Poet, writer, speaker, and political strategist Camonghne Felix will share her work in a virtual reading on Thursday, April 8 at 7 p.m. ET. The event is free and open to the public.
REGISTER HERE to attend!
Felix will read from her National Book Award nominated poetry collection, Build Yourself a Boat, and preview selections from her anticipated forthcoming poetry and essay collections, Dyscalculia and Let the Poets Govern. The reading will be followed by conversation and live Q&A, moderated by associate professor Lyrae Van Clief-Stefanon.
Camonghne Felix received an M.A. in Arts Politics from NYU, an M.F.A. from Bard College, and has received Fellowships from Cave Canem, Callaloo, and Poets House. Formerly the Director of Surrogates and Strategic Communications at Elizabeth Warren for President, Camonghne is the VP of Strategic Communications at Blue State, a digital strategy firm.
Her first full-length collection of poems, Build Yourself a Boat (Haymarket Books), was long-listed for the 2019 National Book Award in Poetry, and a finalist for the PEN Open Book Award and the Lambda Literary Award in Bisexual Poetry. The author of the chapbook Yolk, she was recently listed by Black Youth Project as a "Black Girl From the Future You Should Know." Felix's new collection of poems, Dyscalculia, and collection of essays, Let the Poets Govern, are forthcoming from One World, an imprint of Penguin Random House.
As a political strategist, Camonghne implements, designs, and drives full communication and branding strategies for progressive campaigns and organizations while working across a range of issues including racial justice, gender equity, criminal justice, homelessness, and education. Formerly, Camonghne was a Sr. Manager of Strategic Communications at Ms. Foundation For Women, the oldest feminist organization in the country. In 2015, Camonghne was appointed as a Speechwriter to Governor Andrew Cuomo, making her the first African-American female speechwriter, and the youngest speechwriter to serve a New York State governor.
Felix's work has been published in BuzzFeed, Poetry Magazine, Apogee, The Offing, the Academy of American Poets website, and more. She's also been featured in New York Women's Foundation Magazine, Brooklyn Poets, Politico, Teen Vogue digital, Huffington Post, and more.
This is the fourth virtual event in the Spring 2021 Barbara & David Zalaznick Reading Series: Together. Next up in the series is a Reading by Susan Choi on April 22 at 7:00 p.m. ET. For more information and ongoing updates, visit english.cornell.edu/zalaznick or email creativewriting@cornell.edu. Livestream powered by our friends at eCornell.
