Amjad Nasser, Jordan

You finally belong to another generation when
you read the works of younger poets and grieve about the poetry,
voices of offspring singers remind you of adamant cicadas in sleepless nights, 
you can count with your fingers the number of people walking the streets
that are dressed like you and have the same haircut
looking long and hard before they cross the street.

Lyricist, journalist and publisher. Amjad Nasser was born in 1955 in al-Turra, Jordan. He has worked as a journalist since 1976, in television and newspapers, first in the cultural section of Al-Hadaf journal in Beirut, and later in Cyprus as Arts Editor of Al-Ufq magazine. He also spent time working as a reporter for Jordanian television.

Having co-founded Al-Quds Al-Arabi daily newspaper in London, he has worked as Associate Editor and Arts Editor since 1987. Under his direction, the daily’s cultural supplement has grown to become a major forum for modern Arabic literature. He is also one of the founding editors of Banipal, a magazine for modern Arabic literature.

He has published various collections of poetry and two travel books, Flight of Wings (1998) and Under More than One Sky (2002). In 1998, a collection of his selected poems were published in French, followed by one in Italian (2001), and one in Spanish (2002). Some of his poems can also be found in various poetry anthologies in English and German. His complete works were published in Arabic in 2002.

Nasser has attended several international poetry conferences as a guest, including meetings in Colombia, Italy, Holland, and Brunei, among others. Recently, a Jordanian television station produced a documentary about the journalist and poet’s life.

Amjad Nasser currently lives in London.