Mslexia, the magazine for women who write | www.mslexia.co.uk
Mslexia Competition Entry
PLEASE NOTE. The 2012 competition is not yet open for entries. Keep an eye on the website for more information here.
Mslexia Women's Poetry Competition 2011
JUDGE: JO SHAPCOTT
1st Prize: £2,000 plus a week at the idyllic poets' writing retreat at Cove Park and a mentoring afternoon with the editor of premier poetry magazine, Poetry Review.
2nd prize: £400
3rd prize: £200
20 other finalists will win £25 each
All winning poems will be published in Mslexia magazine.
Entry fee: £7 for up to three poems
COMPETITION IS NOW CLOSED. Winners have been notified and will be announced in the Oct/Nov/Dec 2011 issue of Mslexia.
Submissions and payment
You can PAY AND SUBMIT ONLINE, PAY ONLINE AND SUBMIT BY POST or PAY AND SUBMIT BY POST.
Competition Rules
Before submitting your entry make sure you read the Competition Rules thoroughly. We reserve the right to reject any entry that does not comply. Refunds cannot be made in this case.
PAY AND SUBMIT ONLINE
1) Payment of entry and the submission of poems must be done at the same time. If you are sending multiple poems, they must all be saved in one document, one poem per page. Poems must be sent as a Word document (.doc & .docx) or .rtf attachment, so please have the file ready. PLEASE NOTE: If your poem has unusual formatting, the safest way to send us your entry is by post. Mslexia cannot be held responsible for any adverse changes inadvertently made to poem formatting when submitted through the online entry form.
2) Pay Online (below), entering the number of poems you are submitting.
3) Once you have completed your payment, you will be taken to the form where you can submit your poems. If you experience any problems attaching your poems, please call us on +44 (0) 191 233 3860 or email poetry@mslexia.co.uk.
PAY ONLINE and submit by post
UK entries
1) Pay Online, entering the number of poems you are submitting, then post your entry to the FREEPOST address below. Please take note of the email address used to pay, and the date on which you paid, and include both in your covering letter.
2) Please post your entry to:
Women’s Poetry Competition
Mslexia Publications Limited
PO Box 656
Freepost NEA5566
Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 1BR
(Postmarked no later than 18 July 2011. No need for a stamp.)
Overseas entries
1) Pay Online, entering the number of poems you are submitting, then post your entry to the address below. Please take note of the email address you used to pay, and the date on which you paid, and include both in your covering letter. We regret the Freepost facility is not available for entries posted from overseas. If you are sending your entry in a manner which requires a signature upon arrival, please DO NOT send to the PO Box address below, but contact us for a direct address at poetry@mslexia.co.uk, or enter online.
2) Please post your entry to:
Women’s Poetry Competition
Mslexia Publications Limited
PO Box 656
Newcastle upon Tyne NE99 1PZ
United Kingdom
(Postmarked no later than 18 July 2011.)
Pay and submit BY POST
Entries may be submitted and paid for by post if accompanied by a Sterling cheque, or you can telephone the office +44 (0) 191 233 3860 with your credit card details. Cheques should be made payable to Mslexia Publications Ltd.
From the UK
Women’s Poetry Competition
Mslexia Publications Limited
PO Box 656
Freepost NEA5566
Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 1BR
(Postmarked no later than 18 July 2011. No need for a stamp)
From overseas
We regret the Freepost facility is not available for entries posted from overseas. If you are sending your entry in a manner which requires a signature upon arrival, please DO NOT send to the PO Box address below, but contact us for a direct address at poetry@mslexia.co.uk, or enter online.
Women’s Poetry Competition
Mslexia Publications Limited
PO Box 656
Newcastle upon Tyne NE99 1PZ
United Kingdom
(Postmarked no later than 18 July 2011.)
CREATIVE SPARK
An exercise devised by MARGARET WILKINSON.
- Investigate the definition of an ode and write an ode to something ostensibly ordinary that you find beautiful – e.g. the ring pull from a beer can, the snap of quality dark chocolate, the sound of silver bangles jangling.
- If you've never written a poem, try this exercise. Select a newspaper or magazine feature that includes specialist vocabulary – e.g. an economic report or weather forecast; something about diet and health. Now use that vocabulary, including entire clauses, to create a triolet. A triolet is an eight-line poem, where the first, fourth and seventh lines are the same; and the second line recurs as the eight line. Google 'recurrence poetry' for other ideas.
Mslexia Workshops
For further inspiration, try our specially-commissioned series of poety workshops devised by Jane Holland, or visit our Workshops page – updated monthly with a writing exercise.
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