In memory of that editor fella/publisher extraordinaire, Brian W. Fugett, The Brian Fugett Memorial Prize will be given annually for an outstanding poetry chapbook manuscript. One manuscript will be chosen for publication by Citizens for Decent Literature Press. The winner of the competition receives 25 contributor copies. This year’s special guest judge is RICHARD MODIANO.
While a resident of New York City, Richard Modiano became active in the literary community connected to the Poetry Project where he came to know Gregory Corso, Allen Ginsberg, Anne Waldman, William S. Burroughs and Ted Berrigan. In 2001 he was a programmer at Beyond Baroque Literary/Arts Center, joined the Board of Trustees in 2006, and from 2010 to 2019, he served as Executive Director. The Huffington Post named him as one of 200 people doing the most to promote poetry in the United States. Modiano is the winner of the 2022 Joe Hill Prize for labor poetry and is a Pushcart Prize nominee.
2026
SUBMISSIONS OPEN June 1 to June 30:
poetry manuscripts should be between 20-70 pages, 12 pt. font.
No previously published collections. NO simultaneous submissions.
DO NOT include your name in the manuscript or the file name.
The shortlist and winner will be picked blind.
email submissions as doc attachment to undergroundliterary@gmail.com, SUBJECT LINE: Brian Fugett Memorial Prize. Please include a short, first-person bio and a synopsis around 150 words.
SUGGESTED DONATION:
There will never be any fees to submit to projects under The Literary Underground. For those who can and would like to support our projects, we accept and appreciate your donations of any amount here: https://ko-fi.com/theliteraryunderground.
The 2026 prize will be announced here and on our social media in August.
