Said Shaiye

Poet, Creative Nonfiction Writer

Minneapolis, MN
Minnesota US
Email: 
info@saidshaiye.com
Website: 
www.saidshaiye.com

Author's Bio

Said Shaiye is an Autistic + ADHD (AuHD) Somali Writer & Photographer in Minneapolis. He is represented by Mariah Stovall at Trellis Literary Management. 

He is a 2024 MacDowell Colony Fellow as well as a 2023 AWP Panelist: Autistic Writers On The Inaccessibility Of Professional Writing Spaces (Organizer, Participant); The Anti-Ableist Writing Workshop (Participant).

He was awarded a 2024 MN State Arts Education Grant to lead a BIPOC autistic writing workshop, allowing autistic writers to strengthen their skills in a safe space. Group members publish their own books at year's end.

He was nominated for a 2024 Pushcart Prize by Indiana Review for his essay SNEAK A UZI ON THE ISLAND IN MY ARMY JACKET LINING. His debut book, Are You Borg Now?, was a 2022 Minnesota Book Award Finalist in Creative Nonfiction & Memoir.

He has published poetry & prose in Indiana Review, Texas Review, Obsidian, Brittle Paper, Pithead Chapel, 580 Split, Entropy, Diagram, and elsewhere.

He teaches writing at several community colleges in the Twin Cities, as well as with Unrestricted Interest, an organization dedicated to Neurodivergent ways of being.

Education: 
University of Minnesota MFA
Writers Retreats: 
MacDowell
Literary agent: 
Mariah Stovall, Trellis Literary Management

Publications & Prizes

Creative Nonfiction

Book:
Are You Borg Now? (Really Serious Literature, 2021)

Poetry

Book:
Are You Borg Now? (Really Serious Literature, 2021)
Prizes won: 

2024 MacDowell Fellow

2024 MN State Arts Education Grant

2024 Pushcart Prize Nominee (Indiana Review)
2022 Minnesota Book Award Finalist (CNF & Memoir)
2022 Loft Mirrors & Windows Fellowship
2021 Walter H. Judd International Graduate Research Fellowship

Watch

Personal Favorites

Favorite authors: 
Douglas Kearney, Steven Dunn, Chaun Webster, Rion Amilcar Scott, Ron Austin, Claudia Rankine, Larry Levis, Terrance Hayes, Dionne Brand, Emmanuel Iduma, Gordon Parks, Malick Sidibé, and myself.

More Information

Gives readings: 
Yes
Travels for readings: 
Yes
Identifies as: 
African American
Prefers to work with: 
Adults, At Risk Youth, Children, Disability, Illness/Wellness, Immigration, Mental Health, Schools, Teenagers
Fluent in: 
English, Somali
Born in: 
Mogadishu
Somalia
Raised in: 
Seattle
Please note: All information in the Directory is provided by the listed writers or their representatives.
Last update: Jan 14, 2024