POETRY | prose
POETRY
forthcoming, “Cinders—a ziuhitsu,” Beloit Poetry Journal
forthcoming, “In the belly,” Obsidian: Literature & Arts in the African Diaspora
Four Poems, Lolwe Literary Journal, July 2024.
Two Poems, “Baby Suggs & A Purple Butterfly,” Anthology, Get Fresh Books, 2024.
“Venus’ Third Act, The Recovery (Part I)” and “Origins Revisited," Killens Review of Arts & Literature, 2024.
Venus’ Third Act, The Recovery: Part II, Indiana Review, Issue 46.1, 2024
Four poems, Michigan Quarterly Review - African Cartographies Issue, April 2024
“Louisiana Holiday,” Washington Square Review, Number 49, Summer 2023
“wom mata,” Hayden Ferry Review, May 2023 Issue
“War Time,” West Trestle Review, 2023
Three Poems from The Biafra Series, Transition Magazine, 2023
“Care Instructions for a Colored Girl,” Hennepin Review (Nominated for Best Small Fictions 2022)
“Chukwu Zi Anyi Uzo Gi” and “from Tithing, For Colored Girls,” Mantis: A Journal of Poetry, Criticism, & Translation
Featured Poet, Switchgrass
Featured Poet, Room Magazine
Poet of the Week, Brooklyn Poets
“What I Learned In Therapy,” Zone 3 Fall Issue
“What Daddy Doesn’t Want Me To Know,” Little Patuxent Review, Issue 30
“Mama’s House,” The Meadow (2021)
“Expect Grace,” Tahoma Literary Review (2021)
“Border Crossings,” featured in Obsidian: Literature & Arts in the African Diaspora
“God Answers” & “Ten Moments Last Summer,” featured in Berkeley Poetry Review, Issue 51
“All Our Uncivil Wars,” Little Patuxent Review (Winter 2019)
“When God Sat in Enugu | We Wondered Who We Were,” from Biafra War Series, featured in About Place Journal
“In Fretta” from the Biafra War Series, featured in Cider Press Review
“Untitled: after Joy Harjo” featured in Pebble Poetry Magazine
"The Edge of Black," featured in Tinderbox Poetry Journal
“& I don’t want to break no more” and “Splitting Hairs” featured in PANK Magazine (w/ Audio)
“Relief” from the Biafra War Series, featured in Cutthroat: A Journal of the Arts
“After The Revolution, Mine Eyes See Inferno,” from the ekphrastic series, The Ekphrastic Review
“The Bad Ones Stayed,” from the Biafra War Series, featured in Obsidian: Literature & Arts in the African Diaspora
“The Suicide Bomber Climbs A Mountain & Leaves A Note,” Glass: A Journal of Poetry
“the mistake was in believing” featured in Contemporary Verse 2: The Canadian Journal of Poetry
“Haiku In Wartime” and “Five Cinquains For My Brother,” from the Biafra War Series, featured in Black Napkin Press
Three Poems from the Biafra War Series, featured in War, Literature & The Arts
“Portrait of a Womb,” from the ekphrastic series, featured in The Ekphrastic Review
“i begin to see me how you see me & forget i knew me once” featured in Cutthroat: A Journal of the Arts
“A Blip & A Wrinkle” and “On Adolescent Love Later In Life” featured in The Light Ekphrastic
“Creating News” and “The Wake,” from the Biafra War Series, featured in Collateral
“Salt: III.” from the Biafra War Series, featured in Willawaw Journal
"Water," & "How To Fight A War: Part I. Instructions," from the Biafra War Series, featured in Page & Spine Literary Journal (Audio)
"Better Than Morning Coffee," featured in Urban Cusp Magazine
PROSE
“A House in Philadelphia & the Truth about US History,” The Urban Activist
“A Migrant’s Journey To Founding Cologne’s First Black Library,” The Urban Activist
“Reclaiming Public Libraries for the People of Nairobi,” The Urban Activist
“Poetry Finds A Home In South LA,” The Urban Activist
“The Dancer,” midnight&indigo
“Should You Take Your Child To The Doctor?" Mum’s Village
“Breathe: Reflections On Suicide & Loss,” Urban Cusp Magazine
“Stress, Secrets, and Shame: Underlying Threats To Our Health,” Urban Cusp Magazine
“The Color of Hope: Why Lupita Nyong’o’s Presence On The Big Screen Matters,” Urban Cusp Magazine
BOOKS
forthcoming, Two Poems, Poetry Anthology (Jamil Publishing)
forthcoming “In the house of the ancestors,” Poetry Anthology (Get Fresh Books)
“Common Unity: An Anthology,” New York Writers’ Coalition, Poetry Anthology (NYWC, 2022)
"A Desolate Country: Poets United Against Trump," Poetry Anthology (39 West Press)
"The Evolution of a Saint & other selected poems," (self-publication; 2014)
PERFORMANCES, INTERVIEWS & READINGS
Featured Poet, The Emily Dickinson Museum Phosphorescence Contemporary Poetry Series
Poet of the Week Q&A, Brooklyn Poets
Interview, Little Patuxent Review
Little Patuxent Review 2021 Poetry Contest Finalist Reading
Poets in Pajamas Series Episode 117: featuring .chisaraokwu.
Wednesday Night Poetry w/ host Kai Coggin
Busboys & Poets Open Mic, Washington DC
RECENT ACCOLADES
2024 (2nd Place) Evaristo Poetry Prize (formerly Brunel African International Poetry Prize)
2024 Honorable Mention, Chad Walsh Chapbook Prize, Beloit Poetry Journal
2024, Finalist, Frontier Open Poetry Prize
2023 Sonia Sanchez Poetry Fellow (The POETRY Foundation/MacDowell)
2023 Finalist, Inaugural Xochi Quetzal BIPOC Artist Residency Award
2022 Writers’ Digest Poetry Award Winner
Best New Poet Nomination ’22
Best Small Fictions Nomination ‘22
Sundress Publications’ Best of Net Poetry Nomination (’19, ’20, ’21)