Poetry Consultations with Enzo Silon Surin

Enzo Silon Surin is a Haitian-born award-winning poet, author, educator, publisher and social advocate. He has taught, performed, and lectured on topics such as social justice, the immigrant experience, racial disparities, and gives voice to experiences that take place in what he calls “broken spaces”. He is the author of American Scapegoat (Black Lawrence Press, 2023) and When My Body Was A Clinched Fist (Black Lawrence Press, 2020), winner of the 21st Annual Massachusetts Book Awards. He is also the author of two chapbooks and co-editor of Where We Stand: Poems of Black Resilience (Cherry Castle Publishing, 2022). Surin has also been recognized for his literary citizenship, and commitment to writing as an agent of social justice through fellowships, grants and as a keynote speaker and his poetry has been featured in numerous publications including by the Poetry Foundation and in Poem-a-Day by the Academy of American Poets. He currently serves as Founding Editor & Publisher at Central Square Press and Founder/Executive Director at the Faraday Publishing Company, Inc., a nonprofit literary services and social advocacy organization.

Enzo will provide detailed comments on your manuscript as well as a cover letter. After receiving these files, participants who submit chapbooks and full-length manuscripts may also book phone/video conferences with him at no additional charge.

Enzo is accepting single poems, folios, chapbooks, and full-length collections for critique. The fees and parameters for each of these categories are as follows:

  • Individual Poems, up to 2 pages in length, $25
  • Folios, up to 7 pages in length, not to include more than 5 poems, $55
  • Chapbooks, 16-40 pages in length, $275
  • Full-length collections, 45-80 pages in length $425

All manuscripts should be formatted in 12-point font. The deadline to submit work for this consultation program is March 31. Enzo will complete his work and respond to all participants by April 30.

Consultations

Poetry Consultations with Enzo Silon Surin

Click Here to Submit Deadline: March 31 How to submit ›

Statement of Purpose

As a poet, it is incredibly important for the work on the page to exhibit different points of access for a reader to enter. This access can be made possible by using lyrical strategies and figurative language that strike a balance between the inner and outer world the poet tries to convey. However, it is much easier said than done. The process of transcribing the narrative playing out in one’s own mind is challenging because the mind is often a deceiver. As such, what you end up with on the page might only seem like the version you have in your head. This makes not only writing the poem a tough process to navigate alone but also presents many challenges to revising such work.

My role as a consultant will be to help each poem reach its full potential by interrogating its lines for both purpose and promise. This means I will offer guidance and specific strategies that will help to propel the work forward while maintaining the poet’s voice. As part of the process, I will help you to determine what needs to be revised, what needs to stay and what needs to be removed altogether. We might differ in a line’s intended meaning and role in the poem but know that every comment and suggestion will be made with your and the poem’s best interest at heart.

Enzo Silon Surin

Enzo Silon Surin is a Haitian-born award-winning poet, author, educator, publisher and social advocate. He has taught, performed, and lectured on topics such as social justice, the immigrant experience, racial disparities, and gives voice to experiences that take place in what he calls “broken spaces”. He is the author of American Scapegoat (Black Lawrence Press, 2023) and When My Body Was A Clinched Fist (Black Lawrence Press, 2020), winner of the 21st Annual Massachusetts Book Awards. He is also the author of two chapbooks and co-editor of Where We Stand: Poems of Black Resilience (Cherry Castle Publishing, 2022). In American Scapegoat, his second full-length collection of poetry, he interrogates the socio-political framework of a democracy at war with itself and its humanity. Surin has been recognized and awarded support for his artistry and literary citizenship including by the New England Poetry Club and is the recipient of a Brother Thomas Fellowship from the Boston Foundation and a PEN New England Discovery Award. His poetry has been featured in numerous publications including by the Poetry Foundation and in Poem-a-Day by the Academy of American Poets and his librettos have been commissioned by the Boston Opera Collaborative and were adapted as part of a musical reimagining of Robert Schumann’s Dichterliebe song cycle. His short opera, “Last Train," debuted in January 2023 as part of a series of Opera Bites, eight 10-minute operas written by contemporary composers and librettists. Surin currently serves as Founding Editor & Publisher at Central Square Press and Founder/Executive Director at the Faraday Publishing Company, Inc., a nonprofit literary services and social advocacy organization.

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How to Submit

Black Lawrence Press accepts submissions and payment of the entry fee exclusively through our online submission manager, Submittable. We are not able to accept submissions via email or postal mail.

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