We invite you to submit entries for the University’s three writing prizes, the Grierson Verse Prize, Sloan Prize, and Lewis Edwards Memorial Prize. These prizes have been established to recognise and encourage our students’ remarkable talent in prose and verse. About the prizes The competitions are open to original and previously unpublished pieces and give our students a chance to explore and showcase their creativeness. Each prize has its own eligibility and form requirements detailed below. Please read these and the submission guidelines carefully before submitting your entry. This year's prizes will be judged by Michael Pedersen, our Writer in Residence. Good luck! Grierson Verse Prize This prize, estimated value £900, is awarded to a matriculated student of the University of Aberdeen or the University of Edinburgh. It is given for a poem or series of poems, using any recognised verse form other than free verse, totalling no more than 80 lines on a given theme. When submitting your entry, please note which form you used in your email and in the document above your poem. The theme for 2024 is "friendship", and any valid interpretation of the theme is acceptable. I am incredibly honored and grateful to have won the Grierson Verse Prize 2024. This poem allowed me to portray the tender, intimate moments of friendship as we grow older and explore the return to a place of nostalgia, like a parking lot, and the ruminations that accompany them. Emily Wheeler, winner of the Grierson Verse Prize in 2024 Past winners Year Name 2024 Emily Wheeler (special mention: Malika McKenny) 2023 Rachel Rankin (special mentions: Kate Genevieve, Malika McKenney and Alice Eaves) 2022 Olivia Thomakos (special mentions: Beth Grainger, Carl Alexandersson and Tim Tim Cheng) 2021 Maria Henry (special mentions: Amy Doyle, Kiefer Holland and Adam Vaughn) 2020 Rhiannon Auriol Williams (special mentions: Jane Jia Hui, Hayley Bernier and Alex Aldred) 2019 Alycia Pirmohamed (special mentions: Roshni Gallagher, Hattie Atkins, and Sarah Stewart) 2018 Paige Smith 2017 Tim Craven 2016 Marianne MacRae Lewis Edwards Memorial Prize This prize was established in memory of Lewis Edwards, who died while a student of English Literature at the University of Edinburgh. It is open to any matriculated undergraduate student of the University. The award, estimated value £1,400, is offered for a composition in English verse (including free verse) or prose (fiction). Poetry submissions must be no more than 80 lines, and prose (fiction) submissions must be no longer than 2,000 words. Please feel free to not use the maximum word capacity. Oops, I did it again! I'm completely bowled away and honoured to have won the Lewis Edwards Prize, this piece means a lot to me and it’s so rewarding to have it recognised. Pollyanna Jackson, winner of the Lewis Edwards Memorial Prize in 2024 Past winners Year Name 2024 Pollyanna Jackson (special mentions: Maya Engwell, Grace Murray) 2023 Pollyanna Jackson (special mentions: Rosie Gandon, Devki Panchmatia and Holly Sargent) 2022 Armaan Verma (special mentions: Hattie Atkins, Siru and Ailsa Fraser) 2021 Jamie Perriam (special mentions: Murdoch Stanfield, Millie Graham, Ally Shilson and Armaan Verma) 2020 Albertine Clarke (special mention: Armaan Verma and Millie Riddell) 2019 Snigdha Koirala (special mention: Polly Smythe) 2017 Paula Colmenares-León 2016 Quentin Scobie Sloan Prize This prize, estimated value £1,500, is awarded annually for a prose or verse composition in Lowland Scots vernacular to a matriculated student of the University of Edinburgh, or to a graduate of the University of Edinburgh of less than three years’ standing. Poetry submissions must be no more than 80 lines, and prose (fiction) submissions must be no longer than 2,000 words. Please feel free to not use the maximum word capacity. You should include a statement about the particular dialect chosen as accuracy plays a big part in determining the award (along with the literary and imaginative interest of the composition). I am absolutely thrilled to receive this award and grateful for the recognition of work that is so personal to me. Writing 'Hame' was a real journey of discovery, finding ways to weave the threads of Scots vernacular and history into a narrative that speaks universally. Thank you to Michael Pedersen for seeing value in my little story. Suzy Enoch, winner of the Sloan Prize in 2024 Past winners Year Name 2024 Suzy Enoch (special mention: Declan Kelly) 2023 Declan Kelly (special mentions: Edward McLaren, Suzy Enoch and Meghan Link) 2022 Jo Higgs (special mentions: Dorothy Lawrenson, Heather Dunnett and Declan Kelly) 2021 Alice Orr (special mention: Alex Day) 2020 Kirsty Souter (special mention: Declan Kelly) 2019 Charles Lang (special mentions: Laurie Chetwood and James McPherson) 2018 Miriam Huxley 2017 Duncan Sneddon 2016 Dominic Hale and Zoe Ramsey Past winning and shortlisted entries Browse winners from recent years on our Writing Prizes blog. Immerse yourself in their stories, and learn more about the people behind the words and what inspires them. Read author bios and past entries on the Writing Prizes blog How do I enter a prize? Take me to the submission guidelines This article was published on 2024-08-13