Alexis Clifton

Poet

Author's Bio

Alexis Clifton is a Native American (Lipan Apache, Choctaw, Wixárika) poet and writer based out of North Carolina. She is a descendant of the Choctaw-Apache Tribe of Ebarb, Louisiana. Her award-winning writing has been featured across many journals, and she is currently completing a collection of short stories during her final year of undergrad at UNC Chapel Hill.

Her writing most commonly focuses on the space between the mundane and the extraordinary. With primary themes of the American South, the natural world and all its flora and fuana, American Indian folklore, and more, Clifton crafts a narrative that is emotional and vivid. 

Publications & Prizes

Anthology:
Of Earth and Sky: Poetry Anthology 2021 (Charlotte Writers' Club, 2021)
Journals:
Bending Genres
,
Cellar Door Magazine
,
Poetry Northwest
,
Susurrus
,
The Amazine
Prizes won: 

James Welch Prize for Indigenous Poets (2026).

Longlist for Coppice Writing Prize from Redbud Writing Group. 

First Place - Annual UNC Mini-Max Fiction Competition.

UNC Peace in Perspective Symposium Poet.

Winner, VA250 Visionary Sovereign Voices Youth Competition.

Winner, Delta Psi Literary Pitcher.

Hermes Creative Gold Award in Writing.

Personal Favorites

Favorite authors: 
Louise Erdrich, Ada Limón, Emily St. John Mandel, Robin Wall Kimmerer, Tommy Orange, Virginia Woolf, Stephen Graham Jones, Cormac McCarthy, Hanif Abdurraqib, Mariana Enqriquez, Daniel Mason

More Information

Gives readings: 
Yes
Travels for readings: 
Yes
Identifies as: 
Native American
Prefers to work with: 
Adults, Naturalists/Environmentalists, Spirituality, Teenagers, Women
Fluent in: 
English
Born in: 
San Antonio, TX
Texas
Raised in: 
Eutawville, SC
South Carolina
Please note: All information in the Directory is provided by the listed writers or their representatives.
Last update: Oct 07, 2026