Unfiltered

The Prompt

It's time to let your thoughts spill freely onto the page. We’re inviting you to write a stream of consciousness poem—a style that captures the raw, unfiltered flow of a mind in motion. In stream of consciousness, there are no rigid structures or linear paths. Instead, thoughts, feelings, and sensory experiences intertwine and leap from one idea to the next.

This is your opportunity to break free from traditional forms and explore the chaotic, beautiful, and spontaneous nature of human thought. Whether you dive deep into the surreal, reflect on everyday moments, or explore emotional complexity, stream of consciousness allows you to tap into something truly raw and personal. You may want to experiment with unorthodox punctuation.

Your stream of consciousness does not need to reflect your own thoughts, but it should reflect the natural flow of thought. We’re looking for poems that feel alive with movement—words that pulse with the immediacy of thought as it unfolds. So let go of the rules and follow your instincts.

What is stream of consciousness?

Stream of consciousness is a narrative technique used in poetry and fiction to capture a character's thoughts in a realistic way. It's a style of writing that mimics the non-linear way the brain works, and often includes free association, sensory observations, and unusual punctuation.

In order for your submission to qualify, it must be:

• Written from a stream of consciousness perspective.
• Submitted to the Poets community. Choosing a community is a final step in the submission process. Your poem may be rejected for word count requirements if it is submitted to any other community.

The Prizes

• Grand Prize: $500
• Second Place: $200
• 10 Runners-Up: $20

Special shout-out to Gokhan Polard for inspiring this challenge idea in Share Your Ideas to Shape the Future of Vocal Challenges.

For your piece to be eligible, it should follow the rules above and adhere to our Community Guidelines. Stories published on Vocal and entered into the contest up until 11:59 PM ET on September 20, 2024 will be entered for consideration. Official Rules for the Challenge can be found here.

The Unfiltered Challenge is exclusive to Vocal+ members. To learn more and upgrade to Vocal+ visit https://vocal.media/vocal-plus.

To be eligible to win the grand prize, second place, or runners-up prizes, you must be over the age of 13 and residing in a country where Stripe is available at the time of entry. A complete list of countries where Stripe is available can be found here—winners will need to have a Stripe account created and connected in order to receive the prizes. For this reason, entrants located outside of any of these countries will not be eligible to win.

Any content that is determined to be generated by artificial intelligence will be disqualified and will not be eligible to place in any challenge. Read more on our stance here.