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POETRY submissions REOPEN DECEMBER 15

Order OUR SUMMER ISSUE: SHŌ NO. 9

congratulations to erica dawson on winning a pushcart prize!
listen to her poem here OR READ IT IN SHŌ NO. 6

Shō Poetry Journal

Established in 2002, revived in 2023

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Robert Okaji

Black and white: A mixed-race white-Japanese man in contemplation by a sunny window. He wears a collared print shirt and a pair of glasses perched on his nose.

Robert Okaji – The Starlings Were You [Shō Poetry Prize Winner]

Jun 1, 2025 · Shō Poetry Journal

“The Starlings Were You” by Robert Okaji, Winner of the Shō Poetry Prize for Shō No. 6 (Winter 2024/25).

Morning was a jaundiced memory,
a burnished smear on the kettle
shrilling its warning.

Black and white: A mixed-race white-Japanese man in contemplation by a sunny window. He wears a collared print shirt and a pair of glasses perched on his nose.

Audio Feature: Robert Okaji

Nov 23, 2024 · Shō Poetry Journal

When I say moon, I recall brown calves lowing / at night, sheltered under their mothers' calm grace / in star-studded pastures.

Publishing Stats

Since our revival issue was published in Summer 2023:

444

Poems Published

310

Total Poets Published

180

Audio Features Published

61

Prize Nominations

6

Poems chosen for inclusion in anthologies

Shō Poetry Journal


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