Invocation Contest
Advocacy! Activism! Community! Enter the 2026 Invocation Contest ASAP
NFSPS, Inc. and the Sunflower Poetry Society of Kansas (SFSPS) are pleased to announce the Invocation Contest for the 65th annual poetry convention 2026. The submission period is open through May 30, 2026.
Awards: No cash prizes. Winning poems will be read at the start of either an assigned lunch or dinner. Poets attending the convention will have the honor of reading their selected poem. If the Poet is unable to attend, their poem will be read by an NFSPS representative.
Criteria: The most important aspect is poetic value, not religious conformity. Poems submitted for consideration should have equal value for those among us who are not religious, or practice a diverse spiritual path. Poems should use gender-inclusive, contemporary language.
Form: Any form except prose poem, not to exceed 20 lines. Name the form on your entry.
Eligibility: Open to all members of State Societies in the Federation. No fee to enter.
Limits: Four poems per poet, one poem per page or per email attachment.
Authorship: Must be the original work of the poet, unpublished, not submitted elsewhere for publication, and not have won in a previous NFSPS contest.
Winners: Notified individually during June 2026.
Ownership: NFSPS receives the right to have the poem read at this convention. You retain all other rights. Submission methods:
(1) Email to sunflowerpoetrysociety@charter.net. In the Subject line type 2026 Invocation Poems. In the body of the message, include 1) your name, 2) telephone number (with area code), 3) name of your state poetry society, and 4) title of each poem you are submitting. For multiple submissions, each poem must be in a separate file. File attachments for all poems can be included in one email.
For this contest we are only accepting email submissions. Each poem should be attached to your email in a word or pdf document. There should be no identifying information included in the attached word or pdf document. In the upper right corner of the document, include title of poem, form of poem and the words 22026 Invocation Contest. For multiple submissions, the poet must submit each poem in a separate attachment (all documents should be included in one email).
All entries must be received by May 30, 2026.