Birth of All Things

Rest like the sun does:

Schedule some time

to stay out of sight

when too many people

praise warm energy ...

THE BOOK.

Poet Laureate Marcus Amaker's (he/him) tenth book, Hold What Makes You Whole, is a pocket-sized full-color collection of new and selected works from an award-winning opera librettist, musician, and graphic designer.

Hold What Makes You Whole is a 200-page compilation of jazz, Blackness, self care, fatherhood, Star Wars, social justice, music, and memory. Along with the audiobook and e-book, the Hold project also features short films, two full-length albums, and an interactive website.

On the cover of the book is Amaker's great-great aunt Ruth Robinson, a poet and community leader who published her first book at the age of 65. Robinson passed in 2020 when she was 94 years old.

"It's an honor to introduce you to her Spirit," Amaker said.

THE AUTHOR.

Marcus Amaker is a husband, a dad, a son, a music nerd, and a Star Wars obsessive. He served as the first Poet Laureate of Charleston, South Carolina, from 2016-22. In 2021, he became an Academy of American Poets fellow.

His work has been recognized by The Washington Post, The Kennedy Center, American Poets Magazine, Chicago Opera Theater, The Portland Opera, Button Poetry, NPR, The Chicago Tribune, Edutopia, Town & Country, PBS NewsHour, South Carolina Public Radio, Charleston Magazine, Charleston City Paper, Post and Courier, and more.

He's also a prolific performer, the award-winning graphic designer, a musician, an opera librettist, the creator of a poetry festival, a teaching artist, and an advocate for youth poets. His poetry was used by the Washington National Opera for its Presidential Inauguration Day Concert in 2021.

In addition to more than 40 independent electronic music albums, Marcus' poem "The Rain" is on two Grammy-nominated records.

He lives in North Charleston, SC, with his wife, their daughter, and a cat named after Wu-Tang Clan.

Marcus Amaker is a husband, a dad, a son, a music nerd, and a Star Wars obsessive. He served as the first Poet Laureate of Charleston, SC from 2016-2022. In 2021, he became an Academy of American Poets fellow. Hold What Makes You Whole is his tenth book. He's also a powerful performer, the award-winning graphic designer of a national roots music journal (No Depression), an electronic musician, an opera librettist, the creator of a poetry festival, a teaching artist, and an advocate for youth poets. His poetry has been recognized by The Washington Post, The Kennedy Center, American Poets Magazine, The Washington National Opera, The Portland Opera, Button Poetry, NPR, The Chicago Tribune, Edutopia, Town & Country, PBS Newshour, SC Public Radio, Charleston Magazine, Charleston City Paper, North Dakota Quarterly, Post and Courier, and more. In 2019, he won a Governor's Arts award in South Carolina and was named the artist-in-residence of the Gaillard Center, a world-renowned performance and education venue. His poetry has been studied in classrooms around the country and has been interpreted for ballet, jazz, modern dance, opera, and theater. Marcus has recorded three albums with GRAMMY(R) Award-winning drummer and producer Quentin E. Baxter. He also created a publishing company, Free Verse Press, to release poetry books from authors in his community. He lives in North Charleston with his wife, their daughter, and a cat named after Wu-Tang Clan.