How to Enter

If you’re interested in submitting entries for the Griffin Poetry Prize, here is a brief overview of what you need to know:

  • Entries must come from publishers only. Inquiries about entries must also come from publishers only.
    (Please note that the Griffin Trust For Excellence In Poetry is not a publishing company. If you are interested in learning more about companies around the world that publish poetry, we invite you to take a look at our database of publishers who have submitted entries to the Griffin Poetry Prize since the prize’s inception. Writers’ organizations and poetry associations often offer useful publishing resources, and we provide links to some of them here.)
  • Publishers are welcome to enter an unlimited number of titles. Please click here to download an Entry Form and a complete version of the Rules.
  • The Griffin Poetry Prize is awarded annually in two categories – International and Canadian. Each prize is worth C$65,000. In each category, the prize is for the best collection of poetry in English published during the preceding year. One prize goes to a living Canadian poet or translator, the other to a living poet or translator from any country, which may include Canada. C$10,000 goes to each shortlisted poet who reads at the annual Griffin Poetry Prize Shortlist Readings in Toronto, Canada.
  • To be eligible for the International prize, a book of poetry must be a first-edition collection (i.e. not previously published in any country), written in English, or translated into English, by a poet/translator from any part of the world, including Canada. To be eligible for the Canadian prize, a book of poetry must be a first-edition collection (i.e. not previously published in any country), written in English or translated into English by a Canadian citizen or a permanent resident in Canada.
  • No self-published book is eligible. This requirement is consistent with major literary prizes around the world. Learn more here.
  • Books must have been published in English during the calendar year preceding the year of the award.
  • For the 2022 Griffin Poetry Prize, books must be published between January 1st and December 31st, 2021. The deadline for submissions for the 2022 Griffin Poetry Prize are: June 30, 2021 for books published between January 1, 2021 and June 30, 2021; December 31, 2021 for books published between July 1, 2021 and December 31, 2021.

  • Note: The Griffin Poetry Prize shortlist is announced every year in April. The official shortlist is issued by the Griffin Trust For Excellence In Poetry via press release and the Griffin Poetry Prize’s social media channels, and is posted to the Griffin Poetry Prize web site. From time to time, authors or publishers indicate that their works have been nominated for the prize, but what they are announcing is that their works have been submitted for prize consideration.

46 Replies to “How to Enter”

  2. It is such a pleasure to see that poetry is still recognized and rewarded and poets are encouraged.
    Kudos! May the best poet win and short listed and other participants benefit and get recognition too. Heartfelt thanks to the entire team of Griffin Poetry Prize for such a tremendous task of enriching and keeping alive poets and their poetry. Keep the good work going… God Bless!

  3. If a new poet or newly self-published books are not accepted then what should these new poets do, in regards to submit their self-published books?
    Not every poet have the chance or choice to be published by one of the big publishers in the world.
    Any ideas, suggestion, or advice, please share with the world.

  7. Peter:
    Do you guys use …

    We don’t, but we’re always interested in seeing what tools and processes are out there that might help publishers to more easily send us their poets’ work. Thank you for the suggestion.

  10. It’s very heartening to see such a generous oppourtunity up for poets being published for the first time. Do you have any similar chances for unpublished and amateur poets as well? Just wondering.

    Kitty

  11. Entries for the Griffin Poetry Prize must come from publishers only. Along with the Griffin Poetry Prize, the Griffin Trust For Excellence In Poetry founded and supports Poetry In Voice / Les voix de la poésie, a bilingual poetry recitation competition for Canadian high school students. In addition, this web site provides resources for aspiring poets, including publishing resources and links to other poetry associations, awards and other organizations.

    Best wishes in your poetic endeavours.

  12. Hi,
    I am curious to know who receives the award money, the publisher who submits the title or the writer of the book ?

  13. Prizes are awarded to the poets and/or translators who produced the works. How the prize money is apportioned is described in the first section of the Griffin Poetry Prize rules. Publishers do not receive prize money from the Griffin Trust, but presumably benefit from the heightened profile their books receive when they are shortlisted for the Griffin Poetry Prize.

  14. closed shop for publishers.
    free for all for poets

    what makes publishers the best judge of poetry?
    I am with Syed…

  16. Pingback: Griffin Poetry Prize (published writers only) | Commonwealth Writers

  17. i am sorry but how poor poets around the world can submit who may write goo poetry but can not publish it anywhere.should their talent be left unseen and unknown?

  18. Birk, despite the obvious mass of good unpublished poetry in the world, the judges do need some sort of filter to cope with the sheer amount of submissions that they likely receive.

