Black Lawrence Press conducts the Black River Chapbook Competition twice annually, an established institutional pathway for short manuscripts seeking print publication. This call is specifically for poetry; prose manuscripts must be submitted through the separate prose category, though prose poems and poetry/prose hybrid projects may be entered under either category at the writer's discretion. The competition accepts unpublished chapbooks of poems between 16 and 36 pages in length and is open to new, emerging, and established writers alike. The winner receives book publication, a $500 cash award, and ten copies of the book, with prizes awarded on publication. The press's editorial panel reads all entries without identifying information, a commitment to evaluating the manuscript on its own terms rather than on the writer's reputation or prior credits. This blind reading protocol places the burden of coherence and distinction squarely on the work itself. Manuscripts should include a title page listing only the title of the work, a table of contents if applicable, and, when appropriate, an acknowledgments page. Pages must be paginated and set in an easy-to-read font such as Garamond or Times. The submission fee is $20.00 USD, and the deadline is November 2, 2026. The competition's structure—anonymized judging, a defined page range, and publication as the principal reward—signals a curatorial interest in compact, carefully ordered sequences rather than sprawling collections.