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SUBMISSIONS

2026 CONTEST

The Trailblazer Contest highlights work that pushes boundaries through innovation, honing, and truth-seeking — work that expands the scope of English-language poetry rooted in the Japanese tradition. We seek work that goes beyond mimicking Japanese forms, using the hallmarks of the genres to ground expansive new territory.

 

The key is to write what only you can write. Show us how you experience the world: both the outside world and your inner landscape.​​ Or show us a world of your creation, making it so palpable that we can't help but be pulled in. ​Accept this as a challenge to the way you approach your work; take it another step further, and challenge us as well! It doesn't matter if you're learning about the form for the first time — give it a shot!

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The 2026 contest will focus on zuihitsu. Almost anything goes. Any format. Any medium that can be shared in a PDF (including via links). Think multimedia. Think about the way of the brush.

 

Submission Window: September 1-30, 2026

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Categories:

  • Solo 

  • Collaboration (any number of collaborators may contribute to a single piece)

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Limits:

  • One solo piece per person

  • One collaboration piece per contributor

You may submit to both categories.

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Guidelines:

  • Text word count — 200 words max

  • Animated, video, and/or music pieces — 1 minute max (add as links)

  • Static visual art (collage, vispo, photos of analog art such as weaving, ceramics . . . surprise us!) — 300 dpi minimum​​​

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To Submit:

  1. Fill out the Google Form with your information.

  2. Email your zuihitsu as an attachment in one of the following formats: MS Word doc or Google Doc. If your piece has complex or special formatting, ALSO include a PDF.  Please name the file with the title of your entry, and do not include any identifying information in the attachment or file name.

  3. Please use this as the email subject: Submission - (Solo or Collab) - (Title of Piece)

  4. If you are sending both a solo and a collaborative entry, each needs its own Google Form and email for proper tracking.

Submission links will go live here once the window opens.

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Results will be published via a PDF file.

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​Questions about what a contemporary English-language zuihitsu is, or want to read some examples? Here are some resources to get you started:​

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