Truth Thomas

Poet

Author's Bio

TRUTH THOMAS is a singer-songwriter and poet born in Knoxville, Tennessee and raised in Washington, DC. He studied creative writing at Howard University and earned his MFA in poetry at New England College. His collections include: Party of Black, A Day of Presence, Bottle of Life and Speak Water, winner of the 2013 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work in Poetry. His poems have appeared in over 100 publications, including: Poetry Magazine, The Journal of Hip Hop Studies, and The 100 Best African American Poems (edited by Nikki Giovanni). He is the founder of Cherry Castle Publishing, creator of the Skinny poetry form, a former writer-in-residence for the Howard County Poetry and Literature Society (HoCoPoLitSo), and serves on the editorial boards of the Tidal Basin Review and The Skinny Poetry Journal.

Publications & Prizes

Anthologies:
Gape Seed (Uphook Press, 2011)
,
The 100 Best African American Poems (Sourcebooks, 2010)
,
Fingernails Across the Chalkboard: Poetry and Prose on HIV/AIDS (Third World Press, 2007)
,
The Ringing Ear: Black Poets Lean South (Cave Canem Anthology) (University of Georgia Press, 2007)
Books:
The Skinny Poetry Journal edited by Truth Thomas (Cherry Castle Publishing, 2019)
,
My TV is Not the Boss of Me (Cherry Castle Publishing, 2013)
,
Speak Water (Cherry Castle Publishing, 2012)
,
Bottle of Life (Flipped eye, 2010)
,
A Day of Presence (Flipped eye, 2008)
,
Party of Black (Flipped eye, 2006)
Journals:
African Voices
,
Alehouse Press
,
Art Times
, ,
Black Magnolias
,
Blue Lotus Review
,
Callaloo
,
Delaware Poetry Review
,
Floorboard review
, , , ,
Main Channel Voices
,
Matter Journal
, ,
Mythium: The Journal of Contemporary Literature
, , ,
OVS Magazine
,
Palehouse
,
PLUCK!
, ,
Poetalk
,
Progressive
, , ,
The Emerson Review
,
The Henniker Review
,
The Houston Literary Review
,
The Legendary
,
The New York Quarterly
,
The Newtowner
,
The Progressive
,
Tidal Basin Review
,
WarpLand
,
Weave Magazine
, ,
X Magazine
,
Prizes won: 

2013 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work in Poetry

More Information

Gives readings: 
Yes
Travels for readings: 
Yes
Identifies as: 
African American
Prefers to work with: 
Adults
Fluent in: 
English
Born in: 
Knoxville, TN
Tennessee
Raised in: 
Washington, DC
District Of Columbia
Please note: All information in the Directory is provided by the listed writers or their representatives.
Last update: Jan 13, 2022