Red Room Poetry are seeking communications, arts management and education students or emerging arts workers to undertake professional internships and play a vital role in growing the POEM FOREST prize for students and teachers.
Internship POEM FOREST Editorial Intern (Voluntary)
Mentored by POEM FOREST Project Producers
Program dates Week of 17 June – mid October
Hours 1 day per week during office hours (9am-5pm), any day Mon-Thurs
Location Online (please note you will need your own laptop and internet connection)
Remuneration This is a voluntary position
This internship is designed for people who want to complete a placement as part of an educational course, and people keen to develop their professional experience and skills. We’re committed to creating an inclusive, safe environment for team members, poets, creatives, contractors and volunteers. We strongly encourage writers, emerging arts workers and those working in events or community from traditionally marginalised experiences to apply for this position.
About Red Room Poetry Red Room Poetry is Australia’s leading organisation for commissioning, creating, publishing and promoting poetry in meaningful ways. Red Room has a reputation for excellence and invention, delivering projects that are unparalleled in their quality, scale, professional payment of poets, cultural impact, amplification and engagement of poets, students and audiences of all ages. Our poetic projects are created in collaboration with a spectrum of poets, communities and partners for positive impact in core areas of environment, amplification, First Nations, youth and marginalised voices. We aim to make poetry highly visible, vibrant, relevant and accessible, especially to those who face the greatest barriers to creative opportunities. Find out more here.
About POEM FOREST Created by Red Room Poetry, in partnership with Wollongong City Council, POEM FOREST invites students and teachers to use their words to make positive climate action. For every nature poem received a tree is planted to help heal habitats and create a POEM FOREST for future generations. Since 2021, over 17,100 poem trees have been planted. All POEM FOREST Prize entries are published in our digital library and have the chance to win $5,000 in prizes, including $500 cash for each category, book packs from Magabala Books, Pantera Press, Wonderground as well as Garden tours, plants, seeds and more. Find out more here.
Position Description “I’ve had the most amazing few months working with Red Room and it really has cemented for me the ways in which working in these spaces are the most perfect articulation of my beliefs around community, creative practice, and just total joy and fulfilment in the workplace.” – Eva Phillips, 2023 POEM FOREST Editorial Intern
This internship is an ideal training ground for developing your career in the sector, gaining hands-on experience in editing and digital publishing, longlisting, website editing and evaluation. You will have the opportunity to be part of a key team of editors, create a new literary network, and play a significant role in the success of the program.
Working closely with the Project Producers, you will:
- Read, edit and publish nature poems entered in the POEM FOREST Prize
- Shortlist high quality entries across 8 prize categories
- Assist in process development and data analysis
- Attend relevant meetings with Red Room staff where applicable
- Assist with communications tasks including copywriting, cross-promotion and school correspondence in accordance with your skills and interests
- Assist with events and workshops in accordance with your skills and interests
- Produce a post-internship evaluation report
We anticipate that this role will require a commitment of 1 day per week for four months, with hours to be decided to fit your schedule within office hours (9am-5pm) any day Mon-Thurs. Full training in Red Room Poetry’s projects and procedures will be provided.
This short-term opportunity will take place primarily online but occasional in-person days at Red Room Poetry’s office space at Joynton Avenue Creative Centre in Zetland (Gadigal land, Sydney NSW) are possible too. You will need to have your own laptop and a stable internet connection to undertake this internship.
What you’ll receive from this opportunity:
- Professional acceleration and development of essential skills in your area of interest
- Hands-on mentoring and regular pathway touch-ins
- Industry networks and connections
- Joining a warm and encouraging team within an organisation that promotes inclusion
- In-depth knowledge and understanding of internal processes within a Not-for-Profit arts organisation
- Credits to your work experience or studies (if relevant)
- A professional reference (upon request)
- The opportunity to plant a POEM FOREST seedling or two! (NSW)
Red Room Poetry has a strong commitment to offering opportunities for emerging professionals to accelerate in their chosen careers. We offer our volunteers ongoing opportunities to expand their involvement with us moving forward from their volunteer experience.
Access Red Room Poetry is a predominantly remote workplace, with flexible work arrangements for many of our staff. If you have access needs, questions or may require adjustments to the application or interview process, please feel free to reach out to us via poemforest@redroompoetry.org or on (02) 9319 5090.
Selection criteria This position will work best for people who are keen to learn about editing and publishing from a literary, digital and/or not-for-profit perspective, so let us know why this internship would be a great experience for you right now.
- An interest in Red Room Poetry, and the POEM FOREST mission and target audience
- Experience in and passion for reading a diverse range of poets and poetry
- Strong written and verbal communication skills
- Project management experience, or willingness to learn and applicable skills (e.g. managing competing deadlines)
Expectations of the role
- The ability to commit to a consistent weekly schedule against other work and study commitments
- This position is voluntary. Applicants undertaking the internship as a project requirement of an arts or events management, communications, publishing, editing or writing course will be looked upon favourably
- Time commitment is 1 day per week, for a minimum of four months. September is the deadline for all prize entries to be published and therefore the key month of the internship
- The ideal candidate will be able to work independently, feel comfortable asking for help and have access to a computer with a strong internet connection
How to apply Please send a recent CV and short cover letter outlining your experience and your future career interest areas to poemforest@redroompoetry.org by 5pm, Friday 24 May, 2024. Suitable candidates will be contacted for a casual interview.
