FPS: Villanelle of Regret Challenge Winners
A behind-the-scenes glimpse at the Vocal Curation Team’s top picks from Villanelle of Regret.
Some feelings don’t fade. They repeat.
The Villanelle of Regret challenged poets to write into that return. To let regret, longing, and obsession build with each pass, rather than resolve. The strongest entries trusted repetition to carry the weight.
These are the poems that held.
🏆 Winners
Unwritten by M. A. Mehan
This villanelle hits hard with its evolving refrains about creative paralysis, especially the line 'my pen hovers o’er paper as white as the snow.' It's the relentless emotional pull that really lingers and sets this one apart.
Whip-Poor-Will by Mackenzie Davis
The haunting refrain in Whip-Poor-Will grabs you with its eerie sense of inevitable loss, as each repetition layers tenderness with a growing awareness of what cannot be avoided.
when the madness came by John Cox
The relentless refrain of "when the madness came and the prophets roar’d" haunts the reader, layering historical loss with grief, each repetition deepening the sense of ruin.
Lovesick Lament by Paris Rosemont
In Lovesick Lament, each return of “I’m slipping—losing track of things you said” tightens the sense of fixation, turning memory into something claustrophobic. The repetition does the work, letting grief and longing build without release.
craving beyond enough by Lamar Wiggins
The smart move in craving beyond enough is how “the first bite is heaven, enticing the ego” never loses its shine, even as its meaning curdles. That friction between pleasure and denial does the heavy lifting.
🎖️ Runners-up
- The Vagabond, Grief by Gabriel Huizenga
- Vapors by Morgana
- Words Left Unspoken by Dana Crandell
- Jealous. by Cathy (Christine Acheini) Ben-Ameh.
- You Did Not Cross My Path of Urgent Things by John R. Godwin
- The Virus I Carry by Sean A.
- A Domestic Regret by Marilyn Glover
- The Rats Keep Score by Paul Stewart
- This Was a Mistake by Aaron Richmond
- Tempus Fugit by Jessica Dowding
- Invisible Girl by Judey Kalchik
- Longing for Ruin by Luna Jordan
- A little boat drifting on the grey, grey sea, by Ella Bogdanova
- Wood and Rope by Caitlin Charlton
- Unspoken by Aaron Morrison
🏅 Honorable Mentions
- If Only by Cristal S.
- The Cycle Of Manmade Love by Kelli Sheckler-Amsden
- Ghost Stories by The Invisible Writer
- Oh Brother by Angie the Archivist 📚🪶
- Intersection by Sonia Heidi Unruh
- Mother of my Dreams by Lizzy Rose
- The Story of My Name by Adam Kolozetti
- Memorial Constellations by K.B. Silver
- Snare by ᔕᗩᗰ ᕼᗩᖇTY
- Echo for Narcissus by Rebbekah Vega Romero
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Comments (24)
I'm in shock! Thank you so much Vocal and cograts to all these beautiful contenders!!
Congratulations to all the winners and finalists. It’s great to see how form and repetition were used so thoughtfully across these pieces, really strong curation by the Vocal team
Thank you Vocal, and congrats to all the winners
Congratulations 🎊
Congrats 👏👏👏
Well done, everyone.
Congratulations, all! :)
Congratulations!!
Congratulations everyone! 🎉💖🎊🎉💖🎊
Congrats to all the winners, and thanks to the team at Vocal for all the introductions in one handy spot!
Thank you so much for selecting my Lovesick Lament as a winner of this challenge. I hadn't written a villanelle for a long while, so I appreciated the nudge via your prompt! I was pleased with how it came together. Congratulations to all my fellow winners, runners-up and honourable mentions. Of the poems I've read so far, I've been impressed with the craftsmanship (isn't form a beautiful thing?!) and variety of subject-matter. Well done, everyone!
Congratulations everyone 👏
Well done everyone 🦋🌺🌺🌺🦋
Wow! This is my first time participating, and it truly is an honor to be mentioned. Congratulations to all - I can’t wait to read!
Congrats All! 🥳
Here’s some comic relief to combat the heaviness of the villanelles! Come play in my sandbox! You might get a bit in your eyes and shoes, but that’s probably going to happen anyway, so come have some FUN: https://shopping-feedback.today/writers/bloody-mary-for-your-soul-with-the-possibility-of-a-prize-if-you-play-along%3C/span%3E%3C/span%3E%3C/span%3E%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E%3C/div%3E%3C/div%3E%3C/div%3E%3Cdiv class="css-w4qknv-Replies">
Thank youu, and congratulations everyone! ✨
Well, look at this winners list; congratulations to everyone❣ If I haven't read your poem already, I surely will over the weekend.😉 Also, many thanks, Vocal, for selecting my poem as a runner-up!💖
Yay!!! Way to go everyone 🤗🤗🥳🥳🥳
Thank you very much Vocal! I am so happy! Congratulations everyone!
Congratulations. I admit that I would not willingly explore this form on my own. I owe it to Vocal for presenting new disciplines of poetry in these challenges. It is the encouragement I need to try them.
I thought for sure I’d get this one. My favorite form. Congrats to everyone who made the list. 👏🏼
Congratulations everyone, and thank you so much to the Vocal team. ♥️🤗🙏🏽🖤
Congratulations, everyone! I guess that’ll learn me to use the form to say “fuck you” to the form. Methinks I may be on my way to achieving my goal of being banned in Boston.