We are pleased to announce that Sean Sutherland has been awarded the Five Points 2025–2026 James Dickey Prize for Poetry. His work will be published in Vol. 24, no. 2, and he will receive $1000.
Sean Sutherland has had poems published in the literary magazines: Atlanta Review, The Florida Review, The Sandhills Literary magazine, Hypertext, The Sky Island Journal, among other journals, along with the 30th anniversary anthology; The Writers Studio at 30, and The Maine Review, for which he won honorable mention for their poetry prize in 2015. He was nominated for a Pushcart by the literary magazine Sleet in 2019. He was also nominated for a 2023 Pushcart Prize by its panel of guest editors. Two of his poems were selected for an anthology titled, Poetry for the Actor- A Guide to Deeper Truth. Sean is a MacDowell Colony Fellow and would like to find more time for camping in a tent!
Each year we select a poet to receive The James Dickey Prize for Poetry. The award is named in honor of James Dickey, who we are proud to say served on our Advisory Board. Dickey inspired and nurtured many poets, and we offer the award in his spirit. The contest winner receives $1,000, and the winning poems are published in an issue of Five Points.
Submissions are accepted electronically via Submittable. We do not accept manuscripts for consideration sent via the post office or special carrier. Please visit our Submittable site for guidelines and reading period dates:
TO ENTER:
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- Send three previously unpublished poems no more than fifty lines each.
- Make sure your file is in ONE of the following formats:
- .PDF (Adobe Acrobat)
- .DOC or .DOCX (Microsoft Word)
- Entry fee includes a one-year subscription
- The winner will be announced on the Five Points website.
PREVIOUS WINNERS OF THE JAMES DICKEY PRIZE FOR POETRY INCLUDE:
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- Susan Ludvigson
- Benjamin Busch
- Kevin Cantwell
- Andrea Carter Brown
- Lucas Howell
- Susan Wood
- Christopher Buckley
- Debra Nystrom
- Richard Tillinghast
- Anne Marie Macari
- Robert Wrigley
- Ann Townsend
- Barbara Hamby
- Kim Addonizio
- Kate Daniels
- A.E. Stallings
- David Kirby
- Michael McFee