Poetry Contest
The Enoch Pratt Free Library Poetry Contest is an annual event open to Maryland poets age 18 and older.
2026 Poetry Contest Winner and Honorable Mentions
Congratulations to the winner and honorable mentions of the 2026 Enoch Pratt Free Library Poetry Contest!
Winner
Christina Daub: “At Calvert Cliffs”
Honorable Mentions
Nnenna Aduaka: “Indigo Refuses to Drown”
Christina Borgoyn: “loss ii”
Carol Buell: “On Receiving the Gift of a Home-Grown Double Camellia”
The contest was judged anonymously by Poet Lore.
About the Winner
Christina Daub is a Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net–nominated poet who has taught at George Washington University and in Maryland and Virginia Poets-in-the-Schools programs. She co-founded and co-edited The Plum Review, a national poetry magazine, and curated The Plum Reading Series and Plum Writers Retreats.
Her work has been translated into German, Greek, Italian, and Russian, and she also translates poetry from Spanish and German. She is currently co-editing an upcoming anthology, Turning Poetry into Food: A Collection of Poetry X Hunger Poems, with proceeds benefiting anti-hunger causes. Learn more at christinadaub.com.
Read the winning poem and previous winners in the Enoch Pratt Free Library Poetry Contest Winners PDF.
Read the Winning PoemThe winning poem was published in Poet Lore's Winter/Spring 2026 issue, and all four poems were published on the Poet Lore blog.
Join us on Tuesday, July 14, at 6:30 PM at the Central Library to celebrate the winner and honorable mentions. Learn more and register for the event.
The winning poem may also be produced as a collectible broadside. For more information, please email poetry@prattlibrary.org.
A total of 371 poems were submitted to the 2026 contest, representing 91 cities and towns and 16 counties across Maryland, in addition to Baltimore City.
If you submitted an entry, please know how grateful we are. Your creativity and voice enrich our community.
Check out our upcoming poetry events for adults:
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Artists will present their final set, displaying everything they’ve learned in their final performance. Awards will…July 30, 4 PM -
Join us to share poems about journeys and travel. Bring a poem about a journey—written not by you, but by a poet you…August 8, 11 AM -
In partnership with Baltimore City Association of the Deaf, we present several Deaf community members with dynamic performances…September 26, 2 PM -
Join us for a reading and conversation with poets Shirley J. Brewer and Elizabeth Hazen, sharing work from their new books…September 26, 3 PM
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