We are now accepting poems on the themes of:

Root | Essence | Journey.

You can enter up to THREE poems per person.  This year, our competition is part of A Poet in Every Port Celebration with Southbank Centre and Aspects Literary Festival. There will be NO ENTRANCE FEE this year.

All poems must be in English and previously unpublished (they should not have been published online, in print, on social media or blogs).  They should be no longer than 40 lines (not including title or stanza breaks) and can be in any style. (Traditional right through to experimental!)

Please submit your three poems using the form below.

Interpret the themes as you may- take them literally or turn them on their head. We do advise against titling your poems after any of the themes or heavily relying on the use of these actual terms within your work— instead go for something original.

*The deadline for submissions is: 12 midnight Sunday 6th September 2026. *  Within two weeks of the deadline a shortlist of 10 poems shall be announced.  These 10 poems will then be displayed on our website in an online gallery and voted on by the public as part of Aspects Literary Festival’s Poetry in Every Port Celebration.  (Strictly one vote per person, which will be checked carefully.)

The winners will be announced at The Bangor Literary Journal Launch event which is part of the prestigious Aspects Literary Festival: Sunday 27th September 2026 at 7pm.  All shortlisted poets will be invited to attend and read their poem. All shortlisted poets who attend on the day, will be presented with a framed certificate. The 10 shortlisted poems will be published in Issue 24 of The Bangor Literary Journal. A Longlist will also be announced, but these poems will not be published.

CLICK BELOW for full guidelines and to submit your poems via our FORM

GUIDELINES AND SUBMISSION FORM

Get your free tickets to this year’s special celebration event HERE!

The 13th Bangor Poetry Competition and Launch of Issue 24 of The Bangor Literary Journal | Aspects

Join Paul Daniel Rafferty and Amy Louise Wyatt for the 13th Bangor Poetry Competition and launch of Issue 24 of The Bangor Literary Journal.

As part of the Southbank Centre’s A Poet in Every Port Project, this year’s winners will be included in a focus feature on The Bangor Literary Journal’s website.

The themes for 2026 are: Root | Essence | Journey.

Ten shortlisted poems will be selected and will be available to read on the online gallery and open to public vote. The ten shortlisted poets will read their poems at the Aspects Festival event.

Poetry Competition deadline: Midnight Sunday 6 September 2026.