  20. Agradecemos sua consulta.

    Os trabalhos enviados para concorrer ao Prêmio Griffin de Poesia devem ser coleções publicadas em primeira edição. As inscrições de trabalhos publicados devem ser provenientes de editoras, que podem inscrever um número ilimitado de títulos. Para concorrer à categoria internacional do prêmio, um livro de poesia deve ser uma coleção de primeira edição (ou seja, sem publicação anterior em outro país), escrito em inglês ou traduzido para o inglês por um poeta/tradutor de qualquer parte do mundo, incluindo o Canadá. Para concorrer à categoria canadense do prêmio, um livro de poesia deve ser uma coleção de primeira edição (ou seja, sem publicação anterior em outro país), escrito em inglês ou traduzido para o inglês por um cidadão canadense ou residente permanente no Canadá.

    Os livros devem ter sido publicados em inglês no ano anterior ao ano do prêmio. Livros autopublicados não podem concorrer ao prêmio.
    Os regulamentos completos e critérios de participação estão disponíveis em inglês, francês e espanhol aqui: http://staging.griffinpoetryprize.com/how-to-enter/rules.

  21. Thanks. Many doubts were cleared. But should the poet be a Canada resident? I am an Indian citizen, residing in India and my poetry books have been published only in India. Can my books participate? Thanks for your time.
    Jyothirllata Girija

  23. Hi! Are books of poetry written by more than one author eligible?
    Thanks for the helpful info on this page!

  25. The managers of Griffin Poetry Prize should consider holding poetry recitals/readings in Dakar(Senegal), Abuja (Nigeria), Nairobi (Kenya) and Pretoria (South Africa. That would enhance the visibility and glamour now available to novels and high quality journalistic prose.
    It would give Canada and Poetry a “soft power” .

  26. it a great opportunity for all Africa and global world at large, we love poetry; splendid to Griffin for this gesture and motivation. By the way, am Nigeria citizen by birth, I like to take part,.kindly brief me how many poem topic where to submit?

  27. David, you are on the best web page for finding all the information you and your publisher need to submit works for the Griffin Poetry Prize. Best wishes!

  31. If you are a partner at the publishing company which produced your work, and your book is eligible for the Griffin Poetry Prize, may it be submitted? Or is your book considered ‘self-published’?

  32. If someone publishes her work with a publishing company of which she is a principal, she can still submit her work for the Griffin Poetry Prize as long as the publishing company publishes works by multiple authors. Helpful to us in determining that is the company’s catalogue of publications. (We don’t see a catalogue on your company’s web site, but if you can provide a list of publications when you submit your entry, that would be useful.)

  33. Hello,
    I think it’s time the contest rules were changed to include self-published works as well.
    The Pulitzer accepts self-published works and it is a major literary prize. So the argument of consistency does not hold good.
    In the technological age of today, with the Internet and the medium of e-Books it is time the Griffin Foundation considered amending the rules to be more inclusive.
    After all, it is the quality of a literary work that is being considered, not the antecedents of its publisher.

  34. Thank you for your comments. As you can see from other comments on this page and elsewhere on this site, we are cognizant of and consider on an ongoing basis the submission criteria of the prize. Your point about quality of literary works has to be considered along with the quality of adjudication and awarding of this annual prize, coupled with the challenges of quantity of submissions and a fixed amount of time in which to give them all thoughtful scrutiny.

  35. Dear The Griffin Trust For Excellence In Poetry,

    Its upsetting to read that the requirements for admission are superfluous to the quiet little coffee shop poets. Enforcing this level of arbitrary credential excludes all the forms of poetry. The most beautiful words are unable to be said, because the purpose of a poet is written to be read.

    Disquiet I write for not being allowed to participate.

    -Tyler Dilts

  36. Thanks for taking the time to express your concerns. Changing our current eligibility criteria would necessitate expanding our judging capacity and other considerations. We’re always evaluating how we can best serve poets and publishers, as well as readers. Until and if that changes, please note that we do offer resources on other prizes and opportunities for recognition which we invite you to explore in our Resources section.

  37. Hello.Can you please teach me.
    My book carries an ISBN. My publisher sell my book at Amazon & bookstores.
    But I had a cost for publishing. Is it in the category of “self-publishing”?
    I look forward to hearing back from you.
    Best regards

  38. A self-published work is one for which the author has paid for and managed all aspects of producing the work, from the creative to the work’s editing, physical and/or digital production, marketing and promotion, and distribution.

  39. Question: is a published self-translated poetry collection allowed to be entered for the competition

  41. What are the age requirements i’m an indian of 15 years old i don’t have any published book of my poetry can i send a book which is not published publically

  43. Pingback: Poetry Competitions, Submissions & Opportunities – December 2020 – a dreaming skin

  44. I’m a writer of poetry and lyrics and have been published (one poem each) in library of poetry four times. And I have music to one song and a demo for another. I have over four hundred poems and lyrics and trying to find a contest and publishers for paperback books. Sincerely yours làuren Reid. PS prefer to mail in my poems.

  46. Hello, Lauren! Check your email inbox! We have replied to you there with some ideas about potential contests and publishers.

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