ALABAMA STATE POETRY SOCIETY 2025 FALL CONTESTS

 

1. ALABAMA STATE POETRY SOCIETY FALL CONTEST (Sponsored by ASPS)
*THIS CATEGORY IS OPEN TO PAID MEMBERS ONLY

$75, $50, $25, $10 and 3 Honorable Mentions in order of merit

Any form, Any subject, No line limit

 

2. “SOMETHING YOU FEAR” (Sponsored by W Roger Carlisle)

$75, $50, $25 and Honorable Mentions at judge's discretion.

Any form, Subject: "Something You Fear"

 

3. “SPEAK MY NAME”: THE REMEMBRANCE AWARD (Sponsored by Susan Luther)

$50, $40, $30, $20, $10 and Honorable Mentions at judge’s discretion

Any form, Subject: “As long as you speak my name, I shall live forever.” – African proverb

What or whose name, or names, need to be spoken and remembered? Write a poem that names and remembers them. (Person or persons; creature; event and the people involved; etc.) Line limit 50.

 

4. THE "ANYTHING GOES" AWARD (Sponsored by Susan Luther)

$50, $40, $30, $20, $10 and Honorable Mentions at judge’s discretion

Any form, Any subject, Line limit 40

 

5. "DEAD END STREET AWARD" (Sponsored by Mike Wahl)

$50, $35, $20 and Honorable Mentions at judge's discretion

Any form, Subject: Dead End Street, taken in whatever context that will most inspire your poem, such as actual, emotional, spiritual, dreamt, or combinations thereof, but DON"T use the actual phrase "Dead End Street" either in the title or the poem itself. Line limit 32

 

6. POETRY FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE (Sponsored by Mike Turner)

$50, $30, $20 and 2 Honorable Mentions

Any form, Subject: “Building Community” Line limit 30

 

7. FOUNDER’S AWARD (Sponsored by Jessica Temple)

$50, $30, $20 and Honorable Mentions at judge's discretion.

Any subject, Form: Beymorlin Sonnet

The correct format for Beymorlin Sonnet can be found at

https://poemsamples.blogspot.com/2018/04/beymorlin-sonnet.html

Please ignore the suggestion that you underline the internal rhymes

in your poem. ** Other websites may have incorrect form info! **

 

8. DAY OF THE DEAD AWARD (Sponsored by Dargan Ware) $40, $25, $10 and Honorable Mentions at judge's discretion. Any form, Subject: Write a poem about what a deceased ancestor of yours would tell you today if they could communicate for 24 hours. Line limit 40

 

9. THE PENNY HARDESTY MEMORIAL AWARD (Sponsored by Kirk and Jerri Hardesty) $25, $15, $10 and Honorable Mentions at judge's discretion.

Any form, Subject: Found Family (people who are not your biological family, but who have become family to you in your heart and your life)

Line limit 50

 

10. THE KAREN EDWARDS MEMORIAL AWARD (Sponsored by Kirk and Jerri Hardesty) $25, $15, $10 and Honorable Mentions at judge's discretion.

Any form, Subject: Happy Holidays (a happy memory of any holiday)

Line limit 50

 

11. THE MEANING OF FALL (sponsored by Emily Grimes-Henderson)

$50, $30 , $20, 3 honorable mentions Any form, Subject: What fall means to you. This could be a memory, a symbol, or something from the natural world. Line limit 50

 

RULES! (We gotta have rules, otherwise there is chaos.)

 

1. Deadline for entry is September 20, 2025. Entries must be either postmarked or received online by that date.

 

2. Entry Fees:

ASPS Members: $1 per poem.

Non-Members: $5 per poem.

*No limit on number of poems whether member or non-member!*

 

3. Entry guidelines:

a. more than one poem may be submitted in any category, but a poet may only win one award per category.  

b. sponsors may not enter any poem(s) in any category they are sponsoring

c. judges may not enter any poem(s) in any category they are judging

d. per ASPS bylaws, the second vice president (contest chair) may not enter poems in any category

 

4. The same poem may not be entered into more than one category.

 

5. Poems cannot have won a monetary award in a previous ASPS contest.

 

6. Poems cannot have been previously published, including online.

 

7. The line limit for each category is as stated in the contest. Line count does not include title and one blank line after title, but all other lines, including epigraph, all printed lines of poem, AND any blank lines within body of poem should be counted. When a fixed form poem is required by the category, line limit will allow for the stanza breaks.

 

8. Please do not double space poems, single space only, except for stanza breaks.

 

9. Please do not include any artwork with poems unless requested in category.

 

10. No poems will be published, but winners will be invited to read at the awards presentation.

 

11. Please do not mail submissions by any method that requires a signature.

 

Submission Guidelines:

 

By Mail:

 

A. Submit 2 copies of each poem on 8 ½ by 11 paper, using a plain font only.

B. On each copy, put category name and number in the upper left hand corner.

C. On one copy only, put your name, address, e-mail, and “member” or “non-member” in the upper right hand corner. (Address labels are acceptable.)

 

** Postmark deadline is September 20, 2025 **

 

Submissions should be mailed to: Jerri Hardesty, ASPS Contest Chair

1830 Marvel Rd.

Brierfield, AL 35035

Online:

 

Entries can be submitted at alpoets.org until midnight on ** September 20, 2025. **

 

A. Create the documents as you would to mail, with two copies of each poem, each with category number and name in upper left, one copy with id in upper right and one without.

B. Please submit all entries together as a single .pdf file with poems in numerical order.

 

*If you would like a copy of the winners list, please send a self-addressed stamped envelope directly to the contest chair or with mailed entry.

 

See our website at ALPoets.org for additional copies of this brochure and other information.

 

Questions? Complaints? Brilliant poetry-related thoughts? Email the contest chair at wytrabbit1@aol.com