Jumoke Verissimo

Dr. Jumoke Verissimo is an Assistant Professor in the Department of English at Toronto Metropolitan University. She specializes in creative writing (poetry, fiction, non-fiction), African literary criticism, memory studies, and research creation. Her work has been internationally recognized through awards such as the Aidoo-Snyder Book Prize. She holds a PhD in English from the University of Alberta, MA in Performance Studies from the University of Ibadan, and a BA in Literature from Lagos State University.

• Education:
  • BA: Literature in English, Lagos State University
  • MA: Performance Studies, University of Ibadan
  • PhD: English, University of Alberta

Her research interests include exploring creative writing methodologies, African literary traditions, and the intersections of memory and trauma. She has authored poetry collections (e.g., I am memory, The Birth of Illusion), a novel (A Small Silence), and a children’s book (Aduke and the Moon’s Hidden Secret). She co-edited Sòròsókè, an anthology addressing police brutality in Nigeria.

Dr. Verissimo is currently working on a novel and an essay collection titled Elliptical Imaginings, examining the ellipsis as a narrative framework. Her writing has been translated into multiple languages and is featured in global literary anthologies.

• Awards:
  • Edinburgh Festival First Book Award (202X - Shortlist)
  • RSL Ondaatje Prize (202X - Shortlist)
  • Aidoo-Snyder Book Prize (202X - Winner)

Her creative and scholarly work bridges artistic innovation and critical analysis, emphasizing decolonial perspectives and the power of storytelling to confront historical and sociopolitical trauma.