Terms and Conditions (the Rules)
The deadline for receipt of entries to the 2008 Manchester Writing Competition (The Manchester Poetry Prize) is 5pm (UK time) on Friday 1st August 2008. Please do not enter after this time as your entry won't count but you may still be charged.
General
- The Manchester Writing Competition: The Manchester Poetry Prize, 2008 (the “Competition”) is organised by the Manchester Metropolitan University (“MMU”).
- The Competition is open to anyone aged 16 or over on Friday 1st August 2008 and who is not excluded by these Rules.
- Members of MMU staff are excluded from being eligible to enter.
- The deadline for entries is 5pm (UK time) on Friday 1st August 2008. Entries received after this deadline will not be considered.
- Entrants must submit a portfolio of work featuring a minimum of 3 and a maximum of 5 poems. There is no line limit for each individual poem, but the overall maximum length of the portfolio must not exceed 120 lines. Entrants may submit a maximum of one portfolio of poetry. Entries which breach these limitations will be disqualified without refund of the entry fee.
- All work submitted for consideration must be the entrant’s own original writing, and should not have appeared in print or on a website or have been broadcast, or be submitted for publication or consideration elsewhere, for the duration of the Manchester Poetry Prize (which is deemed to end on Thursday 16th October, 2008). Work found to be printed or on a website or have been broadcast will be disqualified without refund of the entry fee.
- All work should be typed or word processed, clearly legible and written in English. Each poem should have a title.
- Entries will be accepted by post or online.
- Postal entries will only be valid if accompanied by a completed entry form and payment. Postal entrants should enclose a stamped, self-addressed envelope if they would like acknowledgement of entry.
- Online entries must be made via the MMU Writing School website. Online entrants will be required to pay online and will receive an email acknowledging receipt of entry.
- All entries will be assigned a number and made anonymous upon receipt. Judges will not be privy to entrants’ names during the reading and judging processes. Each entrant’s poems will be judged collectively as a portfolio. Names will be reattributed to entries only after the final decisions have been made.
- Poems submitted for consideration may be withdrawn from the Competition by entrants by notification in writing to be received by MMU no later than 5pm on Friday 5th September 2008. Where work is withdrawn, entry fees will not be refunded.
- Entries will not be returned under any circumstances.
- Alterations cannot be made to poems after they have been submitted.
- MMU reserves the right to disqualify any entry if it has reasonable grounds to believe that the entrant has breached any of these Rules.
- MMU cannot accept any responsibility for any damage, loss, injury or disappointment suffered by any entrant entering the Competition.
- MMU will act in accordance with current UK data protection legislation in relation to your personal data.
- The Competition and Rules will be governed by English Law and any dispute will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.
- MMU reserves the right to amend these Rules where it is deemed necessary to do so or where circumstances are beyond MMU’s control. Any changes to the Rules will be posted on the MMU Writing School website.
- Submission of an entry will be deemed to imply unqualified acceptance of the Competition’s Rules. In the event of any dispute regarding these Rules or any other matter relating to the Competition, the decision of MMU shall be final and no correspondence or discussion shall be entered into.
- A sub-panel of MMU staff will pre-select a long list for consideration by the judges.
- A judging panel of distinguished practising writers – including :
- Gillian Clarke
- Imtiaz Dharker and
- Carol Ann Duffy
- A short list of entrants chosen by the judges will be invited to attend a poetry master class/workshop run by MMU Writing School tutors.
- Short listed entrants will be invited to attend a prize giving ceremony on the evening of Thursday 16th October 2008, to be held at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester. The winners will be announced at this event. Short listed entrants will be notified in writing by 1st October 2008, and asked to confirm attendance at the ceremony by 11th October 2008. In cases where winners are unable to attend, they will be notified by telephone that they have won the Competition, and will be invited to send a message to be read out at the ceremony, or send a representative to accept the award on their behalf. If requested, winners must provide to MMU a biography and a photograph. Winners may also be asked to participate in promotional activity for MMU.
- The cost of entry is £15.00 (sterling) per portfolio of poetry.
- Payment may be made by cheque or debit/credit card only. Cheques (which must be drawn from UK banks) should be made payable to “Manchester Metropolitan University”. If the cheque or debit/credit card payment does not clear the entrant will be contacted by MMU and asked to provide an alternative method of payment, or to withdraw from the Competition. In cases where payments have not cleared by the deadline for receipt of entries (5pm UK time on 1st August 2008) entrants will be automatically disqualified from the Competition.
- The copyright in each poem remains with the author. Entrants are deemed to grant to MMU a non-exclusive, worldwide licence over each entry submitted for the duration of the Competition (which is deemed to end on Thursday 16th October, 2008), and for publicity purposes thereafter. Selected pieces may be printed in publications and journals hosted by MMU and may appear in electronic format on the MMU website, or in other electronic forms.
- “The Manchester Writing Competition: The Manchester Poetry Prize” will award two prizes:
- The Manchester Poetry Prize for the best submission; and
- The Manchester Young Writer of the Year Award for the best submission by a writer aged 18 to 25.
- Entrants for The Manchester Young Writer of the Year Award must be no younger than 18 years of age, and no older than 25 years of age, on 1st August 2008. Eligible entrants will be asked to indicate upon submission if they would like to be considered for The Manchester Young Writer of the Year Award, in addition to the main prize.
- The Manchester Poetry Prize will award a cash sum of £10,000.00 to the winner(s). The judges may decide to award The Manchester Poetry Prize jointly and divide the cash sum accordingly. The maximum number of winners will be 2.
- The winner(s) of The Manchester Young Writer of the Year Award will be awarded either:
- a fees-only bursary for study in the Department of English at Manchester Metropolitan University, dependent upon the winner securing a place via the usual means of application, on one of the Department of English’s degree programmes at undergraduate or postgraduate level.
These include:- BA (Hons) in English and Creative Writing
- the MA Creative Writing programmes in Poetry, Fiction and Writing for Children)
- a cash prize of £2,000.00.
- a fees-only bursary for study in the Department of English at Manchester Metropolitan University, dependent upon the winner securing a place via the usual means of application, on one of the Department of English’s degree programmes at undergraduate or postgraduate level.
- The judges may decide to award The Manchester Young Writer of the Year Award fees-only bursary and/or cash prize jointly. The judges reserve the right to divide the prize as they see fit. The maximum number of winners will be 2. The judges will consider the wishes of the winner(s) in awarding the bursary/cash.
- Postal entries should be sent to:
Manchester Poetry Prize,
Alan Black,
HLSS,
Geoffrey Manton Building,
Manchester Metropolitan University,
Rosamond Street West,
Manchester M15 6LL,
United Kingdom. - Any queries, please contact James Draper