Lonnie Monka
Current City, State, Country
Birth City, State, Country
Biography
Lonnie Monka (born 1984) is a Jerusalem-based poet, educator, and literary organizer. His work explores the intersections of poetry, performance, and community engagement. He is the founder of Jerusalism, a platform dedicated to fostering Israeli literature in English through events, publications, and collaborative initiatives. Monka is currently a PhD student at Hebrew University, where his research focuses on innovative oral poetry practices. His work examines the evolving relationship between performance and orality, with particular attention to improvised speech, audio recordings, and creative transcription. His scholarship engages with critical concepts from performance studies, modernist and avant-garde poetics, and orality, positioning his research within broader discussions of contemporary literary and artistic practices. As both a writer and performer, Monka’s poetry and experimental works have been featured in various online and print publications. His creative practice is informed by his academic research and his commitment to building literary communities. He founded a non-profit organization, called Jerusalism, to promote Israeli literature in English. Through Jerusalism, he has played a significant role in amplifying the voices of emerging and established writers, organizing readings, workshops, and literary gatherings that bridge diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds. Beyond his literary and academic work, Monka is also active in arts and education initiatives, including teaching and mentoring students in creative and critical approaches to literature. His work contributes to ongoing conversations about the role of poetry in contemporary society, the nature of literary performance, and the possibilities of cross-cultural literary expression.
What is the relationship between Judaism and/or Jewish culture and your poetry?
In my poetry, Judaism emerges through the overlap of personal and familial histories with broader questions of identity and ethnic heritage, shaped by my life in Israel. At times, I feel that my work lacks distinct Jewish features; at others, I suspect that my deep drive toward humanistic universalism is itself rooted in my Jewish consciousness—especially the experience of belonging to a minority culture seeking acceptance (and hoping not to be annihilated) within larger societies. When I do engage directly with Jewish themes, the experience oscillates between exhilaration and self-consciousness, between resonance and cheesiness. Kitzur, it’s complicated—and I love living in Jerusalem.
Published Works
I’ve been sending letters to various areas controlled by the islamic state (The Bezine, 2022)
another dream (The Bezine, 2022)
so they say (The Bezine, 2022)
Links to Sample Works
Video Reading
Current Title
Education
St. John’s College, BA
Bezalel Academy of Arts, MA
Hebrew University, PhD