Deane Wagner Poetry Contest
30th Anniversary!
SLWG has held poetry contests since 1921, and this contest since 1994
Presented by St. Louis Writers Guild
The Deane Wagner Poetry Contest was named in 1994 to honor a long-time member and poet who tragically passed away, but this contest has been an annual tradition of St. Louis Writers Guild since 1921. It is held each spring with First, Second, and Third Prizes and Honorable Mention awards presented in mid-summer. The contest seeks to discover exceptional, unpublished poems and to encourage poets through recognition and rewards. Historically, entries have come from across the nation and Canada. Stories are blind-judged by an expert in the fields of writing and literature.
Opens April 1 - Deadline June 1
Please read all the guidelines and rules before submitting. New Submission Form!
Entries can now be submitted via online form but must be sent by 11:59pm CST on June 1.
Entries can also be submitted via mail but must be postmarked by June 1
For questions about the contest please use SLWGInfo at gmail dot com.
Due to international restrictions, we are not able to accept international submissions at this time.
Poets do not need to be members of St. Louis Writers Guild to participate in this contest.
Prize Money
First Place $50
Second Place $30
Third Place $20
Honorable Mention $10
Entry Fee
$10 for the first poem, $5 each an additional entry, limit of 5 entries per poet
2024 Judge:
Madeline Artenberg
Poet
Madeline Artenberg was a photojournalist and street theatre performer before falling for poetry. After the first poem popped out, she sold all her cameras. She is a well-known performance poet in the NYC area. Her work appears in numerous publications, such as Rattle and MacQueens Quinterly. She was a semi-finalist in Margie, The American Journal of Poetry contest, and a finalist in the Mudfish 2020 contest. Her poem, “The Blind Man and Poet”, was nominated as Best of the Net 2020 by Poets Wear Prada. Her full-length poetry book, Naming a Hurricane, published by Pink Trees Press, is available on Amazon Books at Amazon.com: Naming a Hurricane: 9781666400250: Artenberg, Madeline: Books and at Barnes & Noble at Naming a Hurricane by Madeline Artenberg, Paperback | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com).
PLEASE READ CONTEST GUIDELINES CAREFULLY; THEY WILL BE STRICTLY ENFORCED.
Topic: Any topic is allowed, but each poem must be the author's original work and previously unpublished. Poems must be intended for an adult audience (rather than for children), but must not contain blatant sexual, violent, religious, political, or other content that is not appropriate for a general audience composed of persons of all ages and sensitivities.
The contest opens to submissions on April 1 for National Poetry Month.
Do not mail entries prior to April as they will be disqualified and cannot be returned.
Due to international restrictions, we are not able to accept international submissions at this time.
Deadline:
Entries must be postmarked on or before June 1 of the current year.
Entry Fee: $10 for up to two poems. Limit of two entries per person.
Make check or money order payable to St. Louis Writers Guild and include with entry, or submit and pay online.
Please note: The previous year’s first-place winner is prohibited from entering the current year’s contest.
Judge: The poetry judge is chosen by the board of St. Louis Writers Guild and is compensated for their time.
Judging: The poetry contest is blind judged by that year’s chosen judge. The judge reads all entries and selects winners based on their own criteria. Entries are vetted to ensure they follow the rules.
Announcement of Winners: Winners’ names and poem titles will be posted on the St. Louis Writers Guild website and announced in SLWG’s electronic newsletter, Here’s News! Entrants can subscribe to Here’s News! on SLWG website’s Homepage. Winners will also be announced on Facebook and Twitter!
A reading of the winning entries will be held at the August Open Mic Night. See website for details.
Online Submission Guidelines – Must be received by 11:45 pm CST on June 1
· Fill out the form
· Preferred File Formats for Upload – PDF, .doc, .docx
· Upload all poems on a single form (up to 5 poems)
· Pay the fee, determined by total number of poems, using Stripe.
