Opportunities for Poets

About Red Room

Red Room Poetry isn't a literary journal and we don’t run ongoing open submissions. Instead, we commission poets based on the needs of each project — which means our producers carefully invite artists whose voice and style are the right fit, often in collaboration with our project partners. Please check out our FAQs to learn more about how we work with poets.

Opportunities for Poets

Whether you’re an emerging or established poet, we’ve compiled a list of opportunities currently open for submission for writers in Australia — from writing prizes, awards and competitions, to residencies, fellowships and courses.

Don't ever miss another opportunity: stay informed about poetry news by subscribing to our newsletters.

Prizes and Competitions

• Poem Forest is a free nature writing prize that plants a tree for every poem received — Closing Friday, 21 September 2026
• Crawlspace, a journal publishing interactive and multimedia writing and art, is open for submissions — Closing, 31 September 2026
• 2027 Peter Porter Poetry Prize is open for entries — Closing Wednesday, 14 October
• Monthly Poet shares four words each month, the challenge is invited you to write a 16-line poem using those words — Enter

Journal and Anthology Submissions

• Creatrix Poetry —Submit
• Debris Magazine — Submit
• Splinter Journal — Submit
• Island Magazine — Submit
• Loom — Submit
• Overland — Submit
• Poet Lore (US) — Submit
• Portside Review — Submit
• Posthuman Press — Submit
• Takahē (NZ) — Submit
• The Marrow — Submit
• The Suburban Review — Submit
• UNSW Press — Submit
• Westerly — Submit
• Zine Machine (US) — Submit

Residencies and Fellowships

• Varuna has a range of Residential Fellowship opportunities — Apply
• Elisabeth Maynard Writer-in-Residence Program will provide an emerging or established practitioner of the literary arts with the opportunity to work on an original text, while shaping the next generation of young writers — Applications closing Friday, 9 October

Workshops and Writing Courses

Browse the range of online and in-person workshops, writing courses, masterclasses and intensives, designed to support your writing journey and deepen your poetic craft.

Online Workshops and Writing Courses:

• Varuna offers a range of online masterclasses and intensives, designed to support writers to develop their craft — Enrol now
• Kill Your Darlings offers a range of poetry courses from award-winning writers — Enrol now
• Cath Drake's The Verandah offers a range of poetry masterclasses, writing and mindfulness workshops — Enrol now

In-Person Workshops and Writing Courses:

Opportunities for Young Poets

Prizes and Competitions for Young Poets

• Red Room's Poem Forest is a free nature writing prize that plants a tree for every poem received. Now open to all school aged students and accredited teachers — Closing Friday, 25 September 2026
• The National Youth Poetry Slam is now open and accepting video submissions from poets all over Australia, aged 24 and under — Closing Wednesday, 23 September 2026

Workshops and Writing Courses for Young Poets

• Page-Turners Young Writers Group, held at Marrickville Library, is a monthly program for writers aged 12-16 — held every third Wednesday of the month
• Queensland Writers Center hosts monthly creative writing workshops for young people aged 10-16 — Saturdays, monthly

Journals and Anthologies for Young Poets

• Voiceworks (under the age of 25) — Submit
• Pulch Mag (16 to 26) — Submit

Opportunities for Educators

• Red Room Poetry has a bunch of free Learning Resources for Educators — Find out more
• Beyond the Frame is a free Learning Resource developed by Red Room Poetry in partnership with the National Gallery of Australia for Poetry Month — Explore the resource
• QLD Artsbook is an accessible, user-friendly platform that connects Queensland schools and educators with high-quality touring and local artists, arts organisations and institutions — Find out more
• ClickView offers a range of free curriculum-aligned video resources on YouTube - where you can also find our Poetic Devices Video Resources produced in partnership with ClickView — Find out more
• The Australian Museum offers learning resources including virtual excursions, at-home experiments and activity booklets such as Power through Poetry, developed by Red Room Poetry in partnership with the Australian Museum — Find out more
• Cool Australia create evidence-based, curriculum-aligned education resources for teachers and parents, including a digital library for students — Find out more

Red Room Rewards: Poetic Perks

Poetic Perks offers curated discounts, invitations, and special access to events—available only to our Red Room audience. A small thank you for walking with us through poetry.

• There are currently no perks available; come back another time.

Other Opportunities

• The Office for the Arts maintains a register for those interested in being considered for appointment to statutory and non-statutory boards, councils and committees within the portfolio of the Minister for the Arts — Submit your EOI

Partner Events

• State Library of NSW’s 200th Anniversary Festival is an exciting six-week program of performances, talks and free live music this September and October — Explore
• Looking for poetic events? See What's On.
• Uplift publishes newsletters showcasing poetry events, opportunities, book reviews, writing prompts and keeps a log of poetic events across the country — Subscribe

Be in the know

Want to be the first to know about new opportunities for poets? Subscribe to our newsletters to receive the latest poetry, news, events and opportunities from Red Room Poetry straight to your inbox.

Have a poetic opportunity you think we should feature? We would love to hear from you. You can send us a message via our Contact Us page.