To become a Fellow a poet needs to have achieved the feat of ten poems published on the Fellowship Hall of Fame. On top of this they will need a poem to have featured in the Annual Poetry Fellowship Anthology. Furthermore, they will be required to pass the Poetry Fellowship’s Good & Proper Persons Test.

There is an annual fee for Fellows which allows access to areas of the Fellowship’s organisation and governance that other poets do not have access to. Fellows shall be expected to vote on the Fellowship’s strategy and, where possible, attend Fellowship private meetings.

Fellows’ names shall be published on the prestigious Poetry Fellowship website and while their fellowship remains active they shall be allowed to use the FTPF initials after their name.

A list of Fellow terms and conditions shall be presented to potential Fellows before they agree to accept the Fellowship and the high standards associated with it.

A Fellowship Certificate shall be awarded to Fellows along with a Fellowship Gold Pen which Fellows shall receive in exchange for part of their first Fellowship Fee payment.

The current list of fellows for March 2019 can be found here.

The 2019 Chief of Fellows is C.K Shrestha:

Chandra Kishore Shrestha (popularly known as C.K. Shrestha) is a well-known dramatist, social worker, social thinker, political analyst, journalist, theatre activist, film script writer, lyricist and a community motivator from the Darjeeling hills, India. He belongs to the Indian Gorkha community. C.K. Shrestha has written and directed numerous plays in the Nepali language, which include Ani Bhaleymungro Runcha, Salaam Relimai, and Aina Ma Herda Ramsailee. He is the group leader of the theater troupe Bhadrey ko Toli Natya Samuha. Ani Bhaley Mungro Runcha is a social satire that was staged for 11 years in different parts of India. He has been the protagonist of ‘theatre for a social change’ and a follower of the ‘fourth theatre’. His fourth theatre play Aina Ma Herda Ramsailee was staged more than 500 times in different parts of India. As a journalist, C.K. Shrestha has edited and published a number of daily newspapers, weeklies, journals and periodicals. His main contributions include Sunchari Samachar (daily), Aba Samvad Patra (daily), Aadhar(monthly), Himali Bela (weekly) and Milekhutti (monthly magazine). He has authored many books including Darjeelingey Bhanu Jayantiko Naknik, Narad Uvanch, Hamro Love Story, Mujhe Rang De Tiranga Chola Mai, Bharatma Gorkha Haruko Rashtriya Chihnari Sankat, Gorkha’s Quest for Indian Identity, Banmara, etc. C.K. Shrestha is a former national working president of the Bharatiya Gorkha Parisangh. He is the founder of Gorkha Bharati Bichar Manch.