Poetry 99

Poetry is back! The CN&R revamped its schedule of Fiction 59 and Poetry 99 writing contests last year to shift the poetry issue to April to coincide with National Poetry Month (stay tuned for Fiction 59 in the fall). During the transition, Poetry 99 got skipped in 2014, and after a year and a half without it, we're proud to be able to once again showcase poems from our readers in the newspaper. This year, we invited the 1078 Literary Committee to judge the hundreds of submissions we received. The five-person committee is made up of Chico State and Butte College English instructors, published writers and editors, and they bring an extensive and varied background of literary experience to the table when considering poems in the various categories: kids (fifth grade and younger), junior high school (grades 6-8), high school (grades 9-12) and, of course, the wide range of adults.

And, as if printing the winning poetry wasn't enough, we are also inviting all the winners (and the honorable mentions) to read their poems live at the Poetry 99 reading at The Bookstore (118 Main St.), tonight, April 2, at 6:30 p.m.

Enjoy the poetry.

Notes: In the junior-high and high-school honorable mentions, there are students from Table Mountain School in Butte County Juvenile Hall who made the cut. The students' last names have been omitted to protect anonymity.

Also in the high-school category, contest judge Sarah Pape's daughter, Sylvia, was an entrant. To avoid any conflict of interest, the entries for the high-school category were handled by other judges on the panel.

Additionally, to ensure unbiased consideration, author names were removed from poems before being given to the judges.