Mar 02

2025-2026 Youth Poet Laureate Contest Deadline EXTENDED to Mar. 10

Our Youth Poet Laureate contest is open for 2025-2026!

Are you a teen? Are you SUPER into poetry? We want to hear from you! 

The process for choosing the Youth Poet Laureate for Stanislaus County:

Teens ages 15–19 who reside or go to school in Stanislaus County may submit up to five original works of poetry demonstrating their commitment to the mastery of the art and craft of poetry. 

RULES 

The application packets consists of 4 items: (1) The application, (2) a Word or PDF file containing original poems, (3) a video of yourself explaining why you want to be Youth Poet Laureate and reading one or more of your poems (not more than 5 minutes total, and (4) a letter of recommendation from a community member/teacher who is familiar with you and your work as a student/poet/volunteer.

APPLICATION:

● Tell us all about yourself here. Part A consists of your personal info as well as a bio/artist statement .

● For the bio/artist statement, describe why you want to be a Youth Poet Laureate. Who are you, where do you live, what do you write? What or who inspired you to write poetry?  What topics do you love writing about? What issues do you care about? Where can we find your writing online? Do you have a website, blog, or social media presence? Share those with us. (GoTeenWriters has a great page on how to write a bio when you haven’t published much yet.)

● For Part B, please tell us about your achievements! How have you been recognized at school, in your church, in community organizations? In what other literary events or activities have you participated? This is where you can make a list of awards/honors, activism or community organizations, and literary achievements and participation.

POEMS:

● Please attach a Word or PDF doc with a sample of your poems: at least 3 but not more than 5.

● Poems may be in any style or form. 

● Poems must be the original creative work of the poet. Plagiarism will result in immediate disqualification from this and all future Youth Poet Laureate opportunities. 

● All poems must be typed. Single or double spaced, 12 pt Times New Roman preferred unless the poem’s form dictates the format (example: blackout poetry, erasures, visual poetry, spoken word, etc.) 

● No gratuitous violence or sexual content. No hate speech. No slander. 

LETTER OF RECOMMENDATION:

Ask a teacher or other adult who knows your work to write this letter–the sooner the better. If you need extra time for this part, let us know–email us at ypl@mostpoetry.org.

VIDEO:

Make a video of yourself–using your phone is fine! In the video, introduce yourself and tell us why you’re seeking the laureateship and what you would do with the platform. In addition, read us a few poems. The video should be no longer than 5 minutes long. Please share the video with ypl@mostpoetry.org in whatever way works best for you–email attachment, link to YouTube or iCloud, etc. If you need help with that, please email us at ypl@mostpoetry.org.

Submission Dates: 

The contest deadline is March 3, 2025. MARCH 10 DOWNLOAD PDF APPLICATION

IF SELECTED, POET: 

  • will receive $500 honorarium
  • serve a one-year term from June 1, 2025 – May 31, 2026
  • must be available for public appearances throughout Stanislaus County and have a form of transportation to locations in other county cities
  • must either live in or be enrolled in a school in Stanislaus County at time of submission and for the entire term if chosen 
  • must attest that their work is solely their own original creative work
  • will work with a mentor from the Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center; display their poems in the Young Adult section of the Modesto Library (or other branch while the Modesto Library is closed for remodeling in 2025 and will mentor others
  • will write at least 3 poems during their term and present these at events to be decided
  • will be asked to participate in at least two poetry events in the community focusing on engaging other youth in poetry. Examples of these possible Youth Poet Laureate activities are as follows:
    • If they’d like to create a poetry-related project of their own, the Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center will offer assistance/support; 
    • feature at a reading as part of the Second Tuesday Reading Series at the end of their term; and/or 
    • write a poem for the City of Modesto’s Poet’s Corner event.
  • May be asked to serve a second term as YPL upon mutual agreement.

Promotion: 

Selected Youth Poet Laureate will be published in a variety of venues such as: 

  • SCOE Arts Newsletter
  •  Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center Newsletter, Social Media, Website
  • Stanislaus County Library Social Media, Website
  • Newspaper Articles

Judging:

Poetry will be judged by a diverse panel of published poets and community members. 

