Maggie Smith Named 2016 Ohio Poetry Day Poet of the Year

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News Release

Ohio Poetry Day (OPD) 2016 is pleased to announce that the Poet of the Year for 2016 is Maggie Smith of Bexley, Ohio, chosen for her book The Well Speaks of lts Own Poison, published in 2015 by Tupelo Press.

Smith, a native Ohioan, was born in Columbus and has degrees from Ohio Wesleyan (B. A.) and Ohio State (M.F.A.). She was for a time a lecturer at Gettysburg College and is now a freelance writer. Her previous publications include three chapbooks, Disasterology (Dream House), The List of Dangers (Wick Poetry Series) and Nesting Dolls (Pudding House), and a full length book, Lamp of the Body (Red Hen Press). She has had awards from the National Endowment for the Arts, Sustainable Arts, and the Ohio Arts Council individual excellence award.

As this year's Poet of the Year, she will receive her award at the meeting at Heidelberg University on Saturday, October 15, and be the luncheon speaker. The weekend will also include a workshop for the winning poems from the Evan Lodge Award and prizes given for all the winners in the general contests.

Those not on the OPD mailing list who wish to receive the reservation form for luncheon and workshop may send SASE or just a postcard with name and address to Amy Jo Zook, 3520 State Route 56, Mechanicsburg, OH 43044 to be included in the mailing. There will also be a book room selling the BEST OF 2016 books and the books by the Poet of the Year and other poets present. Come join us in this, our 79th year.

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