Events and Important Dates

11 Replies to “Events and Important Dates”

1. Thanks for keeping us updated.

2. My first collection was published a few months ago by an Irish online publisher. So what are the status of e-books? Are they eligible? While a print edition may appear in the future, the collection is titled “I Love The Internet” so an e-book seemed apt. And it includes both audio and visual – something I deemed preferable to print alone and more in keeping with my style. Anyhow, I look forward to your response. Cheers, Kevin

3. Books only available in digital format are not eligible for submission to the Griffin Poetry Prize. Your publisher can keep us informed if this or future collections of yours are offered in print. Best wishes with your work.

4. Someone gave me a ticket to the live awards ceremony a couple years ago. I do not see a button to purchase tickets for this year. How might I go about getting 2 tickets?

5. Tickets for the 2017 shortlist readings will become available to order on or around the date of the 2017 shortlist announcement, which is April 11th. We hope you will join us again this year for what will be an amazing evening of poetry readings!

6. well it is past April 11 and I keep coming back to check to get tickets! is it hidden somewhere on the site?

7. We’re sorry you missed the link on the home page, press release and announcement page. It’s also on this page … and right here: http://performance.rcmusic.ca/event/2017-griffin-poetry-prize-shortlist-readings. Hope you will be in attendance on June 7th!

8. I would like to buy three tickets for the Griffin Poetry readings on June 5th 2019. The Koerner Hall does not sell them , yet?
   Please advise.

9. After the 2019 shortlist announcement on April 9, ticket sale information for the June 5 readings at Koerner Hall – including the link for online purchases – will become available on this page.

10. Why would Self-published books not be eligible? Since there are no Poetry agents and most reputable publishing houses don’t take unsolicited manuscripts, publishing as a poet is almost always self-published work. So again why in the world would self-published books not be eligible? How is anyone able to enter this contest?

11. Travis, thanks for your inquiry. Your observations about poetry agents and reputable publishing houses are very interesting, so thanks for including them.

    We’ve discussed this question in the rules and eligibility section of our web site, but we’ll repost the gist of our reply here.

    The publication eligibility requirement for our prize is consistent with major literary prizes around the world.

    The annual jury for the Griffin Poetry Prize consists of three judges, who have four months or less to read and evaluate 450 or more books/collections before the shortlist is formulated and announced. Opening the prize to self-published works sent directly by authors would increase entry volume, and make the judging process difficult to manage in a thoughtful and timely manner. The publishers only requirement helps to ensure that the work of the Griffin Poetry Prize judges – for which The Griffin Trust For Excellence In Poetry is most grateful – produces a high quality and representative Canadian and international shortlist every year.

    The Griffin Trust is continuously evaluating the self publishing realm to understand how it might fit into future eligibility criteria.

    As you seek recognition for your work, are you exploring the burgeoning field of awards for unpublished and self-published authors? Here is a list of some awards, with some excellent advice:

    https://www.writersunion.ca/self-published-book-awards

    and we trust you can find more online. Best wishes!

    Thank you again for your comments on this subject.