Warsan Shire

Warsan Shire (born 1 August 1988) is a British writer, poet, editor, and teacher who was born to Somali parents in Kenya. In 2013, she was awarded the inaugural Brunel University African Poetry Prize.

Early life and education Born on 1 August 1988 in Kenya to Somali parents, Shire migrated with her family to the United Kingdom at the age of one. She has four siblings. She studied creative writing at London Metropolitan University, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 2010. Career

In 2011, she released Teaching My Mother How to Give Birth, a poetry pamphlet published by flipped eye. A full collection of hers was released in 2016, also through flipped eye. Her poems have been published in various literary publications, including The Poetry Review, Magma, and Wasafiri. Her poetry has been translated into a number of languages, including Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Swedish, Danish, and Estonian. She serves as the poetry editor at Spook magazine and teaches poetry workshops globally. Beyoncé's interest in Shire's work was sparked by Shire's piece "For Women Who Are Difficult to Love". Beyoncé again featured Shire's poetry in her 2020 musical film Black Is King.

Shire published her first full-length poetry collection, Bless the Daughter Raised by a Voice in Her Head: Poems, on 1 March 2022. Shire was interviewed on NPR's Weekend Edition Sunday by Sarah McCammon on 27 February 2022 about the book.

Influences Shire draws on the personal experiences from her own life and the lives of people with whom she is close. Shire is also quoted as saying: "I also navigate a lot through memory, my memories and other people's memories, trying to essentially just make sense of stuff." Her words "No one leaves home unless / home is the mouth of a shark," from the poem Home "Conversations about home (at a deportation centre)", have been called "a rallying call for refugees and their advocates."

Shire has named writer Toni Morrison as one of her influences.

Awards and honours In April 2013, Shire was presented with Brunel University's inaugural African Poetry Prize,

In 2014, Shire was chosen as poet-in-residence of Queensland, Australia, liaising with the Aboriginal Centre for the Performing Arts over a six-week period.

Bless the Daughter Raised by a Voice in Her Head was shortlisted for the 2022 Felix Dennis Prize for Best First Collection and the 2023 Dylan Thomas Prize and appeared on the longlist for the 2023 Griffin Poetry Prize.

Personal life She lives in Los Angeles, California, with her husband, Andres Reyes-Manzo, and their two young children.

Publications

Poetry in film

Poems including "The Unbearable Weight of Staying", "Dear Moon", "How to Wear Your Mother's Lipstick", "Nail Technician as Palm Reader", and "For Women Who Are Difficult to Love" featured on Lemonade (2016), a visual album by Beyoncé.