The Poetry Foundation’s definition of Romanticism provides a starting point from which poets can channel their inner Romantic.
‘ A poetic movement of the late 18th and early 19th centuries that turned toward nature and the interior world of feeling. English poets such as William Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, John Keats, Percy Bysshe Shelley, William Blake, and Lord Byron produced work that expressed spontaneous feelings, found parallels to their own emotional lives in the natural world, and celebrated creativity rather than logic.’
And if you need further inspiration, the Poetry Foundation has examples of the work of these wonderful Romantics on their website.
Poems should be submitted, along with the competition entry form, before midnight on 30 May 2025. The entry form, and full details of the competition entry fee and rules can be found on the competition page of the Shelley Memorial Project website via the following link: shelleymemorialproject.co.uk/competition-2025
The Shelley Memorial Project is delighted that Joe Bunn, who many will know as the Bard of Worthing, has agreed to judge the competition this year. Joe will award three cash prizes;
First Prize £250,
2nd Prize £150
3rd Prize £50.
The Sussex Cup will be awarded to the best poem by a writer based in Sussex, Shelley’s home county. Prize winners and highly commended poets will also have a chance to have their poems included in the competition anthology. The organisers of the competition are very grateful to Horsham-based writer Graham Sitton, who has, once again, sponsored our competition prizes.
Carol Hayton, the SMP poetry competition secretary, commented at the launch of the competition, 'We are delighted to be running our competition this year with a theme that really connects with Shelley’s work and a great poetic movement. Each year that we have run the competition, participation has increased and we are really impressed by the standard of the entries that come from people of all levels of experience in creative writing. We look forward to receiving even more fantastic poems this year.'