C O N T E S T S
2025 Advent Poetry Contest:
Holy, Silent Mother of God
Catholic Literary Arts (CLA) encourages you to write poems reflecting on Mary as the Holy, Silent Mother of God during the season of Advent for our 2025 Advent Writing Contest. The season of Advent provides a time particularly appropriate to journeying inward to prepare for the birth of the Divine Savior.
The beginning date for this contest is September 22, 2025, and the ending date is 11:59 p.m. CST on November 18, 2025.
An entry for this contest is limited to 32 lines, not including the title and stanza breaks.
Each submission to the contest will be judged according to the effectiveness of the use of language, imagery, and Sacred Tradition.
This contest is part of CLA’s focused and ongoing efforts to encourage people to write new poetry which uses the rich traditions and images of the Catholic faith to bring God into today’s world through original and beautiful contemporary writing in honor of God.
This year’s 2025 Advent Contest Judge is V. Paige Parker.
V. Paige Parker has an MFA in Creative Writing with a focus on formal poetry from the University of St. Thomas (Houston, Texas). She is a first-place winner and four-time finalist in Catholic Literary Arts poetry contests. Her poetry has appeared in Integrated Catholic Life, The Society of Classical Poets, The Clayjar Review, and New Verse Review, among others. Her Substack can be found at https://substack.com/@vpaigeparker
Contest Information
All submissions must be:
typed in 12-point font and submitted through Submittable in a Word file of .doc or .docx.
all work is blind-judged which means that the judge must not see the name of the author. Therefore, the author’s name must not appear on the submission or in the document’s file name.
original work that has not been published online or in a hard copy journal, magazine, or book.
the work must be the original creation of the person submitting the work
there is a line limit of 32 lines, not including the title.
Submission Guidelines
Submissions Period
This contest opens September 22, 2025 and closes November 18, 2025 at 11:59 p.m. CST
Submittable Guidelines
The electronic submissions platform for this contest is Submittable.
In order to use Submittable, you will need to create an account on their website, if you do not already have one. Creation of an account within Submittable is free.
If you have questions or problems with Submittable, please contact their Customer Service directly via their website, submittable.com.
Each writer may enter one poem.
Entry Fees
The entry fee per submission is $10.
A writer may enter only one poem.
Prizes/Awards
Prizes will be awarded in the poetry category as follows;
First prize, $75
Second Prize, $50
Third Prize, $25
Winners must complete IRS Form W-9 to receive payment in U.S. dollars.
Submit Your Entry
Please use this link to submit one poem.
The Submittable form will direct you how to pay the submission fee. You will be given the option in Submittable to pay by credit card or via your PayPal account.
Celebration for Winners and Finalists
Catholic Literary Arts invites you to a virtual event through Zoom to celebrate the Advent Writing Contest’s winners and finalists.
These celebrations occur in a joyous virtual community eager to hear and share the writing of today’s writers of Faith. You’ll walk away, inspired to write more yourself, and, we hope, inspired to further reflect on your own Advent journey, along with the members of the CLA nationwide community.
The virtual event will be Monday, Dec. 15, 2025, at 7:00 p.m. CST. It will last 60 minutes.
Click here to register for the Celebration of winners and finalists.