Workshops

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2026 SPRING WORKSHOP

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POETRY SOCIETY OF VERMONT
Saturday May 16, 2026 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Village Meeting House, Waitsfield Vermont

TIM MAYO:
AN EXPLORATION OF VOICE IN POETRY

PSOV is honored to welcome Brattleboro poet Tim Mayo as our Spring Workshop presenter for An Exploration of Voice in Poetry. Voice is a critical element of our craft—yet also one that means vastly different things to different poets and readers. Through demonstration, examples, and discussion, Tim will guide us on a journey to a deeper understanding of voice that will elevate our engagement as poets and poetry readers. In the afternoon, participants will workshop our own poems in small groups facilitated by with Tim and members of the PSOV board. 

Tim Mayo photo

Tim Mayo holds an ALB from Harvard and an MFA from the Bennington Writing Seminars. Widely published in journals including The American Journal of Poetry, Barrow Street, and Poet Lore, his most recent book is Muscle Memories of Love and Disaster (Bainbridge Island Press 2026)

A ten-time Pushcart Prize nominee and two-time finalist for the Paumanok Award, Tim Mayo has also received three Vermont Writers Week fellowships at the Vermont Studio Center. 

Registration Now Open!

Link here: https://forms.gle/gD2yx3dACDTcqv817

2026 Spring Workshop Registration Form

Special Note: Sign up before May 8th if you wish to include your own poem for the afternoon workshop session.

Free to Members! (Join PSOV to Attend!)

Save the dates!

2026 Spring Workshop: May 16th Village Meeting House, Waitsfield, Vermont

2026 Summer Festival : August 8th Highland Center for the Arts, Greensboro, Vermont

2026 Fall Workshop: October 17th Catamount Arts, St. Johnsbury, Vermont

For questions contact Cindy Ellen Hill, PSOV President at pr*******@********************nt.org.

Download the 2026 PSOV Spring Workshop poster and share it with friends and neighbors.

Spring Poetry Contest 2026

Spring Poetry Contest 2026

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PSOV Spring Poetry Contest

Special Note:The Spring Workshop and Spring Poetry Contest are now separate events. Be sure to follow the instructions listed above and if you have any questions or need help with your submission contact David at ex***********@********************nt.org. 

Poetry of Witness and Social Justice flyer

Workshop: Poetry of Witness and Social Justice

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with George Longenecker

How do poets write about historical and political events without sounding preachy and prosy? These are difficult times; writing can be an outlet for hopelessness. Can such a poem be artistic and speak to conscience? We’ll read examples of social justice poems and then create and critique our own. Each participant will leave the workshop with the first draft of a poem. After the workshop George will read your drafts and send each participant suggestions for revision.

Tuesday March 31 6:30-9:00 PM

Online: Google Meet

Limit 12 Register by March 29

Register Here: Poetry of Witness and Social Justice Sign Up Form (will close after 12 signups)

George Longenecker was PSOV president from 2018 through 2021, and executive secretary from 2022 to 2023. He currently sits on the PSOV Executive Council board as past president and is a member of the PSOV Editorial Board.

No King’s Day

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by daithí

While millions of Americans amassed to protest, a roomful of poets met in Burlington, Vermont for the PSOV Fall Workshop to share their poems and to take on sonnet forms in changing times. Many of us wanted to be both outside, while also honoring what I like to call the third line. (First line being speakers. Second line, protesters. & Third line, writers.)

Dianalee Velie led a well-paced workshop. One take-away was to consider the title of your poem as an entry point and your last line as an exit ramp. In addition, there was a robust conversation concerning the nature of poetry–both performative and written.

In the meantime, with the PSOV President Joy stepping down this December, we continue to search for a brave soul to step into the fray!

Dianalee Velie, Curtis, Joy and daithi'
daithe' and Carl
Joy, Daithi' and Carl
Daniel and Jesse
Daniel
Susan
workshop
Curtis
President Joy
fall workshop attendees with Dianalee Velie in center

photos by daithi’, Elizabeth McCarthy and Curtis Johnson

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2025 Fall Poetry Contest Results!

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PSOV Members have voted and the results are in! Below are the winning poems from the Poetry Society of Vermont’s 2025 Fall Poetry Contest. Thank you to all the members who took the time to read the 46 submitted contest poems and vote for your top ten poems which will be published in the 2026 Mountain Troubadour.

