I am the recipient of a 2002 California Arts Council Spoken Word Literary Arts Fellowship.įor over twenty years I have been a part of Daughters of Yam (a poetry performance group with Opal Palmer Adisa) which has released one book, two chapbooks, one poetry and jazz cassette and one poetry and jazz CD. released my third solo book of poetry, with more than tongue. Curbstone Press released my second novel (which includes poetry), Brown Glass Windows to critical acclaim City Lights Publishing released another book of my poetry, and then we became in 2016 and where river meets ocean in 2006. My first novel, An Open Weave, was awarded the First Novelist Award by the Black Caucus of the American Library Association, was released by Seal Press and later sold to Women’s Press in London and resold as a trade paperback to Signature Press.

In 2019 my first international title a braccia aperte (with open arms) was released in Italy by Multimedia Edizione. My newest volume of poetry califia’s daughter was released by Aquarius Books/Willow Press in July of 2020. I have two novels and six books of poetry published. I have toured internationally in places such as Northern and Southern Italy, Bosnia, Jamaica, Venezuela, Belgium, England and Wales, and throughout the United States both performing my poetry and serving on panels speaking on African-American poetry, Beat Poetry, and poetry of resistance. I am San Francisco’s third Poet Laureate, an award winning poet and fiction writer, creative non-fiction writer, performer, editor, and part-time senior adjunct professor at California College of the Arts as well as the former poet-in-residence of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco.

I live as a mother, grandmother, aunt, niece, cousin and friend to many who honor me with their friendship in return.

I am a California born, granddaughter of immigrants, documented and undocumented, who works as a writer, editor, writing coach, spoken word performer, recording artist, and poetry professor.

Brown Glass Windows by Devorah Major