Mairtín Crawford Award for Poetry & Short Story
A BIT OF BACKGROUND
The Mairtín Crawford Awards for Poetry & Short Story are a highlight of each June’s Belfast Book Festival. Aimed at writers working towards their first full collection of poetry, short stories, or a novel, the awards invite submissions of 3-5 poems or a short story of up to 2,500 words. In 2023 we received 559 entries.
The 2023 awards were announced by two of our judges: celebrated writers Lucy Caldwell and Moyra Donaldson with words from festival patron Glen Patterson and Head of Literature and Drama at Arts Council NI, Damien Smyth. The Winner for each award had the chance to read at the event and received a £500 cash Prize and a ‘Time to Write’ package which includes a 3-night stay at Bullitt Hotel Belfast and 4 days dedicated writing space in The Crescent Arts Centre.
“Winning the Mairtín Crawford Award…feels like a very legitimate ‘in’ to the world of writing professionally, and to a wider community of writers and book lovers. For an emerging writer, it’s a massive confidence boost and gives a real sense of validation.”
SPONSORSHIP DETAILS
Sponsorship will mean:
- Contribution to the cost of cash prize, writer’s residencies and judges fees.
- Supporting emerging writers in Northern Ireland and Great Britain.
Partner Visibility:
- Logo included on the Belfast Book Festival and Crescent Arts Centre website.
- Logo included in the BBF printed programme.
- Contribution to cash prize acknowledged in the announcement event. (The 13th Belfast Book Festival was attended by 1,594 customers, who across 6 days attended 63 events and 6 workshops.)
- Online visibility to over 55,711 social media followers across our channels (Crescent Arts Centre + Belfast Book Festival); 400,000 website visitors a year.
- £5,000 investment in Mairtín Crawford Award for Poetry & Short Story.