I won the 2018 Vincent Buckley Poetry Prize at the Melbourne Writers Festival on the weekend.

The Prize will make it possible for me to spend time in Ireland next year. It's humbling to receive an award that is not only named after a great poet but has also been graced by so many wonderful poets.

I am indebted to the friends and family of Vincent Buckley, as well as to Melbourne University's Australian Centre.

Two of the highlights of the day for me were getting to meet Vincent's widow, Penelope Buckley, and having the opportunity to read one of my favourite Buckley poems, "Ghosts, Places, Stories, Questions."

I highly recommend the Collected Poems of Vincent Buckley. It's book full of treasures.