Carmel Scicluna’s ‘Ħniex’ has been awarded the first prize in the Doreen Micallef National Poetry Contest for a second time.
A three-person jury made up of John P. Portelli, Rita Saliba and David Bezzina described Scicluna’s poetry as “Poetry within poetry, fresh and extended metaphors, but metaphors that are accessible. The emotions in this poem are almost ‘breathed’ into suffering lines; the language is refined, and the narrative element is very well executed, imbued with powerful emotions and a strong social critique.”
Scicluna had previously won the prize with his poem ‘Submersi Filii’ in 2021, a year when his poetry collection L-Ambjent Li Qeridna: Poeżiji (2017-2020) won the National Book Prize.
Louis Briffa took second place with his poem ‘Stadji Minn Relazzjoni Fittizja’, which the jury praised for the innovative way it conveys the essence of the various emotions in relationships in all their complexity.
The poem ‘Dupless’ by Matteo Pullicino came in third, described by the judges as a very powerful poem that exceptionally employs the duplex poetry style.
During the award ceremony held at the National Book Fair, the shortlisted poets were invited on stage to read their works. They were also joined on stage by Leanne Ellul, who placed first in the competition last year with the poem ‘ix-xnigħat ta’ xmux u dwalijiet għammiexa’.
The top three were competing in a field of 58 submissions, and during his speech at the award ceremony National Book Council Chairman Mark Camilleri expressed his optimism about the healthy number of applicants for this year’s contest.
“The healthy uptake of the competition once again proves that the Doreen Micallef National Poetry Contest remains an important focal point for all those who write poetry in Maltese. Be they veteran authors or emerging voices, the Contest provides a space for challenge and recognition that helps foster a healthy creative environment for them to thrive,” Camilleri said.
The Doreen Micallef National Poetry Contest is held annually and is open to everyone. The poem submitted has to be original, in Maltese, unpublished, not longer than 36 lines, and through a pseudonym, making the evaluation anonymous.
The next edition of this contest opens in June 2024.
This year’s edition of the ceremony also hosted the culmination of a literary exchange between Maltese-Moroccan poet Murad Shubert and Emirati poet Ali AlShaali, who collaborated on translations of each other’s works and read the resultant poems during the event.