The 2023 Unbound Emerging Poet Award!

Every year, thanks to the generosity of an anonymous donor, Unbound has the opportunity to invite and celebrate the work of a young poet at the start of their career. We are thrilled to announce that this year’s winner of the Unbound Emerging Poet Award is Maria Isabelle Carlos - an award that is extra special as Maria is originally from Missouri. You will be able to hear Maria read from her work on Saturday, April 22, at Top Ten Wines at 11:45, along with Patrick Rosal and BJ Best.

Maria Isabelle Carlos is a writer and editor from Missouri. She has received support from UNC-Chapel Hill, Vanderbilt University, the Lambda Literary Foundation, Tin House, Storyknife Writers Retreat, and Sundress Academy for the Arts. She is the editor of Inch from Bull City Press, an assistant nonfiction editor of Zone 3, and she works at Haymarket Books. Find her work at www.mariaisabellecarlos.com.