Ohio Poetry Association Blog

Ohio Poetry Association is pleased to announce the winners of this year’s Odes of October contest, as judged by esteemed poet, Paula J. Lambert. First prize goes to Nancy McDermott of Chardon, Ohio, for her poem “The Quilt Show.” First prize includes an award of $65 and inclusion in the 2024 Common Threads, as well being published below. Second prize goes to Timothy J. Richards of Olmstead Twp., Ohio, for his poem “Warlock’s Culinary Concoction.” This prize includes an award of $25 and appears below. Third prize goes to Daniel Moreschi of Neath, Vale of Glamorgan, in the U.K. for his poem “A Fitful Veil.” This prize includes an award of $10 and ppears below. The judge also chose two Honorable Mentions: “Caulk,” by Anthony Wyatt, Dayton, Ohio “October Friendship,” by David Lee Garrison, Dayton, Ohio  A total  54 poems were submitted for this contest. We are deeply indebted to judge Paula J. Lambert, ( paulajlambert.weebly.com ) author of “The Ghost of Every Feathered Thi

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 Endowmen

The Ohio Poetry Association (OPA) is pleased to announce the winners and honorable mentions of the 2023 High School Poetry Contests. Eligible poems were sent to the National Federation of State Poetry Societies, Inc. Manningham Trust Student Poetry Contest. All winning poems receive monetary awards and publication in an OPA chapbook. The grand prize-winning poem will be published in the 2024 issue of Common Threads ,  OPA's annual anthology. We sincerely thank each contest sponsor and judge and congratulate the teachers from each school with student winning poems and honorable mentions. Special thanks to contest coordinator Jessica Weyer-Bentley for all her hard work to coordinate this year’s contests. GRAND PRIZE WINNER "Dementia" - Austin Blake, Buckeye Local H.S. Teacher: Stephanie Crust Category 1. Ethos  Sponsor and Judge: Chuck Salmons  1st: "I Set Myself to Sound" - Diana Zhang (The Seven Hills School) 2nd: "Dora" - Anna Kunkel (The Seven Hills

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.