Cyrus Cassells (born 1957) is an American poet and professor.

Life and work

Cassells was born in

Dover, Delaware Dover ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and the List of municipalities in Delaware, second-most populous city of the U.S. state of Delaware. It is also the county seat of Kent County, Delaware, Kent County and the princ ...

, grew up in the Mojave Desert north of Los Angeles, and began writing poetry in high school. He graduated in 1979 from

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

with a degree in film and broadcasting, and landed a job creating poetry filmstrips in the film division of a publishing house, where he was working when poet Al Young called to tell him that his manuscript had been selected for publication from the 1981 National Poetry Series competition. He then went on to win the 1981 National Poetry Series competition. He has worked as a translator, film critic, actor, and teacher. Since 1998, he has taught poetry at

Texas State University Texas State University (TXST) is a public university, public research university with its main campus in San Marcos, Texas, United States, and another campus in Round Rock, Texas, Round Rock. Since its establishment in 1899, the university has ...

in the MFA creative writing program. He lives in Austin. Cassells' collection ''More Than Peace and Cypresses'' (

Copper Canyon Press Copper Canyon Press is an independent, non-profit small press, founded in 1972 by Sam Hamill, Tree Swenson, Bill O'Daly, and Jim Gautney, specializing exclusively in the publication of poetry. It is located in Port Townsend, Washington. Copper C ...

), and his fifth book, ''The Crossed-Out Swastika,'' (2012) were published by Copper Canyon Press. He has won many awards including a 1995 Pushcart Prize, the

Lambda Literary Award Lambda Literary Awards, also known as the "Lammys", are awarded yearly by Lambda Literary Foundation, Lambda Literary to recognize the crucial role LGBTQ+ writers play in shaping the world. The Lammys celebrate the very best in LGBTQ+ literatur ...

, and the

William Carlos Williams Award The William Carlos Williams Award is given out by the Poetry Society of America for a poetry book published by a small press, non-profit, or university press. The award is endowed by the family and friends of Geraldine Clinton Little, a poet an ...

. His collection ''Soul Make A Path Through Shouting'' was nominated in 1994 for the

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prizes () are 23 annual awards given by Columbia University in New York City for achievements in the United States in "journalism, arts and letters". They were established in 1917 by the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made his fo ...

in Poetry. Cassell's poems have appeared in numerous anthologies and in such journals as ''Ploughshares,'' '' Indiana Review'', ''AGNI'', '' The Literati Quarterly'', ''

Boston Review ''Boston Review'' is an American quarterly political and literary magazine. It publishes political, social, and historical analysis, literary and cultural criticism, book reviews, fiction, and poetry, both online and in print. Its signature form ...

'', ''

Icarus In Greek mythology, Icarus (; , ) was the son of the master craftsman Daedalus, the architect of the labyrinth of Crete. After Theseus, king of Athens and enemy of King Minos, escaped from the labyrinth, Minos suspected that Icarus and Daedalu ...

'', and ''

Callaloo Callaloo ( , ; many spelling variants, such as kallaloo, calaloo, calalloo, calaloux, or callalloo) is a plant used in popular dishes in many Caribbean countries, while for other Caribbean countries, a stew made with the plant is called call ...

''. He is out as

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...

Poetry collections

* ''Lorca to the Umpteenth Power'' (3: A Taos Press: 2026) * ''The Man with the Oar on His Shoulder: Poems of Francesc Parcerisas'' (Stephen F. Austin State University Press: 2026)(translator) * ''Everything in Life is Resurrection: Selected Poems, 1982-2022'' (TCU Press: 2025) * ''Is There Room for Another Horse on Your Horse Ranch?'' (Four Way Books, 2024) *''To The Cypress Again and Again: Tribute to Salvador Espriu'' ( Stephen F. Austin State University Press, 2023) (writer and translator) * ''The World That the Shooter Left Us'' (Four Way Books, 2022) * ''More Than Watchmen at Daybreak'' (Nine Mile Books, 2020) * ''Still Life with Children: Selected Poems of Francesc Parcerisas'' (Stephen F. Austin State University Press, 2019) (translator) * ''The Gospel according to Wild Indigo'' (Southern Illinois University Press, 2018) * ''The Crossed-Out Swastika'' (

, 2012) * ''More Than Peace and Cypresses'' (

, 2004) * ''Beautiful Signor'' (Copper Canyon Press, 1997) * ''Soul Make a Path Through Shouting'' (Copper Canyon Press, 1994) * ''The Mud Actor'' (Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1982)

