“What desolation of life will rise when the ice has melted? / What dance will entertain us before the burning? / What trick of light will mesmerize us first?”
Jamaica (she/her) hails from Santa Cruz, CA by way of Seattle. Her first book, Bone Language, will be published by YesYes Books in 2023. Her work has appeared, or is forthcoming, Prairie Schooner, World Literature Today, The Adroit Journal and The Missouri Review, among others. She is a 2021 National Endowment for the Arts Fellow, winner of the 2021 RHINO Poetry editor's prize, and winner of the 2019 San Miguel de Allende Writers Conference Contest in Poetry. Her writing has been supported by Hedgebrook, Furious Flower, and the Jack Straw Writers program. Jamaica is currently pursuing her PhD in English at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln with a focus on poetry and Women and Gender Studies.
"Country" and "Nation," Southeast Review
"As The Nurse Fills Out The Intake Form, The Ocean Speaks Your Name," Ruminate
"A Language So Fraught," ROOM Magazine
This is a reading featuring contributors to the 2021 RHINO issue, including the annual prize winners. Come celebrate with us.
"Drawing on the poetry of the late poet Lucille Clifton, UNL Poets will celebrate the long history of Black poets bringing often uneasy truths to the heart of America.
Conceived, curated and directed by Kwame Dawes, the poets, in conversation with music and visual art, will perform their own compositions and selections of poems by Lucille Clifton whose words continue to resonate in our culture today.
This is a free virtual event, but registration is required in order to receive the link to watch. There is also the option to add a donation to support the Lied Center. The live webcast will also be available on the Lied Center Facebook page."
Registration is free. Donations accepted.
May 29 2021
Jamaica Baldwin's first book will be published by YesYes Books in Spring of 2023 along with co-winners, Jill Mceldowney and Natalie Wee. Congratulations to all the finalists!
2020 YesYes Books Open Reading Period Selection
Mar 13 2021
"Congratulations to Jamaica Baldwin, Winner of the 2021 RHINO Editors’ Prize for her poem, “Father Weaver.”"
- RHINO Poetry
Mar 13 2021
"Forbidden" originally published in The Missouri Review
Feb 4 2021
DATE: February 4, 2021
CONTACT: Jamaica Baldwin
Jamaica Baldwin Receives National Endowment for the Arts Creative Writing Fellowship
Lincoln, Nebraska—Today, the National Endowment for the Arts announced that Jamaica Baldwin is one of 35 writers who will receive an FY…
Jun 23 2020
Gaffney/Academy of American Poets Award.
Jun 23 2020
Glenna Luschei Prairie Schooner Award for "Stitched" and "Symphonies" published in the Summer 2018 issue.
Jun 22 2020
Jack Straw Interview with Jourdan Imani Keith
"2017 Jack Straw Writer Jamaica Baldwin talks with curator Jourdan Imani Keith about finding her voice in poetry, adopting silence as a kind of armor, and the male gaze in art and literature…
