VERVE’s Poem of the Month
YOU BELONG HERE
or maybe you don’t? Maybe you don’t care? Maybe you write poems that spit in the face of belonging? Either way, we wanna read ‘em!
A monthly poetry competition for the bold, the beautiful, the bizarre, and the brilliant!
-
£100 prize for the winning poem
-
£3 per poem, £6 for three (see where the money goes below)
-
Max 3 poems per person per month
-
OPTIONAL monthly theme (follow it or completely rebel against it – we respect chaos)
-
Judge: Stuart Bartholomew (VERVE Poetry Press & Festival Founder)
-
Assistant Judge: Hayley Frances (Co-Director)
-
AI-Generated Poems? Get outta here
WHAT's THE DEAL?
WHAT's THE TIMELINE?
-
1st of each month: Submissions open
-
20th of each month: Submissions close.
(No, we will not read late poems. We are poets, not wizards.) -
End of Month: Winner announced + winning poem featured on our website, socials and sent out to *thousands* of poets, publishers, other poetry industry people and, dare-we-say it normal people subscribed to VERVE.
WHAT's THE VIBE *RULES?
-
Poetry doesn’t have to be serious. It doesn’t have to be traditional. It doesn’t even have to make sense. It can also be everyone of these things.
-
We haven't got all the time in the world, so - as standard - for the purpose of ensuring we are able to read everything that comes through to us;
-
40 Lines is the MAX we can accept for poems.
-
Every poem needs to be saved and uploaded as PDF or doc.x file.
-
No names on poems.
-
-
Come as you are. Write what you want. Make it POETRY!
-
Submissions open May 1st.
-
Submissions close May 20th.
-
Winner selected May 25th.
-
Spread the word. Tag a poet. Tell a friend. Start a movement.
WHERE DOES THE MONEY GO?
This incentive is not money making for us. It's not about making a profit or taking the limited funds poets / writers / artists make. Submission money is split between paying the winner of POEM OF THE MONTH and funding our FREE community poetry projects.
-
Open Door community poetry open mic.
-
The Collective.
-
Poetry Mentorship.
-
Free children's & young people's events at our annual festival.
HOW TO SUBMIT
OPTIONAL MAY THEME - 'TOUCH GRASS'
Nature, bodies, the digital vs. the real, actual grass-touching
OR complete indoor goblin rebellion.
1 ENTRY TO VERVE
POEM OF THE MONTH
This payment secures one entry to May's Poem of the Month.
After completing your payment, please email your submission to mail@vervepoetryfestival.com, attaching:
-
Your poem (in PDF or .DOCX format)
-
A copy of your receipt
Email subject:
-
POEM OF THE MONTH MAY
Email body:
-
Full NamePhone Number
-
Receipt Number
-
Anything else you think we need to know.
Thank you so much. We can't wait to read your poem.
3 ENTRIES TO VERVE
POEM OF THE MONTH
This payment secures THREE entry to May's Poem of the Month.
After completing your payment, please email your submission to mail@vervepoetryfestival.com, attaching:
-
Your THREE poems as THREE separate files. (in PDF or .DOCX format)
-
A copy of your receipt
Email subject:
-
POEM OF THE MONTH MAY
Email body:
-
Full NamePhone Number
-
Receipt Number
-
Anything else you think we need to know.
Thank you so much. We can't wait to read your poems.