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Valentine's Day Contest 2026
Dear Wingless Dreamers,
Here we are. ’Tis the season of love, kisses, romance, and unsaid feelings. But beneath the glossy red decorations lies a quieter question: what do we do with the emotions that linger after the 14th of February has passed? Random couples flooding your favourite café, leaving you with no choice but to retreat into poetry. And perhaps that little push is a good thing. We are so often drawn toward dark, melancholic verses— with so much happening in the world—that we forget how much we need a gentle reminder: love heals, love caresses, love witnesses your existence, and most importantly, love exists.
This Valentine’s Day, we invite our beloved writers to explore their own interpretations of love and what Valentine’s Day means to them. Thus, we present this anthology, My Dear Valentine. Through this collection, our core message is simple yet vital: safeguard your heart by saving a little love for yourself. Many of us are selfless by nature—we give endlessly, often without pause. But we must learn to replenish ourselves too. Let this book be your invitation to unlock the secret doors of your heart, to spend quiet time with yourself, wrapped in words, perhaps with a cup of hot chocolate or coffee by your side.
Happy reading.
With regards,
Ruchi Acharya, Founder and E-I-C
Wingless Dreamer Publisher
This Valentine a victor has officially emerged
It took us great pleasure to judge around 400 submissions from all around the world. Below are some premium quality literary works by poets from all around the world who inked their emotions and very own definition of love in the book, My Dear Valentine. Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner! or Not. You wrote a masterpiece and made it to our contributors' list. So, congratulations! You're a Wingless Dreamer now. Today, we celebrate poetry. Without any further ado, let's announce the winners.
Born from the wild imagination, let's give a big round of applause to our grand winner
SEASONAL TEMPERAMENT - SNEHAL BHADANI
Cue the confetti for our first runner-up:
WHEN I STAND WHEN THE WORLD PUSHES BACK - HOLLY KEEHN
Thuds of claps for our second runner-up:
RUTHIE - LARA DOLPHIN
Yahoo! Three cheers for our top finalists:
RESURRECTION OF PAIN - NIKO KNIGHTLEY
SIGNIFICANCE - TOMMY CHAMPION
ALIEN URSA MAJOR - LINA BUIVIDAVIČIŪTĖ
Standing ovation for all our dear contributors who got published with us:
IN THE BAKER’S EMPLOY - ANDY BETZ
GATHERING MOMENTS - MARSHA SOLOMON
VALENTINES WEDDING DINNER - TERRY BRINKMAN
WALKING DOWN THE SAME ROAD - TONIA COLLEEN MARTIN
MAGNETIC - VICTORIA REYES
THAT PHOTO - A.J. CHILSON
ON CARROWMORE - GAVIN BOURKE
PARTING AFTER SUMMER - DAVID RADAVICH
FOREVER OUT OF REACH - HOPE CRAIG
DREAM CHEATING - HELEN YEOMAN SHAW
THE FROST FROM A WINTER ROSE - ALEX ANDY PHUONG
THE GRAVITY - AMANDA GIGLER
15 AND 17 - BILL SIMMONS
HOW WILL SHE KNOW - HOWARD OSBORNE
MY BABY AXEL - ALEXIS ANDRADE
BUTTER AND TITANIUM - SREEDHARI DESAI
YOU SOUGHT OTHER DIAMONDS - ALBY GRACE
UNTITLED - LEOTIS HARGROVE
WILLOW - KHAIRUNNISA R. RIZA
SANTA CRUZ FREEDOM - JESSICA KEATON GANZ
THE ART OF heART - AIDA TAKYRBASHEVA
THE SHARKS THAT KNOW - SARIAH R. DEAL
GET LUCKY - D.B.SHEA
SLEEP- ALI KHAN
GAVE ME THE PIANO KEY - SEAN CAMERON
PRAYER 001 - NEBULA
SWANS AND STRINGS - KIRBEE BARNEY
BETWEEN DESIRE & FEAR - CHIEBUKA CHIOKE
FROM EVIL - ELLE. J. SNYDER
ETERNAL LOVE ALWAYS KEEP RETURNING - THOMAS KORON
WINGLESS LOVER, VALENTINE - SARA CLEMENTE- GOTTARDI
RETRO MODERN SUMMER - ANNA BOHN
POEM - SARTHAK JAIN
AFTER YOUR DEPARTURE - JENNIFER WEIGEL
DAWN LIGHT DRIFTS DOWN - TERESA BATTERSON
HUMOR COMPOSTING - TOYA L. WALKER
UMBRELLA BOY - GABRIELLE PICCIRILLI
MEET ME AT THE TREEHOUSE - JIM BOCHENEK
HONEY THICK LOVE - MEHR JETHI
HUME’S FINGER - HASSAN GHLICH
HEARTACHE AND HEALING - LANI T.
PERFECT TIMING - RACHEL ECK
TOO SOON? - LIZ (ELIZABETH) KAYE
DARK WINTER - DAVID PERSON
WINTER’S LOVE - RENO JJ
STORY OF HER LIFE - SONIA BHOJANI
MIRAGE AND DUST - KATLYN SHEA SWEENEY
TO MAKE A PEARL - MOON ABBAS
Keep writing, no matter what. Never give up on your dreams.
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