The creative writing department hosted a ceremony for the winners of the Annual N.C. State Poetry Contest Thursday evening in Caldwell Lounge. Guest judge and poet Li-Young Lee read selections of poetry from his four book collections and took questions from the audience. This was the final event in the Creative Writing’s Owens-Walters Reading series. 

The Annual N.C. State Poetry Contest is not only open to students, but to North Carolina residents as well. The 2014 contest received 413 entries from aspiring poets across the state. Greensboro citizen Betty Ritz Rogers won the 2014 Poetry Prize for her piece entitled “The Singing Bowl.” Tyree Daye of Youngsville received the Undergraduate Poetry Prize for “Croker,” and Heather Bowlan of Raleigh received The American Academy of Poets Prize of graduate students for her poem “A Great City.”

To celebrate the winners and finalists of the Poetry Contest, Li-Young Lee was invited to share his lyrics and wisdom about writing poetry with a large audience.  One question Lee was asked regarded how he handled writer’s block. 

“I get writer’s block because there are so many poems to write,” Lee said. “I see them everywhere everyday. There are so many to write in the world that it is hard to choose which one I want to write down.” 

Lee was friendly and had a welcoming demeanor to the crowd, providing many reasons for the audience to chuckle. Though he is an accomplished poet, Lee is not one to forget the importance of the reader’s role in a writer’s success. He interrupted himself several times while answering questions to acknowledge members of the audience he had previously met to thank them for coming to another reading. 

According to the Creative Writing Poetry Contest page, Lee has penned critically acclaimed poetry collections, including Rose (1986), The City in Which I Love You (1991), Book of My Nights (2001) and Behind My Eyes (W.W. Norton, 2008).  Lee was born in Indonesia in 1957. His great grandfather was the first president of the Republic of China and his family had ties to the Communist leader Mao Tse-Tung. His family traveled through Japan after fleeing anti-Chinese sentiment and moved to the United States in 1964. 

Lee’s great grandfather was China’s first republican President. His father, a deeply religious Christian, was a physician to Communist leader Mao Tse-Tung.

In his poetry, Lee has a smooth voice but draws in the audience with his commanding language. Several poems are inspired by his relationship with his wife, one about knowing her intimately and another about soothing her to sleep with his words. Lee said he often uses his wife’s words in his prose because they are profound and beautiful. 

Li-Young Lee’s collections are available on Amazon.com and locally at Quail Ridge Books & Music on Wade Avenue in Raleigh.