For the landmark tenth edition of Given Words I first put out a call for Word Films and received films from around the world. A big thank you to Ebba Jahn, Tom Konyves, Cindy Stockton Moore, Ian Gibbins and Colm Scully for their evocative films presenting the words: pair, endure, lightfast, hold and justice. They are all well-respected filmmakers in the field of poetry film and videopoetry, and I find it fascinating the ways they use image and sound to add layers of meaning to words and poems.

The judging panel was made up of Sophia Wilson, Pat White and myself.

Pat beautifully expressed the risks we faced with these words.

"For 2025 the Given Words hold an interesting conundrum for the aspiring poet: justice, endure, pair, lightfast, hold, are words that invite judgement and confirmation. A lot of the best poetry is an exploration, launching into the wonder of the unknown, finding where language will take us.

"Judgement takes us to what we already think we know, in that way words like justice and endure are traps for the unwary in a world of poetry, image and metaphor."

We're delighted to announce the winner of Best Poem is Sadie Yetton for her poem Venus, Don’t You Laugh At Me and the winner of Best Poem by Under-16s (for the second year running) is Miranda Yuan for her poem The Menu.

These poems are shared below.

For this 10th edition, and because there were so many wonderful poems, we have also awarded Special Mentions in the adults category to Gail Zing for her poem Lightfast, Cindy Kurukaanga for her poem Nō Te Paruparu, Nō Te Purapura | Of the Mud, Of the Seed, and to Renee Liang for her poem Pinhole.

In the under-16s category, we awarded Special Mentions to Sabrina Li for her poem Photos taken the day they said it was over, Gia Beckett for her poem My Purple Life!, and Lily Richards for her poem Thread of Reality. 

We are grateful to Read NZ Te Pou Muramura for letting schools around the country know about the competition, to The Cuba Press and Massey University Press for their support and for donating the prizes, and of course to the National Poetry Day organisers.

Congratulations to the winners and selected poets!

The poems awarded Special Mention as well as the judges' comments are available on the Spoken Word website.

Venus, don’t you laugh at me

I’m your daughter, it appears you made a crooked one

Stilted in manner, steadfast in mania

Unjust in justice, your infinite amusement

Venus, you birthed a brute

You spat out a savage

You knew I’d fall on the way of love

Just as wolves fall on rabbits

Making a mess of how I eat it; blood, bones, brain

Clueless how to clean up after myself

What have I ever been if not your doing?

I was a child, then a child with a woman’s voice

I was lightning, lightfast, then lightless

I was a person, then somehow only parts of one

But I’ve always been of your blood

And you can’t bleed it out of me

A creature is still a child if it claims to be

A freak is due her worth if she endures

Venus, I know why you laugh at me

Because not feigning hilarity

At your own incompetence is worse than being so

Even with your back to me, we’re a pair of siamese souls

Because this rabid thing resembles its mother

And she wants you to hold her like you mean it

Look at who you made

Love it

Sadie Yetton is a writer, reader and poet based in Auckland. She has been writing ever since she can remember, with a focus on poetry and short stories, and she also hopes to publish a novel. She is a geek about post-punk and 80s music (looking at you, Echo & the Bunnymen) and this has inspired involvement in, and enjoyment of, songwriting and singing. She is interested in pursuing creative writing and publishing, but she doesn’t discriminate between creative mediums – she has also dabbled in acting, fronting bands and making pottery.

Miranda Yuan is a year eleven student and aspiring writer at Burnside High School. Her works stand upon the shoulders of giants such as Donna Tartt and Lana del Rey, drawing inspiration from romanticisation and the critique of such. She specialises in conceptual prose that is rich in thematic imagery of beauty, obsession, and decay.