National Poetry Competition 2014

The competition is for previously unpublished poems, has a first prize of £5,000 and the closing date is 31 October 2014. There is less than two weeks to go!

You can enter online, or download a postal entry form here. Please make sure you have read the rules before entering.
Prizes

First Prize: £5000
Second Prize: £2000
Third Prize: £1000
Seven Commendations: £100

The top-three winning poems are published in the Spring issue of The Poetry Review. The winners will be invited to appear at various events and festivals around the country, including Ledbury Poetry Festival. Up to 150 longlisted entrants are also offered a discount on selected activities from the Poetry School. Winning and commended poems are published on the Poetry Society website.




The judges of the 2014 National Poetry Competition are: Roddy Lumsden, Glyn Maxwell and Zoë Skoulding. The National Poetry Competition is an award for individual poems that are previously unpublished. Each entry remains anonymous throughout the judging process. Find out more about the judges.



Glyn Maxwell image credit: Kelly Hill
Entry Fees

£6 for your first poem
£3.50 for each subsequent entry in the same submission.
FREE second entry for Poetry Society members (including those joining now).

Competition Resources
Get writing something new with these poetry writing prompts devised by the Poetry School to get those creative juices flowing
Read what this year's judges are looking for – and what past judges think will make a poem fire a judge's imagination
Get the lowdown from the Twitter #askthejudge takeover with Glyn Maxwell – the Q&As are available in full
Download some discussion points on the 2013 winning poems, created by the Poetry School
Listen to last year's winner, Linda France, talk about her entry and offer some advice – and read tips and encouragement from the 2012 winners.
About the National Poetry Competition


Established in 1978, the Poetry Society’s National Poetry Competition is one of the world’s biggest and most prestigious poetry contests. Winners include both established and emerging poets, and for many the prize has proved an important career milestone. Win, and add your name to a roll-call that includes the current UK Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy, Tony Harrison, Ruth Padel, Philip Gross and Jo Shapcott. Read poems by previous winners of the National Poetry Competition.