Aurielle Marie facts for kids

Aurielle Marie (born 1994) is an American poet and a person who works to make positive changes in society. Their first book of poems, Gumbo Ya Ya, won the 2020 Cave Canem Poetry Prize. It also received a Lambda Literary Award for poetry.

Early Life and Writing

Aurielle Marie was born in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1994. They grew up in the southwest part of the city. As a child, Marie was part of youth groups that focused on Black culture and creativity. These groups helped them start writing poetry at a young age.

Career as a Poet and Organizer

Marie has worked with groups in Atlanta that focus on civil rights. These groups also work on other important social issues. They first became involved in community organizing after the killing of Michael Brown and the protests that followed in Ferguson. Marie was an organizer with a group called It's Bigger Than You.

Marie's poetry often explores their personal experiences and the world around them. They have published poems in many places. These include The Rumpus, BOATT, Poets.org, The Adroit Journal, Poetry Daily, and TriQuarterly Press.

Their first poetry collection, Gumbo Ya Ya, won the 2020 Cave Canem Poetry Prize. This book was published by University of Pittsburgh Press in the fall of 2021. The magazine Poets & Writers described the book as a mix of different texts and voices. It uses creative ways to show words on the page. Some poems have words flowing down, layered, or going beyond the edges. The book challenges traditional poetry forms.

Awards and Recognition

Aurielle Marie has received several important awards for their writing:

• 2018 – Lambda Literary Writer Retreat fellow
• 2019 – Los Angeles Review Literary Award for Poetry
• 2019–2020 – Ploughshares Emerging Writers Contest
• 2020 – Cave Canem Poetry Prize (for Gumbo Ya Ya)
• 2021 – Furious Flower Poetry Prize
• 2022 – Lambda Literary Award (for Gumbo Ya Ya)
• 2022 – Georgia Author of the Year Award, Poetry Full-Length Book (for Gumbo Ya Ya)
• 2022 – Out100