About the Poet
Latorial Faison is an African American poet, author, educator, senior military spouse, and independent scholar from Virginia. She has a BA in English from the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, an MA in English from VA TECH, and a doctoral degree in Education from Virginia State University. Faison’s poetry and creative nonfiction have been published widely in the US and abroad. She’s a VA HUMANITIES Fellow, a JMU Furious Flower Poetry Center fellow, a Pushcart nominee, recipient of the Tom Howard Prize, and Cave Canem Prize semi-finalist. She’s been published in Artemis Journal, West Trestle Review, PRAIRIE SCHOONER, Southern Poetry Anthology IX, Three Minus One, Deep South Magazine, Southern Women's Review, Obsidiain: Literature and Art in the African Diaspora, RHINO, and elsewhere. Dr. Faison teaches English at Virginia State University. She is married and has three sons. Faison is a member of the Wintergreen Women Writers Collective and the Blue Ridge Writers Collective.
Region
Central
Virginia City or County Affiliation
Southampton County
Years of Residence in Virginia
36
Current City/State of Residence
Chesterfield County, VA
Gender
Female
Race/Ethnicity
Black or African American
Year of Birth
1973
Keywords/Tags
African American, Southern, Women, Social Justice
Website
Published Works or Performances
"Mama was a Negro Spiritual" and "Mama Sang the Blues" (In The Southern Poetry Anthology, Volume IX, Texas Review Press, Selected Poems, Jan 2021)
“Judas Kiss” (In Artemis Journal, 2021)
“Testify” (In West Trestle Review, 2021)
“Mama Sang the Blues” (In RHINO, Winter 2021)
“Like a prophet," "Black & Fourth," and “Mama Sang the Blues” (In Penumbra, Selected Poems, 2020)
“How to Bury Your Mama” (In Typishly Literary Magazine, 2020)
“Young’s Literal Translation” (In Virginia’s Best Emerging Poets, Jan 2020)
“A Shroud for Mother’s Day” (In Prairie Schooner, Southern Illinois University, 2019)
“Citizens” (In Solstice: a Magazine of Diverse Voices, MassCulturalCouncil.org, 2019)
“If We Must Die” (In Stonecoast Review, University of Southern Maine, 2019)
“To Black Fire” (In The Dreamers Anthology: A Tribute to MLK & Anne Frank, 2019)
“Carrying Ashes” (In Three Minus One, ed. by Sean Hanish & Brooke Warner)
“Black Boys” (In About Place Journal, The Black Earth Institute)
“Sacrilege” and “Things Fall Apart” (In Blackberry: a magazine)
“Kin” and “My Blackness” (In Black Girl Seeks Magazine)
“Temporary Insanity” (In The Chattahoochee Review, Georgia Perimeter College)
“Where Madame C. J. Walker Laid Her Head” (In Mandala Journal, University of Georgia)
"Courtland" and “When Ellis Plays His Saxophone” (In Obsidian: Literature from the African Diaspora)
“653-9218” (In Deep South Magazine)
“The Face of Freedom” (In Freedom Verse, Local Gems Press)
“At Sixteen” (In Kalyani Magazine)
“No Place Like Home” and “To Hell and Back” (In Poetry Quarterly)
“Stranger Than Sin” (In Southern Women’s Review)
“Where All the White Socks Have Gone” (In Typehouse Literary Magazine, The People’s Ink)
“Broken” and “Korea c. 2013” (In The Voices Project)
“Foreigners” and “This Religion” (In OF ZOOS)
“Black Friday” (In The Cultural Front, University of Southern Illinois, Black Poets Speak out)
Selected Individual Poems or Performances
"Mama was a Negro Spiritual" The Southern Poetry Anthology, Volume IX, Texas Review Press, Selected Poems, Jan 2021
"Black Boys" About Place Journal, The Black Earth Institute
"Testify" West Trestle Review
"Citizens" SOLSTICE
"Stranger than Sin" Southern Women's Review
Latorial Faison