A GIFT at Christmas is the theme for the latest Daily Echo writing competition.

You can tackle the theme in poems or stories in any way you wish - the only rules are that poems must not exceed 30 lines and stories must not exceed 1,500 words.

As in all the Daily Echo writing competitions, a well-known judge will be choosing the winners, and winners receive both a cash prize and publication in the Christmas Creative Writing Special out on December 7.

The judge of the poetry competition is Don Paterson. Don is the editor of the prestigious poetry list at Picador, and is also an award-winning poet in his own right. His first collection of poetry, Nil Nil, won the Forward Prize for Best First Collection, and all of his work is published by Faber and Faber. The judge of the short story competition will soon be announced.

Winners and highly commended entrants will also be invited to a special presentation at the Daily Echo where they will receive their prize and have an opportunity to meet the judges and poet-in-residence, Polly Clark.

Polly said: "Daily Echo writing competitions have become the biggest and most prestigious in the region. With every competition we get more entries and the standard is always high. It is a thrill to uncover new writers, and I am particularly pleased that we have famous judges who really know what they're talking about.

In the past, David Nobbs, Russell Celyn Jones and Ruth Padel have all been involved in judging our competitions. If you win the competition, you know you have talent."

Entries should be typed or printed on one side of A4 paper only and posted to Polly Clark, Poet-in-Residence, Southern Daily Echo, Newspaper House, Test Lane, Redbridge, SO16 9JX or alternatively e-mail using the link above - but do not send attachments please.

The closing date for all entries is Friday, November 8.