General Terms & Conditions

Terms Binding. By entering the competition, each Entrant agrees to be bound by these terms and conditions.

Privacy. All personal information provided by the Entrant shall be used solely for the administration of the Montreal International Poetry Prize (the “Montreal Prize”). By providing such information, the Entrant consents to its use for such purposes.

Accuracy of Information. The Entrant guarantees that all personal information provided in his or her personal account and in the entry form is accurate. The Entrant assumes responsibility and liability for any and all consequences arising from human error, fraudulent information, and any information provided to the Montreal Prize that is inaccurate. Any false statement made by an Entrant is grounds for disqualification from the Montreal Prize.

Limitation of Liability. The Montreal Prize and its directors, officers, and employees shall assume no liability resulting from losses, delays, fraudulent claims or statements, loss or theft of any data, damage to any equipment including software, computer errors, malfunctions related to information technology, or any other errors. The Montreal Prize and its directors, officers and employees shall assume no liability whatsoever for any event, act, or situation beyond their control.

Award Force. By participating in the Montreal International Poetry Prize and using the submissions platform hosted by Award Force, Entrants agree to be governed by the terms, conditions, and privacy policy of Award Force: https://www.creativeforce.team/tos/

No Refund. Entries will not be refunded under any circumstances.

Ineligibility. Entries not conforming to these terms and conditions shall be ineligible. Only entries meeting all the present terms and conditions and the online entry requirements, including payment of relevant entrance fees, shall be considered.

Decisions Final. By entering, each Entrant agrees to abide by Montreal Prize rules. All decisions made by Montreal Prize directors or authorized agents, including subeditors, editors, and judges, as the case may be, are final. The Montreal Prize does not respond to correspondence concerning final decisions.

Jurisdiction. This Agreement is governed by and shall be construed in accordance with the laws of the Province of Quebec. The parties hereby attorn to the jurisdiction of the courts of the Province of Quebec.

Confirmation. Telephone confirmation of receipt of any entry is not available. The Montreal Prize will not confirm the content of entries. Acknowledgement of receipt will be sent via email to those who provide a valid email address in the personal information section of their online account with the Montreal Prize.

Retrieval of Entries. Entrants are responsible for keeping their own drafts. Once entered, the text of a poem cannot be retrieved for the Entrant. The Montreal Prize is not responsible for tracking entries and will not retrieve entries from its database.

Contact. Unsuccessful Entrants will not be contacted individually. Competition results may be found on the Montreal Prize website by 1 December of the competition year.

Competition Closure. Should participation levels fail to meet the minimum set by the Montreal International Poetry Prize, the Montreal International Poetry Prize may close the competition and refund all Entrants their Entry Fees. In such a case, all Entrants will be informed by email using the email provided in the Entrant’s account information. The current minimum number of entries is 2,000.

Eligibility

Age Restriction. All Entrants shall be of the age of majority in their legal jurisdiction of residency at the time of entry submission.

Topic. Entries may be on any topic.

International Entries. Entries may be submitted from anywhere in the world. Each entry must be submitted with the author’s legal name. A pen name may be added to a submission.

Length. Entries may be any length not exceeding forty (40) lines, excluding blank lines, numbered section titles, brief dedications, and epigraphs.

Language. All entries must be primarily in English. The inclusion of a few non-English words or phrases is acceptable.

Simultaneous Submission. Simultaneous submissions are permitted. If a poem is scheduled to be published elsewhere on or before 30 September of the competition year, it must be immediately withdrawn from the Montreal Prize. Entrants should withdraw the relevant poem themselves through the online submission platform. Refunds cannot be issued for withdrawn submissions. If a poem, accepted elsewhere, is to be published after 30 September of the competition year, it remains eligible for the Montreal Prize and need not be withdrawn. In that case, successful Entrants will ensure that first publication by the Montreal Prize is duly acknowledged in the subsequent publication. 

Publication Defined. Publication is defined as the appearance of a text on the Internet or in print, or the broadcasting of it in any format.

Previous Publication. Entries must be unpublished and original works of the Entrant. Each entry must be the work of a single author, not including a company or organization. Each entry must not infringe upon any right or copyright of any person or entity.

Translation. Translations are not eligible for the Montreal Prize, except a translation made by the Entrant of a poem written by the Entrant.

Publication Following Entry. If an entry is published at any time before the selections for the Montreal Prize anthologies have been announced, it will be rendered ineligible. Entries that are selected for publication in the Montreal Prize anthologies are subject to specific publishing rights outlined elsewhere in these rules.

