The Poetry Marathon

Presenting the winners of the 12 Hour Poetry Half Marathon!

Congratulations!

Also – Here’s the list of 24 Hour Poetry Marathon Winners.

(Note that this is a tentative list – if you find any errors, please let me know!)

Caitlin Thomson
Jacob Jans
Jennifer Faylor
sheilas
psarvasy
seema
Harvey Schwartz
wogslandwriter
Britton
SilverQuiver
JC the poet
sarayb
debbiehainey
Janis Martin
Shloka Shankar
Sara Plath
Roy Mark Azanza Corrales
Martin Rodriguez Torrez
Ant
Grace B. Wade Jones
hollydistefano
ellawagemakers
meka
luellen
Tracy Plath
SJHAWLEY
sharonedge
naidanepascuasupnet
Mark Lucker
Maritza
angelatheresaegicwrites
Kevin J. O’Conner
SaskiaLynge
Jo
Bhasha Dwivedi
Kat Kidder
Antonia
friowords
Anwar Suleman
Colleen Schwartz
Melanie Rademaker
grenbisous
cristywatson
janinmarathon
DarlaK
smileyone
eve-mary
Tessa Mountain
viviak
Janettka
Hafeezah
bokononist
diane6446
SarahW
jenniferprattwalter
willowriver44
lindahallstrom
adriana.c.grant
Skay
genawilliams
Anne Paterson
NancyLynn
lisadawn
Lani G
alexdi
Amy Wax
mallikaagnihotri
h-e-m-poetry
HuffPunkMatron
Stef
singlelaq7
selene
tammibelko
alp2003tn
janabrooke1987
kriscleage
MissFitz
Susmita
julieonoh
vickifaye
Noodle
FionaThunderstorm
dvnmskm
Katie
zoelogical
claycrane
Aditi
clairek
LisaAllenHyde
clafollette
anomalousresult
seawitch
jtripp
I.B.Y
authorhj
punkpillywiggin
desertdiane
BloomingFire
AutumnsOnlyone
RobinAnnaSmith
sandraj631968
Ayanna Nahmias
thesassycrayon
pentopapergal
luvmifreely
molliedee
rachel-bryan
jilowill
jillh1980
bayleykelly

You made it! After the first Marathon was completed I came up with the phrase “I survived The Poetry Marathon.” It seems a lot more accurate than the word winning or even the word completing.

Due to popular demand this year we made t-shirts with that saying on it, availble in three colors.

The t-shirt for the event is now available here. There are three different color options. Any money we make (which won’t be much) will go towards future marathons.

I also made two meme images, sharable versions of these are up on our facebook page.

You did it! Congratulations! I am very impressed! You wrote 24 poems in 24 hours. This is an achievement that few poets ever accomplish. Although if you are a returning marathoner, some of you might be accomplishing it for the second or third time or fourth or even fifth time!

Now you should probably go get some sleep.

After every marathon I have participated in I, have been filled with exhaustion but also a tremendous sense of achievement. I hope you have that too.

In the past I have personally verified that everyone who applied for a certificate was eligible and then I would make a certificate. That is not possible this year and so we will be operating on the honor system.

If you completed the full 24 hour Poetry Marathon please consider the following certificate yours, to update with your name, to print if you choose to do so. We will be taking feedback into consideration, so if you really feel strongly about this new state of affairs please email me at poets@thepoetrymarathon.com to explain your position.

Only use the link below to access the certificate if you have completed the Full Marathon. Congratulations again on your completion of The Poetry Marathon. The version that you will download should be easy to edit and add your name to.

The link to download the editable version is here.

The visual example of what the certificate will look like is right below this text.

Also remember that this year we will be putting together a 2019 Poetry Marathon Anthology.

Submissions will open July 2nd and stay open till the 16th.

All submissions must include two poems, no more, no less. The subject line of all emails must be Poetry Submission. Poems must be included in the body of the email. The email address is  poetrymarathonsubmissions@gmail.com. But do not submit early! You must follow all the instructions below!

All poems submitted must be written during the 2019 Poetry marathon. All poems should be completely edited and contain no major grammatical errors.

The first word of every line should not have a capitalization unless it is intentional! Word has an auto caps feature that you can turn off by following the instructions below.

You must indicate which hour each poem was written in. Only poets who completed the whole or half marathon will be eligible to submit.

There is no guarantee that by submitting your poem will be selected although the goal is to include one poem by everyone who submits.

Digital copies will be made available for free to any contributor. Print copies will be available for a reasonable price and any money that is made from them will go towards covering the cost of the marathon.

Want to know what the 2017 Poetry Marathon Anthology was like? Pick up your copy here.

You made it (almost)! Congratulations! Hooray! Now just one more poem to write.

For the final prompt I want you to write a poem with the title of an 70’s or 80’s – pop rock anthem. For example We Are The Champions, Eye of The Tiger, Don’t Stop Beliven’.

Write a poem about your childhood. Ideally this poem should contain between 1 and 5 numbered sections.

Write a nature poem set in a city.

or

Write a poem about technology in the context of nature.

The prompt this hour is simple: write a poem about an animal. It can be from the animal’s perspective, or from your perspective.

We are almost there! This is the hardest part. But it can also be the most rewarding. I want you to read the Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock by T.S. Eliot and use any of the lines, words, or phrases it contains, to write your own poem. Make sure to give Eliot credit if you end up using a line of his, by italicizing that line and mentioning the poem and the author after the title of your poem.

Pick a poem that you wrote earlier in the marathon and then write a companion poem for it. The two can be closely linked and even share a title, or a riff on the same title, or the poem can function independently but explore the same ideas from a different direction.

or

Pick one of your favorite poems by another author and then write a poem as a response to it.

The two can be closely linked or your poem can function independently but explore the same ideas from a different direct. You should reference the poem your poem is a response to at the top of the page.

Write an epistolary poem: A poem that is a letter to someone or something. It can be to someone you actually know, a former version of yourself, or even an abstract concept like death. The title should start with Dear and then be the name, or thing you are addressing. For example a possible title could be “Dear self with bangs and glasses”.