Kudos Competitions
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New Annual Orbis Poetry Prize
sponsored by Word Masala (Yogesh Patel)
The first prize of £200 will be awarded
to the best poem published in the magazine during 2025
Two runners-up will receive £25 each.
(This is in addition to the Orbis Readers’ Award of £50
plus £50 between the runners-up)
Please continue to vote for your favourite poem in every issue
keeping a record of the choices each time.
Then in December, vote for the best one for the year;
Results will be announced in #2015, Spring 2026.
You are the judges for the best of the best poem
The Wigtown Poetry Prizes
April 20, 2025 in Kudos Competitions
May 7
Online entry only; over 16s
Wigtown International Prize: £1500; Runner-up: £200. Fee: £10
Wigtown Scots Prize: £500; Runner-up: £200. Fee: £8
Wigtown Scottish Gaelic Prize: £500; Runner-up: £200. Fee: £8
Dumfries & Galloway Fresh Voice Award. Fee: £10
Alastair Reid Pamphlet Prize: 30 copies of a pamphlet of your work. Fee: £25
Festival: September 6 – 5 October 5
Judges: Lesley Benzie; Elissa Hunter-Dorans; Hugh McMillan; Tom Pow
Ware Poets Open Poetry Competition 2025
April 20, 2025 in Kudos Competitions
Prizes: £800, £400, £200, and the Ware Sonnet Prize (£200)
Anthology for winners and commended poets
(£4.00, post free: pre-ordered).
Prizegiving at Ware Arts Centre, or online, Friday, July 11
Fee: £5 per poem Length: up to 50 lines
Deadline: 30 April
Sole judge: Hannah Copley
Entry form available at https://warepoets.org
or SAE: The Competition Secretary, Ware Poets Competition,
25 Southbrook Drive, Cheshunt, Hertfordshire EN8 0QJ
or email: warepoets_competition@hotmail.co.uk
Xtra Kudos
Don’t forget to enter Wirral Poetry Festival’s 15th Open Poetry Competition - deadline for entries 30th May.
Poems on any subject, of not more than 40 lines, in English,
Open prizes adjudicated by Helen Ivory and Martin Figura; Wirral Prizes by Pauline Rowe.
Open prizes: 1st prize £250, 4 £25 runner-up prizes.
Wirral prizes (for entrants living/working in Wirral): 1st Prize £100, 2 £25 runner-up prizes.
Entry: £4 per poem / £10 for 3 poems
Full details and online entry at www.wirralpoetryfestival.org.uk
Winners to be notified by 11 July 2025
and invited to a competition celebration
during the Wirral Poetry Festival in October.
Competition results posted online on 18 July 2025
Updates
Change of Deadline
Extended to May 31
Was April 30
SWC Annual International Open Poetry Competition 2025
Still Time To Enter
* New In
The Kipling Society’s John McGivering Literary Competition 2025
Who hath desired the Sea – the sight of salt water unbounded?
The heave and the halt and the hurl and the crash of the comber wind-hounded?
The sleek-barrelled swell before storm – grey, foamless, enormous and growing?
Stark calm on the lap of the Line – or the crazy-eyed hurricane blowing?
His Sea in no showing the same – his Sea and the same ’neath all showing?
The Sea and the Hills
What is a woman that you forsake her,
And the hearth-fire and the home-acre
To go with the old grey Widow-maker?
Harp-Song of the Dane-women
Rudyard Kipling, fascinated by the sea, from his childhood in Southsea onwards,
often wrote about the ocean - its beauty, allure and danger,
and its challenge to human courage and discipline.
The Kipling Society’s John McGivering Literary Competition 2025 is open to poems
of up to 30 lines about any aspect of the sea, connected directly or obliquely
with the writings and/or life of Kipling.
