Wow. Saw a new poetry contest via a Google ad served on this site, and it seems to be a great contest, with entrants from outside the United States exempted from paying the 10-dollar entry fee. Here are the guidelines:

These prizes have been established by Marvin Rosenberg in memory of his late wife, Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg. The intent is to encourage the work of new, young poets. Several prizes varying from $1,000 up to as much as $25,000 will be awarded for the finest lyric poems celebrating the spirit of life.

The competition is open to any writer under the age of 40 on November 6, 2006. All poets, published or unpublished, are welcome to enter, but only previously unpublished poems are eligible for the competition.

Each entrant may submit one to three separate poems. Submissions must be in English, the original work of the entrant, and previously unpublished. Poems should express the personal experience of the entrant, so please no translations! Brevity will be appreciated: if more than one poem is submitted, only one of the submitted poems may be more than thirty lines in length.

Entries must be received no later than November 6, 2006. Entries should be submitted by mail to:

Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Prizes
PO Box 2306
Orinda, California 94563

Each poem must be printed on a separate sheet. Please submit two copies of each poem, with your name and address clearly marked on each page of one copy only. Please include an index card with your name and address, phone number, e-mail address and the title(s) of your poem(s). Poems submitted will not be returned. An entry fee of 10 dollars is required for submissions mailed in the United States: Checks should please be made out to Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Memorial Fund. Foreign entries are exempted from the entry fee because of the hassles of international payments.

This website ( www.DorothyPrizes.org ) has been prepared to share information about the Competition. Dorothy’s poems inspired the competition's emphasis on lyric poems celebrating the spirit of life. Further information concerning the Prizes may be posted here as the deadline approaches. Results will be announced on the website February 5th, 2007, and winners will be contacted shortly before that time.

Visit the 2006 Entrants’ Checklist for a summary of contest details.

Prizewinners may reenter in subsequent years until their cumulative prizes have reached $25,000.

These prizes will be awarded annually. Any person or institution wishing to contribute suggestions about the future structure, administration, or judging of the prizes, or anyone interested in participating in the process, should write to Mary Rosenberg at the above address.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why haven't I heard of the Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Prizes before?

This is a new poetry competition, established in 2004 after the settlement of Marvin Rosenberg's estate. In his will, Marvin left the bulk of his money to establish this writing competition in memory of his first wife Dorothy Rosenberg, in order to encourage young poets. The first poetry competition was held on December 10th, 2004, and awards were announced February 5th, 2005.

How is this poetry competition related to the Dorothy Rosenberg Memorial Prize in Lyric Poetry at UC Berkeley?

Marvin Rosenberg established the UC Berkeley poetry contest in memory of Dorothy Rosenberg many years ago. Those prizes are now supported by an endowment given by this Fund in March 2005. At Marvin's request, this new writing contest uses Dorothy's full name "Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg," thereby incorporating her pen name, Dorothy Sargent.

What will the poetry prizes be?

This poetry competition will award poetry prizes from $1,000 to $25,000. The main prizes will be $25,000, and the smallest prizes will be $1,000. There will be intermediate prizes of $2,500, $5,000, $7,500 and $10,000. Honorable mention awards of $100 will also be granted.

How many prizes will there be?

We reserve the right to vary the number of prizes awarded in this writing competition based upon the funds available and the quality and quantity of submissions. For example, in the first year we granted fewer prizes because the number of entries was fairly small. The range of prizes is fixed: from $1,000 to $25,000. Tentatively, we envisage up to 15 prizes of $1,000, two to four main prizes of $25,000, and ten to fifteen intermediate prizes.

What criteria will be used to select the winning poems?

We are looking for the finest lyric poems celebrating the spirit of life. For us a lyric poem is sung from the heart. This means, among other things, that it expresses personal experience. It may have qualities of beautiful wording and imagery, rhythmic melody, direct and intensely personal emotion, and personal vision or understanding.

Celebrating the spirit of life suggests to us a poem that evokes appreciation for the worth of human being and the individual dignity of all beings, and brings to mind the most important aspects of life.

We expect a fine lyric poem celebrating the spirit of life to invite the reader to rejoice in the wonderful vibrancy and resilience of the human spirit in face of the difficulties and obstacles that often arise, and to inspire the listener with its beauty and message when read aloud.

How will the submissions be judged?

Judges will evaluate the poems without knowing the names of the authors. In the early stages, judges will select a subset of entries that are potentially worthy of prizes. As the selection process approaches completion the panel of judges will read every poem being considered. Some of these will be awarded honorable mention, and others will be identified as likely candidates for prizes. At that stage, the judges will normally contact the entrants to learn more about them and their work. Ultimately, the list of prize winners will be determined, these entries will be ranked, and the main prize winners and intermediate prize winners will be selected. It is only at this stage that we will know exactly how many prizes of each type will be awarded.

If an entry comprises more than one poem, the judges will generally evaluate the body of work as a whole, rather than selecting one superior poem from the group. Consequently it is best to submit only a single poem unless two or three poems are of equal caliber and complement one another unusually well.

Will the winning poems be published on the website?

We hope to present all of the prize-winning poems on the website, but not with the intent of "publication." The copyright for each poem will remain with the author, and we expect that winning entrants will go on to publish their poems in other ways.

How will the $10 entry fee be used?

We have asked for $10 entry fees to help pay for the expenses of running the poetry competition.

How should the entry fee be paid?

The entry fee for the poetry contest is ten US dollars. If you have access to a $US checking account, please send a check for US $10 payable to the Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Memorial Fund. Entries posted from outside the United States are exempted from the fee, because we recognize the difficulties of arranging international payments.

Sources:
http://dorothyprizes.org/DorothySargentRosenbergPoetryPrizes.htm

http://dorothyprizes.org/index_faq.htm

You can read Dorothy's poems and the winning entries of previous years at their site:
http://dorothyprizes.org/