Some Thoughts On Poetry Book Contests

The following was originally published on Blogalicious, Diane Lockward's blog on poetry, poets and books. Diane wrote this post on Poetry Book Contests in response to her experience judging the 2010 Word Works Washington Prize. You can find the original post here.


Entering poetry book contests often seems like a necessity if you want to get your manuscript published. But what an insidious process it can be. Not to mention expensive. And time-consuming. Before my first book came out in 2003, over a period of maybe six years, I entered the manuscript in dozens of contests. I spent several weeks each summer weeding out the weaker poems and substituting with what I hoped were stronger ones. I reconsidered the order of the poems. I redid the page numbering and the Table of Contests. I wrote out the checks. Then I waited months for notification.

The first time I received a semi-finalist spot was thrilling, more so the first time I received a finalist spot. But by the time I'd accumulated six of these close calls, it was getting stale. I felt stuck in place, always writing poems that could go into that book, unable to move onto the next book. Then I got lucky and found a home for my book, no contest involved. Since then my publisher has stuck with me for the following book and the forthcoming one for which I am hugely grateful. What a relief not to have to do the contest thing.

But recently I saw the process from the other side of the fence, i.e., I served as a first reader in a book contest. After reading through the pile of manuscripts, I put together some thoughts that perhaps someone out there might find useful before pulling out the next roll of stamps and the next batch of checks.

1. Do not overload the manuscript with poems. Too many is too many. I read one manuscript that had close to 100 poems! Now come on. The poet had simply failed to edit his own manuscript. Nor had he followed instructions in regards to number of pages. A collection that long has virtually no chance of being accepted anywhere.

2. I'd always heard that it was essential to have a strong first section. True! A weak first section discourages the reader from moving onto the second section. Weak first section and your goose is cooked.

3. After getting a really strong first section, make sure that the following sections are equally strong. You cannot get away with a weak section. Anywhere.

4. Be mindful of variety. This applies to subject, form, length. Too much sameness leads to boredom.

5. Work really hard on arranging the order of the poems. For many poets this is the most difficult part of putting together a manuscript. That's what friends are for. Ask a few poets whose judgment you trust to read the manuscript for order. Avoid the inclination to group similar poems together. Again, too much sameness leads to boredom. You want some kind of thread or threads running throughout, pleasing leaps from one poem to the next, surprises, and connections. Poor order was one of the main weaknesses in the manuscripts I read. You want a collection of poems, not a bunch of poems.

6. Here's another thing that separated the good from the not so hot: Diction, diction, diction. Why use boring words when there are so many good ones available? The language in the strong manuscripts immediately distinguished those collections.

7. Avoid excess baggage, e.g., accessorizing sections with numbers, plus titles, plus introductory poems, plus epigraphs. Keep it simple.

8. Don't go too highbrow with a bunch of unnecessary End Notes. Don't be pretentious. Nobody likes a stuffed shirt. If the information in the End Notes is essential, maybe it should be in the poem? or on the same page as the poem? I'm not saving never; I'm saying consider carefully the necessity. Likewise, avoid a bunch of ridiculous dedications of individual poems. I dedicate this one to Emily Dickinson, this one to my plumber, etc.

9. Remember that competence is not enough. The collection must stand out. The strong ones had something that was unique, that was special, that made them different from the others.

10. Good looks matter. Make sure your manuscript has a professional appearance. I was surprised to see manuscripts with the title uncentered, with dreadful fonts, with blurry pages. Don't crowd the pages, please! And please, in your Table of Contents, do not insert a hideous line of periods between title and page number.

Now here's the good news: If you have a good manuscript, you have a really good chance of winning. Don't send it out before it's ready, but when it's really ready, believe in it and send it out.

2009 Washington Prize Winner - Mayweed, by Frannie Lindsay

The Word Works proudly announces that Mayweed, by Frannie Lindsay, of Belmont, MA, is the winner of the 2009 Washington Prize.