There are separate competitions for adults and for younger poets aged 12 to 17
A first prize of £350 will be offered for the adult competition
and one of £75 for the younger poets’ competition
£5 entry fee for either competition
Deadline: 1 May at 23.59 BST
via the Kipling Society website: www.kiplingsociety.co.uk
Poetry
April 30
* @ Candlestick Press: Christmas Tree Poetry Competition
https://www.candlestickpress.co.uk/competitions/
April 30
0 The Erbacce-Prize for Poetry
www.erbacce-press.co.uk/erbacce-prize/submissions
April 30
*Indigo Spring Poetry Prize 2025
Judge: Victoria Gatehouse (Orbis 198)
https://indigodreamspublishing.com/competitions
April 30
*Slipstream Poets Open Poetry Competition
www.slipstream-poets.co.uk/competition/
April 30
Ver Poets Open Competition 2025
Competitions Secretary, 23 Nightingale Walk, Windsor SL4 3HS
verpoets.wixsite.com/verpoets
April 30
Ware Poets Open Poetry Competition 2025
The Competition Secretary, Ware Poets Competition,
25 Southbrook Drive, Cheshunt, Hertfordshire EN8 0QJ
May 6
* 0 @ Age Without Limits: Celebrate Ageing
The Hub, FAO Events, 58 Hall Lane, Chingford, E4 8EU
Poetry By/For Children/Young People
May 1
* 0 # @ Edinburgh Sacred Arts Foundation Young Poets Religious Poetry Competition 2025
Aged 30 and under, resident, working, or studying in Scotland.
www.edinburghsacredartsfestival.org/poetry-competition.html
Ware Poets Open Poetry Competition 2025
Prizes: £800, £400, £200, and the Ware Sonnet Prize (£200)
Anthology for winners and commended poets
(£4.00, post free: pre-ordered).
Prizegiving at Ware Arts Centre, or online, Friday, July 11
Fee: £5 per poem Length: up to 50 lines
Deadline: 30 April
Sole judge: Hannah Copley
Entry form available at https://warepoets.org
or SAE: The Competition Secretary, Ware Poets Competition,
25 Southbrook Drive, Cheshunt, Hertfordshire EN8 0QJ
or email: warepoets_competition@hotmail.co.uk
Poetry Pamphlets/Collections
May 1
*@ The Laurel Prize 2025 in association with Poetry School
Best collection of nature or environmental poetry written in English
Flash Fiction
April 30
*New Writers 100-Word Writing Competition 2025
https://newwriters.org.uk/100-word-competition/
Multi Genre
April 30
Oxford/42 New Writing Prize
For aspiring novelists, playwrights, and screenwriters
www.english.ox.ac.uk/article/launch-of-new-writing-prize-now-open-for-submissions
Screenwriting
April 30
*@ The Writers Lab UK & Europe
Women and nonbinary screenwriters over 40;
full-length features and pilots in English in five regions: Austria, England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
The Writers Lab offers labs, retreats, ongoing mentoring, industry exposure, and craft programming.
Books by/for Children/Young People
April 30
*@ Jericho Prize for Children's Writing 2025
Unpublished and self-published Black-British picture book writers; 18 or over living in the UK:
Baby and toddler books (1–3 years)
Picture books (3–7 years)
www.jerichoprize.com/jericho-prize-2025/the-prize
May 1
Hashtag 2025: Children's Book
Young fiction: around 15,000 words.
Middle-Grade fiction: 40,000 to 50,000 words
Include bio; cover letter; 1 page synopsis; first 30 pages of the manuscript.
www.hashtagpress.co.uk/hashtag-press-2025
Books
April 30
* The New Voices Award
# The Author of Tomorrow Award
For age 11-21
https://www.wilbur-niso-smithfoundation.org/index.php/prize/author-of-tomorrow
Overseas
Flash Fiction
April 30
*Tadpole Press 100-Word Writing Contest
www.tadpolepress.com/100-word-writing-contest
Short Stories
April 30
* @ The Ghost Story Supernatural Fiction Award Spring 2025
Any paranormal or supernatural theme
https://theghoststory.com/tgs-fiction-award
New In
May 7
The Wigtown Poetry Prizes
Online entry only; over 16s
Wigtown International Prize: £1500; Runner-up: £200. Fee: £10
Wigtown Scots Prize: £500; Runner-up: £200. Fee: £8
Wigtown Scottish Gaelic Prize: £500; Runner-up: £200. Fee: £8
Dumfries & Galloway Fresh Voice Award. Fee: £10
Alastair Reid Pamphlet Prize: 30 copies of a pamphlet of your work. Fee: £25
Festival: September 6 - 5 October 5
Judges: Lesley Benzie; Elissa Hunter-Dorans; Hugh McMillan; Tom Pow
www.wigtownpoetryprize.com/poetry-competition
