National Poetry Series
1 appearances
Kinsale Drake
キンセイル・ドレイク
Kinsale Drake
Profile
- Gender
- Female
- Born
- 2000-03-04 （Los Angeles, California, United States）
- Nationality
- Navajo Nation, United States
- Languages
- English, Diné (Navajo)
- Residence History
- Los Angeles (grew up) → Naatsis'áán (Navajo Mountain, family homeland)
Career
- Occupations
- poet, playwright, performer, writer
- Active Years
- 2017-
- Affiliations
- Emerging Diné Writers Institute (guest faculty), NDN Girls Book Club (founder)
- Influenced By
- Louise Erdrich, Leslie Marmon Silko
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yale College | — | English; Ethnicity, Race, and Migration | BA | 2018–2022 | United States |
Yale College
English; Ethnicity, Race, and Migration
Degree:
BA
Period:
2018–2022
Year of Graduation:
2022
Country:
United States
Completed double majors in English and Ethnicity, Race, and Migration (BA)
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | National Poetry Series | The Sky Was Once a Dark Blanket | — | National Poetry Series | 受賞 |
| 2017 | National Student Poet | — | — | Library of Congress / National Student Poets program | 選出 |
| 2022 | Young Native Playwrights Award | As It Has Always Been | — | Yale (Young Native Playwrights) | 受賞 |
| 2022 | Joy Harjo Poetry Award | — | — | Cutthroat Magazine | 受賞 |
| 2023 | Aspen Institute Emerging Writer Fellowship for Poetry | — | — | Aspen Institute / Aspen Words | フェロー選出 |
| 2023 | Ruth Lilly & Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowship (Finalist) | — | — | Poetry Foundation / Ruth Lilly program | ファイナリスト |
| 2023 | Adroit Prize for Poetry | — | — | The Adroit Journal | 受賞 |
National Poetry Series
2023
Work:
The Sky Was Once a Dark Blanket
Organization:
National Poetry Series
Result:
受賞
National Student Poet
2017
Organization:
Library of Congress / National Student Poets program
Result:
選出
Young Native Playwrights Award
2022
Work:
As It Has Always Been
Organization:
Yale (Young Native Playwrights)
Result:
受賞
Joy Harjo Poetry Award
2022
Organization:
Cutthroat Magazine
Result:
受賞
Aspen Institute Emerging Writer Fellowship for Poetry
2023
Organization:
Aspen Institute / Aspen Words
Result:
フェロー選出
Ruth Lilly & Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowship (Finalist)
2023
Organization:
Poetry Foundation / Ruth Lilly program
Result:
ファイナリスト
Adroit Prize for Poetry
2023
Organization:
The Adroit Journal
Result:
受賞
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
The Sky Was Once a Dark Blanket
2023 PoetryDebut poetry collection exploring Navajo upbringing, family, cultural memory, and connection to land; combines Indigenous perspectives with personal experience.
Indigenous culturefamilylandidentity
As It Has Always Been
2022 Play / DramaPlay awarded Yale's Young Native Playwrights Award, dealing with themes of tradition, memory, and intergenerational relationships.
traditionintergenerational relationshipsmemory
Bibliography
- The Sky Was Once a Dark Blanket
- As It Has Always Been
- Poems and short works published in journals (Poetry, Best New Poets, Poetry Northwest, etc.)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- lyricaloral-influencedcenters Indigenous perspectives
- Recurring Motifs
- grandmotherlandritualsmemory
Legacy
As a young Diné poet and writer, Drake has gained recognition for both their poetry and advocacy amplifying Indigenous authors. Founder of NDN Girls Book Club, they have supported Native youth, tribal libraries, and bookstores.
In Popular Culture
- Featured in Time and Nylon profiles
- Poetry performance at Carnegie Hall (2023)
Quotes
-
Poetry is a way to explore my Navajo culture and my connection to my Indigenous roots.
Source: YaleNews (2019) (2019)
Trivia
- Founder of NDN Girls Book Club to promote Indigenous authors.
- Narrated audiobooks for Darcie Little Badger's Elatsoe and A Snake Falls to Earth.
- Has narrated titles for Rick Riordan Presents.
- Uses she/they pronouns.