Tracy K. Smith
Encyclopedia
Tracy K. Smith is an African American
poet and educator. She has published three collections of poetry. About her most recent collection, Life on Mars (2011), Joel Brouwer
wrote: "Smith shows herself to be a poet of extraordinary range and ambition.... As all the best poetry does, “Life on Mars” first sends us out into the magnificent chill of the imagination and then returns us to ourselves, both changed and consoled. "
She has a B.A. from Harvard University
and an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from Columbia University
. From 1997–1999 she was a Stegner Fellow
in poetry at Stanford University
. Currently she is an Assistant Professor of Creative Writing at Princeton University
.
Smith lives in Brooklyn
with her husband, Raphael Allison, and their daughter.
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
poet and educator. She has published three collections of poetry. About her most recent collection, Life on Mars (2011), Joel Brouwer
Joel Brouwer
Joel Brouwer is an American poet, professor and critic. His most recent poetry collection is And So .He is also the author of Exactly What Happened, which received the Larry Levis Prize from Virginia Commonwealth University, and Centuries, a National Book Critics Circle "Notable Book."In addition...
wrote: "Smith shows herself to be a poet of extraordinary range and ambition.... As all the best poetry does, “Life on Mars” first sends us out into the magnificent chill of the imagination and then returns us to ourselves, both changed and consoled. "
She has a B.A. from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
and an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
. From 1997–1999 she was a Stegner Fellow
Stegner Fellowship
The Stegner Fellowship program is a two-year creative writing fellowship at Stanford University. The award is named after American Wallace Stegner , an historian, novelist, short story writer, environmentalist, and Stanford faculty member who founded the university's creative writing program. Ten...
in poetry at Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
. Currently she is an Assistant Professor of Creative Writing at Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
.
Smith lives in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
with her husband, Raphael Allison, and their daughter.
Books
- The Body’s Question (20032003 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* The Seamus Heaney Centre for Poetry was opened at Queens University, Belfast, this year. It houses the Heaney Media Archive, a unique record of Heaney's entire oeuvre, as well as a full catalogue of...
), Graywolf PressGraywolf PressGraywolf Press is an independent, non-profit publisher located in St. Paul, Minnesota. Founded on a dedication to the creation and promotion of thoughtful and imaginative contemporary literature essential to a vital and diverse culture, Graywolf Press publishes fiction, non-fiction, and poetry.Now...
; won the 2002 Cave Canem Prize for the best first book by an African-American poet (selected by Kevin YoungKevin YoungKevin Young may refer to:*Kevin Young , American athlete*Kevin Young , American baseballer*Kevin Young , English footballer...
). - Duende (20072007 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* March 5: a car bomb was exploded on Mutanabbi Street in Baghdad. More than 30 people were killed and more than 100 were wounded. This locale is the historic center of Baghdad bookselling, a winding...
), Graywolf Press; won the 2006 James Laughlin AwardJames Laughlin AwardThe James Laughlin Award, formerly the Lamont Poetry Prize, is given annually for a poet's second published book; it is the only major poetry award that honors a second book...
. - Life on Mars (20112011 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:June 12 – A poet and student, Ayat al-Ghermezi of Bahrain, is sentenced to a year in prison as part of that kingdom's crackdown on Shiite protesters calling for greater rights...
), Graywolf Press.
Contributor
- Poems, Poets, Poetry
- Poets on Teaching: A Sourcebook
- State of the Union: 50 Political Poems
- When She Named Fire
- Efforts and Affection: Women Poets on Mentorship
- The McSweeney's Book of Poets Picking Poets
- Legitimate Dangers: American Poets of the New Century
- The Autumn House Anthology of Contemporary American Poetry
- Gathering Ground : A Reader Celebrating Cave Canem's First Decade
- Poetry Daily: 366 Poems from the World's Most Popular Poetry Website
- Poetry 30: Thirty-Something Thirty-Something American Poets
Awards, grants, fellowships
- Grant from the Ludwig Vogelstein Foundation
- Fellowship from the Bread Loaf Writers' ConferenceBread Loaf Writers' ConferenceThe Bread Loaf Writers' Conference is a writers' conference held every summer at the Bread Loaf Inn, near Bread Loaf Mountain, east of Middlebury, Vermont...
. - Rona Jaffe Foundation Writer’s Award.
- Whiting Writers' AwardWhiting Writers' AwardThe Whiting Writers' Award is an American award presented annually to ten emerging writers in fiction, nonfiction, poetry and plays. The award is sponsored by the Mrs. Giles Whiting Foundation and has been presented since 1985. As of 2007, winners receive US $50,000.-External links:**...
in 20052005 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* October 7 — Celebrations marking the 50th anniversary of the first reading of Allen Ginsberg's poem Howl were staged in San Francisco, New York City, and in Leeds in the UK...
for poetry. - James Laughlin AwardJames Laughlin AwardThe James Laughlin Award, formerly the Lamont Poetry Prize, is given annually for a poet's second published book; it is the only major poetry award that honors a second book...
in 20062006 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* French public notary Patrick Huet unveils Pieces of Hope to the Echo of the World in Lyon...
for Duende. - Essence Literary Award in 20082008 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* June — the release in the United Kingdom of a new film, The Edge of Love, Dylan Thomas' relationship with two women, starring Keira Knightley, Sienna Miller, Cillian Murphy and Matthew Rhys *...
for Duende. - Rolex Mentor & Protégé Arts Initiative in 20102010 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* January 19 - For the first time since 1949, an anonymous black-clad man, known as the Poe Toaster, failed to show up at the tomb of Edgar Allan Poe at the Westminster Hall and Burying Ground, early...
.
External links
- Tracy K. Smith Princeton University Faculty Page
- Tracy K. Smith guest-edits the poetry section of Guernica Magazine
Her poetry online
- http://www.fishousepoems.org/archives/tracy_k_smith/index.shtml Listen to Tracy K. Smith read and discuss her poetry at From the Fishouse
- http://www.postroadmag.com/7/poetry/SelfPortraitY.phtml"Self-portrait as the Letter Y" from Post Road MagazinePost Road (magazine)Post Road is an American literary magazine founded in 1999 that publishes fiction, nonfiction, criticism, poetry, art, and theatre. In addition to these traditional genres, the magazine also features a "Recommendations" section in which established writers suggest their favorite work and an...
- http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/16830 "Duende" from Academy of American Poets Web site
- http://www.theawl.com/2010/10/the-poetry-section-tracy-k-smith "My God, It's Full of Stars" from The Awl Poetry Section