Rickey Laurentiis

About the Author

Rickey Laurentiis is an acclaimed poet whose work delves into the intersections of Blackness, queerness, and the American South, exploring themes of desire, violence, and resilience with unflinching honesty and lyrical grace. Born in New Orleans and raised amid the city's vibrant cultural tapestry, Laurentiis draws from personal and historical narratives to craft poems that resonate with emotional depth and intellectual rigor. A graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop, he has received prestigious awards including the Whiting Award and fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts. His debut collection, Boy with Thorn (Pitt Poetry Series), marked him as a vital voice in contemporary poetry, while Death of the First Idea: Poems continues to expand his exploration of identity and loss. Laurentiis's writing not only illuminates the margins but also challenges readers to confront the beauty and brutality of human experience.