Each year Bucks English professor
Allen Hoey conducts a
search for Bucks County’s best
poet, with a top prize of $500 and
the honor of being Bucks
County’s Poet Laureate.
Entries were due by Sept. 11.
The contest opened in June. So far
Hoey has received approximately
75 entries, a little more than last
year. Hoey is still waiting to see
the final entries that will arrive by
mail.
The winner will speak at a reception
to be held Sunday, Nov.
15 from 2 to 4 p.m., in the Orangery,
next to Tyler Hall.
Somewhere in the stack that sits
on Hoey’s desk is the name of the
2009 poet laureate.
Hoey will select 20 finalists,
and then a panel of judges will
narrow down the last 20 to select
Bucks County’s new poet laureate.
Entries have come from all
types of people. “I’ve never done
any type of demographic analysis.
I know that we do have students,
high school teachers and the odd
professor entering, but we also
have people from many different
career paths. Bill Wunder, the
2004 Bucks County Poet Laureate,
works in the automotive sales
industry, for instance,” Hoey said
of the diversity of the applicants.
Hoey, who has published several
books of poetry himself, is
excited about the contest. “I enjoy
seeing the strength of commitment
to poetry in our county and
reading the poems. I like the
sense that we have so many strong
and committed poets in the area,”
said Hoey.
This is Hoey’s sixth year serving
as director of the program. Before
he was director he served as a
judge. He is also a former poet
laureate.
The judges cannot be residents
of Bucks County so Hoey is responsible
for finding poets from
the surrounding counties to serve
as judges.
“I know many poets and contact
poets that I think might be interested
(in serving as judges) for a
given year. I pick a man and a
woman each time. All have published
widely,” said Hoey.
Last year’s poet laureate was
Paula Raimondo, of Newtown.
Raimondo teaches a few writing
classes here at Bucks.
The 2007 poet laureate was
Marsha Kroll of Doylestown.
The contest had a strong response
last year and Hoey is expecting
the same of this year.
“I was able to send 20 very
strong applicants onto the judges,”
said Hoey of last year’s contestants.
Hoey will start reading through
the stack of entries immediately.
He hopes to ship his 20 finalists
along to the judges very soon.
“When I read the entries to get
to the 20 finalists, I’m looking for
a variety of things, including the
sophistication of craft and insight.
I’d guess that the judges are looking
for the same thing, though
which element of craft a particular
judge might value over others
is very individual,” said Hoey of
the selection process.
Hoey is excited about the contest
and hearing the results of it at
the reception.
Both the winner and the runners-
up will have the chance to
present their work here at Bucks.