Category: Poetry

The Faulty Porch Light by Marco Melfi - Winner of the 2021 Ralph Gustafson Poetry Contest

The Fiddlehead is pleased to announce the finalists of our 2021 Ralph Gustafson Poetry Contest, judged by Selina Boan, Matthew Gwathmey and Susan Musgrave! The winner of the $2000 contest prize will be announced on April 6 2022 and the winning poem will appear in the Spring 2022 issue (291). Thank you to all who entered and congratulations to the following finalists!

Prairie Fruit by Emily Riddle

A playlist of cozy poems for fall by editorial assistants Meghan Kemp-Gee and Rosemary Henbest.

Editorial Assistant Rose Henbest's interview with Richard-Yves Sitoski about his poem “Things that Don’t Show up in Photos” from the new Autumn issue.
 

Rose Henbest: I always appreciate art inspired by ignored moments, as you point to in your title. Can you talk about your inspiration for this poem, for wanting to capture such a moment?

11/11/19 by Sam Cheuk

Necessity is the mother of invention
but the city is running out of material.
Tho the young keep impressing,
behind a secret of umbrellas
the frontline dreams a catapult
from scaffold of bamboo stalks.

A friend, when in Romania, gushed on
about pep rallies students held
to sever blood debt, same two words
scrawled across the walls here,
minus the romance among
the Montagues & Capulets.

The Fiddlehead's 2021 Ralph Gustafson Poetry Contest is now open for submissions and we're excited to announce that Selina Boan, Matthew Gwathmey and Susan Musgrave are the talented poets who will be judging this year's entries! 

As we receieve submissions for the upcoming BIPOC Solidarities special issue, we'll be featuring our wonderful team of editors who are working to bring the issue together. 

This special issue is meant as an opening, extending the invitation to BIPOC writers to transform the content and spirit of The Fiddlehead far beyond a single issue; this issue is a commitment to transformation and accountability.

Rebecca Salazar - BIPOC Solidarities Special Issue Editor:

As we receieve submissions for the upcoming BIPOC Solidarities special issue, we'll be featuring our wonderful team of editors who are working to bring the issue together. 

This special issue is meant as an opening, extending the invitation to BIPOC writers to transform the content and spirit of The Fiddlehead far beyond a single issue; this issue is a commitment to transformation and accountability.

Rabbits on the Balcony by Emma Miao is the winning poem from our 2020 Poetry Contest: