Boree Log Results

[David Campbell]

Thanks Terry (plus Marty, Heather, Bob, David, Maureen and Leonie), and congratulations to you and David.

For those who don’t know this competition, and who might like to enter next year, it’s a long-standing and well-run (by the Eastwood-Hills FAW in Sydney) written comp. that offers something for just about everyone. The Boree Log is bush verse, but there are also separate sections for free verse, traditional verse, memoir (might interest the yarn-spinners) and short stories (one max. 3000 words and one max. 800 words).

The judges’ report doesn’t say how many entered the Boree Log and traditional poetry sections, but the other categories were: free verse-117; memoir-83; 800 word SS-64; and 3000 word SS-141.

Brian Beesley is the regular (and ABPA accredited) judge for the Boree Log, and his comments reinforce the importance of “consistent rhythm, uncontrived rhymes, credible storylines and poetic language”. He criticises poor rhymes, such as rhyming a singular with a plural, and also those poems which deteriorated in rhythm structure: “Generally speaking, the first verse determines the make-up of the poem, both in the number of lines and the syllable count.” As he says, “every word must count”.

So for those who are interested in competitions, keep an eye out for this one. It usually has a closing date at the end of May. And no, this isn’t a paid advertisement…it’s based in a different city and I have nothing to with its organisation! But we’ve seen a few competitions struggle recently and, although this one isn’t simply a bush poetry event, we need to support our writing comps and hard-working organisers wherever possible.

Cheers
David

[Zondrae]

G'day David,

Congratulations on another win. Your talent and consistency are to be admired.

I have been sending in to the Boree Log for a few years now. One year I was awarded two HC. Nothing other than that. It is always of interest to me (don't know about other writers) just how many entries come in for competitions. I wonder how difficult it will be to get a new competiton going? IBP are considering this. I suppose if we make up our minds well ahead, and place advertising carefully and early, we should do OK. Our aim is to promote Rhyming Poetry and Yarn Spinning.

[David Campbell]

Thanks, Zondrae. I have a particular soft spot for the Boree Log as it was the first bush poetry comp. I won, back in 2002.

Having never been involved in setting up a competition, I can't really comment on the difficulty involved, but well-placed and timely advertising would certainly be essential. Plus the clarity of communication and the professional layout of entry forms. Any rules should be clear and unambiguous. If entry forms are to go online, the form itself should be on a separate page to the guidelines and allow plenty of space to enter details. Make it clear who cheques are to be made payable to and how entries are to be formatted. Make the closing date for entries prominent.

A poorly laid-out, cluttered, badly-printed entry form (and there are quite a few around!) reflects badly on the competition and can discourage potential entrants. Competition organisers who cram everything into the smallest possible space in order to fit it onto a single page do themselves a disservice. If you have a look at the Eastwood/Hills info (http://hillsfaw.webs.com/2011%20Lit%20C ... 20Form.pdf) you can find all the basic details neatly and clearly set out across two pages. It's an excellent model, and note that they say how winners will be notified and when the presentation will take place. Entrants need to know a definite timeline, and those competitions that leave it open-ended, possibly dragging on for months after the closing date, aren't doing themselves (or the entrants) any favours. If you're going to present certificates, it's worth spending a little extra to have them properly printed (not hard with today's computer technology) and laminated. Again, that's something the Eastwood/Hills people do.

You probably know all this already, but there might be something that helps!

Cheers
David