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Jeanann Verlee (born in 1975) is an American author, performance poet, editor and activist. Her first book of poems Racing Hummingbirds, published in 2010 received the Independent Publisher Book Award Silver Medal in Poetry. Verlee also won the Sandy Crimmins National Prize for Poetry. Currently she edits poetry for Union Station Magazine [1] and the Poets Portrait Project Anthology. She tours performing and facilitating workshops across North America.

Life

Born in Denver, Colorado, Verlee studied theatre performance and creative writing. She wrote her first poem at age seven and by age eleven become the youngest winner of Parade Magazine's Young American Ambassadors prize for her essay. By fifteen she nearly completed her first novel but never finished. Also at fifteen, Verlee was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, now a common theme in her poetry. She became the co-author and performer of The Vortex: Conflict, Power, and Choice! a touring company that performed nationally on themes of domestic violence. Currently she edits poetry, coaches poetry slam teams, and since 2010 has curated the Urbana Poetry Slam Series at the Bowery Poetry Club [2] with Taylor Mali, Cristin O'Keefe Aptowicz, and Shappy Seasholtz. Verlee has represented New York City six times with her team "louderARTS Project" at the National Poetry Slam which has made it to the finals several years in a row. She has also been a part of the Urbana Poetry Slam team. Verlee represented NYC-louderARTS at the 2010 Women of the World Poetry Slam. She is a passionate animal rights and humanitarian activist. She has organized and participated in several social actions and letter-writing campaigns. She lives in New York City with her dog and two lovebirds.

Poetry/Performance

Verlee's poetry focuses on themes of mental and physical abuse, relationships, sex, adolescence, and mental illness. She is known for her brutal honesty and the intimacy she creates with her audience.

• Silver Metal Independent Publisher Book Award in Poetry in 2010
• Nominated for the Pushcart Prize in 2010
• NYC-Urbana iWPS Champion in 2009
• Highest scoring individual poet at the National Poetry Slam Finals in 2008

Further Reading

• Verlee, Jeanann. Racing Hummingbirds. Write Bloody Publishing, 2010.
• Thrush Poetry Journal: "While Writing an Ode to my Lover's Hands, He Tells Me about the Revolver," "Good Girl," and "The Sick is an Ocean, I am Learning to Swim"
• Muzzle Magazine: "Wait" by Jeanann Verlee and Carlos Andres Gomez
• Word Riot: "Grief, Not Guilt," "His Version," "When the girl roasted the pig whole," "The Believer," "Dumpster Full of Dresses," and "I Imagined it Nude, or in a Black Dress"
• PANK Magazine: "Communion," "Exit Wound," "Unsolicited Advice to Adolescent Girls With Crooked Teeth and Pink Hair"
• Kill Author: "The Session"
• "Wherein the author provides footnotes and bibliographic citation for the first stanza drafted after a significant and dangerous depression incurred upon being referenced as a “hack” both by individuals unknown to the author and by individuals whom the author had previously considered friends"
• The Nervous Breakdown: "Lessons in Alone"
• Frigg Magazine: "Mother, if in a Museum," "Cleave," "The Telling," and "Jeanann Verlee's Comments"

External links

• Jeanann Verlee's official website
• Myspace page for NYC-Urbana Poetry Slam
• Bowery Poetry Club's official website where Verlee curates the slam series and performs regularly
• Union Station Magazine for which Verlee edits poetry
• Audio of "Wait" from Muzzle Magazine
• 40 Love Letters
• Communion
• I'm Sorry

See also

• Spoken word
• Performance poetry
• Bowery Poetry Club
• Write Bloody Publishing

Category:Slam poets Category:Slam poetry Category:American women poets Category:Spoken word Category:Spoken word poets Category:Women writers from New York City Category:Women writers from Colorado Category:1975 births Category:Living people