ICAN Poetry Contest

We are celebrating National Poetry Month in April with a poetry contest!

Guidelines and Requirements:

· Entrant must be at least 13 years old.

· Poetry can be written in any poetic style and on any subject.

· The poem should not exceed 100 lines. (Blank spaces between stanzas do not count.)

· One entry only per person. (One poem is considered one entry. You cannot submit multiple poems in one email.)

· A poem in its entirety must be an original work by the person entering the contest. (Your poem cannot be AI generated)

· All poems must be written in English.

· Properly spell out words and numbers.

· Name and Title need to be in the header of each page.

· Times New Roman – 12 point or Courier 12 pt

· Submissions need to be sent in as a PDF. 

· Page numbers can be on the top or bottom.

· No profanity or graphic content accepted. · Email entries to idahocreativeauthorsnetwork@gmail.com

· Contest entries are judged based on poetic technique, effectiveness, style, and creativity.

· Entries will not be returned. Do not attach more than one entry at a time to the email.

DEADLINE: All entries must be received by midnight of April 30, 2024. No late entries will be accepted.

COST: $20.00

Fees are nonrefundable.

Failure to follow instructions will result in disqualification. Should your entry be disqualified, you will receive a letter stating the reason for disqualification and, time permitting, an opportunity to resubmit at no additional charge.

AWARDS:

First place will receive a small cash award, a formal critique letter, a certificate, and an award sticker.

Second Place will receive a formal critique letter and a certificate.

Third Place will receive a formal critique letter.

Winners’ names, the title of their work, and photos will be posted on our website and Facebook page.

JUDGING

Entries will be sent to five judges. Their scores will be averaged to come up with the final score.

The following will give you an idea of what the judges are looking for.

· A poem that uses vivid, interesting, relevant details and memorable, colorful creative images with descriptive details that help make the poem relevant and convincing (with minimal use of everyday/cliché language).

· A poem with interesting subject matter.

· Sentence structure should be adequately formulated and punctuated.

· The use of language that captures the reader’s attention in the first line and keeps them engaged to the end.

· A cleverly written last line of a poem, one that is unexpected and effective.

· A poem that is tightly written—every word, comma, and other punctuation is vital to the poem.

· A poem with good use of poetic devices and a poet’s intended style.

(Examples of devices – imagery, metaphor, simile, symbolism, rhyme, rhythm, personification, onomatopoeia, tone, etc.)

(Examples of style – rhythm and meter, rhyming poetry, free verse, blank verse, allegory, ballad, narrative, ode, short verse, inspirational, comic poetry, religious poetry, etc.)