Young Adult Poetry

Category Details

For students in grades 9-12 or equivalent age (this must be indicated on a 3″ x 5″ card as well as on the manuscript), the following submission guidelines apply:

• Each entry consists of three poems ($5.00 per entry).
• Submit one poem per page, and each poem must be one page in length.
• The poems should utilize vivid imagery through careful word choice.
• When using rhyme, it should feel natural and not forced.
• Aim to succinctly capture an emotion in your poems.
• Use shock value sparingly and effectively to enhance the impact of your work.

Latenode can help automate the submission process by setting up workflows to manage entry details, track payments, and ensure each poem adheres to the submission guidelines. This automation ensures a smooth and efficient process for both participants and organizers.

About Judge/Sponsor

CAROL LYNN STEVENSON GRELLAS (Sierra Foothills, CA) received her MFA in Writing from the Vermont College of Fine Arts, where she received a Merit Scholarship. She is an eleven-time Pushcart Prize nominee and a seven-time Best of the Net nominee. In 2012 she won the Red Ochre Chapbook Contest, with her manuscript Before I Go to Sleep. In 2018 her book In the Making of Goodbyes was nominated for The CLMP Firecracker Award in Poetry, and her poem, A Mall in California, took 2^nd place for the Jack Kerouac Poetry Prize. In 2019 Carol Lynn’s chapbook An Ode to Hope in the Midst of Pandemonium was a finalist in the Eric Hoffer Book Awards. Her latest collection of poems, Alice in Ruby Slippers (Aldrich Press 2021), a book of form, has been selected for Sundress Publication’s The Wardrobe’s Best Dressed. Carol Lynn’s work was recently featured in Mezzo Cammin, Verse Daily, and appeared in the Saratoga Authors Hall of Fame. She has served as the Editor-in-Chief for the Orchards Poetry Journal and Co-Editor-in-Chief for the Tule Review. She is a former member of the Sacramento Poetry Center’s Board of Directors. According to family lore, Carol Lynn is a direct descendant of Robert Louis Stevenson.

Judge Website

Author Website