Photo taken by filmmaker Ifeyinwa Arinze.
Clarisse Baleja Saïdi (b. Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire) is a writer of Rwandan and Congolese (DRC) descent and of Ugandan and Canadian dual nationality. A graduate of the Helen Zell Writers’ Program at the University of Michigan, she’s received fellowships from Hedgebrook, MacDowell, Yaddo, ART OMI, and the Vermont Studio Center, among others. Her writing has been awarded the Theodore Roethke Poetry prize, Hopwood Prizes in fiction, nonfiction and drama , the John Wagner prize, a Marina Nemat Creative Writing Prize, Penguin Random House’s short story prize and more. She’s the recipient of Canada Council, Ontario Arts Council and Toronto Arts Council grants, and was a 2022-2023 Fine Arts Work Center fiction fellow.
Baleja is at work on a novel, among other projects. Her short form work has appeared in The Kenyon Review, POETRY magazine and The Fiddlehead.
Writings
There is something magical about long form writing. I cherish the practice and privilege of first amassing then chiseling away at a narrative with no set vision of what it might turn out to be. Eventually, the vision does emerge, and it turns out it was always there.
The time it takes to write a book can be as lonely as it can be blissful and transformational. Thank you for reading me in-between covers and projects. I am a frequent fellow, lecturer and guest speaker at conferences, universities and artist programs. (But, mostly, you’ll find me at a desk, editing my novel on home, power and love, or penning literary essays on much of the same—on being, othering and belonging.)
I’m also learning to say the little things, not-so-little in the aggregate. Do subscribe to my Substack newsletter, Virtual Village, where I try to keep an open mind on the open road, in the hope of honoring my digital and distant community.
Offerings
I conduct numerous courses, craft talks, and industry chats on writing, editing and publishing. Stay tuned for upcoming teaching offers, such as grant writing tutorials, writing workshops, public talks and more.
Contact me for consulting services, such as coaching, manuscript consults, book proposal reviews, querying help, and residency application support.
Check out my LinkTree for archives and resources (like this free podcast interview on Artist Residencies) or sign up for my seasonal newsletter, Virtual Village.
Clarisse Baleja Saidi is represented by literary agent Heather Schroder at Compass Literary.