Competitions

My main competitions page is http://morgenbailey.wordpress.com/competitions-calendar, but below are a few poetry competitions. If you know of any more, do let me know.

NB. I may well not have tried these competitions myself so please take a good look at the websites before parting with money and submitting your hard work!  ALSO please note that not all the competitions run each year so please check their validity before entering (and their guidelines do change from year to year).

JANUARY

• Mixed format: Christian magazine Pockets has a different theme per month.
• Poetry: Kent & Sussex Poetry Society Open Poetry Competition has a First Prize: £1000, 2nd: £300,  3rd: £100,  4th: 4 x £50. Judge: Daljit Nagra. Entry fee: £5 per poem. 3 or more poems: £4 each. Closing date: 31 January 2013. Entries to: The Competition Organiser, 26 Courtlands, Teston, Maidstone, Kent, ME18 5AS. Put name and address on separate sheet – not on poem or enter online and pay by Paypal. For more details, go to: www.kentandsussexpoetry.com.
• Poetry: other poetry competitions include Haiku Calendar, Hippocrates, Leaf Press, Strokestown, Writing / Writers’ News magazines (monthly), www.haikusoc.ndo.co.uk, www.slipstream-poets.co.uk, www.bevlit.org.

FEBRUARY

• Mixed: www.untoldlondon.org.uk, www.sumlitsem.org, www.scpsw.co.uk, www.gracedieuwriterscircle.co.uk, Pockets, www.watermill.net (Posara Prize).
• Poetry: Norwich Writers’ Circle Annual Open, Straid Collection Award, Writing / Writers’ News magazines, www.templarpoetry.co.uk/awards, www.wardwoodpublishing.co.uk (Lumen/Camden Poetry Comp).

MARCH

• Mixed: Words for the Wounded (W4W) is a new charity that raises money via writing prizes and donations for the rehabilitation of wounded servicemen and women. All proceeds will be passed to projects such as Battle Back, funded by Help for Heroes, which uses sports rehabilitation to help wounded service personnel gain independence and confidence. W4W is launching its first writing prize on Armistice Day, November 11, and is calling for all non-writers, aspiring, and experienced writers to enter. Entries can be up to 400 words, written in poetry or prose, fiction or life story tale. Winners will receive a small cash prize and their entries will be published in the monthly writers’ magazine Writers’ Forum (http//writers-forum/com). Entry costs just £3.50 and the deadline is March 11 2013, winners will be announced on 6 June (D Day). Oscar-winning screen writer and author Julian Fellowes and his wife Emma are among W4W’s patrons. Julian says: “Emma and I feel strongly that we must never forget the debt we all owe to these brave men and women. We are honoured to be involved in this wonderful charity.” Other patrons include Rt Hon Lord Ashdown, Lt. Col J. Dryburgh, authors Katie Fforde, Katherine McMahon, Louis de Bernieres , Sarah Challis and Mark Hodgson, Daisy Goodwin, paralympian Ann Wild OBE, Taryn Lee QC, artist Rowena Hampton, extreme sportsman  Hugh Williams Preece, Lt Ian Thornson and Founder/Director of the Winchester Writers’ Conference Barbara Large. For more information, see www.wordsforthewounded.co.uk or follow us on Twitter @Words_4_Wounded.
• Mixed: Christian magazine ‘Pockets‘ has a different theme per month.
• Mixed: www.helenwhittaker.net/phpBB2 (shorts & poetry).
• Poetry: Cardiff International, Fish Prize for Poetry, Literature Wales, MAG, Michael Marks (pamphlets), Northern Writers’ Awards, Writing Magazine (WM: open to all theme: creative acrostic mini), www.davidburlandpoetryprize.com, www.treehousepress.co.uk (Three-in-One), www.towerpoetry.org.uk, www.firebirdpoetry.com, www.scottishbooktrust.com/familylegends.

APRIL

• Mixed: Christian magazine Pockets has a different theme per month.
• Poetry: Buxton, Nonsense Poetry & Flash Fiction, Ver, Writing Magazine (WM: open to all theme: horror), www.poetrypf.co.uk, www.swconline.co.uk.
• Poetry & Short stories: www.deddingtonfestival.org.uk.

