Keira Shae

Keira Shae, M.Ed., is a bestselling author, poet, artist, and public speaker whose work draws from her personal experiences. A deaf and hard-of-hearing queer poet and writer, Shae has developed a body of work that is visually and emotionally layered, reflecting her life growing up in Utah Valley in a home impacted by absence, poverty, and drug culture. Her writing explores themes of survival, transformation, love, kindness, and resilience.

Shae is the author of the memoir "How the Light Gets In," which became a debut bestseller and was nominated for the AML Creative Non-fiction Award. She narrated the audiobook for Audible. As a published poet, Shae collaborated on the collection "Shades of Becoming." Her critical essays on culture have appeared in University of Illinois Press, BCC Blog, Exponent II, and Segullah. She also contributes columns to the magazine Utah Stories.

Shae's work includes the ergodic novel "Cigarettes & Saints" published by Push Publications, along with an accompanying poetry collection. This debut poetry collection addresses her childhood experiences and her development as a queer individual in a challenging environment. Influences from poets such as Federico García Lorca, Li-Young Lee, Allen Ginsberg, and Sylvia Plath, as well as modern songwriters, are evident in her writing. Her poetry collection "Eden Skin" features her poetry, art, and photography.

Shae is based in Salt Lake City and is recognized as a poet, artist, photographer, and memoirist. Her exhibitions have been displayed at Writ & Vision, Odd Duck Studio, and the Provoeau Salon. She served as director of the Provo Promise program, focusing on fundraising, program administration, and supporting underserved students in accessing higher education. Shae is known as a public speaker, writer, and divergent thinker, and has spoken for UVU Department for Service and Volunteering and delivered a keynote address titled "The Power of Educators in a Disadvantaged Child's Life" at a conference in St. George. She continues to tour as a public speaker. Shae's multidisciplinary work in memoir, poetry, visual art, and advocacy offers audiences authentic storytelling and insight into the transformative power of resilience.