What is this website all about?

Primarily, of course, it is a website giving information about a writing competition.  The competition is based in the city of Derby in England and is run annually, with a usual closing date of May 31st each year.  Although it is based in Derby, it is open to entrants throughout the world, and in 2007 attracted entries from 23 different countries.

Who are we?

We are a small group of amateur writers from Derbyshire who have a deep love and regard for poetry and short fiction in all their many forms.  We are also very proud of the literary and cultural heritage of our home city and region, hence we have firmly based the competition in that location. The primary purpose of the competition is to provide a vehicle for enabling new writers to receive recognition which they might not otherwise have known.  Or, if their writing has been already recognised in some way, to give the writers in question further encouragement on the route to reaching a wider audience.

To whom are we answerable?

We are wholly independent and receive no grant aid or advertising revenue from any source.  The competition is designed as a non-profit-making enterprise, with all income being diverted into running costs and prize money.  As we are answerable to no media outlet we are free from any editorial control.  As we are answerable to no political or governmental influence we are free to run the competition in the interests of literature and literature alone.  Our only 'control' as such comes from our judges, who each year will be chosen in relation to their literary reputation and merit.