Choosing just one poet from our April shortlist (inveterate ditherers that we are) is proving v. difficult. The upside for us is that we get to read each of their full collections multiple times.

To help us decide, we’ll be posting short samples of each poet (via our social media) between now and decision-time in late May.

So why not let us know who speaks to you most. (Imagine we’re like Simon Cowell turning round to survey the crowd - your reactions to our posts might help us decide - and, remember, we only have one golden buzzer!)

Here are our fab shortlisted five:

Nell Farrell - Embroidery Noises

Christopher James - The Ice Sonnets

Leanne Moden - Ophelia of the Bathtub

Mara Adamitz Scrupe - the cartographer's graft

Natasha Kerry Smith - Infinite Jade

Nicole Durman’s Ghosts of Nightshifts Past will be launching in July this year. We’re just working on our final edits and we can’t wait to share the vision and soundscapes of Nicole’s experiences as an A&E and hospice nurse. While you are waiting, you can read the excellent reviews her collection is already attracting.

You can pre-order your copy here.

We are now accepting submissions throughout the year. For more information, please go to our Submissions page.

Our next cut-off for submissions will be September 2025, at which point we will select our longlist for this reading period. We'll shortlist five authors in October, one of whom will be published in the Spring next year.