What to Submit?
1 original, NEW poem on the theme of anything.
Any style is acceptable, however, the poem must be a reverse poem.
What the heck IS a reverse poem?
A reverse poem is a poem that can be read forwards (top to bottom) and have one meaning, but can also be read backwards (bottom to top) and (potentially) have a different or opposite meaning.
For the purposes of this event, your poem can be of any length but should be at least 10 lines. It does not have to rhyme and doesn't have to have an opposite meaning when read from bottom to top. I'm not too concerned about punctuation when read backwards either (periods, etc). It DOES need to make sense when reading it backwards, however.
Rankings will be based on
- Creativity
- How well the poem reads (both directions)
- My subjective opinion (this is implied with all contests, I make rules to be as objective as possible)
A brief example
Within my mind
Is the lock
Placing limits on my creativity
Read Backwards...
Placing limits on my creativity
Is the lock
Within my mind
For better/longer examples of some reversible poems, check out this list: https://www.poetrysoup.com/poems/reversible You can also see my poem titled Perspective.
Other Rules and Expectations
- Please put the word Reverse in your title so I don't read it accidentally (in parentheses is perfect)
- Please date your poems (required) and select reversible in the category (optional).
- As with all contests, names are not permitted and will result in DQ.
- This is my first contest with my new PM, so let's have some fun!
Prizes
First Prize, Glory
Second Prize, Glory
Third Prize, Glory
Up to Twelve Honorable Mentions
Preparing Your Entry
Submit one copy of your poem online. Format your poem. Please make your entry easy to read — no illustrations or fancy fonts.
English Language
Poems should be in English. Poems translated from other languages are not eligible, unless you wrote both the original poem and the translation.
A Note to Poetry Contestants
You are welcome to enter this contest, whether or not you won a prize in one of my previous contests.