About the Prize
The winner of The Headlight Review’s 2026 Poetry Chapbook Prize Contest will receive publication (a perfectly bound book with a full color or black/white cover), an award of $500, and 25 copies of the book.
Submission Period
January 1 - March 31, 2026
A list of finalists will be announced in May. All manuscripts will be judged anonymously. The finalists who make it through the first round will be judged by Alafia Nichole Sessions.
The winning manuscript will be published within six months after the results of the competition are announced in June of 2026. Finalist will have poems featured in an upcoming issue of The Headlight Review.
Guidelines
Eligibility: Employees and students at Kennesaw State University, both former and current, are not eligible to enter. Entrants must be at least 18 years of age or older.
Electronic submissions: The $18 entry fee is payable by debit/credit card via Submittable, which you may find at the “Submit Your Manuscript” button at the bottom of this page.
For $25 you can submit your manuscript and receive copies of the 3 previous winners.
Manuscript Submission Details
Size: Manuscripts must be between 24-36 pages, including cover page, table of contents and any acknowledgements.
- Format: 12 pt. standard typeface, PDF only.
- Title page should include the title of the manuscript and nothing else. No identifying name or address is permitted in the manuscript.
- Poems that have been published elsewhere must be acknowledged. Overall, the manuscript should be original and previously unpublished.
- Multiple submissions are acceptable. Each submission requires a separate entry fee.
- Simultaneous submissions are acceptable. Please inform us immediately upon acceptance elsewhere. Entry fees are nonrefundable.
- Language: Entries must be written in the English language.
- Illustrations are welcome.
- Translations are ineligible.
- Comments will not be provided to non-winning entrants.
- Editing will not be permitted once submitted.
Kennesaw State’s MA in Professional Writing Program (MAPW) endorses and abides by the Ethical Guidelines of the Council of Literary Magazines and Presses (CLMP). Our system for judging is transparent and blind. The first-round judges will receive and rate their choices in order, and this will create a list of finalists. The manuscript finalists will go to the finalist judge, who will then select the best among the finalists.
Guest Judge
Alafia Nicole Sessions is a black poet, writer, and mother living in Atlanta. She currently works as an educator, actress, herbalist and birthworker. Her poetry has been published or is forthcoming in POETRY, Obsidian, Ploughshares, Poem-a-Day, Beloit Poetry Journal, Cincinnati Review, Ecopoetry Anthology, Southern Humanities Review, Indiana Review, Los Angeles Review, Poetry Daily, and elsewhere.
Alafia is the recipient of awards and fellowships from Cave Canem, Yaddo, The Watering Hole, Sustainable Arts Foundation, Georgia Writers Association, Barbara Deming Memorial Fund and Oak Spring Garden Foundation. She was selected by Evie Shockley as the winner of the 2023 Furious Flower Prize. Alafia was nominated for a Pushcart Prize and thrice nominated for Best New Poets. She also received the Howard Moss Residency in Poetry. Her debut manuscript, Nine Drops of Turpentine, was selected as a finalist for the 2025 Agnes Lynch Starrett Poetry Prize and a semi-finalist for Persea Books’ Lexi Rudnitsky Poetry Prize.
The Headlight Review: Special Double Issue on "New Southern Writing"
As new forms of Southern writing continue to emerge, The Headlight Review seeks to shine a spotlight on the literary South and what it means to be a Southern writer today in a special double issue of the review to be published in 2026.
This double issue invites work that attempts to answer or even challenge that question and explore the shape that Southern writing takes. We seek pieces that are nuanced, complex, and rich in tradition, showing meaningful relationships to the South not just as a static backdrop but as an important theme or subject holding weight, memory, and meaning.
From the Gothic South to stories of the Southern person, we welcome the full spectrum of Southern writers who explore the South through the eyes of those who call it home, those who have left, and those who are remaking it. Through this issue, we aim to reflect, challenge, and expand the definitions of Southern writing and identity with work that captures the evolving landscapes, voices, and experiences of the South.
Fiction Guidelines:
In fiction, the South might find expression in a place, an identity, a character, or a conflict. Stories might be set in the region or feature characters from the South who find themselves elsewhere. Writers might also consider a particularly Southern aesthetic or engagement with Southern traditions, history, and/or renaissance. We are open to short fiction, flash-fiction, and experimental fiction in all styles.
