And the Winners are…

Catholic Literary Arts announces the winners of the 2023 LUX Sacred Poetry Middle School Contest

Sixth Grade: First Place Winner: Susan Powell

Sixth Grade: Second Place Winner: Arabella Stravitsch

Sixth Grade: Third Place Winner: Cora Pawelek, Anne Marrs, Mary O'Bar

Seventh Grade: First Place Winner: Mariella Gaitan

Seventh Grade: Second Place Winner: Callie McManus

Seventh Grade: Third Place Winner: Sophia Elena Amaya

Seventh Grade: Honorable Mention: Fatima Moreno, Ana Luisa Martens

Eighth Grade:  First Place Winner: Nina Marinelli

Eighth Grade:  Second Place Winner: Ava Bocock

Eighth Grade: Third Place Winner: Juliana Molinas

Join us in celebrating these young winners, their families, and communities at a reading and awards ceremony at the University of St. Thomas, April 26, 2023, 8:30 a.m. in Jones Auditorium.  

From among the first-place winners of the three grade levels, a poet laureate will be named during the awards ceremony.

Please click here to register for the awards ceremony.  Attendance is free, but please register to help us plan the reception.

Contest Information

Goal:

The goal of the LUX Sacred Poetry Contest for 6th-8th grades is to inspire students in the home-school and independent Catholic school communities to write about spiritual topics, to increase writing skills, and to increase writing confidence.

Eligibility:

The LUX Sacred Poetry Contest is open to 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students who are Catholic homeschoolers or enrolled in independent Catholic schools in the Houston, Texas area. Students who attend official Catholic schools affiliated with the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston are only eligible enter the Archdiocesan Sacred Poetry Contest. Please go to this page for details of the Archdiocesan Sacred Poetry Contest.

Prizes:

• First, second, and third-place winners will be selected from each grade: sixth, seventh, and eighth.

• All first through third place-winners in each grade will have their poems published in a Catholic Literary Arts Anthology and receive a full-tuition paid scholarship to attend Catholic Literary Arts’ Fearless Catholic Summer Writing Camp on June 12-16, 2023.

• From the first-place LUX winners in each grade: sixth, seventh, and eighth, a LUX poet laureate will be chosen for the LUX communities in the greater Houston area.

• The first place-winning poems will be published on the Catholic Literary Arts website.

• The LUX Poet Laureate wins:

  • A $500 Cash Prize

  • A full Scholarship to Catholic Literary Arts’ Fearless Catholic Summer Writing Camp, June 12-16, 2023

Theme:

For the 2023 LUX Sacred Poetry Contest, students will write a poem related to the Luminous Mysteries of the Rosary:

• Jesus' Baptism in the Jordan

• The Wedding at Cana

• The Proclamation of the Kingdom

• The Transfiguration

• The Institution of the Eucharist.

 Guidelines:

• Each student may submit one poem.

• Each poem should be a maximum of 32 lines; the title and stanza breaks do not count as lines.

• Poems must be typed with a Times New Roman or Arial 12-point font. We regret that we're unable to accept handwritten pages.

• Form: all forms and free verse are accepted.

• The name of the author cannot appear on the poem/s. However, the student's name must appear on the submission form when the poem is submitted along with all other requested information.

• All poems must be original, unpublished in print, unpublished on the web or in limited edition books.

• Simultaneous submissions are not allowed. This means that if your poem is submitted to this contest, it cannot be submitted to other contests or for publication in journals, magazines, newspapers, or online while we are considering it for this contest.

• Entry Fee: $5 for individual students, $50 for independent Catholic schools. If your student is enrolled at a non-archdiocesan-affiliated Catholic school, the school will pay the entry fee via PayPal on this website. If you are a homeschool student, you will pay the individual fee on the this website..

• All submissions are handled through Submittable.

• IF this contest does not have 50 entries by February 28, 2023 at 11:59 p.m. CST, then it will be regrettably cancelled for this year. Thank you for your understanding.

Timeline:

• Contest Period: January 1 to March 15, 2023. Contest closes at 11:59 p.m. CST on March 15th.

• Announcement of Winners: On March 31, 2023, CST by 11:59 p.m. Winners will be announced on www.CatholicLiteraryArts.org

• Contacting Teachers/Parents: On April 3-4 the winners’ teachers and parents will receive an email and/or phone call confirming attendance at the awards ceremony.

• Awards Ceremony: Wednesday, April 26, 8:30 a.m., CST, at the University of St. Thomas, Jones Auditorium. Winners will be invited to read their entries at the Awards Ceremony in-person with their families, school principals, and submitting teachers.

Submission of Poems:

Submission is a three-step process. Watch a short video of how to submit poems and payments.

• Step One: Register

  • Option A for Independent Catholic Schools:

    • Fill out the payment form for your school. All blanks must be completed. We need this form to properly credit your school’s payment of the entry fee.

    • After completing this Payment Form, click REGISTER.

  • Option B for Individual Home-School Students:

    • Fill out the payment form for your individual $5 entry fee. All blanks must be completed. We need this completed form to properly match your entry fee to your Submittable poem.

• Step Two: Payment

  • Option A: for Independent Catholic Schools

    • Click the BUY NOW dropdown menu button to pay your school’s entry.

  • Option B for Individual Home-School Students:

    • Click the BUY  NOW dropdown menu button to pay your individual entry.

• Step Three: Submit Entry

  • Click SUBMIT ENTRY TO SUBMITTABLE to submit your entry/entries and you will be taken to the Submittable website.

Step One: Register

Step Two: Payment

Step Three: Submit Entry