Read the winning poems here

The winners of the 2023 competitions were announced on Friday 25th August - Phantom Billstickers National Poetry Day.

This year's theme of "Poetry on the Edge" offered poets a chance to balance themselves and their poetry on the edge - a literal or metaphorical world; something tangible, or something out of reach.

With thanks to judges Susan Wardell and Robert Sullivan, and the Otago/Southland Branch of the New Zealand Society of Authors for all of their hard work and dedication throughout the competition.

Phantom Billstickers National Poetry Day: Poetry on the Edge
Youth (5-12):

1st Place: Rita Mace David - 'Wild and Free'

2nd Place: Ayesha Rietveld - 'The Sky Above'

Teen (13-18):

1st Place: Emily Roy - 'Dangling Your Feet Over Time's Precipice (It'll Pass)'

2nd Place: Tessa Smith - 'glitter stars'

Highly Commended: Oshadha Perera - 'Pulse'

Adult (19+): 

1st Place: Lesley Vlietstra - 'When I Was Young'

2nd Place: Sophia Wilson - 'To Whom it May Concern'

3rd Place: Samantha Montgomerie - 'Etchings'

Highly Commended: Victor Billot - 'The Long Weekend'

Congratulations to all winners, and thank you to all who entered the competition.