Questions? Please email ypl@mostpoetry.org

Go to the YPL Contest to read about the role, rules for applying, and more! Contest runs through March 3 March 10, 2025.

Feb 27

Second Tuesday March 11 feat. Bob Stanley & Dane Cervine

Join us at Bookish Modesto as we present Santa Cruz poet Dane Cervine and Bob Stanley, Sacramento poet, reading for us from their work, followed by an open mic. Read more about the event.

Second Tuesday Poetry featuring Bob Stanley and Dane Cervine with Open Mic

Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center is pleased to present Second Tuesday Poetry featuring Bob Stanley and Dane Cervine. 

Date: Tuesday, March 11, 2025
Time: 7:00 pm PST
Where: Bookish Modesto, 811 W. Orangeburg Ave, in the Roseburg Square shopping center

Open mic following featured poets (3 min per poet); sign up at the event.  Hosted by Modesto poet laureate emeritus & author Gillian Wegener. 

Bob Stanley photo

BOB STANLEY

Bob Stanley studied poetry at Caltech and UCLA, and he taught English and Creative Writing at Solano College, Sac City College, and Sac State before retiring in 2021. Sacramento’s Poet Laureate from 2009 to 2012, Bob has organized poetry events in California for many years. His collections include Walt Whitman Orders a Cheeseburger (2009), Miracle Shine (2013), and Language Barrier (2024). Bob and his wife Joyce live in Sacramento and organize online poetry seminars that help support nonprofit organizations.

Bob’s most recent collection, Language Barrier, which is published by CW Books, is available on the Random Lane Press website: randomlanepress.com

ABOUT LANGUAGE BARRIER

“Language is no barrier to our enjoyment of the experiences Bob Stanley has distilled and decanted in these poems. His keen eye for detail takes us first on a passionate tour of China and then on a reminiscent journey through America, described through the prism of many poetic forms. As he says, ‘I could write with both care and abandon,’ and he has done just that. Here you will find tragedies in miniature, but also wonder at nature and the past. Through it all runs Stanley’s raconteurial charm, a Poundian respect for the world of the senses, and a tireless yearning for song: ‘keep the discord in the chord, / sing what’s hard to sound soft.’ The result, in Stanley’s own words, is ‘peach-perfect.’”—Brad Buchanan

 

Dane Cervine reading at microphoneDANE CERVINE

Dane Cervine’s recent books of poetry include DEEP TRAVEL – At Home in the [Burning] World (Saddle Road Press), The World Is God’s Language (Sixteen Rivers Press), Earth Is a Fickle Dancer (Main Street Rag), and The Gateless Gate – Polishing the Moon Sword (Saddle Road Press). Dane’s poems have won awards from Adrienne Rich, Tony Hoagland, the Atlanta Review, Caesura, and been nominated for multiple Pushcarts. His work appears in The SUN, the Hudson Review, TriQuarterly, Poetry Flash, Catamaran, Miramar, Rattle, Sycamore Review, Pedestal Magazine, among others. Dane lives in Santa Cruz, California. Visit his website at: https://danecervine.typepad.com/

ABOUT DEEP TRAVEL 

“I love the way [Dane has] taken the haibun back to its origins with Bashō—what a brilliant and perfectly executed form for [his] observations and musings. It’s such a rich book. Some of [the] haiku are so beautifully apt, little marvels, and one of my favorites is the one inspired by Ocean Vuong:

      I am a book—of bone,

   raft and river

 That seems to me emblematic of the entire book and [Dane’s] intents—to offer insights and responses without any trace of self-importance, and then to return to shore.   –Lynne Knight

Feb 07

April 18 Youth Poet Laureate Reading

Join us at the Salida Library in honor of National Poetry Month, when Youth Poet Laureate Zoe Byron reads some of her work for us, followed by an Open Mic.

This event is free and open to the public. At the Nick W. Blom Salida Regional Library Branch on Sisk Road in Salida.

National Poetry Month Reading featuring Zoe Byron, Stanislaus YPL with Open Mic

Join Zoe Byron, Youth Poet Laureate of Stanislaus County, as she reads poems in celebration of National Poetry Month. Open mic follows. At the Salida Library, April 19 at noon.