Bio

Fareh Malik is a poet, author, and spoken word performer based in the GTA, Ontario. At the age of 17, Fareh— thirsty with a desire to bring about change— began performing as a storyteller and spoken word poet at his high school. He went on to finish his degrees at McMaster University in Hamilton, where he remained to establish his writing practice, as well as the hip-hop crews “Vie Division” and “RXD”. He began exploring literature in 2020 and hasn’t looked back.

Fareh’s work has been described as critical, yet sanguine; poetry that adventures into the intersections of racialization, social justice, oppression, trauma, mental illness, and so forth, while maintaining a silver lining on its horizon. He loves to tell the story of his struggle, and that of his community around him, with the hope that others can find inspiration and companionship in it.

In his emerging career, Fareh has won several awards for his writing. He was named the 2022 RBC PEN Canada New Voices Award winner and the winner of the 2023 Austin Clarke Prize in Literary Excellence. He was also the winner of Hamilton Art’s Shirley Elford Prize, The 2022 October Project Poetry Award, and MH Canada's 2020 Poetry Contest. Fareh has had his poetry published in journals internationally. His debut book Streams That Lead Somewhere was the winner of the Hamilton Literary Award for Poetry. His work has been featured through establishments such as The Art Gallery of Hamilton, San Antonio’s McNay Art Museum, and The National Arts Centre. Fareh was named a finalist for the 2021 Best of the Net anthology, a finalist for the TWUC Short Prose Competition, and a finalist for So To Speak’s 2021 Poetry Contest. He has been fascinated with taking his written and spoken work and finding interdisciplinary homes for it.

Fareh Malik’s debut book Streams That Lead Somewhere was published in August 2022 with Mawenzi House Publishers. You can visit the Store section of the site to purchase it.