Better Futures, Better Songs

From South Arts and Hub City Press comes an anthology containing selections of poetry from nine Southern states chosen for the 2025 Southern Prize & State Fellowships in Literary Arts that celebrate innovation in poetry. Better Futures, Better Songs offers a vivid portrait of a South in transition—an anthology where craft meets courage and every page invites discovery. With striking imagination and technical mastery, these poets push the boundaries of form, voice, and emotion—merging narrative with innovation to craft verse that is both deeply resonant and refreshingly unexpected.Their poems balance wit and poignancy, risk, and refinement—offering a vision of Southern poetry that is as diverse and dynamic as the region itself. This anthology features work from Meg Day, Julie Hensley, Ashley M. Jones, Aurielle Marie, Karisma Price, C.T. Salazar, Shakeema Smalls, Jessica Q. Stark, and Marcus Wicker. From visual poetics to narrative invention, this collection celebrates the emotional depth and stylistic brilliance of a region's most vital literary voices. Explore the future of Southern poetry—one unforgettable voice at a time.