Julia Bouwsma

Julia Bouwsma was born in New Haven, Connecticut, in 1980. She received a BA from Swarthmore College and a MFA from Goddard College.

Bouwsma is the author of three poetry collections: Death Fluorescence (Sundress Publications, 2025); Midden (Fordham University Press, 2018); and Work by Bloodlight (Cider Press Review, 2017). The latter two received the Maine Literary Award for Poetry.

Bouwsma’s other honors include the Poets Out Loud Prize (2016–17), the Cider Press Review Book Award in 2015, and residency fellowships from the Virginia Center for Creative Arts, Vermont Studio Center, Monson Arts, and Annex Arts. 

Bouwsma currently serves as the library director for Webster Library in Kingfield, Maine. She is also serving as Maine’s sixth poet laureate through 2026. In 2024, she received an Academy of American Poets Laureate Fellowship.