Poem of the Month

LAUNCHING APRIL 1st 2025
OPTIONAL THEME - 'everything is weird & that's ok'

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, £5 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 Judges: Hayley Frances (Co-Director) & Collective Members
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?

Poetry doesn’t have to be serious. It doesn’t have to be traditional. It doesn’t even have to make sense.
Come as you are. Write what you want. Make it POETRY!
Stick to the rules. Change the rules. Ignore the rules. Break things. Make things.
Submissions open April 1st.
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.

EVERY THEME FOR THE COMING YEAR

Our overarching theme is YOU ARE WELCOME HERE. We've mapped out the sub-themes for each month below. Each theme encourages bold, boundary-pushing interpretations while still making room for deep, personal, and experimental writing. Use the theme's as prompts or, revolt. You have a choice!

MONTH	THEME	WHAT COULD IT MEAN (or ignore this bit)
April	"Everything Is Weird & That’s OK"	Celebrate chaos, embrace oddness, write like a confused fever dream.
May	"Touch Grass"	Nature, bodies, the digital vs. the real, actual grass-touching OR complete indoor goblin rebellion.
June	"Loud & Unapologetic"	Big energy, queer joy, protest poetry, or being quietly defiant in a loud world.
July	"Somewhere Only We Know"	Secret places, nostalgia, hidden worlds, or something that makes absolutely no sense to anyone but you.
August	"Chaos Feels Like Home"	Found families, unmade beds, loving the messiness of life (or being obsessed with order to rebel against this theme).
September	"Letters They’ll Never Read"	Missed connections, rage texts, whispered confessions, or a poem in the form of a petty email.
October	"Ghosted (By Life, Love, or Capitalism)"	Actual ghosts, existential hauntings, abandoned shopping trolleys, or eerie voicemail poetry.
November	"Eat The Poem"	Sensory feasts, edible metaphors, food as culture, or just writing about soup for no reason.
December	"Rewind / Remind / Reshape"	Second chances, time travel, rewriting the past, or refusing to reflect at all.
January (2026)	"Not Another New Year"	Anti-resolutions, resisting fresh starts, embracing the same-old with gusto.
February (2026)	"Love Like You Mean It"	Messy, radical, platonic, self, chaotic love—or writing about anything but love in rebellion.
March (2026)	"Speak Now or Forever Regret It"	Confessions, brutal honesty, alternative timelines, or writing in complete silence.