Poetry
“Niyathi Chakrapani is flush with intelligence, generosity, bravery, and a very good ear. Here is a young poet clearly reveling in the language, with talent to burn. Just watch—and read.”
“What impressed me most about your achievement was learning that only 1,900 works of art and writing selected from a pool of 230,000 submissions earned a National medal, including yours. Your passion and continued efforts towards improving your writing skills is an inspiration to any writer or artist. Writing is an incredibly demanding and complex activity that is often overlooked in today’s technologically-advanced world, but your strong work ethic and wholeheartedness are traits that everyone should strive to emulate.”
Scholastic Art & Writing Awards
I am a two-time Scholastic Art & Writing Awards National Silver Medalist in Poetry, an award presented at Carnegie Hall by Michelle Obama, Sarah Jessica Parker, Lena Dunham and Usher among others (2013, 2014). Awards are given to fewer than 1% of submissions, and it was an honor to represent my state of Washington! Past Scholastic Art & Writing Awards winners include Sylvia Plath, Truman Capote, Stephen King, Ken Burns, and Andy Warhol.
Thirteen Ways of Looking at the Stars
Available on Amazon
Other publications
My poetry also has been featured in Cleaver Magazine (2016) and Once Unspoken: A Series of Monologues From the Previously Unheard by transgender activist Marissa McCool, whose original story was one of the few ever added to an independent Vagina Monologues production (2018). I am also a contributing writer for The Huffington Post (2016-).
Other works
“The marooned silence in which I fill my bones
with water, sustaining—yet barely—
for there is an element forgotten in
that moment: the silence, like water,
runs alone”
Content writing
Thai party hostel, elephant sanctuary, bar crawl (2019)
Education work
Award-winning creative writing education at the busiest library system in the U.S. (2011-2014)