£10,000 prize for MMU poetry competition

The Manchester Writing School at MMU is launching the second Manchester Poetry Prize – a major international literary competition celebrating excellence in creative writing.

The Manchester Poetry Prize* is open internationally and will award a cash prize of £10,000 to the writer of the best portfolio of poetry submitted. The competition is open to entrants aged 16 or over; there is no upper age limit.

All entrants are asked to submit a portfolio of three to five poems (maximum length of 120 lines). The poems can be about anything and be written in any style, but it needs to be work that hasn't been published or submitted for consideration elsewhere.

In addition to the main prize, there is also the Manchester Young Writer of the Year Award* where a bursary for study at MMU will be awarded to an entrant aged 18 to 25. Eligible entrants are required to indicate whether or not they would like to be considered for this as well as the main prize on the entry form.

The Manchester Poetry Prize celebrates the substantial cultural and literary achievements of Manchester, building on the work of the Manchester Writing School and enhancing the city’s reputation as one of Europe’s most adventurous and creative spaces. The prizes will be awarded at a gala ceremony hosted as part of the 2010 Manchester Literature Festival.

The entry fee for the competition is £15 and the deadline for entry is 6 August, and for those interested in fiction writing, The Writing School will be launching the second Manchester Fiction Prize in 2011.

To enter the competition online click here.

To download a printable entry for postal submission click here.

Or if you would like to be sent a printed entry pack for submission, or if you have any queries, please contact:
James Draper, Project Manager: The Manchester Writing School, Department of English, Manchester Metropolitan University, 0161 247 1787, j.draper@mmc.ac.uk.

*Terms and Conditions apply.