Writers Encouraged To Apply For The Paz Prize For Poetry

The National Poetry Series and The Center @ Miami Dade College have established the Paz Prize for Poetry, recognizing a previously unpublished book of poetry.

The prize will recognize book-length manuscripts of poetry written in Spanish by an American resident.

Puerto Rican poet Victor Hernandez Cruz will serve as the first judge. Joining him on the advisory board for the prize are Julia Alvarez, Sandra Cisneros, Cristina Garcia, Campbell McGrath, Pablo Medina, Gary Soto, Ilan Stavans, and Luisa Valenzuela.

The winning book will be published in a bilingual edition by Akashic Press, and its author will receive a $500 cash prize.

The 2012 submission period for the inaugural Paz Prize for Poetry will be May 1 through June 15.

Finalists for the award will be notified in late July, and the winner will be announced in September. The first winner will be published in October 2013.

For more information and to see guidelines for submission, visit www.nationalpoetryseries.org