Established in 1998, in honor of the poet Benjamin Saltman (1927–1999), this award is for a previously unpublished (including self-published works) original collection of poetry. Awarded collection is selected through an annual competition which is open to all poets. 

This year’s final judge will be Brenda Cárdenas.

Deadline: October 31, 2025.
 

Award is $3,000 and publication of the awarded manuscript by Red Hen Press. 

Entry fee is $25.00. 48 page minimum, 96 page maximum. (sized on 8.5"x11" sheet, 1" margin, 12 pt. Times New Roman)

The award is open to all writers with the following exceptions:
 

1. Authors who have had a full-length work published by Red Hen Press, or a full-length work currently under consideration by Red Hen Press;
2. Employees, interns, or contractors of Red Hen Press;
3. Relatives of employees or members of the executive board of directors;
4. Relatives or individuals having a personal or professional relationship with any of the final judges where they have taken any part whatsoever in shaping the manuscript, or where, for whatever reason, selecting a particular manuscript might have the appearance of impropriety.

Procedures and Ethical Considerations

To be certain that every manuscript finalist receives the fairest evaluation, all manuscripts shall be submitted to the judges without any identifying material. Bios, acknowledgments, and other identifying material shall be removed from judged manuscripts until the conclusion of the competition. 

Please remove all names, bios, acknowledgments, and other identifying material from the submitted manuscript, and include only your name and contact information in the cover letter field of Submittable. 

Red Hen Press is committed to maintaining the utmost integrity of our awards. Judges shall recuse themselves from considering any manuscript where they recognize the work. In the event of recusal, a manuscript score previously assigned by the managing editor of the press will be substituted.

Entries will be accepted via Submittable only.

Thank you for submitting your manuscript to Red Hen Press! We are honored to read your work.

Please carefully review the information below before submitting. Our editorial team thanks you for complying with the following formatting guidelines:

We ask that you include the following in one single PDF:

1. A brief cover letter, which should contain:

• The scope of the manuscript and genre
• The author’s background (including any related educational or work experience in the literary field)
• Prior publication history
• Why the work is a fit for Red Hen Press

2. A brief synopsis of the manuscript (“this happens, then this happens…”) of no more than two pages in length.

3. The manuscript. Writers may submit either the full manuscript or a sample of between 20 and 30 pages. Please keep in mind that full manuscripts take longer to review, but we do prefer them. When submitting your manuscript, please abide by the following formatting:

• Standard 12-pt. font (such as Times New Roman or Garamond)
• Page numbers
• Double spacing
• Include the word count on the first page

Thank you again for trusting us with your manuscript—we can’t wait to spend time with your writing!
 

FAQs

When will I hear back from your team?

Given the high volume of submissions we receive, please expect a response time of four to six months. We appreciate your patience. Phone calls will not speed up the process and are strongly discouraged. 

How do I know my book is “right” for Red Hen?

At Red Hen Press, we are passionate about publishing literature from an array of ambitious, inventive, and world-shaping authors who seek a broad audience for their narratives of change. We publish writers who reflect the world we live in and write authentic stories in their own voices. We pay attention to those who are unique and undiscovered and are always on the lookout for diamonds in the rough.

We have published everything from experimental poetry to darkly humorous fiction to spellbinding, cross-genre memoirs.

Some of our recent narratives include:

• Cursebreakers by Madeleine Nakamura (fiction): a thought-provoking exploration of curses and blessings all within the framework of a captivating fantasy world, centering on a queer professor living with bipolar disorder.
• Floppy: Tales of a Genetic Freak of Nature at the End of the World by Alyssa Graybeal (memoir): one of the first books to explore the emotional landscape of living with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome from a patient’s perspective; a playful story of falling down, getting back up again, and realizing you should have gone to the hospital sooner.
• The Good Deed by Helen Benedict (fiction): the stories of four women living in a Greek refugee camp and an American tourist who comes to Samos to escape her own dark secret.
• Sonnets for a Missing Key by Percival Everett (poetry): sonnets that leap and turn through philosophical musings accrued across a life well lived, with inventive language, crystalline imagery, and striking turns of phrase.
• Glorious Boy by Aimee Liu (fiction): a breathtaking historical fiction novel exploring cultural divides, family, motherhood, and sacrifice from an Andaman tribe in WWII; described as “the most memorable and original novel I’ve read in ages” by Pico Iyer.

We recommend reviewing our “Books” page to get a sense of our editorial history.

Do your submission windows close?

General submissions are accepted year-round on a rolling basis. Our literary awards are open for limited windows each year. For more information on our awards, please visit our website.

Are simultaneous submissions allowed?

Yes! We understand the length of the publishing process, so we welcome you to submit your manuscript to other venues while it is under our consideration. Please indicate if this is a simultaneous submission in your cover letter.

What if my manuscript is accepted elsewhere?

Congratulations! Please manually withdraw your submission as soon as you can to ensure it does not remain under consideration (and feel free to let us know you’ve signed with another publisher—we’ll cheer you on!).

Can I submit more than one manuscript at once?

We ask that you submit one manuscript per genre at a time. However, since the judges and reading panels differ, you may submit a manuscript to an award(s) while it is under consideration in our general submissions.

Do you accept translations?

Yes! Before submitting, translators must ensure they have the full permission to translate.

Can I have song lyrics in my manuscript?

Most song lyrics are under copyright, so unless you have explicit, written permission from the artist to include them, lyrics should be paraphrased or removed.

Do you accept previously published or self-published manuscripts?

With rare exceptions, we do not accept work that has been previously published in full in print or online. Individual short stories, poems, or essays within collections that have been published independently in literary journals are encouraged!

I’ve changed my manuscript since it was submitted, and want to resubmit a newer version. Do I have to make a new submission?

If you are submitting an updated manuscript that has been significantly altered or revised, we ask that you withdraw and resubmit a new entry. However, if you submitted the wrong document or realize a significant error with your submission, you may utilize the “message” feature to provide a new manuscript attachment for up to 14 days following your initial submission.