MAY

• Mixed: Yeovil Literary Prize. Christian magazine Pockets has a different theme per month.
• Poetry: Northampton Literature Group, Partners, Templar Poetry Pamphlet & Collection Awards, Writing Magazine (WM: subscriber-only theme: poetry for children), Stephen Spender and Bridport Prize,.
• Poetry: The Welsh Poetry Competition. £4 entry per poem. Prizes: £400, £200, £100. The judge for their 7th competition (2013) is Eloise Williams and the deadline is Sunday 26th May. Poems in English, 50 lines, unpublished. See http://www.welshpoetry.co.uk for entry forms and rules.
• Poetry: The fourth Battered Moons Poetry Competition is now open to all UK residents aged 18 or over and accepts poems on any topic and style of up to 40 lines. Main judge Alice Oswald and Cristina Newton will read all the poems. The 3 winners and 4 commended poets will be invited to read their poems at the Swindon Festival of Poetry on Saturday 5th October 2013, when Alice Oswald will present the prizes and read from her own work. Winning and commended poems will appear in the Battered Moons pamphlet and website. First prize, £300; second, £150; third, £75. Entry fee: £3 each poem or £10 for 4. Closing date for entries is 31st May 2013. Online and postal entries accepted. For further information and to enter, visit http://batteredmoons.com. Queries to Cristina Newton on cristina.ne.newton@gmail.com. Supported by Swindon Artswords, the Swindon Festival of Poetry, and Arts Council England.
• Poetry: Another 31st May deadline is Wigtown Poetry Competition. First Prize: Main Prize £2000. Runner-up £400. Gaelic Prize £250. Scots Prize £250. Eight additional prizes of £25 each. The first poem submitted costs £7.00. Multiple entries: the first three poems cost a total of £19.00. Each subsequent entry after the first three costs £5 or a total of £14 for every additional block of 3, ie: 1 poem £7; 2 poems £14; 3 poems £19; 4 poems £24; 5 poems £29; 6 poems £33; 7 poems £38; 8 poems £43; 9 poems £47; 10 poems £52; 11 poems £57; 12 poems £61 etc. Main Prize Judge: Robin Robertson, Gaelic Prize Judge: Meg Bateman, Scots Prize Judge: Liz Niven. Winners will be invited to read their poems at the Wigtown Book Festival 2013 (28th September to 7th October).  Winning poems will be published on the Festival website. For further details, rules and entry form, visit: www.wigtownbookfestival.com/poetrycomp.

JUNE

• Mixed: Marple (shorts & poetry), Christian magazine Pockets has a different theme per month, Cinnamon Press Writing Awards (for novellas, poetry and short stories).
• Poetry: Wirral Festival of Firsts Open Poetry Competition 2013 has a closing date of 1st June 2013. First Prize: £200, Second Prize: £75, 3 runner-up prizes of £25. For poems on any subject, of no more than 40 lines. Submissions can be made online or by post. Postal submissions should include a separate sheet with the entrant’s name, address and the titles of the poem(s) and a cheque or postal order for £3 per poem or £10 for 4 poems payable to: “Festival of Firsts”. Postal submissions to: FOF Poetry Competition, 71 Alderley Road, Hoylake, Wirral CH47 2AU. See website www.festivaloffirsts.com for all the competition rules and online entries.
• Poetry: Other June-deadline competitions include Creative Competitor, Earth Words, Edwin Morgan, Keats-Shelley Prize 2012, Lightship Publishing, Margaret Reid, Ted Walters, United Press, Writing Magazine.

JULY

• Mixed: Christian magazine ‘Pockets‘ has a different theme per month, Matrix Magazine (poetry & fiction), Tenby Arts Festival (shorts & poetry), Arthritis Care (shorts & poetry), Wasafiri (poetry, fiction, life writing), Poundbury Voices (shorts & poetry with Dorset connection), Leaf Books (book reviews), Wells Lit Fest (shorts & poetry), Slingink (shorts & poetry), Dream Questone.
• Poetry: Other poetry competitions include Aldeburgh First Collection Prize, Buzzwords, LIPP, Tenby Arts Fest, Thynks Postcard, Vallum Mag, Writers Bureau, Writing Magazine (monthly), Essex Poetry Festival, Mslexia, Buzzwords Open Poetry Competition, Foyle Young Poets.

