2023 International Competitions

Their winning formula …

Judges who are highly respected in their fields
Talented, enthusiastic entrants from all round the world
Generous prize money across the board
Extra special recognition for local winners
… and they open on April Fool’s Day!

Their 2023 Competitions will follow the formula that has made them so popular over the past years. All four categories return, complete with an enticing range of prize money to be won, followed by a celebratory Poetry Reading and Prize Giving which will take place on Monday 30 October 2023 as an integral part of their 31^st Festival.

For full details of the four categories – with judges, prize money and competition rules – please click on the links below:

01. 2023 Open Poetry Competition

First Prize £1000! Second and third prizes – £500 and £250 respectively. Plus £100 for a local poet.

To be judged by William Sieghart, founder of the Forward Prizes, the UK’s biggest poetry prizes. William also instigated National Poetry Day which is now celebrated in the UK every October.

Rules of Entry

You have read, understood and agreed to the WFL Competition Terms and Conditions.
The fee for each separate entry is £6. Competitors may submit any number of entries.
All entries must be anonymous. Do not include your name or contact details in the file title. Your name and contact details are recorded via a form.
Type your entry 1.5 or double-spaced text.
Put the title and page number on each page of each entry.
Poems may be on any subject.
Poems must not exceed 35 lines of text in length.
Add the line count to the top right of the first page.
Save the file as a PDF.
The file name should be the title of the poem only, typed exactly the same as the document, for example: I wandered Lonely as a Cloud
Do not put Wells Entry, my Poetry entry etc in the file title.
For untitled pieces, save the document with the first line of the poem.

02. 2023 Short Story Competition

First Prize £750. Second and third prizes £300 and £200. Plus £100 for a local author.

Claire Fuller’s much anticipated fifth novel The Memory of Animals will be published in April this year and her fourth (Unsettled Ground) featured at their Festival Book Group event last year – the subject of a fascinating discussion! Unsettled Ground also won the Costa Novel Award 2021 and was shortlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction.

Rules of Entry

You have read, understood and agreed to the WFL Competition Terms and Conditions.
The fee for each separate entry is £6. Competitors may submit any number of entries.
All entries must be anonymous. Do not put your name or contact details in the file title. Your name and contact details are recorded via a form.
Type your entry 1.5 or double-spaced text.
Put the title and page number on each page of each entry.
Stories may be on any subject.
Stories should be between 1,000 and 2,000 words in length.
Record the word count on the first page.
Save the file as a PDF.
The file name should be the title of your story, typed exactly the same as for the document.
Do not put Wells Entry, my Short Story entry etc in the file title.

03. 2023 Book for Children Competition

First Prize £750. Second and third prizes £300 and £200. Plus £100 for a local author.

Rachel Hamilton is a part-time literary agent, a lecturer in Creative Writing and the author of six books. Rachel’s experience includes editing and mentoring and, as a literary consultant, she loves helping authors refine their manuscripts and find their voice. She holds a first-class degree in English Literature & Language, as well as Creative Writing qualifications from St Martin’s College and London School of Journalism.

Rules of Entry

You have read, understood and agreed to the WFL Competition Terms and Conditions.
The fee for each separate entry is £6. Competitors may submit any number of entries.
All entries must be anonymous. Do not put your name or contact details in the file title. Your name and contact details are recorded via a form.
Type your entry 1.5 or double-spaced text.
Put the title and page number on each page of each entry.
The competition will judge writing for children, age 7 and up. This includes writing for young adults
Entrants must stipulate the age range of their book.
We require either the first two chapters or first twenty pages, whichever is the shortest, together with the synopsis of up to two pages.
Both the synopsis and the story should be saved in the same document for online entries.
Save the file as a PDF.
NB: Shortlisted authors may be asked to send in their complete manuscript.

04. 2023 Young Poets Competition

First Prize £150. Second and third prizes £75 and £50. Plus a year’s subscription to the Poetry Society.