General Guidelines
The Headlight Review is deeply committed to diversity, inclusion, and equity amongst the staff and its contributors. We value varying editorial experience levels and consider aspects of identity, including race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, national origin, veteran status, or disability status, a pivotal part of artistic work. We encourage submissions from marginalized and underrepresented communities and perspectives, including emergent creators of color and those from the LGBTQIA+ community.
Please submit your manuscript with a short (1-3 sentences), third-person bio. For all submissions, please ensure that you do not include your name or other identifying information on your submission attachment. We reserve First North American electronic serial rights only; all rights revert back to the author upon publication. We ask that any reprints include the acknowledgment of first publication in The Headlight Review. THR does not offer compensation for regular publication.
Current students and recent graduates of Kennesaw State University, contest judges, and masthead members are not eligible to submit. KSU graduates become eligible to submit once 2 years have passed since graduation.
Submissions for this special issue are open until Summer/Fall of 2026. The Headlight Review staff reads for our Fall/Winter issue in August – November and the Spring/Summer edition in February – May of each year. Please expect responses to occur within those reading windows.
Simultaneous submissions are accepted when noted in your cover letter.
Thank you for your interest in The Headlight Review!
The Headlight Review: Special Double Issue on "New Southern Writing"
As new forms of Southern writing continue to emerge, The Headlight Review seeks to shine a spotlight on the literary South and what it means to be a Southern writer today in a special double issue of the review to be published in 2026.
This double issue invites work that attempts to answer or even challenge that question and explore the shape that Southern writing takes. We seek pieces that are nuanced, complex, and rich in tradition, showing meaningful relationships to the South not just as a static backdrop but as an important theme or subject holding weight, memory, and meaning.
From the Gothic South to stories of the Southern person, we welcome the full spectrum of Southern writers who explore the South through the eyes of those who call it home, those who have left, and those who are remaking it. Through this issue, we aim to reflect, challenge, and expand the definitions of Southern writing and identity with work that captures the evolving landscapes, voices, and experiences of the South.
Creative Nonfiction Guidelines
We welcome literary nonfiction stories, memoirs, and essays reflecting on the South that have a distinctive personal voice, attentiveness to language, rich details, and lyrical phrasing. We want to read a story that introduces us to a fresh perspective. We do not publish political rhetoric or academic essays.
Writers might consider some of the following themes:
- The South: Then & Now
- The New South
- Southern Aesthetics
- Who is a Southerner?
- The Urban South
- The Gothic South
- The Southern Exile
- The Postmodern South
- Migration
- Inclusivity
- Nature and Environment
- Southern Tradition
- Religion & the South
Please send one story or essay per submission. Manuscripts should be no longer than 5,000 words, double-spaced, and in standard MLA manuscript format. All genres are welcome.
General Guidelines
The Headlight Review is deeply committed to diversity, inclusion, and equity amongst the staff and its contributors. We value varying editorial experience levels and consider aspects of identity, including race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, national origin, veteran status, or disability status, a pivotal part of artistic work. We encourage submissions from marginalized and underrepresented communities and perspectives, including emergent creators of color and those from the LGBTQIA+ community.
Please submit your manuscript with a short (1-3 sentences), third-person bio. For all submissions, please ensure that you do not include your name or other identifying information on your submission attachment. We reserve First North American electronic serial rights only; all rights revert back to the author upon publication. We ask that any reprints include the acknowledgment of first publication in The Headlight Review. THR does not offer compensation for regular publication.
Current students and recent graduates of Kennesaw State University, contest judges, and masthead members are not eligible to submit. KSU graduates become eligible to submit once 2 years have passed since graduation.
Submissions for this special issue are open until Summer/Fall of 2026. The Headlight Review staff reads for our Fall/Winter issue in August – November and the Spring/Summer edition in February – May of each year. Please expect responses to occur within those reading windows.
Simultaneous submissions are accepted when noted in your cover letter.
Thank you for your interest in The Headlight Review!
The Headlight Review: Special Double Issue on "New Southern Writing"
As new forms of Southern writing continue to emerge, The Headlight Review seeks to shine a spotlight on the literary South and what it means to be a Southern writer today in a special double issue of the review to be published in 2026.
This double issue invites work that attempts to answer or even challenge that question and explore the shape that Southern writing takes. We seek pieces that are nuanced, complex, and rich in tradition, showing meaningful relationships to the South not just as a static backdrop but as an important theme or subject holding weight, memory, and meaning.
From the Gothic South to stories of the Southern person, we welcome the full spectrum of Southern writers who explore the South through the eyes of those who call it home, those who have left, and those who are remaking it. Through this issue, we aim to reflect, challenge, and expand the definitions of Southern writing and identity with work that captures the evolving landscapes, voices, and experiences of the South.
