Poets Should Pop Poems In Post
Aspiring young poets and lyric writers should put pen to paper for this year’s New Zealand Post National Schools Poetry
Awards.
This year the Awards have expanded to include two prize categories, Best Poem and Best Lyric. Best Poem will be judged
by accomplished New Zealand poet Paula Green, while Best Lyric will be judged by former Split Enz musician Mike Chunn
and the Phoenix Foundation’s lead singer, Samuel Flynn Scott.
Samuel Flynn Scott will adapt the winning lyric into a song which Loop Media (New Zealand based independent music and
media company) will record and release accompanied by a music video for television.
The winner of the Best Lyric category will also receive a $500 cash prize and the opportunity to spend time in a
professional recording studio with the artist and sound engineer.
The Best Poem winner will receive a HP Pavillion dv2610TU notebook and a cash prize of $500. New Zealand Post chief
executive John Allen says the new Awards structure is a
very exciting development.
“I do hope these Awards really get young people thinking about writing not just as a means of self expression but also
as a way of earning a living and contributing to society.
“New Zealand Post is a committed supporter of literature, literacy and the arts in New Zealand and we are very pleased
to be working with the International Institute of Modern Letters to bring about these Awards.”
Bill Manhire, poet and director of Victoria University’s International Institute of Modern Letters, which runs the
Awards, wants aspiring writers to experience the fun in creating poetry.
“Writing a poem is one of the great human experiences. It’s as if you are singing the whole universe into being.”
This years Awards also include a new teacher Award category to recognise the work teachers do in inspiring their
students to take up writing. The winning teacher will receive a travel and accommodation package for a weekend at the
Sydney Writer’s Festival 2009.
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