Lent Is just around the corner and Structo is hosting its fifth Lenten Psalms Contest.
The basics: pick a psalm and translate/rework/rewrite/
You don’t have to be religious or an expert in dead languages – just dive deep into this timeless poetry. We’ve had a variety of submissions over the years from people with creeds from Catholic to agnostic, atheist to Hmong traditionalist, and all sorts in-between. The contest’s goal is to give space for reflect and writing. You can previous winning psalm ‘Kestrels’ by Cristina Baptista and psalms by Christine Darragh and Abigail Carroll online in Issue 16.
You can enter the contest here. Submissions are open until Easter Sunday (that’s Sunday 21st of April, at midnight UK time). All entries will be considered for publication in the magazine. The winning psalmist will receive $200 and a subscription to Structo. Entries will be judged by panel on originality, musicality, accuracy (to the psalm’s spirit), and aesthetic.
Loved the idea of working off the Psalms, some of my favorite explosions of writing, old style.
Of Psalm 96 is my entry. I do not think I entered it earlier.
One of these days I simply must make a writing calendar with submissions and progress report 😉
Received safe and sound!
regarding the Lenten Psalms contest: are we limited to one submission? And when do you expect to announce the results?
Thanks for asking! You may enter more than once and we expect to announce the results within a couple of weeks of the deadline.
The 23rd Psalm has always been my favorite! Maybe I will try a riff on that one. Happy Easter!
Thanks so much for the idea to unravel a Psalm. What a humbling, awe-inspiring activity.
I loved being challenged by this; such a great idea!
I was just wondering if the winner had been announced?
Will the contest take place again this year?
We do not have plans to run the contest again this year.
I’m sorry to hear this. Do you have plans to bring it back in future years?