William Matthews Poetry Prize

I was delighted to learn from Keith Flynn, editor of the Asheville Poetry Review, that I was awarded first place in the 2022 William Matthews Poetry Prize competition, for my poem “Verbesina occidentalis.” The judge was Marilyn Nelson. The prize is a generous one, including not only enough money to buy a good many books but also publication in the December 2022 issue of Asheville Poetry Review, and a reading in Asheville in the fall of 2022. More than that, it honors a great poet, a great man, a great teacher, whom I had the honor and pleasure of knowing many years ago, during my years at the Bread Loaf Writers Conference and The New England Review.