Submissions to the poetry competition should be emailed to submitclassicalpoetry@gmail.com. Here are the tentative criteria and important dates:

-Submit three to five poems, each of which does not exceed 50 lines.

-Poetry must be metered and contain at least some rhyme. No free verse is accepted.

-Poems are judged based on both form and character. See our About Us section for more on the character element.

-Put “Poetry Competition Submission” in the subject line of the email.

-The poem should be written in 2012 and ideally not yet have been published anywhere else, including blogs or anywhere on the internet. (We understand you may be submitting it to other poetry contests. Please notify us if it wins any other contests. This will not disqualify you from our contest.)

-There is no submission fee or age requirement.

-Include contact details, including email, phone number, and mailing address. (All of your contact details, including your email address, will remain private and will not be shared with anyone outside the Society.)

-Include a brief bio not exceeding 100 words.

-We note that you will retain ownership of your poetry. By submitting it to the Society for publication or for inclusion in the contest, you give the Society the rights to publish it online on this website and/or in a Society of Classical Poets anthology with other poetry, but we would not be able to sell your individual poem on its own or have any further rights over it beyond those two forums. You could publish it anywhere else or sell it to any publication as desired.

-The competition is judged by Evan Mantyk, President of the Society.

-You do not have to be a member of the Society to participate.

Submission deadline for competition: January 1, 2013

Winners announced: February 15, 2013

Prize: $1,000.

 The winner’s poem will be published in the Society’s first annual anthology and on our website. Other selected poems from the contest will also be included in the anthology and on our website.

Featured image by Ferdinand Keller (1842–1922) (Van Ham Kunstauktionen)