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Contest, Name and Date

Contest, name and date Why does a judge need to know It beggars belief why they ask this When only words should show To deliberate and determine Where said poetry has been scribed Surely it's down to wonder Then who's best, and to then decide This happens on quite a few sites So it appears to be in the main Purely to know who's written such It simply can't be the same :-(

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Olive Eloisa Guillermo - Fraser

Date: 10/14/2014 7:42:00 AM

some judges want dates because some sponsors require new but then later on it turns out the winning poem won bout year/s ago.. some judges reqyite names for grammatucal issues this what I was told.. when am joining contest, winning is only a bonus.. my main reason why am joining is to learn more, 2nd: to get more reads . :) i esp like it when i win when the contest requires new forms, as this will be my evaluation if i have understood the form well.. :)

James Fraser
Date: 10/14/2014 3:49:00 PM

I hear you little one :)

Olive Eloisa Guillermo - Fraser
Date: 10/14/2014 7:50:00 AM

but i really appreciate that some judges mention of having another judge to helo them. :)

Olive Eloisa Guillermo - Fraser
Date: 10/14/2014 7:45:00 AM

3rd is when the contest"s theme really struck me... :) P.a. Callus knows that iblike to try new forms..:)

Robert Lindley

Date: 9/5/2014 9:54:00 AM

Giving this a solid 7 my friend!

James Fraser
Date: 9/6/2014 4:46:00 PM

I mentioned this in another poem a few years back Robert. It beggars belief why contest organisers require poets names on their entries. The Soup should make a ruling that all contests are name free. The possibility of favouritism could well arise? - James.....

Robert Lindley

Date: 9/5/2014 9:53:00 AM

By the way, thanks for addressing this issue as it is the primary reason I will most likely not renew my membership here. Admin could do an easy fix to insure fair judging without the favoritism aspect but refrains to do so. I ask why refrain? Who does not want fairness!!!!

James Fraser
Date: 9/6/2014 4:42:00 PM

Robert Lindley

Date: 9/5/2014 9:49:00 AM

few of us wrote about this several weeks ago. I've been submitting my poems unsigned unless requested to sign my name and have started not entering contests where the name is required. When some require names you can go back and look at their old contest results to see why. I wish to be judged on the words not who likes or dislikes me or who a sponsor admires previously or is friends with. ALL CONTESTS SHOULD BE JUDGED BLIND OR ELSE FAVORTISM WILL BE THERE EVEN IF IT IS SUBCONSCIOUS. IT IS JUST HUMAN NATURE.. I am currently not entering many contests despite my admiration for the poetic talents of the sponsors. And I see favoritism by certain ones so will never write for those again.

James Fraser
Date: 9/6/2014 4:42:00 PM

Eileen Manassian

Date: 8/23/2014 10:32:00 PM

I tend to agree with you, James. The issue of submitting names can be a tricky one because one wonders if knowing had a part to play in the judging process. Having said that, some writers are not so versatile in their writing style and have a signature style that would be easy to detect, so...it isn't full proof, but that is throwing baby out with the bathwater. Some wants names for the purpose of tweaking, but does that defeat the purpose of it being a contest? I know your answer! ;)

Casarah Nance

Date: 8/23/2014 10:00:00 PM

I can see the benefit of having the name so much as when I didn't correctly do a contest or it needed editing I was informed by the sponsor, but then there have been contest that I felt like I was denied because the judge didn't particularly like me. But the poem should be judged souly on the words, not on other factors.

James Fraser
Date: 8/23/2014 10:09:00 PM

The latter makes sense, the other no sentence. The only benefit when it comes to poetry is learning, and if we make mistakes when we enter, then so be it. It's the learning after the fact, in any shape or form that's important. To be a judge, and to know whom one judges, isn't the way forward.

Elaine George

Date: 8/23/2014 8:39:00 PM

Absolutely!!!!

Elaine George

Date: 8/23/2014 7:50:00 PM

I agree 100%. Thank you for writing this James. lol. Elaine

James Fraser
Date: 8/23/2014 7:57:00 PM

Contest and Date I scoff at, because it's always in as the three. It's the name that continues to alarm, because, then judges see what they see. To know what entries are written, it should be a surprise to us all. It's when we view the winners as such, posted on the wall.

Tim Smith

Date: 8/23/2014 5:57:00 PM

I don't mind the date part as some wish only current poems. The name part doesn't make sense to me and can only lead to favoritism.

Jan Allison
Date: 8/23/2014 6:24:00 PM

I got one negative mail when I was placed 3rd in Darren's contest -' they said 'I won only because we wrote together ' made me smile as he didn't judge it himself a friend did - i just enter the contests to the best of my ability and if i win great if i don't great at least i tried:-) Hugs jan xxx

James Fraser
Date: 8/23/2014 6:12:00 PM

I used all three Tim, but I agree totally with the date. As I commented on Jan's comment. It beggars belief that whomever declares a name, when all poems entered should be unknown. Can you imagine a Soccer Club emailing their teams ahead of the next fixture!

Jan Allison

Date: 8/23/2014 5:55:00 PM

I think some people feel names should be on from a copyright point of view, other judges want to judge blind so there can be no one pointing the finger at favouritism - guess there will never be a happy medium i would love to see some sort of notification in the title for contest poems so they cannot be inadvertently read by a judge, Hugs Jan xxx thanks for a fun night with the footles xx

Jan Allison
Date: 8/23/2014 6:18:00 PM

I'm not really much up on copyright laws James - i just go with the rules they ask for each contest - i personally prefer no names - guess this could convo rumble on all night and we would never strike a happy medium:-) Hugs jan xxx

James Fraser
Date: 8/23/2014 6:09:00 PM

As soon as a poem is published on any American Poetry Website, it's automatically copyrighted. As soon as it's recorded anywhere else, it's also copyrighted, as 99.9% of writers save to their computer, as said save is dated. It's very rare for plagiarism to exist, although it does sadly. To request who's written whatever, takes away the unique write by whomever.