Top Ten PoemsPoets
Ant TrailsChristopher Record
Letter to a Brother in LadakhAmelia DiGiano
BittenRobin Dellabough
Mother’s Grape JellyElizabeth R. McCarthy
The Radical Nature of SneakersCarol Milkuhn
Dandelions in the SuburbsPhilip Coleman
JESUS HAS YOUR ANSWERS*George Longenecker
Resistance, with Eggs*Carla Schwartz
Falling in Love Again At Fifty*Michelle Fay Holder
Sunrise, Late Fall 1956**Nichael Cramer
King’s Progress**Gordon Korstange
* tied for 7th
** tied for 10th

Members’ Choice Voting: Spring/Fall Poetry Contest winners are selected through members’ choice voting. A Google Form and a link to a document containing all submitted poems (names removed) is sent to all members, where they have the opportunity to read all submitted poems then vote for their top ten. The top ten ranked choice poems will be included in next year’s publication of The Mountain Troubadour. The members’ choice vote uses the Borda Count Method to calculate the choice ranking.

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2025 Fall Poetry Contest

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2025 – First Call

  • OPEN for SUBMISSIONS: Monday, September 1, 2025 
  • CLOSES: Midnight Wednesday, October 1, 2025 
  • Submit your poem
    • be sure to follow the guidelines below before submitting

click here 2025 Fall Poetry Contest Form

Submission Guidelines:

  • Use the poem title as the document file name.
  • Do not include your name in the poem document or file name.
  • Submit one poem, any style, any topic.
  • Format – poem must be in a Word or Google Document.
    • Times New Roman 12pt font.
    • Single space/ double-space between stanzas.
    • Keep the poem length to one page (short poems preferred.)
  • No previously published poems.
    • PSOV does not accept work that has been previously curated, in print or online—poems may be self-published on social media, blogs, or message boards, but cannot have been published in books, magazines, or similar collections open to the general public (online or in print.)
  • Simultaneous submissions are allowed
    • Notify us asap if your poem is accepted elsewhere.
  • You must be a member of PSOV to enter this contest.

Members’ Choice Voting:

  • An online voting form will be sent to all PSOV members on or around October 3rd where members will vote for their top ten poems. The ranked choice results will be calculated and the top ten poems will be published in next year’s publication of The Mountain Troubadour.
  • Members’ Choice Voting closes on October 17th. (please vote!)

Alternative for Submitting your Poem: 

  • Email your poem to: wo******@********************nt.org
  • Please put your name and “Fall Poem” in the subject line of your email.
  • Include your full name and email address in the body of the email.
  • Follow the guidelines above.
  • Attach a poem as a word document (do not type your poem in the body of the email itself.)

Thank you, 

David Hartnett, PSOV Executive Secretary

Robyn Joy, PSOV President

Please note: you don’t have to attend the Fall Workshop to submit a poem for consideration in the contest, nor do you have to submit a poem to attend the workshop. Be sure to follow the guidelines above. If you have any question contact David at wo******@********************nt.org or Joy at pr*******@********************nt.org.

Download this post as a document, click here (go to file, download.)

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2025 PSOV Fall Workshop

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This year’s Fall Workshop will be held at Main Street Landing Performing Arts Center on Saturday, October 18th. We are excited to announce that Dianalee Velie, Poet Laureate of Newbury, New Hampshire will be the guest poet leading this workshop. This workshop is free for members, non-member guests may be invited to attend if capacity allows (click here for more information on the Fall Workshop.)

Location:  Main Street Landing Performing Arts Center, Burlington, Vermont. 

Date: October 18, 2025

Time: 10am to 3pm

Lunch: there will be an hour for lunch, bring your own or go to a local restaurant

Deadline to sign up: Wednesday, October 15th 

Cost: free for members, $20 for non-members. No one will be turned away for lack of funds. 

Register for the Fall Workshop: click here…

PSOV Fall Workshop Signup

Thank you, 

David Hartnett, PSOV Executive Secretary

Robyn Joy, PSOV President

Please note: you don’t have to attend the Fall Workshop to submit a poem for consideration in the contest, nor do you have to submit a poem to attend the workshop. Be sure to follow the guidelines above. If you have any question contact David at wo******@********************nt.org or Joy at pr*******@********************nt.org.

Download this post as a document, click here (go to file, download.)