Not long now until the PBS / Mslexia Women's Poetry and Pamphlet Competitions open TOMORROW!
We're delighted to announce that we'll be partnering with the incredible women's writing magazine Mslexia on not one but TWO prestigious Women's Poetry Competitions this summer. Mslexia is a Newcastle based organisation dedicated to promoting women's work and helping them succeed through their quarterly magazine, writer’s diary and annual writing competitions.
The competitions will be officially launched and open for entries next Friday on the 1st June but we couldn't contain our excitement any longer, so here's a sneak preview...
All women are welcome to enter their poems to THE WOMEN'S POETRY COMPETITION, judged by none other than the UK Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy, for the chance to win up to £2000 alongside publication in both Mslexia and the PBS Bulletin, as well a mentorship with PBS Book Selector Sandeep Parmar and a Cove Park writing retreat.
And if that isn't enough, you can also enter THE WOMEN'S PAMPHLET COMPETITION for a life changing opportunity to see your pamphlet manuscript published by the leading independent poetry publisher, Seren. Both competitions will be open for entries HERE from the 1st June so get writing!
Simply click the following submittable link to enter your poems online as a word document or pdf and pay your entry fee by card. Or if you'd prefer to post your entry, follow the link below to print your entry form and return it via our FREEPOST address (for UK residents only): FREEPOST RTUR-BJAL-UYLE, Poetry Book Society, Churchill House, 12 Mosley Street, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 1DE alongside a cheque for your entry fee. The full guidelines, terms and conditions are listed below and on our Submittable site but feel free to contact pbsprizes@inpessbooks.co.uk or 0191 2308100 with any further queries. Entries close 14th September.
ENTER ONLINE HERE (from 1st June)
WOMEN’S POETRY COMPETITION
CLOSING DATE: 14 September 2018
1st Prize: £2,000 (plus optional mentoring and writing retreat)
2nd Prize: £400, 3rd Prize: £200
17 finalists win £25 each. All winning poems will be published in Mslexia and selected winners featured in the PBS Bulletin and on the PBS website.
Special Prize: £500 for the best poem by an unpublished woman poet
RULES
YOUR POEMS
- Poems may be in any style, of any length, on any subject. Sequences of differently-titled poems must be entered as separate poems. A poem that is structured in several parts may be entered as one poem.
- Type each poem, single-spaced, on A4 pages, single-sided. If a poem is longer than one page, please number the pages. Write the title on the same sheet as the poem.
- Your poems will be judged anonymously, so do not write your name on the same sheet as your poems.
- If entering by post, please print out and complete the entry form from our website (www.poetrybooks.co.uk/competitions). Ensure you include your name, address, telephone number and email address, plus the title/s of the poem/s you are submitting.
- No alterations may be made to a poem once it has been submitted.
- You may enter any number of poems, but may only win one prize. This is to allow the maximum number of entrants to receive recognition.
- Your poems will not be returned, so do keep a copy. For confirmation that we have received a postal entry, please enclose an SAE labelled ‘Acknowledgement’. We do not send copies of the results to entrants.
- Winners will be contacted by post in November 2018 and winning poems will be published in the Dec/Jan/Feb 2018 issue of Mslexia and in the PBS Spring Bulletin.
- Copyright of each poem remains with the author, but Mslexia and PBS have the unrestricted right to publish the winning poems in their magazines and on their websites, plus unrestricted rights to use the winning poems and any related material for PR purposes.
ELIGIBILITY
- Poems should be in English (or English dialect) and should not have been published or accepted for publication elsewhere.
- Poems that have won or are under consideration in other poetry competitions are not eligible.
- Poems should not be a translation of another author’s work.
- We will accept poems from women of any nationality from any country.
- You do not have to subscribe to Mslexia or be a member of PBS to be eligible, but you do have to identify as a woman.
- Employees of Mslexia of PBS are not eligible.
UNPUBLISHED POETS
- To be considered for the £500 prize for an unpublished woman poet, please tick the ‘previously unpublished’ box on the cover page for online and postal submissions.
- Unpublished poets will be judged alongside published poets for the other prizes in the competition. The £500 is a separate prize amount, which will be added to any other prize the unpublished poet might win.
- By ‘unpublished’ we mean women who have never had a poem chosen for publication, in print or online, by an independent selective editorial process. For a more detailed explanation, visit www.poetrybooks.co.uk/competitions.
HOW TO ENTER
- You may submit your poem/s online or by post.
- Submit your poems online at www.poetrybooks.co.uk/competitions.
- If entering by post, mark your envelope ‘Women’s Poetry Competition’ and send it postmarked no later than 14 September 2018 to FREEPOST RTUR-BJAL-UYLE, Poetry Book Society, Churchill House, 12 Mosley Street, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 1DE. We regret FREEPOST is not available for entries from overseas.
- The entry fee of £10 allows you to enter up to three poems. You may enter as many times as you like, provided each set of poems is accompanied by the £10 entry fee.
