. A list of the finalists may be posted and celebrated, as well.

Eligibility

Kentucky residents and those with strong ties to the state are welcome to submit.

Price for participation

None.

How to submit

Email one unpublished poem of any length or style along with a bio of fifty words to accents.publishing@gmail.com. Note that only the winner and the finalists will be contacted about the results.

Deadline

Poems must be received by the 30th of April, the end of National Poetry Month.

Judging and results

Judging will be performed by the Accents Publishing staff and the results will be announced in May.

Results from the Inaugural Local Accent Poetry Contest

Accents Publishing is happy to share that the winning poem is “American Politeness” by Lennie Hay

Finalists:

“Downloadable Caffeine” by Tom C. Hunley

“Honeymoon” by Marianne Peel

“crematorium” by Claudia Love Mair

“Two Days After Returning Home from Teaching Poetry and Literature for Five Weeks in Istanbul” by Libby Falk Jones

Lennie Hay will be interviewed for the Accents Publishing Youtube channel on June 7th and her poem will be posted at that time.

Additionally, a celebratory reading of all participants is forthcoming, as well. Stay tuned!

Announcing the Inaugural Local Accent Poetry Contest

Announcing the Inaugural Local Accent Poetry Contest

Prize

The winner will receive $100.00. The winning poem will be published on the Accents Publishing Blog and the author will be interviewed on the Accents YouTube channel. A list of the finalists may be posted and celebrated, as well.

Eligibility

Kentucky residents and those with strong ties to the state are welcome to submit.

Price for participation

None.

How to submit

Email one unpublished poem of any length or style along with a bio of fifty words to accents.publishing@gmail.com. Note that only the winner and the finalists will be contacted about the results.

Deadline

Poems must be received by the 30th of April, the end of National Poetry Month.

Judging and results

Judging will be performed by the Accents Publishing staff and the results will be announced in May.

Updates and Announcements from Accents Publishing

Dear Friends and Fans of Accents Publishing,

Happy Spring! In Kentucky we’re starting to see new leaves on trees. We spent a busy and productive winter and can’t wait to tell you about our latest accomplishments, opportunities and announcements. Please, read on.

 

New Book

Novella Contest Results

Literary Accents Update

Poetry Class and Manuscript Analysis Workshop

 

New Book

We’re very excited to present Christopher McCurry’s first full-length poetry collection, Open Burning.  It’s a gorgeous hardcover volume, and the poems detail the fallout of a young couple’s divorce. Click on the title to read a sample poem and to learn more about the book and the author. To browse our catalog, please click here.

 

Novella Contest Results

Accents Publishing is proud to announce the results of its Inaugural Novella Competition!

The winning novella is Homegoing, by Toni Ann Johnson!

Toni Ann Johnson will receive the $500.00 award and publication of her manuscript in a separate book volume. Those who have purchased in advance a copy of the winning novella will receive it as soon as the book is out.

We read many wonderful submissions and selected the following manuscripts as finalists:

Under the Seal, by Carol Mauriello

A Hollow, Muscular Organ, by Meg Files

Cheeseburgers, by Dean Crawford

City of Foam, by Ryan Slater

Moonlit Landing, by Ari McKenna

Things Are Not So Ill as They Might Have Been, by Scott Winokur

Accents Publishing is offering publication to the first three of these finalists.

Tremendous gratitude to everyone who sent manuscripts for consideration. We appreciate your trust and support. Please keep in touch. We hope to read your work again in the future.

 

Literary Accents Call for submissions

We’re still finishing up Issue #3 of Literary Accents. We hope to be able to send it to the printer within weeks.

We’re still reading submissions for Issue #4. The theme of Issue #4 is “breakup and heartbreak”. Send 3 – 5 poems to accents.publishing@gmail.com by April 30th. We look forward to reading your work.

 

Poetry Class

Katerina Stoykova (Owner and Senior Editor of Accents Publishing) is seeking eight to ten committed poets for a fast-paced six-week writing class in person or online. In each session, the poets will workshop a poem, then listen to a craft lecture and/or participate in a writing exercise. March 26th to April 23rd. Thursdays, 6 – 8 pm at The Pam Miller Downtown Arts Center. Price for the six-week class: $120. To reserve your space in the class, write to accents.publishing@gmail.com. Deadline to apply: March 16th

 

Manuscript Analysis Workshop and a Poetry Class

Looking for 4 – 5 poets with nearly-ready book-length manuscripts for a weekend-long manuscript analysis workshop lead by Katerina Stoykova (Owner and Senior Editor of Accents). You can participate in person or remotely via Skype. Price: $250. For more information or to reserve your spot, please write to accents.publishing@gmail.com. Exact dates TBD based on participant availability.  Deadline to apply: March 31st

 

Thank you, everyone, for reading to the very end of this email. We appreciate you! Best wishes from the team at Accents Publishing.