Deanna Rodger won the UK Poetry Slam when she was 18 and since then has pushed down closed doors and held them open for others, curating spoken word events, facilitating workshops, writing commissions, and mentoring. Most recently, her reimagined version of Kipling’s If was read by Serena Williams on BBC Sport.

Rules of Entry

You have read, understood and agreed to the WFL Competition Terms and Conditions.
The fee for each separate entry is £3. Competitors may submit only one entry and must be aged 16 to 22 inclusive, at the closing submission date on 30 June 2023.
All entries must be anonymous. Do not put your name or contact details in the file title. Your name and contact details are recorded via a form.
Type your entry 1.5 or double-spaced text.
Put the title and page number on each page of your entry.
Poems may be on any subject.
Poems must not exceed 35 lines of text in length.
Save the file as a PDF.
The file name should be the title of the poem only, typed exactly the same as the document, for example: I wandered Lonely as a Cloud
Do not put Wells Entry, my Poetry entry etc in the file title.
For untitled pieces, save the document with the first line of the poem.

Terms & Conditions for WFL Competitions

Terms and Conditions applicable to all Competitions
(Open Poetry, A Book for Children, Short Story and the Young Poets Competition)

Entry into any Competition is subject to these Competition Terms and Conditions and to the extent not inconsistent, to the General Terms and Conditions.
The Competitions are open for entries from [00:00:00] 1 April 2023 until [23:59:59] 30 June 2023 BST.
Entrants outside the United Kingdom must enter online. Entries must be in English.
Each of the four Competitions has separate rules (Rules) stipulated which apply to that Competition.
All entries must be the exclusive and original work of the entrant. Entrants to the Young Poets Competition must be aged 16 to 22 inclusive, at the closing submission date on 30 June 2023. Entrants to all other competitions who are under the age of 16 at the closing submission date on 30 June 2023 must have permission from their parent or guardian, to whom any prize will be paid on the Entrant’s behalf.
Entrants to the Young Poets Competition may submit one entry. Entrants to the Open Poetry, A Book for Children and Short Story may enter as many times as they wish. Each entry requires a separate fee, stipulated in the Rules for each Competition.
At the time of entry, the work submitted must not have been entered into any other Competition and must not have been published in any format or location. All Competition entrants agree that once a work has been entered in any one of the Competitions, it must not subsequently be entered into any other competition or published until either (a) it has been determined that it has not won a prize or (b) after the prize winners have been revealed.
Entries which exceed the stated length will be disqualified.
Please save your work simply as its Title, as a PDF. Any deviations from this format will be disqualified
The entries for each competition will be shortlisted by their experienced shortlisting panels. The lists will then be sent to the advertised judges. In case of necessity, the Wells Festival of Literature reserves the right to change a judge or judges without notice.
ONLY shortlisted entries will be notified, and their names may be published by WFL in any format and in any medium. The list will be posted on the WFL website no later than 30 September 2023.
By entering a competition, all entrants grant permission and appropriate rights to WFL to publish their entries for any purpose of the Competition, including on the WFL website, and in any booklet published by WFL.
The judges’ decisions are final. No correspondence will be entered into.

Click here for Participate | More Details

Official Site

For more Competitions

Online Competitions | Other states | Online Competitions in Assam | Art Competitions, Digital Art Competitions, Drawing Competitions, Free Competitions, Illustrator Competitions, International Competitions, Kids Competitions, Online Competitions

2023 International Competitions

Their winning formula …

01. 2023 Open Poetry Competition

02. 2023 Short Story Competition

03. 2023 Book for Children Competition

04. 2023 Young Poets Competition

Terms & Conditions for WFL Competitions

Click here for Participate | More Details

For more Competitions

Online Competitions | Other states | Online Competitions in Assam | Art Competitions, Digital Art Competitions, Drawing Competitions, Free Competitions, Illustrator Competitions, International Competitions, Kids Competitions, Online Competitions

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