Poetry in Motion

Vince Gotera was appointed Poet Laureate of Iowa in 2024. He has served as an English professor at the University of Northern Iowa since 1995. He was Editor of the North American Review, the nation’s longest-lived literary journal, 2000-2016, and of Star*Line, the print journal of the international Science Fiction and Fantasy Poetry Association, 2017-2020. Gotera has published over 300 poems and is the author of four poetry collections: Dragonfly, Ghost Wars, Fighting Kite, and The Coolest Month. He has a book of poetry forthcoming in 2024: Dragons and Rayguns. He blogs at The Man with the Blue Guitar.

Donika Kelly is the author of The Renunciations, winner of the Anisfield-Wolf book award in poetry, and Bestiary, the winner of the 2015 Cave Canem Poetry Prize, a Hurston/Wright Legacy Award, and a Kate Tufts Discovery Award. Kelly’s poetry has been a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award, the Publishing Triangle Awards, the Lambda Literary Awards, and longlisted for the National Book Award. A Cave Canem graduate fellow, National Endowment for the Arts fellow, and founding member of the collective Poets at the End of the World, she has also received a Lannan Residency Fellowship, and a summer workshop fellowship from the Fine Arts Work Center. She earned an MFA from the Michener Center for Writers at the University of Texas at Austin and a PhD in English from Vanderbilt University. Her poems have been published in The New Yorker, The Atlantic, The Paris Review, and elsewhere. Donika lives in Iowa City with her wife, the nonfiction writer Melissa Febos, and is an assistant professor in the English Department at the University of Iowa, where she teaches creative writing.

Kelsey Bigelow is a poet and speaker based in Des Moines. She spends her time working as a mental health poet sharing this therapeutic tool with audiences of all ages across the world. She is the author of "Far From Broken" (2024), "The Coffee Cherry" (2023), "Depression Holders and Secret Keepers" (2021), and "Sprig of Lilac" (2018). Her work is published with Central Avenue Publishing, Pile Press, Lyrical Iowa, Backchannels Journal, Spirit Lake Review, and elsewhere. Kelsey is a 2024 Pushcart Prize nominee, a 2023 Button Poetry Video Contest Finalist, and a 2023 Central Avenue Poetry Prize shortlist finalist.

She's the founder and leader of the Des Moines Poetry Workshop, the chair for the Iowa Poetry Association PoetrySlam, the co-tournament director for the BlackBerry Peach National Poetry Slam, and more. Get to know Kelsey at kelkaybpoetry.com.

Aubrey Barnes, nationally known as "Mister Aubs," hails from the city of Rock Island, Illinois. He is a prolific writer, with three published poetry books to his name: "Unfinished," "I'm Not Anti-Love, I Swear," and "It is Good, It is Written." Each collection reflects his nuanced understanding of the human experience, exploring themes of love, identity, and societal challenges.

As the visionary founder of "Roaring Rhetoric," the longest-standing poetry open mic in the Quad Cities, Barnes has provided a platform for countless voices to be heard, fostering a rich tapestry of artistic expression. Committed to empowering the youth through the arts, he also established "Young Lions Roar," an organization dedicated to enabling students to use poetry not only as a form of self-expression but also as a tool to enhance their mental wellness and advocate for themselves and their communities.

Recognized for his outstanding contributions, Barnes has received numerous accolades, including the prestigious Midwest Writing Center's Best Literary Artist award, the Quad Cities Business Journal's 40 Under 40 honor, and the esteemed NAACP Image Award. In addition, he has been acknowledged as the Rock Island Citizen of the Year, a testament to his profound impact on the local community.

Samm Yu (he/they) is a professional photographer and six-time grand slam champion. He published his first photography and poetry zine titled Craving Community with Astringent Press in October 2023. They study psychology and Chinese, but spend their free time as a community organizer in Iowa City and Cedar Rapids. He hopes to see a free Palestine, free Congo, free Tigray, and free Sudan in his lifetime.

Shayna "Akanke" Marie is a thought-provoking writer, passionate poet, and community organizer based in Grand Rapids, Michigan whose voice is a raw, and powerful call for narrative justice and community unity. Recognizing that those who possess the power to define also have the power to determine, she holds that diverse narratives are pivotal in enhancing community outcomes in justice, equity, and inclusion. Through poetry, Shayna bridges racial and generational differences, and she has a passion for youth advocacy and enhancing student outcomes and opportunities by empowering students to share their stories with the world. 

As the Project Manager & Director of Community Relationships for Grand Rapids Media Initiative & Film Incubator, Shayna organizes narrative justice work including a documentary film based on the Black Freedom Struggle in Grand Rapids and several other community multimedia projects. Shayna believes that the path toward our collective future lies in understanding the issues that have shaped our past. Through this understanding, Shayna has developed several multimedia projects that uplift narrative justice and unpack historical discrimination including “The Oral History of South High”  and “West Michigan (Not So) Nice. In 2022, Shayna was honored to be the recipient of Grand Rapids Area Black Businesses’ “Young Black & Gifted Award.”

Caleb “The Negro Artist” Rainey is an author, performer, and producer. His debut book, Look, Black Boy, was awarded first prize in the North Street Book Prize, and his second book, Heart Notes was published in 2019. He released two spoken word albums and in 2023, as a part of the Brucemore Artisan in Studio program, Caleb produced his first short film, Willing to Grow. He is the winner of several slams across the United States, and competed in the 2023 UNESCO Slam-0-Vision global poetry slam where he ranked 7th worldwide. He has shared the stage with spoken word titans such as Siaara Freeman, Denice Frohman, Javon Johnson, Ebony Stewart, Anthony McPherson, Danez Smith and Patricia Smith, and videos of his performances can be found on his YouTube channel, Write About Now, and Button Poetry.