· A confirmation message will be displayed once successfully completed.
· For questions, please contact SLWGInfo at gmail.com
· Poem and entry fee must be submitted for acceptance.
Deane Wagner Poetry Contest – Submission Guidelines
Prizes Certificates and cash prizes will be awarded as follows to the top place winners:
1st Place $50
2nd Place $30
3rd Place $20
Honorable Mention $10
Submission Rules:
· Poem must not exceed two pages.
· Include one cover sheet indicating poem’s title, followed by the author’s name, address, telephone number, and email address.
· Poems must be typed in single-spaced format on standard white paper (8-1/2 x 11) in black ink using a standard typeface or font, such as Courier, Times New Roman, Georgia, or Arial.
· You must include a page number in the lower right corner if poem exceeds a single page.
· The poem’s title must appear on each page.
· DO NOT INCLUDE THE POET’S NAME ON ANY POEM.
· Entry fees must accompany the submission to be considered by the judge.
St. Louis Writers Guild no longer publishes the full text from the winning poems, so the author retains publication rights. All winners are invited to read their winning entries before a live audience at a special SLWG open mic reading event at the SLWG Open Mic Night. This event may be broadcast online. See website for directions.
Due to international restrictions, we are not able to accept international submissions at this time.
New Submission Guidelines:
NEW RULE CHANGE - A MAXIMUM OF 2 POEMS MAY BE ENTERED - entry fee is now $10 for two poems. Two poems are not required.
SLWG now has a online submission form, and you can upload your entries right in the form. Fill out the form, upload your document, pay the contest fee, and get a message of success!
File Requirements - SLWG prefers .pdf, .doc, and .docx file formats. A few other file formats can be uploaded.
File should include a Cover Sheet (Poem’s Title, Author’s Name, Address, Phone Number, & Email), and the Poem (No name on the poem), include page numbers.
Deane Wagner Poetry Contest Winners
2023 Deane Wagner Poetry Contest Winners
First Place – A Glacier’s Glide by Daniel Moreschi
Second Place – A Springtime Vicissitude by Daniel Moreschi
Third Place – Hectic Havens by Daniel Moreschi
Honorable Mentions
A Dance with Dusk by Daniel Moreschi
ON BEING ILL by Constance Garcia.
Not Fleeting by Donna Springer
Thank you to Judge Marie Chewe-Elliot
Recent Winners of the Deane Wagner Poetry Contest
Winners of the 2022 Deane Wagner Poetry Contest
First Place: At Mardi Gras, Almost 40 by Brooking Caldwell
Second Place: Pollen by Brooking Caldwell
Third Place: Waiting at the Well by Brooking Caldwell
Honorable Mention: The Moth by Daniel Moreschi
Honorable Mention: Known and Unknown by Amanda Moser
Thank you to the 2022 Judge, MO Poet Laureate, Maryfrancis Wagne
Winners of the 2021 Deane Wagner Poetry Contest:
First Place: Barbara Blanks, Finding My Song
Second Place: Barbara Blanks, The Disappearance
Third Place: Donna Springer, Nursing Progress Notes
Honorable Mention: Amy Zlatic, Birdstory
St. Louis Poet Laureate Jane Ellen Ibur was this year's judge.
WINNERS OF THE 2020 DEANE WAGNER POETRY CONTEST
First Place: Sheree K. Nielsen, "Kiss"
Second Place: Lynda Madison, "Time Travel"
Third Place: Lynda Madison, "I Took a Picture at the Cabin"
Honorable Mention: Sheree K. Nielsen, "Coffee with Cats"
Thank you to Judge Jennifer Lynn
Winners of the 2019 Deane Wagner Poetry Contest
First Place: Barbara Blanks “Cat Egoric”
Second Place: Barbara Blanks “Along the Ridge Trail”
Third Place: Evenlyn Buretta “Ancient Connections”
Honorable Mention: Wanda L Lovan “Field Days of Summer”