Joel Francois is a writer and storyteller living and creating in New York City. Joel wishes to share his vista as a black writer and tell stories of love, family, and race through that lens. He believes that the artist is the architect of humanity and writes in search of God, love, and community. Joel's writing is an act of personal healing as his ultimate goal is to do good work with little harm. He is the 2015 Nuyorican Grand Slam Champion, the 2016 and 2017 Bowery Grand Slam Champion, was listed as one of New York City’s top poets by Culture Trip, earned a top 20 ranking in the 2016 Individual World Poetry Slam, and earned an MFA in poetry at Syracuse University. Joel has dedicated the past three years to traveling the country and sharing his work.