Poetry
May 30
Wirral Poetry Festival. Open Poetry Competition 2025
www.wirralpoetryfestival.org.uk
May 31
@ Shelley Memorial Project Annual Poetry Competition
Theme: Address the wider definition of ‘a Romantic poem’
www.shelleymemorialproject.co.uk/competition-2025
May 31
@ Victory 50th Anniversary Short Story & Poetry Competition
In partnership with Portsmouth Authors Collective (PAC)
Theme: 'Victory’
400 words; 30 lines
https://victoryonline.co.uk/competition/
June 14
Chesham Literary Festival Poetry Competition 2025
www.facebook.com/CheshamLiteraryFestival?locale=en_GB
June 13
@ The Crabbe Memorial Poetry Competition
Open to members as well as anyone born, educated, working or resident
in Suffolk, Essex or Norfolk
Camoquhill, London Road, Beccles, Suffolk, NR34 9YR
www.suffolkpoetrysociety.org.uk
June 15
McLellan Poetry Prize
Festival: TBA
The Competition Organiser, McLellan Poetry Competition, Stonewater House. Shore Road,
Lamlash, Isle of Arran KA27 8JN
www.arrantheatreandarts.co.uk/mclellan-poetry-prize
June 29
The 19th International Welsh Poetry Competition
June 29
Poetry Book Awards
www.poetrybookawards.co.uk
9 The Avenue, Pontypridd, CF37 4DF
www.welshpoetry.co.uk
June 30
@ Poetry Teignmouth
Graham Burchell Award For Southwest (UK) Poets
Open to entries from the following counties:
Devon, Cornwall, Somerset, Wiltshire, Dorset –and Bristol
www.poetryteignmouth.com/competition-2025
Short Stories
May 10
@ Ironclad Short Story Competition
Theme: 'Planted'
International House, 12 Constance St, London, E16 2DQ
www.ironcladcreative.org/shortstorycompetition
June 30
Cranked Anvil Annual Short Story Writing Prize
Also, quarterly Flash Fiction competitions
https://crankedanvil.co.uk/shortstory/
July 14
2025 Doris Gooderson Short Story Competition
https://wrekinwriters.wordpress.com/doris-gooderson-short-story-competition/
Scriptwriting
July 1
The 2025 Sir Peter Ustinov Television Scriptwriting Award Competition
www.iemmys.tv/international-emmy-awards/other-awards/sir-peter-ustinov-scriptwriting-award/
Overseas
Multi Genre
May 31
@ Albury Wodonga Martial Arts (AWMA) Competition
Theme: 'Martial Arts'; fiction or non fiction
https://www.austwriters.com/awmacomp-info
May 31
@ Minds Shine Bright Competition
Theme: 'Places'; poetry; flash fiction; short stories
https://mindsshinebright.com/writing-competitions/
June 6
The Write By The Sea Writing Competition 2025
Fiction Short Story; Flash Fiction; Poetry; Memoir/Personal Essay
Write By The Sea Festival, c/o Stella Maris Centre, Crossfarnoge, Kilmore Quay, Co. Wexford, Ireland
https://writebythesea.ie/writing-competition/
Other
August 31
Anthology Personal Memoir Competition 2025
https://anthology-magazine.com/awards/memoir-competition/
Playwriting
April 30
*@ 2025 Carlo Annoni Playwriting Prize
Short and full-length plays concerning the LGBTQ+ community worldwide
https://premiocarloannoni.eu/?lang=en
Deadline Diary
Poetry
May 18
The Shooter Poetry Competition
Also runs short story competition – opens August
competition.shooterlitmag@gmail.com
https://shooterlitmag.com/poetry-competition
May 26
Ironbridge Festival Poetry Competition
https://pandemonialists.co.uk/ironbridge-poetry-competition-2025/
May 30
Wirral Poetry Festival. Open Poetry Competition 2025
www.wirralpoetryfestival.org.uk
May 31
The Frogmore Poetry Prize 2023\
www.frogmorepress.co.uk/frogmore-poetry-prize/
June 7
Canterbury Festival Poet of the Year Competition 2025
Poet of the Year Competition, Canterbury Festival. 8 Orange Street, Canterbury, Kent, CT1 2JA
July 31
Winchester Poetry Festival Poetry Prize
10th year
Includes The Kathryn Bevis Prize for best poem by a poet based in Hampshire
www.winchesterpoetryfestival.org/prize
Short Stories
May 31
Frome Festival Short Story Competition 2024
Frome Library, Justice Lane, Frome, Somerset BA11 1BE
www.fromeshortstorycompetition.co.uk
Books
May 31
Blue Pencil Agency First Novel Award
https://bluepencilagency.com/product/bpa-first-novel-award-2025/
June 30
@ Heroines Anthology - Volume 6: Call For Submissions
Theme: ‘Witchcraft’
www.theneoperennialpress.com/heroinesanthologysubmissions
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