Photo courtesy of Shana Hansell.
Elizabeth Roa Martinez, pictured above, will be representing the University of Massachusetts Boston at this year’s 100th annual Kathryn Irene Glascock Intercollegiate Poetry Contest.
By Emma Quirk ’26
Staff Writer
Elizabeth Roa Martinez, a senior at the University of Massachusetts Boston, has not always loved poetry. However, in high school, it became “an outlet for [her] mental health struggles and a form of art [she] fell in love with.”
It started as something that was just for herself, but she began sharing her work with the world during the pandemic. “I wanted to bring awareness to mental health and show other Latinx individuals they are not alone,” Martinez said. Through her Instagram account @heartfeltpoems_, she has been able to do just that.
Her joy for poetry has continued throughout her time at UMass. Jill McDonough, her professor for an advanced poetry class, recommended Martinez to be a participant in this year’s 100th annual Kathryn Irene Glascock Intercollegiate Poetry Contest. As stated on the Mount Holyoke Website, “the Glascock Poetry Contest is the oldest continuously-running poetry contest for undergraduate students in the country.” Martinez “couldn’t be more honored and thankful to [McDonough]” for this opportunity.
As this is her first-ever poetry contest, Martinez is simply looking forward to the experience. She is also appreciative of the opportunity to be surrounded by other poets and “see what [she] can learn from them.”
Regarding her inspirations, she can write about anything, “but when there’s an emotion behind it, I feel like it’s my strongest work. I would say I’m very skilled at showing others what I’m dealing with through my poetry.” Turning her emotions and experiences into poetry is where she feels most confident.
Noting that fact, she has followed her heart in terms of selecting her poems for the Glascock Contest. “It took me some time to choose the poems that I did,” Martinez remarked. “I will say I believe they flow beautifully and I picked the most familiar feelings. … I have three main emotions going on which will be pain, feeling drained and joy.” She did not share anything else, as to not spoil her readings at the contest.
In terms of her influences, Martinez points to spoken word artists and watching performances of poetry over reading just the written word. She did state that she “should get some poets in [her] bookshelf!” Martinez mentioned appreciating the work of Sandra Cisneros, Julia Alvarez, Langston Hughes, Pablo Neruda, Elizabeth Bishop and Celia Martínez.
All in all, the psychology major and Latino Studies minor is pleased with how her writing has progressed. “I would say I’m proud of all my writing, especially coming from a person that used to hate being vulnerable,” Martinez said “I have my moments but vulnerability is a beautiful thing. I’m just proud I get to share my pieces and show others it’s okay to feel lost most of the time.”