ANASTASIOS CHATZIGIANNIS, Greece's National Honour, September 2026
ANASTASIOS CHATZIGIANNIS wrote the highest-scoring poem from Greece in the Writory International Poetry Contest, September 2026: A Guide to Bravery, scored 75 out of 100 by the blind judging panel across five published criteria. The poem was read in English (Latin script).
A Guide to Bravery
A GUIDE TO BRAVERY Your Majesty! Do not worry! The basement is deep enough, and if the barbarians happen to find you, we'll pretend we know nothing. Put on your robe. Splash a little red on it. An excellent cloak. A would-be drunkard, an outcast, a member of a notorious gang— everything will be just fine! Let the people fight, sacrifice themselves, honoring your name. Send your fighting greetings after it's all over. Come out unscathed when the bombing of the country ends. Surely they will crown you with laurels. Some may wish to crucify you. Ignore them! You, standing proud, thrust out your chest, strike a commanding pose, salute decisively as the crowd cheers. If anyone is left alive— even just one. Who knows? He might be tomorrow's prime minister.
Every country's leading poet each month is named on the September 2026 National Honours. The contest is open to poets in Greece and everywhere else: enter the current round, and every poem receives a score out of 100 and a certificate.