The Master of Fine Arts Program in Creative Writing announced Alabama author Tina Mozelle Braziel as the winner of the 2017 Philip Levine Prize for Poetry book contest, which includes a $2,000 award and publication of her debut full-length book, “Known by Salt.”

The Creative Writing Program sponsors the national prize, which honors the late poet and professor emeritus Philip Levine, a founder of Fresno State’s poetry writing program, a 1995 Pulitzer Prize winner in poetry and the 2011 poet laureate of the United States.

Braziel grew up on the Coosa River in Pell City, Alabama. She received her Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Oregon. Her poems have appeared in journals, including The Cincinnati Review, the Southern Humanities Review, the Tampa Review and Appalachian Heritage. Her poetry chapbook, “Rooted by Thirst,” was published in 2016 by Porkbelly Press.

The Philip Levine Prize for Poetry is an annual national book contest open to all poets, except current or former students or faculty of Fresno State. It is coordinated by Professor Corrinne Clegg Hales as part of the University’s English 242 graduate course, literary editing and publishing, which provides students with real-world experience in the field. The contest offers a $2,000 prize plus publication and distribution by Anhinga Press, which co-sponsors the prize.

See more.