The Margery Carlson Prize is awarded annually by the Georgia Poetry Society for poetic achievement by students in grades 1-5. The Marel Brown Prize is a two-tier contest with prizes awarded annually by the Georgia Poetry Society for poetic achievement by students grades 6-8 and grades 9-12.
Eligibility
Any student in grades 1-12 enrolled in a Georgia public or private school or home-schooled at a permanent Georgia address.
Fees
There are no entry fees for this contest.
Length of Poem
Maximum of 32 lines.
Only one entry per student.
Maximum of four poems per school.
Subject
Any subject in good taste, any poetic form. Poem must be student's original and unpublished work. Teachers should ensure that works are not plagiarized.
Prizes (1st/2nd/3rd)
$15/ $10/ $5 (Margery Carlson, grades 1-5)
$20/ $15/ $10 (Marel Brown, grades 6-8)
$25/ $20/ $15 (Marel Brown, grades 9-12)
Prize-winners also receive a copy of the issue of The Reach of Song that contains winning youth poems.
Restrictions
Poems must be accompanied by entry form (a printable copy of the form is available on the GPS website at http://www.georgiapoetrysociety.org).
How to Enter Poems for Youth Poetry
To guide submissions, please adhere to these format considerations:
Type or word-process on standard 8.5x11 white paper. Grades 1-5 may submit hand-written entries. Please ensure legibility.
Do not include illustrations.
Select a standard font such as Times-Roman rather than some unconventional font (such as script fonts or Gothic). Use fonts no larger than 14-point.
One poem per page. Poems must be in English.
Submit two copies of the poem, one without author identification. The copy with identification should be taped, pasted or stapled to the entry form. Keep a copy of the poem submitted as they cannot be returned.
Send all manuscripts from the same school in one envelope with school name and grade level on the envelope exterior. No entries accepted from individual students unless home-schooled. Winners will be posted on the Society website at the completion of competition.
Entry form must accompany each poem and must be complete. Form must be signed both by the student submitter and the sponsoring teacher.
No emailed or disk entries accepted. Entries should be mailed to: Georgia Poetry Society, 313 Pan Will Road, Mineral Bluff, GA 30559. (Note: the Georgia Poetry Society mailing address usually follows the President. When a new President of the society is elected the mailing address may change. It is recommended that entrants check the website to verify the current mailing address as of the time of submission.)
Deadline
All entries must be postmarked no later than January 31 or next business day if January 31 falls on a holiday or weekend.
Judges
The Georgia Poetry Society will select qualified judges who receive the copies without author identification for judging.
Winners are announced at the April meeting of the Society. Winners are invited, but are not required, to appear with parents and/or teachers to receive their awards. The Georgia Poetry Society reserves the right to publish prize-winning poems in its annual anthology, The Reach of Song. Until published, rights rest with the Society. After publication, or a decision not to publish, rights revert to the author
GEORGIA POETRY SOCIETY
Terry Hensel, Youth Contest Chair
Mineral Bluff, GA 30559
Email:
gps@georgiapoetrysociety.org
URL:
http://www.georgiapoetrysociety.org/
Click on the file link below to download the entry form in PDF format.