(revised 10/23/2004)

Please observe these rules of competition to avoid the disappointment of disqualification.

Rights:  By submitting entries to any GPS poetry contest, entrants affirm that the poetry is their own original, unpublished work to which they own all rights.  Entrants attest that the work submitted is not simultaneously entered in any other contest or submitted elsewhere for publication.  Entrants attest that the poem submitted has not won a monetary award of more than $10 in any previous competition. 

Eligibility:  Anyone who has won higher than "honorable mention" in either the Byron Herbert Reece or the Edward Davin Vickers competitions may not enter those respective competitions the following year.  With the exception of the Vickers and Reece competitions, only one poem may be entered per contest.  Only members in good standing may enter contests designated for GPS members only.

Subject matter of poems submitted:  must be consistent with the publication aims of the Society's annual anthology, The Reach of Song.  Because this anthology is forwarded to school and public libraries where children are readers, and because winning poems may be published in it, poems submitted must avoid language or themes inappropriate for a child readership.  Accordingly, poems will be disqualified if they are deemed by the contest coordinator(s) or judge(s) to violate this standard.  In general, poems will be disqualified if found to contain indecencies, obscenities, defamations, or hateful expressions.

General rules:  Each entry must be typed in English on only one side of 8 1/2 x 11-inch paper.  One poem per page.  Submit two copies.  The name of the contest must appear in the upper right-hand corner of both copies.  The name and address of the poet should appear under the name of the contest on one copy of the poem only.  The name of the contest also must appear on the front of the mailing envelope.   If entering more than one contest,. please submit entries as separate mailings with separate envelopes for each contest.

Fees:  All GPS competition fees are to be paid in U.S. funds by check or money order. Poems accompanied by cash will be disqualified and returned to the submitter.  Checks or money orders must be made payable only to the Georgia Poetry Society.  Do not make checks or money order payable to individual contest chairs.  The name of the contest must appear on the check or money order in the “memo” line.

Supplementary guidelines:  for individual contests establish prize amounts, entry fees, eligibility, length restrictions, postmark deadlines, and any other pertinent matter.

Cancellations:  Any contest receiving fewer than ten entries may be cancelled.  If so, entry fees will be refunded.

Judging:  Each contest chairperson will secure judges who are not GPS members (with the exception of the youth contests).  Entries are judged anonymously.  Decisions of the judges are final.  A list of winners will contain the name(s) of the judge(s).

Announcements of the winners:   The winners of competitions are announced at the GPS quarterly meeting following the conclusion of judging.  Winners not present at that meeting will be notified and receive their award by mail.  A list of winners will be sent to all entrants who include a SASE with submissions. 

Publication:   The GPS reserves first publication rights to all prize-winning poems for possible inclusion in The Reach of Song.  Failure to allow GPS to publish a winning poem will result in disqualification, loss of placement and loss of prize money.   

Non-winning poems: will be destroyed.  No poems are returned.

All competition entries must be mailed to:  Georgia Poetry Society, PO Box 2184, Columbus GA  31902.  Email submissions will be ignored.