Portland is looking for a new poet laureate, but it’s time to act quickly. The deadline for applying is Thursday.

The city’s poet laureate program has been loosely managed by an ad hoc committee and is now in the hands of the Portland Public Library, which will administer the program and is leading the effort to find a replacement for Gibson Fay-LeBlanc, who has been poet laureate for three years.

“We are looking for someone who has an impressive body of work and is a strong advocate for poetry within our community,” said Sarah Skawinski, literature and language librarian. “The ideal candidate is someone who is able to inspire others through their poetry and to make their passion for poetry contagious.”

The deadline is Thursday, but the application process is not complicated. To be considered for the position of laureate, a poet must be nominated by someone else through the library’s website (portlandlibrary.com) or in person at any Portland library location. Portland’s new poet laureate will be inaugurated at 5:30 p.m. June 26 in Rines Auditorium at the library.

Fay-LeBlanc believes the library is the proper landing spot for the poet laureate program. “Portland has such a strong library. Everyone goes there,” he said. “It’s a perfect place for the program to sit.”

The term is two to three years, to be determined by the laureate and the committee. Portland has had five poet laureates, and all have served two years except Fay-LeBlanc, who is finishing his third term. It’s an unpaid, honorary position. If the laureate would like to work on a project that requires money, he or she can apply for a grant to cover costs, Skawinski said.

Taking over the administration of the program was a natural evolution for the library, she added. “Among the library’s longstanding goals is the promotion of poetry and writing through collections and programming. We strive to give local poets and writers a platform within the community, and to give members of the community access to their local poets and writers,” she said.

Among Fay-LeBlanc’s accomplishments was his creation of the “Deep Water” poetry series in the Audience section of the Maine Sunday Telegram and his encouragement of poetry, spoken word and hip-hop in Portland schools. He will continue the “Deep Water” series after he relinquishes his laureate responsibilities, he said.

Staff Writer Bob Keyes can be contacted at 791-6457 or at:

bkeyes@pressherald.com

Twitter: pphbkeyes

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