Threa Almontaser
Threa Almontaser was born and raised in New York. She holds an MFA from North Carolina State University, where she also earned a TESOL certificate. She was the winner of the Unsilenced Grant for Muslim American women writers, the Brett Elizabeth Jenkins Poetry Prize, and the Claire Keyes Poetry Award. Almontaser’s debut collection of poetry, The Wild Fox of Yemen, was selected by Harryette Mullen for the Academy of American Poets’ Walt Whitman Award. She is a Fulbright scholar and currently teaches English to immigrants and refugees in Raleigh.
Early life and education
Threa Almontaser earned her MFA in Creative Writing and her TESOL certification from North Carolina State University.
On writing
Even in troubling times, the artistic gaze is important and impactful in showcasing what is humane and what isn’t. It constantly asks, Am I doing enough? Writing can push to support communities in progressive ways, especially for those who may not have had a choice in coming here. Make room for the hybridization of language. Understand the failures of translation. Create space for many Englishes. A writer’s responsibility is the same as any other during crucial times: to address and summon and portray. Poetry in particular encapsulates broader moments of time and should enlarge its seat in the world. Finding ways to connect with other intimate histories through a story or poem or photograph that holds startling imagery and an unfamiliar point of view can help us divert those complicated social and political structures developed to restrict voice.
Awards
- Maya Angelou Book Award, The Wild Fox of Yemen,
- Walt Whitman award, The Wild Fox of Yemen, (2020)
- Tupelo Press Dorset Poetry Prize, finalist (2020)
- Yes Yes Books Pamet River Prize, finalist (2020)
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