David Mura (born 1952) is an

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poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

, novelist, playwright, critic and performance artist whose writings explore the themes of race, identity and history. In 2018, Mura has published a book on creative writing, ''A Stranger’s Journey: Race, Identity & Narrative Craft in Writing,'' in which he argues for a more inclusive and expansive definition of craft. Mura has published two memoirs, ''Turning Japanese: Memoirs of a Sansei'', which won the Josephine Miles Book Award from the Oakland PEN and was listed in the New York Times Notable Books of the Year, and ''Where the Body Meets Memory: An Odyssey of Race, Sexuality and Identity'' (1995). His most recent book of poetry is ''The Last Incantation'' (2014); his other poetry books include ''After We Lost Our Way'', which won the National Poetry Contest, ''The Colors of Desire'' (winner of the Carl Sandburg Literary Award), and ''Angels for the Burning''. His novel is ''Famous Suicides of the Japanese Empire'' (

Coffee House Press Coffee House Press is a nonprofit independent press based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The press’s goal is to "produce books that celebrate imagination, innovation in the craft of writing, and the many authentic voices of the American experience ...

, 2008). Mura communicates frequently through his social media accounts: blog.davidmura.com; @MuraDavid

Early life and education

David Mura was born in 1952 and grew up in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, the oldest of four children. He is a third generation

Japanese American are Americans of Japanese ancestry. Japanese Americans were among the three largest Asian American ethnic communities during the 20th century; but, according to the 2000 census, they have declined in number to constitute the sixth largest Asi ...

son of parents

interned Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simply ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. After the war, his father changed the family name "Uemura" to "Mura." His grandparents came to USA from Japan before the

Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and 1 ...

(1904). Mura earned his B.A. from

Grinnell College Grinnell College is a private liberal arts college in Grinnell, Iowa, United States. It was founded in 1846 when a group of New England Congregationalists established the Trustees of Iowa College. Grinnell has the fifth highest endowment-to-st ...

and his M.F.A. in creative writing from

Vermont College of Fine Arts Vermont College of Fine Arts (VCFA) is a private graduate-level art school in Montpelier, Vermont. It offers Master's degrees in low-residency and residential programs. Its faculty includes Pulitzer Prize finalists, National Book Award winners, ...

. He has taught at the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

, St. Olaf College,

The Loft Literary Center The Loft Literary Center is a non-profit literary organization located in Minneapolis, Minnesota incorporated in 1975. The Loft is a large and comprehensive independent literary center, and offers a variety of writing classes, conferences, grants ...

, and the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a public research university in Eugene, Oregon. Founded in 1876, the institution is well known for its strong ties to the sports apparel and marketing firm Nike, Inc, and its co-founder, billion ...

. He currently resides in

Saint Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

, Minnesota, with his wife Susan Sencer and their three children; Samantha, Nikko and Tomo.

Published works

Full-Length Poetry Collections * ''The Last Incantations'' (

Northwestern University Press Northwestern University Press is an American publishing house affiliated with Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. It publishes 70 new titles each year in the areas of continental philosophy, poetry, Slavic and German literary criticism ...

, 2014) * ''Angels for the Burning: Poems'' ( BOA Editions, Ltd., 2004) * ''The Colors of Desire: Poems'' (

Anchor Books Vintage Books is a trade paperback publishing imprint of Penguin Random House originally established by Alfred A. Knopf in 1954. The company was purchased by Random House in April 1960, and a British division was set up in 1990. After Random Hous ...

, 1995) * ''After We Lost Our Way'' (Dutton, 1989; Carnegie-Mellon Press, 1997 - 2nd Edition) Novels * ''Famous Suicides of the Japanese Empire'' (Coffee House Press, 2008) Memoirs/Nonfiction * ''Where the Body Meets Memory: An Odyssey of Race, Sexuality and Identity'' (Anchor Books, 1995) * ''Turning Japanese: Memoirs of a Sansei'' (

Atlantic Monthly Press Grove Atlantic, Inc. is an American independent publisher, based in New York City. Formerly styled "Grove/Atlantic, Inc.", it was created in 1993 by the merger of Grove Press and Atlantic Monthly Press. As of 2018 Grove Atlantic calls itself "A ...

