CAT WOODWARD

The 40 competitions below are open internationally to adults living anywhere in the world, writing in English. Prizes are for single poems or a group of poems (no full collections or pamphlets). Top prizes are at least 1000 cash in the local currency, many are higher. Max. line counts, rough deadlines and entry fees are all listed, along with links to rules and entry info. Themes are stated where applicable.

What to do to make your own poetry go from good to great. The defining feature of a good poem is that there’s nothing wrong with it, but that’s not saying much. It takes something more for a poem to be memorable or to truly make an impact on the reader. That’s what great poems do.

For several years now, I've worked as an assisstant judge (also known as a 'sifter', or 'reader') for a major poetry prize, and I've worked on some other poetry competitions besides. I see the entries first and decide what goes through to the next round. I've seen thousands of competition entries and I know what gets picked and what doesn't.

A guide to submissions, cover letters, and etiquette. You've written a poem. You've worked hard on it, developed it, polished it, now it's ready to be submitted. But how do you actually do that? I've done lots and lots of submissions over the course of my writing career, and this is how it's done.

Constructive approaches to take; useful questions to ask. Editing. Not fixing typos or cleaning up commas. Editing. In other words, transforming, developing, growing a new, adolescent poem. It's hard to know where to start, especially if you don't have a workshop group or a tutor.