Entry. All entries must be entered exclusively using the online submission platform linked to the Montreal Prize website. No other form of entry, by conventional mail or otherwise, shall be considered, and any such entry will not be returned. Entries must not include the Entrant’s name in the text.

No changes. All entries are final; no changes are allowed after submissions close. Before the submission deadline, Entrants may modify their entries themselves.

Entry Restrictions. The Montreal Prize directors, officers, employees, representatives or agents, including the subeditors, editors and prize judges, as well as any of their immediate family members or persons with whom they are domiciled, are not eligible to enter the Montreal Prize.

Entry Fee. An entry fee is required for each entry. Fees are allocated based on early and final entry deadlines, and first or additional entry status. The applicable fees are as follows:

(i)          $20 CAD for a first entry during the early entry period;

(ii)          $25 CAD for a first entry during the later entry period;

(iii)         $17 CAD for every additional entry.

Deadlines. The early entry deadline is 1 May at 23:59 ET (Montreal Time). The final entry deadline is 15 May at 23:59 ET.

Right to Extend Deadline. The Montreal International Poetry Prize reserves the right to extend deadlines as it sees fit.

Fee Payment. Entries will not be eligible until payment has been received and confirmed. If payment is withdrawn, the relevant entry will be rendered ineligible. All entries are final, and entry fees are non-transferable and non-refundable.

WARRANTY. Entrants warrant they have created the entry they are submitting, that they own all rights to it, that all intellectual property, including copyright, in the entry belongs to the entrant and remains solely and exclusively with the entrant, and that the entry shall not violate any laws of any country and shall not infringe any other party’s copyright, trademark or other rights. Entrants will indemnify and hold the Montreal Prize and its directors, officers, and employees free of harm from and against any and all loss, damage, costs and other expense arising out of claims, whatever their nature, resulting directly or indirectly from breach of this warranty.

Publication Rights

Copyright. Copyright remains with the authors. By submitting an entry, the Entrant grants worldwide licences to the Montreal Prize for the following, in the case that the entry is selected for publication:

(i)              the right to publish the entry online and in print in the Montreal Prize anthology;

(ii)            the right to insert a hyperlink to the Montreal Prize website where the entries will be stored.

Reprint. For any entry that is published online as part of the shortlist and in the Montreal Prize anthology, any requests for permission to reprint or photocopy an Entrant’s work shall be referred to the Entrant.

Name and Likeness. All Entrants whose entries are selected for the anthologies shall agree to have their name and/or picture, including their photograph, and/or their voice used for promotional purposes related to this competition, free of charge. Each Entrant who has an entry selected for either publication and/or the prize agrees to take part in reasonable publicity after publication and the awarding of the prize and to the use of their names, title of work, biographies, and photographs in such publicity.

Selection Process

Selection by Jurors. All entries will be selected and judged anonymously. Each entry will be randomly allocated to juror, who will select from his or her allocated entries a number of entries for the anthology.

Judging. The prize judge will select the prize winner, also anonymously, from the entries selected for the Montreal Prize anthology.

Correspondence. No editorial feedback will be provided to Entrants. There will be no correspondence to Entrants regarding the selection process.

The Prize and the Publications

Prize and Publishing. The jury will choose approximately sixty poems for publication in the Montreal Prize anthology. Of these, the judge will select one poem as winner of the single prize of twenty thousand dollars in Canadian funds ($20,000 CAD). To have an entry included in the anthology, and/or to be declared the winner of the prize, Entrants must meet all the present terms and conditions.

Complimentary Copy. Entrants published in the anthology will receive one free copy of the Montreal Prize anthology.

Winner Announcement. The winner of the Montreal Prize will be announced by 1 December of the competition year.

No Transfer. The prize may not be exchanged or transferred. No substitutions are allowed.

Refusal. Refusal to accept the prize or publication in the Montreal Prize anthology releases the Montreal Prize and its directors, employees, sponsors, partners, and affiliates of any obligation towards the Entrant.

Method of Award. The prize winner will be notified by telephone or by email. The method for delivering the prize to the prize winner will be agreed upon between the Montreal Prize and the prize winner. Payment of any transaction fees, including currency exchange fees, associated with the method for delivering the prize to the prize winner, are the responsibility of the prize winner.

Time of Announcement. The prize winner will be named online, on the Montreal Prize website, by 1 December of the relevant year.

Deadline for Claim. The deadline for claiming the prize will be thirty (30) days from the time of announcement. Should the winner fail to claim the prize, he or she will forfeit the prize and another winner will be selected.