Now is the time to lay your very best verses on the line and compete for one of the highest honors a local poet can receive. This month, New Mexico Arts and the New Mexico State Library begin selecting the newest 2025-2028 State Poet Laureate, and applications are open now until April 25. Seasoned sonneteers and novices alike who are current New Mexico residents ages 21 or older, have lived in the state for three years and plan to remain here during the entire term of appointment are invited to apply to be the next representative of our diverse and accomplished community of poets. Versifiers of all styles and disciplines from classic prose to slam or cowboy poetry will be considered.
The Department of Cultural Affairs says one of the Poet Laureate’s goals is to visit as many of the 33 counties and 23 recognized tribes in New Mexico as possible and encourage appreciation and participation in poetry within those communities by developing educational outreach programs and a statewide poetry project. Of course, the New Mexico Poet Laureate’s biggest job is reading and sharing their original work and judging poetry-related competitions during their three-year term. The willingness to travel to all parts of the state is an essential part of the public position as is the ability to represent the title with distinction by respecting the cultures, backgrounds and beliefs of the diverse communities with whom the Poet Laureate will engage. The awardee will be paid $20,000 per year to cover travel costs and expenses.
To be eligible for the selection process, individuals must pass a background check and be able to enter into a professional services contract with the Department of Cultural Affairs. Applicants will submit samples of original poetry — five poems maximum within a seven-page limit — as well as biographical materials such as a resume or CV with a list of published works and awards, references and a proposal for their statewide poetry project.
You can check out all the rules and required application materials at nmarts.org/all-programs/poet-laureate.
To give you an idea of your potential competition — or perhaps the types of doors this distinction could open — current New Mexico State Poet Laureate Lauren Camp is the founder of the New Mexico Epic Poem Project and the author of eight poetry collections including her most recent, entitled In Old Sky, published in 2024. She’s been awarded fellowships from the Academy of American Poets and the Black Earth Institute and is the recipient of a Dorset Prize, Housatonic Book Award, Big Other Book Award and the Adrienne Rich Award for Poetry. Her work has appeared in journals and anthologies such as The Kenyon Review, Prairie Schooner, Orion Magazine, The Missouri Review and Poem-a-Day and translated into Turkish, Mandarin, Serbian, Arabic, French and Spanish.