Broadsides

"The Second Fallacy"

Poetry broadsides are single poems printed on one side of a sheet of paper, sometimes with artwork, sometimes not. I think of them as a cross between written work and artwork because they're usually beautiful and suitable for framing. It's not uncommon for a literary journal or press to publish a broadside from one of their publications, such as the broadside of "Good Bones," by Maggie Smith from her book book Weep Up published by Tupelo Press. It's not uncommon for broadsides to be signed by the poet, for example the letterpress limited-edition prints from the Hampden-Sydney Poetry Review Broadside Series and those offered by the Academy of American Poets.

You can make your own broadside. You can use plain paper if you wish. I like to use card stock or paper with a finish, such as linen. While broadsides can be larger, such as poster size, 8.5 x 11 and postcard are more common sizes. You can print them yourself or have them printed at an office store or local printer.  If you're looking for free artwork, trying searching for images in the public domain or the Creative Commons. Wikipedia has a list of public-domain image resources. And the Creative Commons (CC) has created a wonderful portal that will let you search various sites for CC images, e.g., Google, Wikimedia, and Flickr each have a Creative Commons component. Here is the CC portal: http://search.creativecommons.org/

If you're interested in broadside contests and publishers, I've listed some contests and publishers below. And for more information about poetry broadsides in general, see:

* Babcock Books: "What is a Broadside?"
* Kyle Schlesinger: "A Look At Some Contemporary Poetry Broadsides"
* Maureen E. Doallas: "Poetry Broadsides Roundup"

Broadside Contests

Heartwood Broadside Series Contest

• Prize: $500, plus 25 copies of a letterpress broadside of the poem
• Contest runs from Apr 1 -  Jun 1
• Entry fee: $15, includes a mailed copy of the winning broadside
• Submissions must be previously unpublished and can be one poem or flash prose piece (fiction or nonfiction) of 250 words or less
• Previously published work allowed: No
• Winner selected by July 1
• See website for complete details: http://www.heartwoodlitmag.com/contest/

Hit and Run Press Annual William Dickey Broadside Contest

• Prize: $1,000, plus the publication of a limited edition of letterpress broadsides
• Contest runs from Sep 1 -  Nov 31
• Entry Fee:  $10.  One entry per poet
• Poems must between 12-30 lines
• Previously published work allowed? Yes
• See website for complete details: http://www.mrbebop.com/annual-broadside-contest/

Littoral Press Poetry Prize

• Prize: 50 letterpress-printed broadsides of the winning poem
• Contest runs until Aug 12.
• Entry fee: $10 for the first poem, $5 for each additional poem
• Poems must be no more than 30 lines (This line count includes lines for stanza breaks.)
• Previously published work allowed? Yes
• Winner announced in September
• See website for complete details: http://littoralpress.com/web/current-events/

Omnidawn Publishing Single Poem Broadside Poetry Prize

• Prize: $1,000, plus 50 copies of a letterpress broadside of the poem, and publication in OmniVerse, Omnidawn Publishing's online journal.
• Contest runs from Aug 1 -  Oct 17
• Entry fee: $10 for the first poem, $5 for each additional poem
• Poems must be between 8 and 24 lines (This line count includes lines for stanza breaks.)
• Previously published work allowed? No
• Winner announced Apr 2017
• See website for complete details: http://www.omnidawn.com/contest/poetry-contests.htm#broadside-contest

Broadside Publishers

Broadsided Press selects poems to publish. See their website for submission guidelines.

Thrush Press selects poems to publish. See their website for submission guidelines.

Smokey Road Press will print your poem as a broadside. See their website for fees and other information.