Campus groups unite for poetry competition

Three of UNC’s largest campus literary groups are uniting for the first time to give student writers the chance to bridge the page and the stage.

Tariq Luthun, former executive director for the UNC Wordsmiths, came up with the idea for the first ever Tar Heel Poet Laureate competition. He said he wanted to create an opportunity to provide students with manuscript and publication experience through a competition and reward of publication.

Luthun said when he came up with the idea for the competition, he was looking for a cohesive and engaging way to focus on the many sources of literary talent at UNC.

“The best way (to have that discussion), in my opinion, is this competition because it bridges so many avenues of poetry,” he said.

The Tar Heel Poet Laureate competition is sponsored by three campus literary groups: the Wordsmiths, the Carolina Quarterly and the Cellar Door.

“The point of this whole thing is to really bridge a bunch of aspects of the writing world through a healthy competitive environment,” Luthun said.

The winner will be chosen by poet Aaron Samuels, a two-time Brave New Voices Finalist and a Pushcart Prize nominee.

Carolina Quarterly will help fund the competition and is assisting with the layout and printing of the chapbook, or a shorter collection book of poems, for the winner of the competition.

“We wanted to offer an opportunity for some of the wonderful writers here at UNC to instantly build a resume as a writer before they graduate,” said graduate student Matthew Hotham, editor-in-chief of Carolina Quarterly.

“This is a great opportunity for people who maybe have not entered into the world of publishing yet, but have been writing great stuff for classes here at UNC to think about the next step,” he said.

Cellar Door will also be sponsoring and advertising for the competition in addition to helping to screen initial entries before going to the final judge.

“I don’t know of any other university or magazine that does a chapbook competition for students,” said Cellar Door’s Editor-in-Chief Karina McCorkle. “Usually it’s a competition for adults who are trying to get their first poetry published who have already graduated.”

Wordsmiths will be hosting the winner as his or her spotlight feature at the last open mic event of the year. In addition, the grand prize winner will receive the journal publications in Cellar Door and Carolina Quarterly, as well as 25 copies of his or her published manuscript.

“The biggest thing that this offers writers is the opportunity to grow in a way they haven’t had otherwise,” Luthun said.

Luthun said he hopes the competition will show students, graduates and community members — whether or not they choose to enter the competition — that anyone can create great work and develop a discourse in the community.

“Poetry wasn’t something to be read, it was something to be engaged in and experience with others,” he said.

arts@dailytarheel.com