- Entry fees must be in pounds sterling. For overseas entries, international online card payments are acceptable.
- You can pay online via the website, www.poetrybooks.co.uk/competitions, by UK cheque (payable to Poetry Book Society) or by debit or credit card (phone +44 (0)191 230 8100).
- If entering online, be sure to follow the instructions on the website carefully.
- Each poem should be sent as a separate attachment.
PRIZE TERMS
- Acceptance of any element of the prize is optional. If the winner is unable to attend the retreat or mentoring, these will be offered to other winners.
- The writing retreat is at Cove Park, Scotland’s International Artist Residency Centre, at a time to be agreed between Cove Park and them competition winner. The retreat is accommodation only.
- The mentoring is an afternoon with PBS Selector Sandeep Parmar, on a date to be agreed between the mentor and the competition winner, before 30 June 2019.
- The winner is responsible for any other expenses involved in attending the Cove Park retreat and the mentoring afternoon.
ENTER ONLINE HERE OR DOWNLOAD THE POSTAL ENTRY FORM HERE
WOMEN’S PAMPHLET COMPETITION
CLOSING DATE: 14 September 2018
1st Prize: Publication of the pamphlet by Seren Books
RULES
YOUR POEMS
- The pamphlet competition is separate from the single poem competition and is for short collections of 20-24 pages of 18-20 poems.
- Submitted pamphlet collections may contain poems of any length or style, providing all poems are original work, each page contains no more than 40 lines of poetry and there are no more than 24 pages of poetry in total.
- Poems must be typed, single-spaced, on A4 pages, single-sided and in a single document.
- Entries are judged anonymously, so please do not put your name anywhere on your poems.
- If entering online, fill out the form with your contact details.
- If entering by post, please send TWO cover sheets as follows:
- Print out and fill in the entry form from poetrybooks.co.uk/competitions
- Add a separate sheet with the title of your pamphlet and a list of contents, but no name or contact details.
- Do not include information about where any individual poems have been previously published.
- No alterations may be made to a pamphlet collection once it has been submitted.
- Your work will not be returned, so don’t forget to keep a copy. If you want confirmation that we have received your postal entry, please enclose an SAE labelled ‘Acknowledgement’. We do not send copies of the results to entrants.
- The winner will be contacted in February 2019. The winning pamphlet will be published by Seren Books in 2019 and one or more poems from the winning pamphlet will be published in the Mar/Apr/May 2019 issue of Mslexia and in the PBS Summer Bulletin.
- The winning author will be offered Seren’s standard publishing agreement in which copyright for the poems remains with the author, but Seren reserves the right to publish the work in its entirety or in part in the UK, Ireland, and the rest of the world for three years following the publication of the pamphlet. All rights will revert to the author at the end of this time.
- Mslexia, PBS and Seren retain the unrestricted right to use the winning poems and any related material for PR purposes.
ELIGIBILITY
- Poems should be in English (or English dialect) and should not be a translation of another author’s work.
- Poems submitted may not have been published previously as part of a pamphlet or full collection, but poems that have been published in magazines, anthologies, blogs and other media are eligible.
- Simultaneous submissions of a pamphlet collection are allowed, provided the winning poet withdraws her work from consideration in other competitions immediately upon notification of success in the Mslexia/PBS competition.
- You may enter any poem from your pamphlet into our competition for single poems, provided it fulfils the entry requirements. These are separate competitions, so you would need to make a separate entry. Success in one competition will not affect your chance of success in the other competition.
- We accept poems from women of any nationality, from any country.
- You do not have to subscribe to Mslexia or be a member of PBS to be eligible, but you do have to identify as a woman.
- Poets who have previously had a full length poetry collection published are not eligible.
- Employees of Mslexia, Seren and PBS are not eligible.
HOW TO ENTER
- Enter online at www.poetrybooks.co.uk/competitions or send your pamphlet by post.
- If entering by post, mark your envelope ‘Women’s Pamphlet Competition’ and send it postmarked no later than 14 September 2018 to FREEPOST RTUR-BJAL-UYLE, Poetry Book Society, Churchill House, 12 Mosley Street, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 1DE. We regret FREEPOST is not available for overseas entries. You can pay by cheque (payable to Poetry Book Society) or by debit/credit card (phone +44 (0)191 230 8100 with your details).
- If entering online, be sure to follow the instructions on the website carefully. Pamphlets should be sent as a single attachment.
- The £20 entry fee allows you to enter one pamphlet of 20-24 pages of 18-20 poems. You may enter as many times as you like, provided each collection is accompanied by the £20 entry fee.
- Entry fees must be in pounds sterling. For overseas entries, international online card payments are acceptable.
ENTER ONLINE HERE OR DOWNLOAD THE POSTAL ENTRY FORM HERE
VISIT THE FAQS HERE
Entries for both competitions close 14th September. For further information or any questions email pbsprizes@inpressbooks.co.uk 0191 2308100.