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Tiana Clark

ティアナ・クラーク

Tiana Clark

Profile

Gender
Female
Nationality
United States
Languages
English

Career

Occupations
Poet
Active Years
2015-

Education

Tennessee State University
Africana and Women's Studies
Degree: B.A.
Country: United States
Bachelor's degree in Africana and Women's Studies
Vanderbilt University
Creative Writing (MFA)
Degree: M.F.A.
Year of Graduation: 2017
Country: United States
Completed Vanderbilt University's MFA program. Served as an editor for the Nashville Review while at the university.

Awards

Rattle Poetry Prize
2015
Organization: Rattle (magazine)
Result: 受賞
Frost Place Chapbook Competition (Afaa Michael Weaver Award)
2016
Work: Equilibrium
Organization: The Frost Place
Result: 受賞
Academy of American Poets University Prize
2016
Organization: Academy of American Poets
Result: 受賞
Agnes Lynch Starrett Poetry Prize
2017
Work: I Can't Talk About the Trees Without the Blood
Organization: University of Pittsburgh Press
Result: 受賞
Furious Flower's Gwendolyn Brooks Centennial Poetry Prize
2017
Organization: Furious Flower Poetry Center
Result: 受賞
Jay C. and Ruth Halls Poetry Fellowship
2017
Organization: Wisconsin Institute for Creative Writing
Result: フェローシップ（2017–2018）
Pushcart Prize
2019
Work: BBHMM
Organization: Pushcart Press
Result: 受賞
Kate Tufts Discovery Award
2020
Work: I Can't Talk About the Trees Without the Blood
Organization: Kate Tufts Discovery Award committee
Result: 受賞
National Book Award for Poetry (Longlist)
2025
Work: Scorched Earth: Poems
Organization: National Book Foundation
Result: ロングリスト入り

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Equilibrium

2016 Poetry (chapbook)

A short chapbook that uses religious themes and language to explore the intersection of being Black and a woman. Winner of the 2016 Frost Place Chapbook Competition.

religionracegender

I Can't Talk About the Trees Without the Blood

2018 Poetry (full-length collection)

Clark's first full-length collection. It addresses personal and political subjects, depicting the experiences of Black women in America through themes of racism, violence, and religious imagery.

racismviolencereligionwomanhood
Adaptations
  • [Short film] The Ayes Have It (poem adaptation) / Savanah Leaf (2018)

Scorched Earth: Poems

2025 Poetry

A 2025 poetry collection containing poems that have drawn attention in reviews and award contexts (details limited).

politicsracememory

Bibliography

  • Equilibrium: Poems (chapbook), Bull City Press, 2016.
  • I Can't Talk About the Trees Without the Blood, University of Pittsburgh Press, 2018.
  • Scorched Earth: Poems, Washington Square Press, 2025.

Adaptations

  • Short film adaptation of the poem "The Ayes Have It" (director: Savanah Leaf, 2018).

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Use of religious imagery with realistic and symbolic poetic voiceContemporary poetry blending strong rhythm and colloquial diction
Recurring Motifs
religion/worship languageBlack experiencefemale body and voiceviolence and memory

Legacy

Recognized as a prominent young American poet, Clark is noted for combining religious imagery with explorations of race and gender. Her work has been adapted to film and recognized by multiple major awards and nominations, earning her strong regard in literary circles.

In Popular Culture

  • The poem "The Ayes Have It" was adapted into a short film, creating an intersection between literature and film.

Trivia

  • Completed Vanderbilt University's MFA program (MFA '17).
  • Worked as an editor for the Nashville Review while at Vanderbilt.
  • The chapbook Equilibrium won the 2016 Frost Place Chapbook Competition.
  • The poem "BBHMM" won a Pushcart Prize in 2019.