Honors and awards

* 2025 Jackson Poetry Prize, given by Poets & Writers for "a poet of exceptional talent." * 2025 Named a Best New Poetry Book by the New York Public Library for ''Is There Room for Another Horse on Your Horse Ranch?'' * 2025 Pushcart Prize for "Lorca to the Umpteenth Power" * 2025-26 Rome Prize in Literature, given by the American Academy in Rome (finalist) * 2024 The Texas Institute of Letters Souerette Diehl Fraser Award for Best Translated Book for ''To The Cypress Again and Again: Tribute to Salvador Espriu'' (Co-winner) * 2023 Housatonic Book Award in Poetry for ''The World That the Shooter Left Us'' (finalist) * 2023 Regents' Professor, Texas State University * 2023 University Distinguished Professor, Texas State University * 2023 Civitella Rainieri Fellowship * 2022 Poet Laureate Fellowship from The Academy of American Poets * 2021 Presidential Excellence Award from Texas State University * 2021-2022 Poet Laureate of Texas * 2020 The Texas Institute of Letters Souerette Diehl Fraser Award for Best Translated Book for ''Still Life with Children: Selected Poems of Francesc Parcerisas'' * 2019 Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship * 2019 Pulitzer Prize nomination for Criticism for cultural reviews in ''The Washington Spectator'' * 2019 The National Poetry Series finalist for ''Is There Room For Another Horse on Your Horse Ranch?'' * 2019 Artist in Residence, Helene Wurlitzer Foundation of Taos, New Mexico * 2019 Resident Fellowship, Mabel Dodge Foundation * 2019 Finalist, NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Work of Literature—Poetry for ''The Gospel according to Wild Indigo'' * 2019 Finalist, Texas Institute of Letters Helen C. Smith Memorial Award for Best Book of Poetry for ''The Gospel according to Wild Indigo'' * 2019 Finalist, Balcones Prize for Outstanding Poetry Book of 2018 for ''The Gospel according to Wild Indigo'' * 2014 Resident Fellowship, Lannan Foundation, Marfa, Texas * 2012 Finalist, Balcones Prize for Outstanding Poetry Book of 2012 for ''The Crossed-Out Swastika'' * 2008 Resident Fellowship, Lannan Foundation, Marfa, Texas * 2006 Rockefeller Foundation Fellowship: Bellagio * 2005 NEA Literature Fellowship in Poetry * 2005 Austin Circle of Theaters, B. Iden Payne Award winner: Best Comedy for ''The Dog in the Manger'' (Austin Shakespeare cast member) * 2004 ''Library Journal'' Best Poetry Books of the Year for ''More Than Peace and Cypresses'' * 2004 Lannan Literary Selection Book for ''More Than Peace and Cypresses'' * 2003 Austin Circle of Theaters, B. Iden Payne Award nominee, Best Featured Actor in a Drama for ''Jitney'' * 1997 Finalist, Bay Area Book Reviewers Award for ''Beautiful Signor'' * 1997

for ''Beautiful Signor'' * 1997 Sister Circle Book Award for ''Beautiful Signor'' * 1995 Pushcart Prize for "Sung from a Hospice" * 1995 Finalist, Lenore Marshall Prize for ''Soul Make a Path through Shouting'' * 1994 ''Publishers Weekly'' Best Poetry Books of the Year for ''Soul Make a Path through Shouting'' * 1994

for ''Soul Make a Path Through Shouting'' * 1993 Rockefeller Foundation: Bellagio resident fellowship * 1993 Lannan Literary Award - Poetry * 1992 Peter I.B. Lavan Younger Poet Award * 1992 Finalist, AWP Poetry Prize for ''Soul Make a Path through Shouting'' * 1986 NEA Literature Fellowship in PoetryNEA Literature Fellowships: Forty Years of Supporting American Writers > NEA Literature Fellowships > Creative Writers
* 1984 Resident fellowship, Helene Wurlitzer Foundation of Taos, New Mexico * 1983 Writer in Residence, The Millay Colony * 1983 Writer in Residence, Yaddo * 1983 Bay Area Book Reviewers Award finalist for ''The Mud Actor'' * 1982-83 Resident Fellowship,

Fine Arts Work Center The Fine Arts Work Center is a non-profit enterprise that supports emerging visual artists and writers in Provincetown, Massachusetts. The Work Center was founded in 1968 by a group of American artists and writers to support promising individual ...

, Provincetown, Massachusetts * 1981 National Poetry Series Prize for ''The Mud Actor'' * 1979 Academy of American Poets Prize (Stanford University)

References

External links

Texas State University > MFA Faculty

Academy of American Poets > Poet: Cyrus Cassells Bio

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cassells, Cyrus 1957 births Living people American male poets 20th-century American poets English-language poets Texas State University faculty Poets from Delaware Stanford University alumni People from Dover, Delaware Lambda Literary Award for Gay Poetry winners 21st-century American poets African-American poets African-American LGBTQ people American LGBTQ poets LGBTQ people from Delaware American gay writers Gay academics 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers 20th-century African-American writers 21st-century African-American writers 21st-century American LGBTQ people African-American male writers Gay poets