Poetry Guidelines
Our journal prefers work that pushes the envelope conceptually, technically, or visually, challenges our perspectives, and meets us at the intersections of genres, artistic disciplines, and modes of thought. From subtle to paradoxical, we want to publish work that captures and reimagines the world in moving ways. We are open to traditional and contemporary forms.
Please send only three poems maximum per submission, formatted however the poem needs to be formatted to achieve the effect you desire. We’ll do our best to reproduce it, or we will work with you to readjust the format for our platform. All genres are welcome.
General Guidelines
The Headlight Review is deeply committed to diversity, inclusion, and equity amongst the staff and its contributors. We value varying editorial experience levels and consider aspects of identity, including race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, national origin, veteran status, or disability status, a pivotal part of artistic work. We encourage submissions from marginalized and underrepresented communities and perspectives, including emergent creators of color and those from the LGBTQIA+ community.
Please submit your manuscript with a short (1-3 sentences), third-person bio. For all submissions, please ensure that you do not include your name or other identifying information on your submission attachment. We reserve First North American electronic serial rights only; all rights revert back to the author upon publication. We ask that any reprints include the acknowledgment of first publication in The Headlight Review. THR does not offer compensation for regular publication.
Current students and recent graduates of Kennesaw State University, contest judges, and masthead members are not eligible to submit. KSU graduates become eligible to submit once 2 years have passed since graduation.
Submissions for this special issue are open until Summer/Fall of 2026. The Headlight Review staff reads for our Fall/Winter issue in August – November and the Spring/Summer edition in February – May of each year. Please expect responses to occur within those reading windows.
Simultaneous submissions are accepted when noted in your cover letter.
Thank you for your interest in The Headlight Review!
The Headlight Review: Special Double Issue on "New Southern Writing"
As new forms of Southern writing continue to emerge, The Headlight Review seeks to shine a spotlight on the literary South and what it means to be a Southern writer today in a special double issue of the review to be published in 2026.
This double issue invites work that attempts to answer or even challenge that question and explore the shape that Southern writing takes. We seek pieces that are nuanced, complex, and rich in tradition, showing meaningful relationships to the South not just as a static backdrop but as an important theme or subject holding weight, memory, and meaning.
From the Gothic South to stories of the Southern person, we welcome the full spectrum of Southern writers who explore the South through the eyes of those who call it home, those who have left, and those who are remaking it. Through this issue, we aim to reflect, challenge, and expand the definitions of Southern writing and identity with work that captures the evolving landscapes, voices, and experiences of the South.
Visual Art Guidelines
We’re looking for artwork that tells a story of the South and its people in emotional texture and character. We accept up to 6 images of photography, comics, digital artwork, or scanned images of traditional artwork such as paintings, drawings, or sketches.
Submissions must have a minimum of 300 dpi resolution, regardless of format. Three-dimensional artwork requires a minimum of two photos taken from different angles, taken in front of a neutral background (black, white, or gray preferred).
Artwork must include the name of the artist, an artist's statement, as well as the title, the medium, the size of the work, and the year created to be considered. Please title your file names with the title of the work or "Untitled 1," "Untitled 2," and so on, if untitled.
General Guidelines
The Headlight Review is deeply committed to diversity, inclusion, and equity amongst the staff and its contributors. We value varying editorial experience levels and consider aspects of identity, including race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, national origin, veteran status, or disability status, a pivotal part of artistic work. We encourage submissions from marginalized and underrepresented communities and perspectives, including emergent creators of color and those from the LGBTQIA+ community.
Please submit your manuscript with a short (1-3 sentences), third-person bio. For all submissions, please ensure that you do not include your name or other identifying information on your submission attachment. We reserve First North American electronic serial rights only; all rights revert back to the author upon publication. We ask that any reprints include the acknowledgment of first publication in The Headlight Review. THR does not offer compensation for regular publication.
Current students and recent graduates of Kennesaw State University, contest judges, and masthead members are not eligible to submit. KSU graduates become eligible to submit once 2 years have passed since graduation.
Submissions for this special issue are open until Summer/Fall of 2026. The Headlight Review staff reads for our Fall/Winter issue in August – November and the Spring/Summer edition in February – May of each year. Please expect responses to occur within those reading windows.
Simultaneous submissions are accepted when noted in your cover letter.
Thank you for your interest in The Headlight Review!