Saeed Jones (born November 26, 1985) is an American writer and poet. His debut collection '' Prelude to Bruise'' was named a 2014 finalist for the

Early life

Jones was born in

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...

and grew up in Lewisville, Texas. He attended college at

Western Kentucky University Western Kentucky University is a public university in Bowling Green, Kentucky. It was founded by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1906, though its roots reach back a quarter-century earlier. It operates regional campuses in Glasgow, Elizabethtow ...

, then earned an MFA in

Creative Writing Creative writing is any writing that goes outside the bounds of normal professional, journalistic, academic, or technical forms of literature, typically identified by an emphasis on narrative craft, character development, and the use of literary ...

at Rutgers University–Newark.

Career

Poetry

Jones released his debut poetry chapbook in 2011. Titled ''When the Only Light is Fire,'' it was the top-selling book in the Gay Poetry category on Amazon for several weeks. In 2014, Jones published his first full-length poetry collection, '' Prelude to Bruise.''

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

called it "brilliant, unsparing," "visceral and affecting." ''

The Kenyon Review ''The Kenyon Review'' is a literary magazine based in Gambier, Ohio, US, home of Kenyon College. ''The Review'' was founded in 1939 by John Crowe Ransom, critic and professor of English at Kenyon College, who served as its editor until 1959. ' ...

'' said the work "evokes a perilous, often mythic, eroticism within a brutalizing context of violence." ''

TIME Magazine ''Time'' (stylized in all caps) is an American news magazine based in New York City. For nearly a century, it was published weekly, but starting in March 2020 it transitioned to every other week. It was first published in New York City on Ma ...

'' recommended it as "an engrossing read best consumed in as few sittings as possible." It was a 2014 finalist for the

National Book Critics Circle Award The National Book Critics Circle Awards are a set of annual American literary awards by the National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) to promote "the finest books and reviews published in English".Pushcart Prize, the Joyce Osterwell Award for Poetry from the PEN Literary Awards, and the Stonewall Book Award-Barbara Gittings Award for Literature, and a nominee for the 2014 Lambda Literary Award for Gay Poetry. Jones has been featured on ''

PBS NewsHour ''PBS NewsHour'' is an American evening television news program broadcast on over 350 PBS member stations. It airs seven nights a week, and is known for its in-depth coverage of issues and current events. Anchored by Judy Woodruff, the pro ...

''s poetry series and on ''So Popular! with

Janet Mock Janet Mock (born March 10, 1983) is an American writer, television host, director, producer and transgender rights activist. Her debut book, the memoir '' Redefining Realness'', became a ''New York Times'' bestseller. She is a contributing edit ...

'' on

MSNBC MSNBC (originally the Microsoft National Broadcasting Company) is an American news-based pay television cable channel. It is owned by NBCUniversala subsidiary of Comcast. Headquartered in New York City, it provides news coverage and politi ...

. He was featured on the cover of '' Hello Mr.'' in 2015.

Prose and other projects

Jones previously worked for BuzzFeed as the founding LGBT editor and its executive culture editor. While at BuzzFeed, Jones cohosted BuzzFeed New's morning show ''AM to DM'' from fall 2017 until mid-2019. Jones also wrote an advice column for BuzzFeed's ''READER'' newsletter entitled "Dear Ferocity." His memoir '' How We Fight for Our Lives'' was published by

Simon & Schuster Simon & Schuster () is an American publishing company and a subsidiary of Paramount Global. It was founded in New York City on January 2, 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. As of 2016, Simon & Schuster was the third largest pu ...

in 2019.

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...

called the book's tone and content "urgent, immediate, matter of fact". NPR called it an "outstanding memoir" with "elements that profoundly connect him to poetry" and to "many of us who grew up dreaming of a chance at upward social mobility". The book won the Kirkus Prize for Nonfiction in 2019 and a

Lambda Literary Award Lambda Literary Awards, also known as the "Lammys", are awarded yearly by Lambda Literary to recognize the crucial role LGBTQ writers play in shaping the world. The Lammys celebrate the very best in LGBTQ literature.The awards were instituted i ...

in 2020. In 2022, Jones's interview with Debbie Millman was featured on the Storybound (podcast) season 5 premiere. Jones is one of the hosts of the Vibe Check podcast.

Personal life

Jones lives in Columbus, Ohio. Jones was brought up to practice

Nichiren Buddhism Nichiren Buddhism ( ja, 日蓮仏教), also known as Hokkeshū ( ja, 法華宗, meaning ''Lotus Sect'') is a branch of Mahayana Buddhism based on the teachings of the 13th-century Japanese Buddhist priest Nichiren (1222–1282) and is one o ...

and still does today.

Bibliography

Poetry collections

*''When the Only Light is Fire''. Sibling Rivalry Press, 2011. *'' Prelude to Bruise''. Coffee House Press, 2014. * In Anthology *''Ghost Fishing: An Eco-Justice Poetry Anthology''. University of Georgia Press, 2018.

Memoir

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Saeed 21st-century American poets African-American poets American advice columnists American male poets American gay writers LGBT African Americans American LGBT poets Living people People from Lewisville, Texas Poets from New York (state) Poets from Tennessee Poets from Texas Rutgers University alumni Western Kentucky University alumni Writers from Memphis, Tennessee Writers from New York City 1985 births 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers American male non-fiction writers Kirkus Prize winners Lambda Literary Award winners Stonewall Book Award winners 21st-century African-American writers 20th-century African-American people