AUGUST

• Mixed: Christian magazine Pockets has a different theme per month.
• Mixed: Malahat (poetry, fiction, non-fiction), Aesthetica Magazine (poetry, short story), Ilkley Literature Festival (shorts & poetry), Eccles Centre (fiction & non-fiction).
• Mixed: Mslexia (Themed Poetry & Prose Competition) and other opportunities inc. feature articles, monologues, reviews, poems, rants & raves.
• Poetry: Aesthetica Magazine, Delhi London Poetry Foundation, Lorca Translation, Salopian Poetry Society, Todd Swift, Writing Magazine, BBC Proms.
• Poetry: Aesthetica Creative Writing Competition has two categories for entry, Poetry and Short Fiction, and a selection of fantastic prizes including: £500 prize money for each winner and publication in the Aesthetica Creative Writing Annual. Submissions previously published elsewhere are accepted. Entry is £10 and allows for the entry of two works into any one category. Deadline 31st August. Thank you again to The New Writer magazine for that one.
• Poetry: Torbay Open Poetry Competition: judge Hilary Davies, max 50 lines, closing date 31st August. Thank you again to The New Writer magazine for that one.
• Poetry: The Manchester Poetry Prize 2012 International, send 3-5 poems, 1st prize a whopping £10,000. Judges Ian Duhig, Frances Leviston, Adam O’Riordan. Deadline 31st August. Thank you again to The New Writer magazine for that one.

SEPTEMBER

• Mixed: Christian magazine Pockets has a different theme per month, Ideas Tap (Sky Arts 18-30s), Glass Woman Prize (shorts & non-fiction), www.abervalley-arts.co.uk/competition, Salt (short stories, flash fiction, poetry).
• Poetry: Havant Literary Festival (19/20 October) Open Poetry Competition 2012. Judge: Naomi Foyle. First Prize £200. Closing date 1st September. Thank you to The New Writer magazine for that one.
• Poetry: Second Light Poetry Competition for Short and Long Poems. Closing date 4th September, judge Katherine Gallagher. 1st Prize £250 in both categories. Also closing that day is Nottingham Open Poetry Competition 2012. Sole adjudicator: Neil Astley, 1st prize £300, max 40 lines. Thank you to The New Writer magazine for both of those.
• Poetry: The Live Canon 2012 International Poetry Competition has a 5th September deadline. The first prize is £1000 and all short listed poets have their work published in an anthology and performed at the prize giving event at Greenwich Theatre.
• Poetry: Ryedale Book Festival Story and Poetry Competitions for Yorkshire, Humberside, Teesside residents has a closing date of 15th September. Thank you to The New Writer magazine for that one.
• Poetry: Geoff Stevens Memorial Poetry Prize 2012: two winners will have a poetry collection published by Indigo Dreams Publishing and receive 25 copies. Submit selection of 10 poems, max 36 lines. Entry fee £18 per block of poems. Closing date 28 September. Thank you to The New Writer magazine for these details.
• Poetry: The Book Prize – The Poet In You Competition: To win a copy of this book sent us a short essay on your favourite poem – telling us why this particular poem ‘spoke to you and what it said in less than 500 words. Send by post or email to the TNW editorial office marked ‘Poet’ – closing date: 30th September. The Poet in You by Jay Ramsay is published by Compass Books and can be ordered from Amazon—price £11.99/US$24.95. ISBN: 978-1-84694-025-5. See The New Writer magazine website for details.
• Poetry: Poetry Kit Summer Poetry Competition 2012: poems on the theme of “the natural world” (this can be broadly interpreted). There are no style or length restrictions but it should be stressed that a short poem is just as likely to be selected as a longer one. 1st prize £100. Online entry only. All entries must be received before midnight 30 September. First prize £100 and the winning poem plus those sellected for special commendation will be published at the Poetry Kit website. Entry fees: 1 poem £3.50, 3 Poems £8, 5 poems £10. Competition Judge: Lesley Burt. Thank you to The New Writer magazine for that one.
• More poetry comps: Marple International, Tom Howard / John H Reid, Writing Magazine (WM: open to all theme: write a Petrarchan sonnet), Nottingham Poetry Society, Poetry Society (Stanza Poetry Competition), Flipped Eye Venture (pamphlets).

OCTOBER

• Mixed: Christian magazine Pockets has a different theme per month, Caketrain and www.mkweb.co.uk (poetry & shorts).
• Poetry: Milton Keynes Writers’ Group runs a Speakeasy poetry and short story competition with a 31st October deadline. Click here for the entry form (submissions via post only).
• Poetry: Balsall Writers, Hastings International, Sentinel, TRYangle, Writing Magazine (WM: subscriber-only theme: sunrise), National Poetry Competition, www.societyofauthors.org/eric-gregory, www.raggedraven.co.uk and NAWG (see below).

