BELFAST — Poet Timothy Liu of New York has been announced as the judge of the Maine Postmark Poetry Contest, a statewide competition happening this year in conjunction with the 14th Annual Belfast Poetry Festival, to be held Saturday, October 13, 2018. Maine residents and everyone with access to a Maine post office or mailbox this summer are invited to enter. Residents and visitors to our great state are all welcome: the only rule is that all entries must bear a Maine postmark.

To enter, submit one poem of up to two (2) total pages in length; each entry must be accompanied by a $5 reading fee. Proceeds will be used to support the festival. Entrants may submit more than one poem, but each additional poem is an additional $5.

The Belfast Poetry Festival committee will screen entries and forward ten finalists to an outside judge, poet Timothy Liu of New York, who will choose first, second, and third place winners. The first-place winner will receive a $100 cash prize and publication in The Maine Review. Winners will be invited to read the winning poem and be honored at the Belfast Poetry Festival in October 2018; the ten finalist poems and winners will also be announced in the Maine press.

Timothy Liu's publications include Of Thee I Sing (2004), a Publishers Weekly Book of the Year; Vox Angelica (1992), a Poetry Society of America's Norma Farber First Book Award winner; Bending the Mind Around the Dream's Blown Fuse (2009); and several others. He is the editor of Word of Mouth: An Anthology of Gay American Poetry (2000).

The son of Chinese immigrants, Liu was born in San Jose, California and spent two years as a missionary in Hong Kong, though he no longer practices Mormonism. He has taught at William Paterson University and Bennington College's Graduate Writing Seminars, and currently lives in New York City.

Submissions are welcome from now until August 1, 2018; only submissions received with a Maine postmark dated August 1 or earlier will be read. Poems should be sent without the poet's name on the poem and accompanied by a cover letter listing the poet's name, contact information (address, email, and phone), and the title of the poem(s) submitted so that poems can be read anonymously. Cover letters need not include biographical information. Poems sent without a cover letter or entry fee will be disqualified; checks should be made payable to the Belfast Free Library. All poems must be original and previously unpublished. Poems will not be returned, so please do not send original copies or a SASE. Simultaneous submissions are accepted; please note on the cover letter and notify the festival immediately of acceptance elsewhere. Ten finalists will be notified by September 1st; other confirmation of receipt should not be expected. People already showcased in this year's festival or involved in its production are not eligible to participate.

Send entries accompanied by a cover letter with contact information and a check for $5 per poem made out to the Belfast Free Library—to:

Jacob Fricke, Belfast Poetry Festival Attn: Maine Postmark Poetry Contest P.O. Box 911 Belfast, ME 04915

The 14th annual Belfast Poetry Festival will also host its distinctive showcase of collaborative work on Saturday, October 13, 2018. An all-arts festival with poetry as the driving force, the event combines variety show, short film festival, art exhibit, and literary showcase, and is made possible with support from The Maine Review, the City of Belfast, the Belfast Free Library, and the office of the Belfast Poet Laureate.

For more information, see BelfastPoetry.com.