Place of Origin
"I come from Carrefour-Feuilles, that’s the first thing to remember," he says right away, highlighting the significance of this neighborhood, now devastated by gang violence, but for years a place of grounding and personal roots in his development. The third of five children in a Christian family, he discovered writing in 2018a pivotal moment he calls foundational: "I was a solitary child, a quiet teenager... being in love with the words of others led me to search for my own," he confides.
Since that encounter with poetry, Jephte has published three collections: Bretèl Solèy, Ce que l’ange confie aux étoiles, and Naufrage, between 2021 and 2024. He also contributed to the anthology Chambres, edited by Lyonel Trouillot and Marie Bénédicte Loze. His sensitive and authentic voice has already earned him several honors, including a mention in the Chansons sans Frontières poetry contest and recognition among the winners of Mon histoire en mille mots.
But it is in 2025 that his talent truly explodes onto the scene. Winner of the Amaranthe Poetry Prize, champion of the first contest organized by the Port-au-Prince Book Fair, runner-up in the Evelyne Trouillot Prize, and finalist for the prestigious Balisaille International PrizeJephte is having an exceptional year. "This time last year, I wasn’t thinking about awards. But a fellow poet, Daryl Lorenzo Moïse, encouraged me to enter as many contests as possible. I prepared as best as I could… and it worked."
Yet, the young poet remains grounded, fully aware of the road still ahead. "It brings me great joy and a bit of pride, but I’m still far from where I want to be." This clarity is echoed in his critique of the Haitian publishing world: "It’s stagnant. There’s a lack of expertise, and printing problems persist. My first book was self-published, and although I had support for the other two, I sometimes feel I should have waited."
