Yona Harvey facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Yona Harvey
|
|
|---|---|
Harvey at Busboys and Poets, 2014
|
|
| Born | 1974 (age 50–51) Cincinnati, Ohio, United States |
| Occupation | Poet Professor |
| Alma mater | Howard University Ohio State University University of Pittsburgh |
| Notable works | Hemming the Water |
| Notable awards | Kate Tufts Discovery Award |
Yona Harvey (born in 1974) is an American poet and a professor at the University of Pittsburgh. She won the Kate Tufts Discovery Award in 2014. She is also a writer for Marvel Comics, becoming one of the first two Black women to write for Marvel.
Contents
Yona Harvey's Early Life and Education
Yona Harvey grew up and went to college. She earned her first degree in English from Howard University. There, she studied with other famous writers like Ta-Nehisi Coates, Kemp Powers, and Douglas Kearney.
Later, she earned a graduate degree in English from Ohio State University. She also got a Master of Library and Information Science degree from the University of Pittsburgh.
Yona Harvey's Writing Career
Poetry Collections and Awards
Yona Harvey's poems have appeared in many literary magazines. These include jubilat, Ploughshares, Gulf Coast, and Callaloo.
In 2013, she published her first book of poems, called Hemming the Water. This book won the Kate Tufts Discovery Award in 2014. It was also a finalist for the Hurston-Wright Legacy Award in poetry that same year.
Critics praised Hemming the Water. One reviewer said her poems were like "the best machines that sew and sing." Another mentioned how her poems mix "tenderness and violence" in a unique way.
Teaching and Professor Roles
Yona Harvey is currently the Tammis Day Professor of Poetry at Smith College. Before that, she was a professor at the University of Pittsburgh.
She teaches writing in the English department. Her classes cover many topics. These include African literature, digital media, poetry, and different ways to write.
Writing for Marvel Comics
Yona Harvey wrote her first comic book story when she was in college.
In 2016, she started writing for Marvel Comics. She worked on the series World of Wakanda. This series is a spin-off from the popular Black Panther comics. Yona Harvey and Roxane Gay were the first two Black women to write for Marvel.
Ta-Nehisi Coates, who also writes for Marvel, suggested Yona Harvey for the job. He believed her poetry skills would help her write short, powerful comic stories. Yona Harvey wrote the origin story for a character named Zenzi. She said she was inspired by Winnie Madikizela-Mandela.
Harvey and Coates also wrote another Black Panther comic series. It was called Black Panther & The Crew and was set in Harlem. This series ran for six issues.
Future Writing Projects
Yona Harvey is working on a second book of poems. She is also writing a memoir. A memoir is a book about a person's own life experiences.
Yona Harvey's Personal Life
Yona Harvey was married to the poet Terrance Hayes. They met at a writing retreat for Black poets in 1996. They have two children, a son and a daughter.
Yona Harvey's Published Works
- Hemming the Water, Four Way Books 2013, ISBN: 9781935536321
- The Subject of Retreat (poem, 2015)
- Hurricane (poem, 2013)
- Gingivitis, Notes on Fear (poem, 2013)
- Selected poems via Washingtonart.com
- Selected poems via Bucknell.edu
- Her work has been included in other poetry collections.
Yona Harvey's Awards and Honors
- Winner, 2014 Kate Tufts Discovery Award
- Finalist, 2014 Hurston-Wright Legacy Award, Poetry
- Winner, 2016 Carol R. Brown Creative Achievement Awards, Established Artist, from the Pittsburgh Foundation and the Heinz Endowments
- Individual Artist grant in nonfiction from The Pittsburgh Foundation
See also
In Spanish: Yona Harvey para niños
