Recently I touched base with local writer and educator Deonte Osayande, a lifelong Detroiter. Deonte has been a part of the Detroit literary community as a poet, host, and coach for over ten years (see more about his work in his Poets & Writers Directory profile). When I asked him where he first connected with the literary world, Deonte says, “I attended an open mic as a student, and I knew I had to learn more about it.”
Deonte has since become an internationally recognized poet, a published writer, and is a professor of English at Wayne County Community College District. In addition to his writing career, Deonte has coached both youth and adults in regional poetry slam teams through to national competition. After all of the performances, edits, publications, and travel, Deonte says, “it’s just more than that. I’ve learned how to be more deliberate with the words I use and I’ve learned how to teach others the same.”
I love this response because it reminds us that whether we are writing metaphors on bathroom walls or publishing our second full-length novel, words offer writers so much more. There is always “something more” than just stringing words together on paper—we learn intentionality. We discover how we process. We become better communicators. “I still exist as a writer because I have to, I wouldn’t be who I am without expressing my thoughts in such a way,” says Deonte.
Deonte Osayande. Justin Rogers is the literary outreach coordinator for Poets & Writers in Detroit. Contact him at Detroit@pw.org or on Twitter, @Detroitpworg.