Local poet Jay Hopler wins writing award

Posted Nov 5, 2009 by Kevin Walker

Updated Nov 5, 2009 at 02:05 PM

Local poet Jay Hopler is $50,000 richer and, perhaps most importantly, validated in a way all writers wish they could be.

Hopler, author of the poetry collection Green Squall, was one of 10 recipients of the the prestigious Whiting Writers Award, given annually to writers who show “exceptional talent and promise early in their career.”

Hopler, who was born in Puerto Rico and now lives in Tampa, received the award at a ceremony last week at the Morgan Library and Museum in New York City. His next work will appear in the The Yale Anthology of Younger American Poets to be published in 2010.  Hopler is an assistant professor of English at the University of South Florida.