Friday, November 23, 2007

Is *this* for real?

THE CHALLENGE (from Best Am Po):
When deciphered, the anagram below represents the title of a book of poems by a past guest editor of "The Best American Poetry." Solve the puzzle, then write a two-stanza acrostic poem in which the first letters of the lines spell out the name of that poet.

HIT THE LUMP OF RICH SEAL
[note: I solved this part pretty easily; let me know if you want a hint.]

NO PURCHASE OR PAYMENT OF ANY KIND IS NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN THIS CONTEST.

HOW TO ENTER:
Your poem must be typed in Times New Roman 12 pt. Send it as a Word attachment to an e-mail to bestampo@gmail.com. Write "Poetry Contest" in the subject line and the title of your poem along with your name, address, e-mail address, and telephone number in the body of the e-mail. The title of your poem should be in the body of the e-mail and on the attachment with your poem . Do not put your name or other identifying information on the attachment. Any submission that reveals the poet's identity on the attachment will be disqualified. The deadline for entry is midnight, eastern standard time, December 31, 2007.

PRIZES:
The winning poet's name will be announced on the Best American Poetry website homepage and the winning poem will be posted on the site. The winner of the contest will receive a cloth bound copy of The Best American Poetry 2007, autographed by the guest and series editors and several contributors, as well as other books.

The winner will also receive a broadside of the winning poem, designed by artist Jeremy Thompson.

RULES:
Any U.S. resident age eighteen or over can enter, except employees of Scribner, the Best American Poetry website manager and designer, the contest Judge (s), and faculty of The New School Writing Program, previous contest winners, or any member of their immediate family. Entries that are lost, late, misdirected, garbled, or incompletely received, for any reason, including by reason of hardware, software, browser, or network failure, malfunction, congestion, or incompatibility at the website or elsewhere, will not be eligible. The contest sponsor in its sole discretion, reserves the right to disqualify any person tampering with the entry process, the operation of the website, or otherwise in violation of the rules. It further reserves the right to cancel, terminate, or modify the contest not capable of completion as planned, including infection by computer virus, bugs, tampering, unauthorized intervention, force majeure, or technical failures of any sort.

The winner will be notified by e_mail or telephone. If the winner cannot be reached or does not respond within three (3) days, an alternate winner may be selected, at the sole discretion of the Judge(s).

Subject to all federal, state, and local laws and regulations. Void outside the 50 United States and the District of Columbia, and where prohibited.

The Prize is not transferable. There will be no substitutions of the prizes except by the Sponsor and at the Sponsor's discretion.

All entries become the property of the Sponsor and will not be acknowledged or returned.

8 comments:

Pamela Johnson Parker said...

I am trying to medically edit this phrase--cheerful ophthalmitis?

Hint, please.

Peter said...

P: Tearful?

RJGibson said...

Lord...that's just um...disturbing...the anagram, I mean.

Kelli Russell Agodon - Book of Kells said...

Oh Peter, it's one of my favorite books:

Hemophiliacs Felt Hurt

or is it really--

Ethical Shoplifter Hum

no wait, it's definitely:

Helpful Moth Charities

I'm sorry, I'm having too much fun with all the *other* possibilities! ;-)

Pamela Johnson Parker said...

AHA! It is something medical, and with an umlaut.

Peter said...

Pamela:
Omphalitis?

RJ, K: yes it's amazing how many alternatives you can find!

I'll think I'll send in a poem that is a long anagram of one from her book.

Anonymous said...

Peter, without you having mentioned her, i would have never detected the anagram.

how did you "solve" it easily?

Corneliuscp3@gmail.com

please write back.

Peter said...

C: I use Anagram Genius software. You can see it online.