Jacalyn Eyvonne

Jacalyn Evone Robinson known professionally as Jacalyn Eyvonne is an African-American poet and filmmaker. She serves concurrently with Kathleen Herrmann as poet laureate of Vallejo, California.

Writing
Jacalyn Eyvonne is the author of 3 books, and her poems have appeared in anthologies in North America and the United Kingdom. In 2022 she placed second in the Jackson Book Festival poetry competition. In the 1990s she edited the magazine In the Company of Poets based in Oakland, California. Eyvonne is influenced by the work of Gwendolyn Brooks, Maya Angelou, and Nikki Giovanni. Eyvonne serves concurrently with Kathleen Herrmann as poet laureate of Vallejo, California. Like their predecessors, Herrmann and Eyvonne hosted the Poetry in Notion poetry circle at the John F. Kennedy Library in Vallejo. The two also launched a new poetry open mic series called Tea House Poetry. The co-poets laureate plan to create a youth anthology in cooperation with the Vallejo Unified School District.

Since being named poet laureate, Jacalyn Eyvonne has performed at the 2023 Mad Hatter Holiday Festival, a Black History Month event at the Vallejo Naval and Historical Museum, Art Walk, Alibi Bookshop,  the Earth Daze Festival, at a climate change themed art exhibit at Vallejo Art Lofts Gallery,  on the Vallejo waterfront, the Solano County Fair, a Black History Month event at the Vallejo library, with fellow poets laureate at the Fairfield Library, and at a Juneteenth flag raising ceremony.

Filmmaking
Eyvonne earned her B.A. in Motion Pictures & Television from the Academy of Art University at San Francisco. She is a television producer at Vallejo Community Access Television, and the station awarded her film Arc Angels with Best Feature in 2018. Eyvonne is the founder of the Poetry and Monologues and KidsNFilm film festivals. On February 13, 2017, she was honored by the Indiana House of Representatives in Indiana House Resolution 18 for her film Stripes when it appeared at the Bill Johnson Black Film Festival. She served as a judge for the 2017 North Bay Art & Film Festival. Eyvonne has also worked as a playwright and realtor.

Books

 * Strange Things Happen At Midnight: Murder, Suspense, and Short Weird Tales, JE Books. 2020. ISBN 9781735493626
 * I Am Not An Inconsequential Word: Poetry & Remnants JE Books. 2022. ISBN 9781735493633
 * Venting To Verse: How To Turn Anger Into Poetry JE Books. 2023. ISBN 9781735493664
 * The Unyielding Weight of Words: Poems for Reflection, Healing, and Love Soulstanzas Books. 2024. ISBN 9798989505005

Poems

 * Robinson, Jacalyn, “It’s Magic!” Oakland Tribune, November 12, 1991, pg D-2
 * Eyvonne, Jacalyn, "Rise and Shine," Vallejo Weekly Vol. 12, No. 10, March 8, 2024

Anthologies

 * Sistah’s With Ink Voices, CreateSpace, 2013, ISBN 9781491087503
 * Wheelsong Poetry Anthology 3, Wheelsong Books, United Kingdom, 2023, ISBN 9798860877658
 * Holes: An Anthology of Poems about Depths, Darkness, and Desire JLRB Press. 2024. ISBN 9781738894963
 * World Healing, World Peace 2024 Inner Child Press. 2024. ISBN 9781961498235
 * Wheelsong Poetry Anthology 4, Wheelsong Books, United Kingdom, 2024, ISBN 9798323753000
 * A poetic field filled with Wildwood Flowers: An anthology of poetry and prose 2024. ISBN 9798864490204
 * Rituals: Summer 2024. Anomaly. 2024. ISBN 9798328315364