Biography

Publications
The North, Pennine Press, Oxford Poetry, Magma, Poetry Birmingham, And Other Poems
Anthologies:
Introduction X (The poetry Busines), Surfing the Twilight (Hive), Halfway Smile (Hive), 50 Golden Anthology (Avon)

Festivals

• Ilkley Festival October 2019: New Rising Yorkshire Voices: A new generation of Yorkshire poets is emerging with talented and diverse women at the forefront. Hear four of the most exciting new voices living and working in our region Genevieve Carver, Shash Trevett, Jasmine Simms, and Warda Yassin.
• Sheaf Poetry Festival 2019
• London National Poetry Library 2019
• London Southbank Reading with Kayo Chinyongi (2019)
• Motley Muse Huddersfield Festival Performance (2018)
• Performance at Verse Matters New Poets launch event (Oct 2018)
• So Africa Festival 2018: Warda read with a group of Hive writers at the Crucible Theatre for the first African Festival in Sheffield (2018)
• Bridlington Festival 2016

Commissions

• DINA Sheffield commission for the ‘Small Pleasures‘ project
• Dead Women’s’ poet society: resurrecting Lucille Cliffton at DINA theatre. (Jan 2020)
• BBC National Poetry Day Video 2019
  Warda was commissioned by the BBC for the National Poetry Day to write about hometowns. She wrote a love letter to Sheffield which she performed at BBC Contains Strong Language in Huddersfield and it was published on the National Poetry Day site. It was shown on BBC Look North.
  Poem & Performance

Workshops

• Workshop session for Good Chance Aug, 2020
• Mixing Roots project – Hive Young Writers Network
  (first ran autumn 2019. Currently running again in autumn 2020)

Warda led and facilitated a 6-week writing project, for young Somali girls and girls of colour, to document their stories and experiences. These sessions, at the Sheffield Somali Community Centre, were supported by Hive, and the poems were collated into a print anthology edited by Warda and Vicky Morris. The launch event and performance took place on Tues 15 Oct. It was a jam-packed event that saw many girls and women perform their words. It included guest speakers such as Dr Muna Abdi, artist, writer and creative Danae Wellington and Hive performers.

Review of Mixing Roots

“One of the poems that stood out to me was ‘All the Places I See Happiness’ by one performer. with phrases including “you see confidence, self-love and beauty in hijab – that is happiness”, the poem was beautiful and moving as she discussed how happiness was not always in the most obvious places. Furthermore, she also started her reading by defining Somali words she used within the poem, such as Eedo meaning paternal aunt. This emphasised the community feel of the event as it facilitated the inclusivity because it meant everyone could understand what was said. Moreover, another poem that I enjoyed was Hana’s ‘Ambition’. One line that stuck with me was “like emerging sunflowers in a drought – ambition”. The imagery that this brings about is powerful since in its discussion of ambition, the uplifting line becomes
motivational.” By Gabriella Ingamells

Upcoming workshops
African poetry workshop with Utopia theatre Oct, 2020
Off the Shelf- Bi-lingual workshops Oct, 2020