2017 Poetry competition

The PitWR trustees would like to thank  Otago University Press and Otago University Bookshop for their long-term support of our annual poetry competition. And we welcome Dunedin’s theartdept.org to our sponsorship team.

The Conditions of Entry look terrifyingly long but I hope they’ll cover any questions you may have regarding the competition. February may seem an age away but with a holiday break before then well-meant intentions to put fingers to pc may drift away. So why not start writing that winning poem now.

Conditions of Entry:

Information on how to enter and prizes form part of these Conditions of Entry. By entering the “Poems in the Waiting Room 2017 Poetry Competition” (“the Competition”), entrants agree to be bound by these Conditions of Entry.

• The Competition is open to New Zealand residents only.
• The Competition commences on November 1 2016 and closes at 5pm on 28 February 2017.
• The maximum length for each poem submitted is 25 lines (excluding title).
• Each entry must be the original work of the person submitting it, and may not have been previously published, broadcast, awarded any prize or payment or submitted elsewhere until after the announcement of the results of the Competition.
• Poems may be on any subject or theme. The poems must be easily accessible, and not make great demands. Poems with political, religious, medical or morbid overtones will not be successful.
•  Poems may be either neatly hand-written or typed on A4 paper.
•  All entries will be judged anonymously. The entrant’s name must not appear on the poem itself.
• Each entry must be accompanied by – a sheet of paper detailing the title/s of the poem/s, the entrant’s name, address, contact number and email address.
• The entry fee is $5.00 for one poem or $10.00 for up to three poems from one entrant. Payment may be made to any branch of the BNZ to the credit of Poems in the Waiting Room (NZ) a/c no. 02-0912-0102691-00, giving your name as the payer reference; or by cheque made out to ‘Poems in the Waiting Room NZ’, or in cash. Entry fees will be used to assist with ongoing funding so we can maintain and, hopefully, expand our distribution area.
• To enter the Competition, entrants must send two copies of each poem to Poems in the Waiting Room (NZ), 19 Hunt Street, Andersons Bay, Dunedin 9013.
•  All entries must be received no later than 5pm on 28 February 2017 otherwise the entry will not be accepted. PitWR (NZ) takes no responsibility for lost, damaged, misdirected, late, illegible or incomplete entries. Entries submitted electronically will not be accepted.
• Under no circumstances can alterations be made to poems once entered.
• The judge’s decision will be final and no correspondence will be entered into.
• Entrants must ensure that they keep a copy of their poem as poems cannot be returned and for administrative reasons entries cannot be acknowledged.
• The copyright of each poem remains with the author.
• The prize winners will be announced in April 2017 on PitWR (NZ)’s blog (waitingroompoems.wordpress.com) . Unsuccessful entrants will not be contacted.
• By accepting a prize, winners consent to PitWR (NZ) using his/her details and photographs for promotional and media publicity purposes.
• Winning poems may not appear in any other publication or website until after their publication in the PitWR(NZ) winter edition.
• The UBS Dunedin Prize will be awarded for the best unplaced poem from a poet resident in Dunedin.
• All entries received will be considered for publication in PitWR (NZ)’s English and Braille seasonal editions.
• PitWR (NZ) reserves the right to cancel or amend the Competition or these Conditions of Entry at any time without prior notice. Any changes will be posted on PitWR (NZ)’s blog (waitingroompoems.wordpress.com). In the event of the Competition being cancelled all entry fees will be refunded.