2026 Goldstein Contest Judges

Jackie Chou is a writer of Japanese short form poetry and free verses. Her tanka have appeared in Ribbons, Enchanted Garden, Quail Eggs, Five Fleas, Laurels, and other publications. She was the guest editor of Laurels #4, the fourth issue of the Tanka Society of America’s online members-only journal, featuring 73 curated tanka poems centered on the theme of “time.” She also meets regularly with Kathabela Wilson’s group to write collaboratively with other poets.

David Rice has been writing tanka for more than thirty-five years. He was the editor of Ribbons from 2012 to 2019 and has published/self-published eight tanka/tanka prose books, four with other poets. With his particular interest in responsive tanka—he even wrote one with Sanford Goldstein many years ago—he looks forward to reading the individual contest submissions to see how tanka poets are responding to the world we live in now.