, 1991; Anchor Books, 1992;

Grove Press Grove Press is an United States of America, American Imprint (trade name), publishing imprint that was founded in 1947. Imprints include: Black Cat, Evergreen, Venus Library, and Zebra. Barney Rosset purchased the company in 1951 and turned it in ...

, 2005 - 3rd Edition) * ''A Male Grief: Notes on Pornography and Addiction: An Essay'' (

Milkweed Editions Milkweed Editions is an independent nonprofit literary publisher that originated from the ''Milkweed Chronicle'' literary and arts journal established in Minneapolis in 1979. The journal ceased and the business transitioned to publishing. It relea ...

, 1987; republished as an Amazon e-book 2010) Literary Craft/Criticism * ''Song for Uncle Tom, Tonto, and Mr. Moto: Poetry and Identity'' (

University of Michigan Press The University of Michigan Press is part of Michigan Publishing at the University of Michigan Library. It publishes 170 new titles each year in the humanities and social sciences. Titles from the press have earned numerous awards, including L ...

, 2002) * ''A Stranger’s Journey: Race, Identity & Narrative Craft in Writing'' (University of Georgia Press, 2018) Films *''Slowly, This''—written & featuring David Mura & Alexs Pate; dir. by Arthur Jafa; produced by the PBS Series ALIVE TV, 1995 *''Relocations''—written and performed by David Mura; directed by Mark Tang (four selections from the performance piece, ''Relocations: Images from a Sansei''), 1998

Awards and honors

His honors include two NEA fellowships, the 1994 Lila Wallace-

Reader's Digest ''Reader's Digest'' is an American general-interest family magazine, published ten times a year. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, it is now headquartered in midtown Manhattan. The magazine was founded in 1922 by DeWitt Wallace and his wi ...

Writers Award (which includes a cash prize of $105,000), and a US/Japan Creative Artist Fellowship, two

Bush Foundation The Bush Foundation was created in 1953 by Archibald Granville Bush an American businessman primarily involved with 3M and his wife, Edyth Bassler Bush. The organization awards $40 million a year to philanthropic organizations, primarily located ...

Fellowships, four Loft-McKnight Awards, several Minnesota State Arts Board grants, and a Discovery/The Nation Award. He has had his work published in literary journals and magazines including ''

The Nation ''The Nation'' is an American liberal biweekly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper tha ...

'', ''

The American Poetry Review ''The American Poetry Review'' (''APR'') is an American poetry magazine printed every other month on tabloid-sized newsprint. It was founded in 1972 by Stephen Berg and Stephen Parker in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The magazine's editor is Elizabe ...

'', ''

The New Republic ''The New Republic'' is an American magazine of commentary on politics, contemporary culture, and the arts. Founded in 1914 by several leaders of the progressive movement, it attempted to find a balance between "a liberalism centered in hum ...

'', ''

The Missouri Review ''The Missouri Review'' is a literary magazine founded in 1978 by the University of Missouri. It publishes fiction, poetry, and creative non-fiction quarterly. With its open submission policy, ''The Missouri Review'' receives 12,000 manuscripts ...

'', and '' Crazyhorse''. * 1994 Lila Wallace-Reader's Digest Writers Award * 1993 National Endowment for the Arts - Literature Fellowships * 1988 National Poetry SeriesThe National Poetry Series > 1988 Winners
/ref> * 1987 Discovery/The Nation Award * 1985 National Endowment for the Arts - Literature Fellowships * 1984 U.S. - Japan Creative Artist Fellowship

References

External links

* ttp://www.davidmura.com/ Author Website
Library of Congress Online Catalog > David Mura
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mura, David American writers of Japanese descent 1952 births Living people Vermont College of Fine Arts alumni Writers from Minneapolis Writers from Chicago 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists American male novelists American memoirists American poets American poets of Asian descent American novelists of Asian descent St. Olaf College faculty University of Oregon faculty University of Minnesota faculty 20th-century American poets 21st-century American poets American male poets American male essayists 20th-century American essayists 21st-century American essayists PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award winners 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers Novelists from Illinois Novelists from Minnesota Novelists from Oregon