Late at night, certain ideas have appeal that would cause you to run screaming into traffic at more rational times.
One of my late-night thoughts for the past couple of years has been casual poetry contests, something with actual prizes since I don’t have any status to confer on the winner, but with a minimum of seriousness and stress.
As Gabriel and I talked about forms and objectivity in criticism, I realized that I not only think forms are easier in many ways to write, they are easier to judge. And the shorter the form, the easier still.
Which led me to the Julain and a contest.
The contest:
Write a Julain!
Win big prizes!
Or, rather, write a Julain and be in the running for big prizes. Big prize. Okay, small prize, really, but you’re in it for the love of the poetry and the thrill of competition, right?
The prize:
A gift certificate to Amazon for the winner.
Fame! Adulation! Other potential prizes!
The deadline:
January 31st.
I was tempted by Friday the 13th, but I’ve allowed for more time than that.
The procedure:
1. Post the Julain(s) to your website or blog and send me an email notification to julaincontest@gmail.com of the submission. I will post a link to your Julains on my blog, or
2. Send the Julain(s) to julaincontest@gmail.com and I will post the submission on my blog plus a link (if you choose) to your website or blog.
The rules:
1. All entries must be Julains. A Julain is a 3-line poem with a discernible meter rhymed ABB. Further information is here.
2. All entries must be available for viewing online, either on your site or on mine.
3. Up to 10 entries per person.
4. The denomination of the prize will depend on the number of entries but will not be less than $10 US. (If you are outside the US and have an Amazon branch in your country, the gift certificate will be purchased through that branch. If you do not have a branch in your country, we’ll work something out.) If there are no entries, I keep the money and bruit it about the internets that poets can’t read and therefore disdain gift certificates for books.
I am sure you’ll have questions. You’ll ask, “Are you insane or do you just dress that way?” or perhaps, “Can a Julain have 82 lines?” No, I don’t just dress that way and no! Julains of 82 lines are anti-Julains and shall result in flogging. All other questions can either emailed to me or posted in the comments section here for everyone to puzzle over. Or you could try just shouting them at the top of your lungs and seeing if your neighbor throws a shoe at you or something. The Julain Contest accepts no responsibility for bruises suffered in this manner, nor for psychiatric treatment if you enter a Julain Fugue State. Don’t forget to drink your Ovaltine.