Since its founding in 1983, the Phoenix Poets series has published contemporary poets with a keen awareness of the history and possibilities of poetry. Books in the series have won major accolades, including the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Critics Circle Award, the National Book Award, the Rome Prize in Literature, the William Carlos Williams Award, and the Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize. In 2021, poet and literary scholar Srikanth Reddy was appointed the new editor of the series, along with three consulting editors: poets Rosa Alcalá, Douglas Kearney, and Katie Peterson. Under its new editorship, the series continues to build upon its distinguished history by embracing the literary energies of the present; expanding its audience to include a more diverse reading public; and promoting emerging literary voices nationally and globally. The series has also implemented an open submission process, inaugurated a book prize, and added poetry in translation to its scope. The first titles selected by this editorial body were published in 2023.

A significant new feature of the series is the annual Phoenix Emerging Poet Book Prize, which is awarded to an author for their first or second volume of poetry. Three more books will be published each year through the open submission process or by invitation, with one additional book of poetry in translation every second year.

The editors invite poets who extend the conceptual, formal, and affective dimensions of the art to submit their manuscripts during the series’ open reading period during the month of October. A link to the submission guidelines can be found on the right-hand side of this page (desktop) or below (mobile).