War poems have always had a great significance in our history. They have not only taught us essential lessons about our past, but they also provide us with the opportunity to understand the world and ourselves better. War poetry helps reflect writers on their own place in life by providing them with an emotional outlet to process their thoughts and emotions. We can express some of our feelings through poetry that often find no other form. Particularly during World War One, poetry helped soldiers relieve their suppressed emotions that were triggered by the sheer brutality they were witnesses to. War poems uphold beautiful sentiments because they provided a place of comfort to the soldiers. War poetry has since been an integral part of English Literature as it deals with the large questions of life like identity, compassion, duty, innocence, guilt, loyalty, and courage. It helps us respond to crises and find our voice while facing extreme circumstances. On the other hand, war poetry makes us acknowledge our privilege to be living in peace, being healthy and safe. It reminds us to be grateful for a peaceful life and the chance to be able to write in a safe environment.
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Our ‘Wingless Dreamer War Poetry Contest’ gives you the chance to reflect on your own thoughts on war. For this contest, we are seeking entries that address the opposition between love and hate, life and death, hope and despair, danger and safety, brutality and kindness. Particularly now, this topic is of utmost importance and needs to be addressed. We would love for you to give poetry a chance and participate in our contest. We are looking for your best unpublished poems on the theme of war that can be heartrending, poignant, intense, horrifying, motivating, uplifting, or darkly humorous. Your poem must stand out for its ability to teach us something important about war and the complexity of human nature. Unleash your creativity. We are looking forward to reading your submissions. -Marie Hennemann
RULES AND GUIDELINES:
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All entries are judged anonymously and the poet’s name must not appear on the poem itself.
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All poems must have a title and must not exceed 40 lines in length (excluding title).
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The participant must be 18 years old or above at the time of submitting the work with us.
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Poems must be in English. One poem per poet.
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Poems must be the entrant’s original work.
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Entries must not have been published, self-published, published on a website, or made public on social media, broadcast, or featured among the winners in another competition before 31 January 2022.
May 19, 2022 | Wingless Dreamer | Announcements
“All a poet can do today is warn.” – Wilfred Owen (1918)
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War poetry might not seem like the most popular and enjoyable choice to read at first, but it certainly provides valuable insights into human history. Particularly during World War One, poetry helped soldiers relieve their suppressed emotions that were triggered by the sheer brutality they witnessed. War poems uphold beautiful sentiments because they provided a place of comfort to the soldiers. War poems exhibit a broad range of human emotions and deal with topics like identity, patriotism, death, pain, and courage. They reflect on the sacrifice that thousands of men made, and report from the trenches or from poets back home.
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To conclude, war poetry makes us humble and reminds us to cherish every minute of our lives. War poems make us understand the complexity of human nature and teach us the lessons of history.
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This summer Wingless Dreamer Publisher held wanted a contest named Wingless Dreamer War Poetry Contest 2022 to bring a key insight to our readers with respect to the importance of War poetry.
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Without any further ado, let’s announce the winner.
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The grand winner of the Wingless Dreamer War Poetry Contest 2022 is:
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MARK HAMMERSCHICK – MEKONG TURKEY
Mark writes poetry and fiction. He holds a BA in English from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana and a BS and MBA. He is a lifelong resident of the Chicago area and currently lives in a northern suburb near the shore of Lake Michigan. His poem “The Tides They are Rising on Up” recently won third prize in the Poetry Society of Virginia Anne Spencer Memorial Prize Category “Overcoming Adversity”. His current work will be appearing in: Calliope, Fauxmoir Literary Magazine, Sincerely Magazine, Mignolo Arts, Blue Lake Review, Naugatuck River Review, New Plains Review, Grey Sparrow Journal, Griffel Magazine, Voices Magazine, Wood Cat Review and Change Seven Magazine.
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Cue the confetti for our first runner-up is:
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ANDY BETZ – STATIONERY
Andy Betz has tutored and taught in excess of 40 years. He lives in 1974, and has been married for 29 years. His works are found everywhere a search engine operates.
