This year was the most successful yet for our third annual Jefferson-Madison Regional Library/WriterHouse Adult Poetry Contest. With 108 entries, it’s easy to see that poetry is near and dear to the hearts of those in the Charlottesville area. Former Poet Laureate of Virginia, Ron Smith, judged the contest this year and selected the winner as Erin Newton Wells with her poignant poem “Nevertheless, Isabella Gibbons Reads.” For this poem, Erin won a $200 Visa gift card as her prize, along with a yearlong membership to WriterHouse. Congratulations, Erin! Pictured here, Erin reads her poem at Poetry on the Steps on April 26.

For the first time, we had a tie for runner-up, which Mr. Smith awarded jointly to Cynthia Woodring for her poem entitled “Spanda”, and to Robert Simmons for “There Is a Time in Summer.” Both won Visa gift cards of $100 and a year-long membership to WriterHouse.

2018 Adult Poetry Contest Winner:
Erin Newton Wells:   “Nevertheless, Isabella Gibbons Reads”

2018 Adult Poetry Contest Runner-up:

Cynthia Woodring, “Spanda”

2018 Adult Poetry Contest Runner-up:

Robert Simmons, “There Is a Time in Summer”

 

Thanks, as always to the multitudes of poets who entered this contest to make it so competitive, and to WriterHouse for partnering with JMRL on this contest for the third year in a row!