Winners of the 2026 SFPA Poetry Contest Announced

In the Dwarf Form category, which includes poems of 10 lines or fewer, the winner is Michael Bailey for his poem “Unauthorized Territory.” F. J. Bergmann secured second place with “Communication Is Important,” while Anna Cates took third place for her poem “Untitled.” Joy Donnell received an honorable mention for “Disillusioned Tribute.”

For the Short Form category (10 to 50 lines), Hinse Mutter's poem “The Wind Always Returns” won first place. F. J. Bergmann again placed, this time second, with “The Museum of Anomalous Objects.” Joy Donnell earned third place with “Last Lowcountry Haunt,” and Colleen Anderson received an honorable mention for “Cataloguing Lost Souls.”

In the Long Form category (50 lines or more), Izzy Toy Retke won with “The Abyss Between One and Two.” M. Frost's poem “At the Cosmic Gallery Above Proxima Centauri b: After Dreamworld” placed second, while F. J. Bergmann was awarded third place for “A Backdrop of Black Velvet and Rhinestones.” Kathleen Bryson received an honorable mention for “Ten Ways to End the World.”

The results were shared on the SFPA website along with insights from contest judge Naomi Simone Borwein. Michael Hessel-Mial served as contest chair. The SFPA Contest is open to unpublished poems from both members and non-members, with a submission fee of $3 per poem. Cash prizes include $150 for first place, $75 for second, and $25 for third. More information can be found on the SFPA Contests page.