2024 Ohio Poet of the Year nomination guidelines

Ohio Poet of the Year, 2024

 

Nomination guidelines

• Poets are invited to self-nominate by submitting their books, along with their complete contact information (mailing address, phone number, and email) and a bio (50-100 words).
• Books may also be sent in by others, such as a publisher, editor, poetry colleague or poetry group. 
• There is no form to fill out, no fee, and no letter of recommendation is necessary. 
• The poet must be a native or a resident of Ohio, or if neither, must have previously lived in Ohio and established close ties to the state.
• Books must be at least 48 pages in total (including front matter, title pages, photographs, art work).
• They may be from a commercial, university, small or hybrid press, but vanity books and self-published books will not be considered.
• They may have received previous awards or honors.
• They must have been published between September 1, 2022 and May 1, 2024.
• They must be the work of one poet, not an edited anthology including various poets.
• No translations.
• Poets who have previously entered the contest but did not win, may submit a different book.
• No one will be chosen a second time as Poet of the Year.

 

• Nominations must be received by May 15, 2024.

 

• Mail two copies of the book to:

 

Ohio Poet of the Year Committee

206 East Dixon Avenue

Dayton, OH 45419 

2024 Ohio Poetry Day Contests

 

Rikki Santer named 2023 Ohio Poet of the Year

[Crossposted from the OPA blog:]

The Ohio Poetry Day Association (OPDA) has selected Rikki Santer as its Ohio Poet of the Year for 2023. Santer was selected for her book of poems, Resurrection Letter: Leonora, Her Tarot, and Me (Materialist Press/Cereal Box Studio, 2023), a book-length sequence in tribute to the surrealist artist Leonora Carrington.

A resident of Columbus, Ohio, Santer has had published five full-length poetry collections and six chapbook sequences exploring such topics as the Hopewell earthworks of Newark, Ohio; the late Kahiki Supper Club of Columbus, Ohio; the world of ventriloquism, the art of fashion, and the classic television series Twilight Zone. She is a member of the teaching artist roster of the Ohio Arts Council, a vice president of the Ohio Poetry Association, and a member of the poetry troupe, Concrete Wink. Her poetry has been widely published and has received many honors including several Pushcart and Ohioana book award nominations as well as a fellowship from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Learn more at rikkisanter.com.

As an Ohio Poet of the Year, Santer joins the likes of Mary Oliver, David Baker, Kari Gunter-Seymour, and Maggie Smith. The complete list of previous Poet of the Year winners is below.

Santer will be featured at this year’s Ohio Poetry Day celebration, October 13–14. The event will feature a morning workshop, readings, and the keynote from Santer, who will read from her winning collection. See agenda details below.

OHIO POETRY DAY AGENDA

Friday, October 13, 7–9 PM: Meet and greet with Santer and previous Poets of the Year, overnight poetry contest prompt.

Saturday, October 14, 10 AM–4 PM: Evan Lodge Workshop, reading by Rikki Santer, open mic featuring Ohio Poetry Day contest winners.

Where:   Troy Hayner Cultural Center
                301 W. Main St., Troy, Ohio 45373
                troyhayner.org

2023 Ohio Poetry Day Contests Now Open

[Cross-posted from the Ohio Poetry Association blog:]

Our friends at the Ohio Poetry Day Association have announced their annual contests! May 15, 2023, is the deadline (postmark) for nearly two dozen contest categories. Categories include humor, formal poems, parody and more. As always, a “Welcome Aboard” category for first-time submitters and an art category to design the cover art for the 2023 Best of Ohio Poetry Day anthology are also open to submissions. 

Below is a copy of the submission form, which provides full contest information. 

Ohio Poetry Day 2023 will take place in October. Stay up to date on OPD information, including the event date, location, and agenda, by getting your name and address on the OPD mailing list. To do so, contact:

Amy Jo Zook

3520 State Route 56

Mechanicsburg, OH 43044

Checks for all contest fees and purchases should be made payable to: Ohio Poetry Day. For questions, call (937) 834-2666.

Click and download the images below to view them at full size.

Best of 2022 Anthology Now Available!

The Ohio Poetry Day Association's Best of 2022 anthology is now available for ordering. The collection features the winning poems in OPD's annual contests, with more than 60 poems along with work by Ohio Poet of the Year, Erica Manto Paulson. All purchases help fund OPD's Poet of the Year program and are tax deductible, as OPD is a 501(c)(3) organization. For questions, contact call (937) 834-2666.

Ordering Information

Price: $14 (includes postage)
Mail check or money order, payable to OPD, to:

Amy Jo Zook
3520 State Route 56
Mechanicsburg, OH 43044

2022 Ohio Poet of the Year: Erica Manto Paulson

Congratulations to our new Ohio Poet of the Year, Erica Manto Paulson!

 

The Ohio Poetry Association will serve as the virtual host of this year’s Ohio Poetry Day (OPD) celebration. The afternoon will spotlight the 2022 Ohio Poet of the Year, Erica Manto Paulson, for her winning book, Hunger (Finishing Line Press, 2021). We also are inviting OPD contest winners to take part and read their winning poems. To that end, OPA will host a virtual reading using Zoom and broadcast live on the OPA Facebook page.

This event is free and open to the public, but Zoom space is limited. Viewers can also tune into the event on Facebook. Click here to register.

OPD contest winners are invited to share their winning poems during the event. To reserve a spot in the reading, winners should contact the OPA team via email at team@ohiopoetryassn.org.

Registration via Eventbrite on the OPA website: https://www.ohiopoetryassn.org/events#ahejSK.

Registration closes October 14, 2022.

 

 

Ohio Poetry Day Virtual Celebration on October 15th

The Ohio Poetry Association is pleased to announce it will again serve as the virtual host of this year’s Ohio Poetry Day (OPD) celebration. The afternoon will spotlight the 2022 Ohio Poet of the Year. We also are inviting OPD contest winners to take part and read their winning poems. To that end, OPA will host a virtual reading on Saturday, October 15, using Zoom and will broadcast it live on the OPA Facebook page.

More information coming soon.