2026 Goldstein Contest Guidelines

2026 Sanford Goldstein International Tanka Contest Guidelines

The 27th Tanka Society of America Sanford Goldstein International Tanka Contest:

Call for Submissions

Learn more about Sanford Goldstein, for whom our contest is named.

Submission Window: March 15 through May 31, 2026 (in-hand deadline).

Eligibility: Open to all, members and nonmembers alike, except Tanka Society of America officers and judges.

Entry Fees: None. You may enter up to four tanka at no charge. Donations are welcome and encouraged, however. Please click the Donate button to help offset our expenses—thank you!

Submissions: Please use the online submission form. You may submit up to four tanka. If you enter more than four poems, only the first four will be considered. Please also submit your name, address, email, and phone number. Entries must be original, in English, unpublished, and not simultaneously submitted for publication or to any other contest. Poems posted on public Facebook pages, blogs, or other websites or social media are not eligible for submission. By submitting, you assert that your entries are previously unpublished and are solely your own original creations. If you submit using the online submission form (see below), please do NOT also email any submissions—use one submission method only.

• Online Form Submissions (preferred): Please use our online submission form and enter your name, address, email, phone number, and up to four poems. Please do not number or title your poems. After you submit, the submission form will display a confirmation notice. You will also receive an email confirmation for your records.

• Email Submissions: We strongly prefer that you submit using our online submission form, but if it does not work correctly for you, you may submit by email. When submitting by email, please type or paste up to four previously unpublished tanka in the body of the message (no attached files) and write “2026 Goldstein Tanka Contest Entries—[your name]” in the subject line. Include your name, address, email address, and phone number. If you are concerned about any special formatting characteristics, you may add a brief note after each applicable poem. Please do not number or title your poems. Send by May 31, 2026 to the contest coordinator, Roy Kindelberger, at RoyKindelberger@roykindelberger.com.

Awards: $100 for first prize, $50 for second prize, and $25 for third prize, plus honorable mentions.

Bonus: Through a random drawing, one person who enters the TSA tanka contest will receive a free year of TSA membership. A winner will be announced after contest results are announced.

Announcements: Winners will be announced in August 2026. Winning tanka and judges’ comments will be published on the TSA website (see past winners and commentary), the TSA Facebook page and other social media accounts, and in our journal, Ribbons.

Adjudication: The judges for this year’s contest are Jackie Chou and David Rice (click to see bios and photos—TO COME SOON).

Rights: All rights revert to the authors after publication on this website, on social media, and in Ribbons.

We look forward to receiving your entries! If you have any questions, please contact the contest coordinator, Roy Kindelberger, at RoyKindelberger@roykindelberger.com, or website administrator, Michael Dylan Welch, at WelchM@aol.com.