Welcome to the 2023 Otoroshi Journal Rengay Contest. In 1992, Garry Gay invented an alternative to the sometimes stifling rules that frustrated some English poets writing renga and renku. The rengay is a fun, short lyric poem for groups of two or three poets to write focused around one theme or subject, which makes it perfect for horror poetry. The editors of Otoroshi Journal, in an attempt to encourage poets to explore the possibilities of horror poetry and Japanese short form poetry, are organizing a poetry contest for horror rengay. 

​

For essays and links about rengay, we recommend visiting Michael Dylan Welch's excellent page on the subject here. 

 

Dates

• Open: October 5-20, 2023

• Results: October 31, 2023

• Rengay with commentary: December 2023 in Volume 3, Issue 2 (Autumn/Winter 2023)

​

Fees​

• Entry Fee: $1/rengay

• Please send payment for the number of rengay you are submitting ($1 per rengay) via PayPal: (pottygok@yahoo.com). In the 'Add a Note' section, type: 2023 Otoroshi Rengay Contest Entry Fee.

• Locate the PayPal transaction ID number and include it with your email submission. 

 

Regulations​

• All entries must be original, unpublished, and not under consideration elsewhere. 

• There is no limit to the number of submissions.

• All rengay must be titled.

• Rengay must be written by two or three poets only.

  • No solo rengay.

  • No teams of four or more poets.

  • For two poets (Poet A and Poet B) follow this linked format: 3 lines/Poet A, 2 lines/Poet B, 3/A, 3/B, 2/A, 3/B.

  • For three poets (A, B, and C) the format is: 3 lines/A, 2 lines/B, 3 lines/C, 2/A, 3/B, 2/C.

• Poets names or pseudonyms must be clearly identified on the manuscript. 

• Email rengay in the body of an e-mail to OtoroshiJournal@gmail.com

  • ​Include PayPal transaction ID number in the e-mail 

  • Subject: RENGAY CONTEST

​

Prizes​

This is a fee-funded, no-profit contest. 

​

Top Three Poems will receive percentages of the total contest entry fees:

• 1st place: 50% total entry fees

• 2nd place: 30% total entry fees

• 3rd place: 20% total entry fees

​

Winning rengay and select runners up will be announced on October 31, 2023 in a free, downloadable .PDF and will be published with commentary in Volume 3, Issue 2 (Autumn/Winter 2023) of Otoroshi. Winning rengay might also be used in multimedia promotion of the journal. At the end of the year, published rengay will be collected as part of our Print-on-Demand version of the journal.

 

Payment will be sent via PayPal to the submitting e-mail. 

All rights revert to authors on publication.

By submitting your rengay to the contest, you are agreeing to these terms.

​

Themes​

Horror theme only (please be creative!)

​

Content Statement

While the editors of Otoroshi acknowledge that some of the most horrific events of mankind stem from hate and violence, we seek to be an inclusive market. We also actively strive to represent a diverse array of voices. Therefore, we will not tolerate racism, discrimination, hate-speech, bullying, or harassment of any kind and will not publish any work that includes such language or imagery.
 

Furthermore, while we are a horror magazine, we acknowledge that sexual threats and sexual violence can be triggering for many readers. Therefore, sexual violence, as well as violence against animals or children, will be an extremely hard sell and will almost certainly be rejected unless handled in a progressive way. While it has become a common trope in horror to empathize with the stalker or serial killer character, this is not the market for such work.

​

Questions

We want this to be a fun and educational experience for everyone. If you have any questions, please e-mail us at OtoroshiJournal@gmail.com with "Contest Inquiry" as the subject and we'll get back to you as soon as possible. ​

​

​

​