Malibu Creating Poet Laureate Program

MALIBU, CA -- The Malibu City Council on Monday approved a recommendation to create Malibu’s first Poet Laureate.

The proposal was brought to the Cultural Arts Commission by Malibu resident Ann Buxie, who coordinates the long-standing regular community poetry and storytelling event “Tales by the Sea.” The proposal was first reviewed in September by the Cultural Arts Commission, which fully supported the idea and recommended the program to the City Council.

"The Poet Laureate will provide a unique and inspiring voice for Malibu," Mayor Lou La Monte said. "I applaud the Cultural Arts Commission for this initiative, which offers an exciting way to add to our vibrant arts community."

"Poetry searches the soul,” Ann Buxie said. “In times of struggle and suffering, poetry offers a distinct perspective on local and universal happenings."

The Cultural Arts Commission intends the introduction of the Poet Laureate Program in Malibu to forever keep poetry as an integral piece of the community’s artistic landscape. While the importance of poetry in literature needs no explanation, it is often the art form that receives the least support in community arts programming.

The Malibu Poet Laureate will be open to any poet who resides in, or is affiliated with Malibu. The Poet Laureate candidate will be selected by a panel under the guidance of John Struleoff, chair of the Creative Writing Department at Pepperdine University. Struleoff is an Esteemed Writing Fellow of the National Endowment for the Arts and Wallace Stegner Program at Stanford University.

Submissions will be accepted Nov. 30, 2016 through Jan. 11, 2017. Submissions can be made in person at Malibu City Hall, by mail or online. The Call for Submissions with application instructions will be posted on the city’s website on Monday, Nov. 28.

-- News release from the city of Malibu. Courtesy photo.