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Beat the drums for our second runner-up:
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JOANNE MONTE – IN THOSE TIMES, IN THESE TIMES
Joanne Monte is the author of “The Blue Light of Dawn” which received The Bordighera Poetry Book Prize. Many of her poems have been published in literary journals such as Poet Lore, The Raintown Review, The White Pelican Review and many others. In addition to being a Pushcart nominee, she has received several awards and has had poems that were judged as a finalist and semi-finalist. She is the author of a highly reviewed novel, “The Day to Eternity.”
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A huge round of applause for our top finalists:
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DOUGLAS COLSTON – SOMETHING TO BE
Douglas Colston has travelled the world, knows there is no place like home and his poetry, fiction and nonfiction has been published in online and traditional print magazines and anthologies. Decades ago, he garnered some lyric and song writing credits playing in Australian Ska bands. At that time – and while not playing Ska – he was studying and working in the public sector. He holds holds a BA, a BSc and a post-graduate Psychology qualification and in 1998, he completed his first thesis (it particularises research demonstrating the effects of the relationships between rhetoric, individual intention and perception of the self and others). Later, he contributed to the long-term palliation of both his parents throughout their terminal illnesses, married the love of his life (whose own PhD research validated play as a well-being intervention for adults), fathered two great children, had his inheritance embezzled by a now-deceased uncle and transitioned into Counselling as a vocation. Currently, when otherwise unoccupied, he is pursuing a PhD.
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TANIA PRZYWARA – FALLING BLOSSOMS
Tania Przywara is an American poet with works published in the anthologies Breath of Love and The Book of Black by Wingless Dreamer Publisher, among others, as well as in Volumes 2 and 3 of Through Loving Words by City Limits Publishing. A classical pianist, composer, and photographer as well, Przywara often finds that her passions intertwine with each other. Above all, Przywara aims to express the beauty of life and love through her original works and inspire others to live ever more deeply and authentically. Learn more at taniaprzywara.com.
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TERRY BRINKMAN – FATHER’S WAR
Terry Has been painting for over forty five years. Has Five Amazon E- Books. Poems in Rue Scribe, Tiny Seed. Winamop, Snapdragon Journal, Poets Choice, Adelaide Magazine, Variant, the Writing Disorder, Ink Pantry, In Parentheses, Ariel Chat, New Ulster, Glove, and in Pamp-le-mousse, North Dakota Quarterly, Barzakh, Urban Arts, Wingless Dreamer, LKMNDS and Elavation.
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ELLIS CHARLESWORTH – THE UNKNOWN SOLDIER
My name is Ellis Charlesworth i am 51 years old i live in a village called Barlow in Derbyshire. My home is very close to the eastern moors of the peak district. Living and working here inspires me to write poetry. I served in the royal navy as a young man and have the utmost respect for our military.
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GAVIN BOURKE – ALL ALONE IN THE GARDEN OF EDEN
Gavin Bourke grew up in the suburb of Tallaght in West Dublin. Married to Annemarie living in County Meath, he holds a B.A. in Humanities from Dublin City University, an M.A. Degree in Modern Drama Studies and a Higher Diploma in Information Studies from University College Dublin. His work broadly covers nature, time, memory, addiction, mental health, human relationships, the inner and outer life, creating meaning and purpose, politics, contemporary and historical social issues, injustice, the human situation, power and its abuse, absurdism, existentialisms, human psychology, cognition, emotion and behaviour, truth and deception, the sociological imagination, illness, socio-economics, disability, inclusivity, human life, selfishness and its consequences as well as urban and rural life, personal autonomy, ethics, commerce, science, grand schemes and the technological life in English and to a lesser extent in the Irish Language.
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EMMA BROWN – SOMEBODY
Emma (she/her) is a voracious reader, avid writer, and STEM student. When she’s not in a lab doing research, she’s writing about life, her experiences, and other people, particularly those who are members of minority groups like hers
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VALERIE SOPHER – BROKEN CIRCLES
Valerie Sopher is a singing quilter who loves anything to do with paper, pens and words. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. She is grateful to Wingless Dreamer (contest winner Dawn of the Day), Canary, Caustic Frolic, Prometheus Dreaming and SLANT for publishing her work and to the Ina Coolbrith Circle Annual Poetry Contest for honoring and selecting her poems.
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A big round of applause for our selected contributors. Bravo!