The Alice James Poetry Cooperative currently accepts submissions only through its two annual competitions: The Kinereth Gensler Awards (formerly The New England / New York Competition) and the Beatrice Hawley Award.

Alice James also partners with Kundiman, a nonprofit organization devoted to the promotion and preservation of Asian American poetry, to publish books chosen from the annual Kundiman Poetry Prize. For submission guidelines and information, please visit Kundiman.

The winners of the Kinereth Gensler Awards become active members of Alice James Books when their manuscripts are selected for publication. Authors agree to a three-year commitment, during which they judge competitions, participate in the editorial and executive decisions of the press, and participate in many aspects of book production. The process ensures that poets have a great deal of input into the final appearance of their finished books, as well as an integral post-publication role.

The Beatrice Hawley Award was established by the press in 1986 to honor the much-beloved cooperative member (Making the House Fall Down, 1977, Alice James Books) who died in 1985 at forty-one years of age from lung cancer. The Award is a nationally-offered publication prize open to poets at any stage of their careers. The winning poet does not become an active member, but has his or her book published by the cooperative and receives a cash prize of $2,000.

In 1997 Alice James Books offered the first Jane Kenyon Chapbook Award, established to honor and remember poet and cooperative member Jane Kenyon. The third and final Jane Kenyon Award winner was selected in 2001.

Winners for the Kinereth Gensler Awards are announced in December. The winner for the Beatrice Hawley Award is announced in April. Please follow the links below for more information and complete guidelines.