Leonard Cohen Poetry Prize — $2000 Awarded
Ends on
The reading period for the Leonard Cohen Poetry Prize runs from September 21 to November 7 (LC’s birth anniversary to death anniversary).
$1000 will be awarded to a poem that explores the intersection of love, faith & sex. Four finalists will each be awarded $250.
ABOUT THE PRIZE
Poet, novelist, singer/songwriter, artist, music producer, Buddhist monk, Leonard Cohen has won countless hearts.
I found his music six years ago and haven't listened to much else since. Now every morning when I drop my daughter off to preschool, she and I sing along to “Suzanne” on the way. Having spent countless hours with the Leonard Cohen Archive at the University of Toronto, I’m in awe of the devotion he had for his craft, blackening page after page.
His ability to blend the sacred and the profane, the spiritual and the sensual remains unmatched. We are indebted to him for bridging the world of literature with the world of music.
A couple of times in concerts, he sang this two-liner: “no, it wasn't any good, there's no reason why you should remember me” while having given us a million reasons to remember him.
We hope this will push people who are aware of Cohen's genius as a musician to turn to his poetry. It gives us deep honor to name this prize after the one and only Leonard Cohen and carry a part of his infinite legacy on our slim shoulders.
As Leonard would say, forgive the poverty of these words for they do not reflect the abundance of our gratitude.
— Karan Kapoor, Editor-in-Chief, ONLY POEMS
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
Send us up to 3 pages of poetry.
Each poem starts on a new page.
In the spirit of Leonard Cohen, we ask that your poems deal in some way with the intersections of Love, Faith, & Sex.
We only accept previously uncurated work.
We love cover letters and would prefer knowing whose work we are reading. You are welcome to share your love for Leonard Cohen, your publication history, if any, though that would not influence our decision. Please make sure that the document of your poems is stripped of any biographical information—use the cover letter field on Submittable for this.
Please withdraw your poems if they get accepted elsewhere.
We will respond to everyone by the end of this year. Winners will be announced and published in January.
There will be no deadline extensions.
Your submission comes with an exclusive 33% discount off any of the annual ONLY POEMS membership tiers ($33-$82 value).
PLEASE NOTE:
The Leonard Cohen Family Trust does not endorse this award, ONLY POEMS, or the prize winners. It is for their generosity we are allowed to name this prize after Leonard Cohen, the Poet Laureate of the World.