5 LGBTQ+ Poets You Should Read This Pride Month
From Oscar Wilde in the 1880s to Adrienne Rich in the 1950s, LGBTQ+ writers have been at the forefront of poetry for centuries. Through meter and rhyme, poetry has continued to serve as an outlet for queer writers to express themselves and connect with their communities. This pride month, we honor and celebrate the fearless poets leading queer literary history today. Join us in exploring the exceptional work of Ocean Vuong, Ryka Aoki, Danez Smith, Saeed Jones, and Tommy Pico.
Discover even more contemporary poets on PBS Books!
Ocean Vuong
Vietnamese American writer Ocean Vuong transformed modern poetry in 2016 by publishing his debut collection “Night Sky With Exit Wounds.” In exploring sexuality, childhood, and war, Vuong encapsulates the experience of LGBTQ+ immigrants growing up in the United States. The collection was named a New York Times Top 10 Book and won prestigious prizes, including the T.S. Eliot Prize, the Whiting Award, the Thom Gunn Award, and the Forward Prize.
Vuong’s second poetry collection, “Time Is A Mother,” published in 2019, only furthered the poet’s immensely successful career. Named a New York Times Bestseller and a finalist for the Griffin Prize, he cemented his status as “one of the most important new poets writing today.” This collection reflects on the loss of his mother and tackles grief, regret, and the afterlife.
In this 2022 clip from PBS NewsHour, Vuong describes the process of writing the tragically beautiful collection.
Danez Smith
Danez Smith is a powerful performer, reigning as a two-time Individual World Poetry Slam finalist and three-time Rustbelt Poetry Slam Champion. However, their words are just as powerful on the page, with their three published poetry collections gaining widespread acclaim. Their most popular collection, “Don’t Call Us Dead” (2017), was a finalist for the National Book Award for Poetry, connecting with those from every background.
From “Dear White America” to “Everyday Is A Funeral And A Miracle,” Smith is known for tackling complex social issues in their poetry. In each stanza, they explore racial discrimination and violence, sexuality and gender, and mental health. They proudly represent the queer and non-binary communities and serve as a voice for the voiceless.
Get to know Smith in this interview with PBS Books at the 2018 Association of Writers and Writing Programs (AWP) Conference.
Ryka Aoki
Transgender author Ryka Aoki has broken barriers for the LGBTQ+ community through her writing. In her poetry collections “Seasonal Velocities” (2012) and “Why Dust Shall Never Settle Upon This Soul” (2015), she explores the intersection of gender, family, and loss. Both collections were Lambda Literary Award Finalists, with judge TT Jax stating: “‘Seasonal Velocities’ is what I want my son to hold of the trans community…Earnest, unflinching, exquisite, centered, and sharp in its own uncertainty– this book is his community legacy that I am proud to pass down.”
Aoki is an advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, not just in writing but in award-winning documentaries and films, such as “Diagnosing Difference,” “Riot Acts,” and “Transfinite.” Her efforts led her to be recognized by the California State Senate for “extraordinary commitment to the visibility and well-being of transgender people.”
Aoki reads her poem, “A Letter Undelivered,” from her book “Seasonal Velocities” in this clip from NWPB’s show Traverse Talks with Sueann Ramella.
Saeed Jones
Saeed Jones is the author of three poetry collections and a memoir. His debut chapbook, “When the Only Light is Fire” was a bestseller in the Gay Poetry genre on Amazon for multiple weeks in 2011, and his full-length collection “Prelude to Bruise” won the prestigious PEN/Joyce Osterweil Award for Poetry in 2015. His most recent poetry collection, “Alive At The End Of The World,” sheds light on white supremacy, grief, and survival in the United States.
Beyond poetry, Jones is known for serving as the founding editor and executive culture editor of BuzzFeed LGBT. There, he also founded Reader– a new section for creative writing and essays– and created BuzzFeed’s Emerging Writers fellowship. Through these roles, Jones gained a substantial following on social media, particularly among the LGBTQ+ community, who flocked to his poetry.
Learn more about Jones’ writing process in this segment from Austin PBS’ show Overheard with Evan Smith.
Tommy Pico
Meet Tommy Pico, a Native American poet, artist, and television writer. He rose in popularity in 2017 after the publication of his debut poetry collection, “IRL,” which is composed in the form of a 98-page text message. The unconventional collection expertly pairs internet slang with poetic metaphors to express the experiences of a modern, queer Indigenous poet.
In a 2018 interview with The New York Times, Pico reflected on the intersection of Native American, gay, and pop cultures in “IRL.” He said: “I found a way to not only sew those ideas together but also show that they were never separate in the first place.”
His following collections– “Nature Poem” (2017), “Junk” (2018), and “Feed” (2019)– built upon these themes and gained substantial accolades in the process. Winning the 2017 Brooklyn Library Literary Prize, the 2018 American Book Award, and many more, Pico has successfully represented the LGBTQ+ community in poetry.
Get to know Pico in this 2017 clip from BS39’s creative arts show Articulate.
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