thembe mvula

proud to be featured in the upcoming issue of @poetryfoundation magazine among some of my fave poets and mentors. this poem came to shape during the inaugural @obsidianfoundation retreat almost five years ago, so it feels extra special for it to come full circle in this way, finding it's home alongside obsidian fam. love to my obsidian group b for being the iron that sharpens iron, shout out to my creative writing mst pals also for hearing the early drafts of this poem, the longest i've written so far (go to slide 3 for a snippet) and thank you @nick.makoha for making this possible 🖤

Chapbook | send : flower | A Renga 連歌 by Five Poets THEMBE MVULA is a South African writer and poet; an alum of the Roundhouse Poetry Collective, Barbican Young Poets and the inaugural Obsidian Foundation retreat. She self-published her debut pamphlet, We that Wither Beneath, in 2019. @themberain LISA BLACKWELL is a writer and performer. Her short fiction and poetry have appeared in journals, anthologies and online, and her first prose poetry chapbook, ‘How it will happen’, was the Three Trees Portfolio Award winner 2022 (published by Maytree Press) @lisablackwellwrite TINA JUUL MØLLER is a Copenhagen-based poet, learner, raging feminist. @tinajuulmoeller HANNAH LEDLIE is an Edinburgh-born, Manchester-based writer. Her work has appeared in Ambit, Gutter, Magma, Butcher’s Dog, and New Writing Scotland.’ @hannahledlie RUPA WOOD is a multi-disciplinary researcher exploring the philosophy of miracles and commonplace magic. She is published by various journals and anthologies including Hourglass: The Ash Anthology by The Oxford Poetry Society. rupawood.com Alternating stanzas or ku (句), of 5-7-5 and 7-7 morae are linked in succession by a multiple of poets. The exchange was made over one month, in April of 2025. The order of writing began: Thembe Mvula 5-7-5, Lisa Blackwell 7-7, Tina Juul Møller 5-7-5, Hannah Ledlie 7-7, Rupa Wood 5-7-5. Available to read here: /pub/thevanitypapers/p/chapbook-send-flower-a-renga-by-five?r=4s0tic&utm_medium=ios&shareImageVariant=overlay

sun-drunk, making some kind of juice 🇬🇷

throwback to march when i had the amazing opportunity to write and share a poem responding to @barbicancentre 's tribute to Noah Davis in a debut retrospective of the late artist's work. a snippet of my commissioned poem, 'Questions for Noah in D♭' muse collaborated with the brilliant @shanise9676 who helped to bring the piece to life. girl, thank you for challenging me to let go and let the moment to be part of the making. it's deepened my appreciation of the process of creating art, and jazz, on a new level. the painting called, i answered having conversations about craft and performing alongside Claudia Rankine as part of this project is easily one of my all time highlights as a poet. so grateful 🖤 "what good is a lawn?... if there are no ballerinas dancing on the grass, turning the sky purple?" - Francesco Clemente on Noah Davis a quick rehearsal where we could find space 🌔 *sound on!* a lovely, talented bunch! #noahdavis #artexhibit #barbicancentre #ekphrasticpoetry #creativecollab #interdisciplinary #blackart #poetry

time to try and be a bit more intentional about posting stuff… i recently captured some new headshots with a photographer and friend who's work i deeply admire @aidenhw 📸 i thought I'd share a few, reintroduce myself and what i do to new and old connections on here. over the past 8 years i’ve been blessed to get to write, perform, publish and teach poetry to a range of audiences on this side of the pond and beyond. more recently, my practice has branched into reviews writing and other editorial work. i’ve also been on an exciting/slightly daunting journey of exploring new creative pursuits which i look forward to sharing more about in due time ✨️ if you know me well at all you'll know that i find posting on here quite anxiety inducing lol. what pulls me back to this app is seeing glimpses of my friends and community celebrating small and big joys, memes that make me laugh out loud and just being reminded about beautiful and sometimes painful things that connect us all. so, here's to creating and sharing in attempts to connect more. stay tuned for updates on some of my creative collaborations, projects, travels and maybe sprinkles of other life stuff. in the meantime, 🌐 finally updated my website (still in the process) and i’m open to new collaborations. see link in my bio and get in touch to start a conversation! 🔗🌳 check out the link in my bio for a general overview of some creative stuff i’ve been up to. 💌 in the above link you can also find my substack, where i write around a question i’m sitting with at a particular time. 🎧 did you know i co-host a podcast? check out @_somewhatgrown have a great day 🌼

31 in Bali🎈

hygge mode 🦌

touched home soil after too long 💛 🇿🇦

dublin/dublin book festival photo dump - thanks for having me @dublinbookfest ! ✨️ . #bookfestival #dublin #poetrycommunity #outherebeingawriter

🇰🇪 part 2: brine & humid skin in mombassa, found my favourite island on the east coast, fell more in love with the moon, etc.

captured these yesterday, in solidarity ✊🏽 #freepalestine🇵🇸

found a home for my new poem in @propelmagazine issue 7 - published today! feeling honoured to have a poet I admire read my work, let alone select it to feature among these stunning voices. check out the link in my bio to read/listen! ✨️