NOVEMBER

• Mixed: Words for the Wounded (W4W) launching its first writing prize on Armistice Day, November 11, with a March deadline – see below.
• Mixed: The 2012 New England Book Festival Competition – see below.
• Mixed: Christian magazine Pockets has a different theme per month.
• Mixed: www.hud.ac.uk/mh/english/grist/competitions/index.htm (shorts & poetry).
• Mixed: 16th annual The New Writer Prose & Poetry Prizes: Short Story / MicroFiction / Non-Fiction / Single Poem / Poetry Collection. Closing date 30th November.  You can enter the 2012 Prizes at: http://www.thenewwriter.com/entryform.htm.
• Poetry: Cafe Writers, Countryside Tales, Cinnamon Press Writing Awards, The New Writer, Writing Magazine (WM: open to all theme: nostalgia), www.theploughprize.co.uk.

DECEMBER

• Mixed: Christian magazine Pockets has a different theme per month.
• Poetry: Print Express are running their first poetry competition and this is free to enter, with the winner will receive £100 worth of Amazon vouchers. The theme is ‘Winter’ and poems must be no longer than 45 lines. The deadline for this is late December.  You can view further details here: http://www.printexpress.co.uk/blog/2011/10/17/the-print-express-poetry-competition.
• Poetry: Other poetry competitions include Anthony Hecht, Holland Park Press, www.le.ac.uk/engassoc and Writing Magazine (WM: subscriber-only theme: waiting for the post).

WEEKLY

• Poetry: Buxton’s Word Wizards slam poetry competition runs in the coffee lounge at the Grove Hotel, Buxton, Derbyshire, UK at 7:30pm on the last Tuesday of every month. Entry is £2.50. More info can be obtained by e-mailing Rob at: poetryslamUK@aol.com.
• Poetry: Well Versed is the weekly poetry column of daily UK newspaper the Morning Star, published every Thursday, in print and online. Poetry editor Jody Porter. Under the stewardship of the late and esteemed John Rety, Well Versed developed into a widely-read forum for new and established writers. Send submissions, with biographical information, to: wveditor@gmail.com. Poems need not be overtly political, but space is limited so they must be short to medium in length.

MONTHLY

• Mixed: Pockets and Creative Print Publishing (both have different themes each month), Opening Editions (free).

QUARTERLY

• None that I know of.

ONGOING

• Mixed: What The Dickens magazine says “there are competitions and give-aways which are all free to enter”.
• Mixed: sterlingmag and sundayat6mag.wordpress.com
• Mixed: You can apply for a three-month residency on the Mslexia blog (women only).
• Poetry: Poetic Republic is an ongoing online poetry competition in which the entrants are also the judges.

COMPETITION WEBSITES

• Mixed: Be a Better Writer has a list of (mostly American) current and future competitions.
• Mixed: Book Marketing Maven has a list of a few.
• Mixed: Duotrope is a great resource for competition and submission opportunities.
• Mixed: FanStory lists a variety of ongoing competitions and is a site where you can “share your writing and learn from the feedback that you will receive on everything you write. That includes poetry, stories, book chapters and scripts. When you post your writing you will get feedback that will determine your place in the rankings. FanStory.com is a popular writing site for writers of all skill levels”.
• Mixed: Fiction Addiction lists a few competition sites.
• Mixed: Ideas Tap has a great list of allsorts.
• Mixed: Jacqui Burnett’s Writer’s Bureau has a list of a variety of forthcoming and ongoing competitions.
• Mixed: Carole Burdock’s bi-monthly magazine Kudos.
• Mixed: Loquax.com lists thousands of competitions including writing comps.
• Mixed: West Country Writers has a bijoux collection of competitions. 🙂
• Mixed: Words Magazine has a variety of competition information.
• Mixed: The Poets & Writers website include contests, grants and awards.
• Mixed: www.prizemagic.co.uk has a variety of competitions.
• Mixed: Sally Quilford‘s competition calendar.
• Mixed: Trafford Publishing lists them a month per page.
• Mixed: free literary monthly magazine Words with Jam have regular competitions.
• Mixed: Write Link also lists forthcoming competitions.
• Mixed: Writers Reign lists short story, poetry, non-fiction, performing arts, rolling competitions, children’s writing competitions and book writing awards.
• Mixed: http://writingcontests.wordpress.com lists various competitions.
• Poetry: Poetry Kit, http://www.poetrylibrary.org.uk/competitions, Writers Reign.
• Poetry: You might also like to take a look at Poet Laureate Alice Shapiro’s website. Alice kindly provided some poetry tips for this blog in August 2011. 🙂 Poet Scott E Green dropped by and left a comment on my me page to say that his blog has multi-genre competition and submission info. I checked it out and it looks really useful.

If you discover any broken links, closed competitions or know of ones that I haven’t listed here, please do email me with details.