Competition Terms & Conditions
These apply to all Messy Mediums Competitions. Please read them before entering. By submitting work, you confirm that you agree to these terms.
1. Eligibility
The competition is open to writers aged 18 or over at the time of entry. International entries are welcome, provided submissions are written primarily in English. Employees, judges and close family members of anyone directly involved in administering or judging the competition may not enter.
2. Entry Deadline
Entries must be submitted by the stated date at 11:59pm UK time. Late entries will not be accepted unless the delay is caused by a verified technical issue on the Messy Mediums side.
3. Entry Fee
The entry fee is £2.50. Multiple-entry pricing is £2 for additional entries. Entry fees help cover administration, website costs, payment processing, judging design and printing Entries are not valid until payment and submission form have both been received.
4. Refunds
Entry fees are non-refundable once work has been submitted, except where Messy Mediums cancels the competition. If a payment is made in error and no work has been submitted, contact us within 48 hours.
5. Submission Limits
Each poem must be no more than 40 lines or comfortably fit on 2 pages in 12pt, excluding title and including blank lines. Entries over the stated limit may be disqualified. You may submit up to 3 poems per entrant, adhering to additional submission fees.
6. Formatting
Submit work as a .doc, .docx or .pdf file. Use a readable font and standard formatting. If anonymous judging is used, do not include your name, biography or identifying information on the poem document itself.
7. Original Work
Entries must be the original work of the entrant. Plagiarised work, ghostwritten work or work submitted without the proper rights will be disqualified.
8. Publication Status
Unless otherwise stated, entries should be unpublished in print, online journals, magazines and books.
9. Simultaneous Submissions
Simultaneous submissions are allowed, but you must tell us immediately if your work is accepted elsewhere and becomes ineligible under these rules.
10. AI Use
The final submitted work must be written by the entrant and must not be generated by AI. Basic spelling, grammar or accessibility tools are allowed, but AI-generated poems or substantially AI-written work are not eligible.
11. Judging
Entries will be judged on originality, voice, craft, impact and fit with the competition brief. The judge’s decision is final. No correspondence will be entered into regarding individual judging decisions.
12. Anonymous Judging
Where possible, entries will be judged anonymously. Admin information collected through the form will be kept separate from the work during judging where the chosen platform allows.
13. Prizes
If a prize is included, it will be in the details of the competition page. If a winner cannot be contacted within 14 days of notification, Messy Mediums reserves the right to select an alternative winner. If your work has been chosen for an anthology, sales profit shares are not given unless stated. We are a small publisher and any book sales help fund more competitions for other writers and artists, however in the instance of overwhelming book sales, this may change pending review.
14. Results
Results will be announced on stated date, on the Messy Mediums website and/or by email. Shortlisted and winning entrants may be asked to provide a short bio, photo or publication name.
15. Copyright
Entrants retain copyright of their work at all times.
16. Publication Rights
By entering, you grant Messy Mediums non-exclusive permission to publish selected winning or shortlisted work on the website, newsletter, social media and/or future anthology, with full credit. Any additional anthology terms will be confirmed separately.
17. Data Protection
Personal information will be used only to administer the competition, contact entrants, announce results where appropriate and send newsletters. Personal information will not be sold.
18. Disqualification
Messy Mediums reserves the right to disqualify entries that breach the rules, include offensive or unlawful material, are submitted fraudulently, or cannot be matched to a valid payment.
19. Changes or Cancellation
Messy Mediums reserves the right to amend deadlines, judging arrangements or prize details where necessary, but will communicate material changes clearly on the website. Refunds will be administered if competitions are cancelled.
20. Contact
Questions about the competition should be sent to our email address. Please include your name, entry title and payment reference where relevant.