Eugene V. Shea National Poetry Contest deadline now closed
The WyoPoets 2018 Eugene V. Shea National Poetry Contest closed December 15, 2017. We wish the best of luck to all those who entered.
Our 2019 contest will be open from October 1 to December 15, 2018.
Our 2019 contest will be open from October 1 to December 15, 2018.
members-only chapbook
The submission period for our 2018 members-only chapbook is now closed. Our next chapbook will be published in 2020. Entries for the 2020 chapbook will be accepted from August 1, 2019, through October 15, 2019.
Congratulations to 2017 WYOPOETS MEMBERS-ONLY CONTEST winners
First Place:
Carol Deering – Stopping at Louis Lake
2nd Place:
Lynn Carlson – Wyoming Ramble
3rd Place:
Robert Druchniak – Nail
Honorable Mentions:
Gail Denham – Careless Lifetime
Emory D. Jones – Spring Mourning
Lynn Carlson – Cold Snap
Susan Mark – To Grow Fat Writing Poetry
Carol Deering – Stopping at Louis Lake
2nd Place:
Lynn Carlson – Wyoming Ramble
3rd Place:
Robert Druchniak – Nail
Honorable Mentions:
Gail Denham – Careless Lifetime
Emory D. Jones – Spring Mourning
Lynn Carlson – Cold Snap
Susan Mark – To Grow Fat Writing Poetry
2017 Eugene V. Shea National Poetry Contest winners
The 2017 WyoPoets Eugene V. Shea National Poetry Contest received 308 poems entered by 69 poets, so our contest judge, John Calderazzo, had much fine work to choose from. The top poems selected are:
1st Place: "Caskets" by Eileen Malone, Broadmoor Village, CA
Displays beautiful economy of phrasing and strong emotions that never pitch over into what could be sentimentality about death. Well done!
2nd Place: "Rain on Craters of the Moon" by Betsy Bernfeld, Wilson, WY
Driven by strong and original imagery that evokes the power and danger and beauty of nature.
3rd Place: "Decent/Descent" by Nick Sweet, Shepherd, TX
Uses rhyme quite naturally and effectively to tell a powerful story of friendship, memory, and almost-redemption.
4th Place: "Gone" by Myra Peak, Green River, WY
Had me from the microscopic precision of its first line. Then, through one beautifully rendered image after another, it builds to an emotionally devastating conclusion. Here's a poem that wastes NO words.
Honorable mentions
1st Place: "Caskets" by Eileen Malone, Broadmoor Village, CA
Displays beautiful economy of phrasing and strong emotions that never pitch over into what could be sentimentality about death. Well done!
2nd Place: "Rain on Craters of the Moon" by Betsy Bernfeld, Wilson, WY
Driven by strong and original imagery that evokes the power and danger and beauty of nature.
3rd Place: "Decent/Descent" by Nick Sweet, Shepherd, TX
Uses rhyme quite naturally and effectively to tell a powerful story of friendship, memory, and almost-redemption.
4th Place: "Gone" by Myra Peak, Green River, WY
Had me from the microscopic precision of its first line. Then, through one beautifully rendered image after another, it builds to an emotionally devastating conclusion. Here's a poem that wastes NO words.
Honorable mentions
- 1st: "Gravity" by Betsy Bernfeld, Wilson, WY
- 2nd: "No Rescue from Drowning" by Myra Peak, Green River, WY
- 3rd: "Sexed on a Kona Balcony" by Ellaraine Lockie, Sunnyvale, CA
- 4th: "Le Salles-du-Gardon" by Katharyn Howd Machan, Ithaca NY
- 5th: "When the Moose Come to Town" by Betsy Bernfeld, Wilson, WY
2016 EUGENE V. SHEA NATIONAL POETRY CONTEST WINNERS
- 1st Place: "10 Years After Katrina" by Mary Jo Maguire, Englewood, CO
- 2nd Place: "George Faulkner, Dying at Daysboro" by Sandra Lake Lassen, West Jefferson, NC
- 3rd Place: "Breaking Point" by Barb Blanks, Garland, TX
- 4th Place: "Enjambment" by Marian Kaplun Shapiro, Lexington, MA
Honorable Mentions
Honorable mentions are in no particular order
- "Inheritance" by Marian Kaplun Shapiro, Lexington, MA
- "John Walters" by Jerri Hardesty, Brierfield, AL
- "King of Barnhill" by Barbara Brannon, Lubbuck, TX
- "How to Lose Your Mind" by Cathy Moran, Little Rock, AR
- "A Rumor of Coyotes" by Christina Kamnikar, Cheyenne, WY
2015 Eugene V. Shea National Poetry Contest Winners
2015 Members-only contest winners
