2018-2019 Student Workshops

Typically drawing 2,000-3,000 entries from 70 countries, the not-for-profit Montreal Prize sponsors a crowd-funded biennial competition, awarding one prize of $20,000 to one poet for a single poem. Founded in 2010 by poet and critic Asa Boxer, the Montreal Prize is the first explicitly global poetry competition, with an international jury of award-winning poets from sites including North America, the Caribbean, the UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand, India, and African nations such as Nigeria and Uganda. Competitions have been covered by the CBC and The Globe and Mail, and the prize regularly advertises in an array of international print and digital outlets, from The Times Literary Supplement to Twitter. Inspired by figures from the history of McGill’s Department of English—such as Canadian poets Louis Dudek and Leonard Cohen—the Prize consists of an Advisory Board, an Editorial Board serving as a jury, a prize judge, and directors.

Topics for Session 1: Introduction to the Montreal International Poetry Prize – genesis and development. Database, data storage, website maintenance, security, privacy.

Topics for Session 2: Communications and The Montreal International Poetry Prize – social media, website design, and marketing. Press releases and kits, print/digital media advertising, and gala event planning.

Topics for Session 3: Technology and Digital Application: web design, web structure, and digital applications.