The Welsh Home of International Poetry
We’re here to shine a spotlight on remarkable poetry, no matter where it comes from. We hold the door open for Welsh and Wales-based poets to share their words with the world, and we invite writers from every corner of the globe to bring their work to the Welsh page.
Thanks to financial support from the Books Council of Wales we’re able to work with a continually evolving roster of diverse voices to nurture talented writers at every stage of their writing journey, connecting them with readers who will truly love and appreciate their work.
As well as publishing three new volumes a year, we also host the annual single-poem competition The Poetry Wales Award, open globally to unpublished work on any theme.
Our History
Poetry Wales was founded in 1965 with the motto ‘Cylchgrawn cenedlaethol o farddoniaeth newydd’ – ‘National magazine of new poetry’.
Over 60+ years we have had more than 20 editors and contributing editors, published almost 250 issues, and shared with the world the work of countless poets. We are proud to uphold the legacy of our magazine, and everyone who has come before us – but we’re also, always, looking forward. Poetry Wales has been, and will continue to be, a place for poetry that examines the world as it is, and as it could be.
Seren Books
In 1981, the imprint ‘Poetry Wales Press’ was launched by then-Poetry Wales editor Cary Archard with the aim of giving Welsh poets a place in Wales to publish collections. Now called Seren Books, it is the leading English-language publisher in Wales, winning Small Press of the Year Wales in the 2025 British Book Awards, and publishing multiple genres in addition to poetry.
Poetry Wales and Seren Books exist symbiotically, supporting one another and working together to build a stronger future for publishing in Wales. We share an office and an Editor, and every now and again poets from our pages will graduate to Seren’s shelves.
Find out more about Seren Books
Financial Support
Poetry Wales is published with the financial support of the Books Council of Wales, the Hawthornden Foundation, and the generosity of our Supporter Subscribers.
Find out how you can support us here.