Submission period: 

July 15–August 31, 2025
(Entries must be received by midnight CDT on 8/31.)

Basic Poetry Contest Entry Fee:

$12 for members, $15 for non-members
Pay Entry fee below (when contest opens)

Poetry Contest Categories & Rules:

Click to view/download a complete list of categories and rules (PDF) ➞

Contest Rules, Submission Guidelines & details listed below ↓

Chicagoland Annual Poetry Contest

Prizes:

$50, $30, $20, plus three Honorable Mentions in each category.

Basic Entry fees:

$12 for members, $15 for non-members. This covers one poem per category. This basic fee will be the same whether you enter in just one category or all of them. 

Additional Fees to Enter More Poems:

You can submit up to 3 more poems per category. However, you will need to pay an additional fee:
• $1 per poem for Poets & Patrons member
• $3 per poem if you are not a member. (The cost of a P&P membership is $20 and comes with many benefits)

Note: Poets cannot be awarded or recognized more than once in any category.

To join Poets & Patrons visit our membership page ➞

Contest Rules, Submission Guidelines, Categories, and details below ↓

Contest Rules:

Poems must not have been published elsewhere or under consideration for publication elsewhere. Nor can poems be posted anywhere online or created using any artificial intelligence technology. In addition, poems must not have won previous cash awards from Poets & Patrons. 

Poems need to be in English. Please, no unusual fonts or graphics/photos.

Line limit: 60 lines (counting epigraph, section numbers, and blank lines between stanzas, if any). Miniature poem: 12 lines (including spaces between lines). Poems that exceed the line limits will not be considered.

Submission Guidelines:

Details about how to submit your poems and pay the entry fees will be posted on this web page before the contest’s start date.   

Notes About Winners:

A list of winners’ names and their poem titles will be posted at the Poets & Patrons website after all winners have been notified. All winning poets will be invited to participate in an online reading in the fall.

Winning poets retain all rights. Winning poems will not be published.

Notes About Judging:

We are currently lining up judges for the contest. Their names will be posted on this web page before the contest’s start date. 

All judging is done anonymously; no judges are affiliated with Poets & Patrons. The decisions of judges are final.

Contest Categories

Miniature
Nature
Pets
Social Justice/
Social Conscience
Strangers