Lindsay’s two previous books are also prize winners: Lamb won the 2006 Perugia Press Intro Award and was runner-up for the James Laughlin Award from the Academy of American Poets. Where She Always Was (Utah State University Press) was selected for the 2004 May Swenson Award.

The Word Works thanks all participants who entered the prize competition. Purchase Mayweed now. All contestants will receive a copy of this book. For more information about this year's prize, visit the Washington Prize page.

Review of Hat City on FutureCycle Poetry

2006 Washington Prize winner John Surowiecki's The Hat City After Men Stopped Wearing Hats was recently reviewed at FutureCycle Poetry by George Drew.

2006 Washington Prize Winner Receives Verse Drama Prize from The Poetry Foundation

The Poetry Foundation has announced that John Surowiecki is the inaugural recipient of the Verse Drama Prize of $10,000, honoring a living poet who has written a previously unpublished, outstanding original verse drama in English. In addition to the cash prize, the winning manuscript will be presented as a staged reading in New York and Chicago in 2008. The Verse Drama Prize brings renewed attention to an under-recognized area of poetry and encourages poets to work in a new genre, thereby bringing fresh life to the art.

Surowiecki is the author of two poetry collections, Watching Cartoons before Attending a Funeral (White Pine Press, 2003) and The Hat City after Men Stopped Wearing Hats (The Word Works, 2006 Washington Prize), and five chapbooks. My Nose and Me: (A TragedyLite or TragiDelight in 33 Scenes) is his first piece written for the stage.

In 2005, Surowiecki was awarded a poetry fellowship from the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism, Office of the Arts. He is a freelance writer and teaches poetry courses at Manchester Community College. His poems have recently appeared in Alaska Quarterly Review, Common Ground Review, Connecticut Review, Margie, Nimrod, and Poetry.

Prartho Sereno Wins Word Works 2007 Washington Prize

The Word Works is pleased to announce that Prartho Sereno, of San Anselmo, CA, won the 2007 Washington Prize for her full-length poetry manuscript, Call from Paris. The prize includes publication and a cash award of $1,500.

Ms. Sereno is a California Poet in the Schools and a watercolor artist whose work appears on book and CD covers. She is the author of a chapbook of poems, Garden Sutra (Finishing Line Press, 2005), and a book of essays, Everyday Miracles (Kensington, N.Y., 1998). Her illustrated book of poems, Causing a Stir: The Secret Lives and Loves of Kitchen Utensils, will be issued by Mansarovar Press in October 2007. She won a Marin Arts Council Individual Artist Grant in 2003. Her individual poems have appeared or are forthcoming in Atlanta Review, Chautauqua Review, Comstock Review, Rattle, Runes, California Quarterly, and other journals.

Call from Paris was chosen the winner from 257 manuscripts submitted by American poets. Two additional manuscripts were named honorable mentions: Balloon Animals, by Donald Illich, Rockville, MD, and The Fat Sheep Everyone Wants, by Bern Mulvey, Ekuserento Beru, Japan.

Final judges in this year’s contest were Karren L. Alenier, J.H. Beall, Bernadette Geyer, Miles David Moore, and Steven B. Rogers. First readers were Cliff Bernier, Doris Brody, Angelyn Donahue, W. Perry Epes, Michael Gushue, Erich Hintze, Tod Ibrahim, Sydney March, Mike McDermott, Ann Rayburn, Martha Sanchez-Lowery, Jill Tunick, and Doug Wilkinson. Second readers were Mark Dawson, Brandon D. Johnson, and Judith McCombs.

The Word Works has awarded the Washington Prize since 1981. In 2008, the Word Works again will offer publication and a $1,500 prize to a volume of original poetry. Submissions will be accepted from Jan. 15 to March 1, 2008, and the entry fee will be $25. All entrants receive a copy of the winning book. For further information and guidelines (available December 2007), send a stamped, self-addressed envelope to the Word Works, P.O. Box 42164, Washington DC 20015, or visit the Word Works Web site at http://www.wordworksdc.com.

Call from Paris is available by advance order for $10 plus $3.50 shipping and handling from the mailing address above.