Sennur Sezer (12 June 1943, Eskişehir – 7 October 2015, İstanbul) was a Turkish poet and documentary writer.
Her real name is Sennur Fatma Çelik. Her first poem was published in 1958 and her first book Gecekondu in 1964. She wrote many screenplays, especially for Turkish cinema under her real name as well as under a pseudonym and contributed to the writing of various encyclopedias and anthologies. As one of the founding members of the Labour party she supported all kinds of actions by women, workers and other groups of people seeking their rights and supported the actions taken by them such as strikes. She is the spouse of writer Adnan Özyalçıner whom she married in 1967.
Life
She was born on 12 June 1943 in Eskişehir. She finished her primary education at Kadımehmet Primary School in 1953 and finished her middleschool education at Kasımpaşa middleschool in 1956. She published her first poem while she was a highschool student at Istanbul Girls High School in 1958. In 1959 she left during her second year studies at the Istanbul Girls High School and started to work at the Taşkızak Naval Shipyard. Her first book of poetry, Gecekondu, was published in 1964.
In 1965 she became an editor at Varlık Publishers, and published her second book of poems Yasak in 1966. She married Adnan Özyalçıner in 1967; they had two children. 1977’.
She wrote the lyrics Buruk Acı which was featured in the movie of the same name starring Türkan Şoray, Tanju Gürsu, and Muzaffer Tema as leads. The movie was based on the book written by Adnan Özyalçıner.
Until 1982 she worked as an editor and article writer at various publishing houses and encyclopedias.
Beginning with Günlük Evrensel and Evrensel Kültür she wrote in various magazines and newspapers, and continued to prepare the narratives for documentaries until Sezer died on 7 October 2015.
Her poetry
Sezer's restless youth and the hardships she faced during that time reflect negatively upon her poems about family relations.
Legacy
The Sennur Sezer awards are named after her.
Poetry books
Gecekondu (1964)
Yasak (1966)
Direnç (1977)
Sesimi Arıyorum (1982)
Kimlik Kartı (ilk üç kitap, 1983)
Bu Resimde Kimler Var (1986)
Afiş (1991)
Kirlenmiş Kağıtlar (1999)
Bir Annenin Notları (Seçme Şiirler 2002)
Dilsiz Dengbej (2001)
Akşam Haberleri (2006)
İzi Kalsın (2011)
Other works
Keloğlan ile Köse (Story, with Adnan Özyalçıner)
Şiir Gündemi (trials 1995)
İstanbul'un Taşı-Toprağı Altın (İstanbul folklore together with Adnan Özyalçıner ) (1995)
'68'in Edebiyatı, Edebiyatın 68'i (inceleme ve seçki, 2008)
Öyküleriyle İstanbul Anıtları (Volume 2, with Adnan Özyalçıner, 2010)
Awards
1980 Kadınların Sesi Dergisi’nin 8 Mart Ödülü (Kadınlara yönelik yazıları ve şiirleri için)
1987 Halil Kocagöz Şiir Ödülü (Bu Resimde Kimler Var ile)
1990 Sıtkı Dost Çocuk Edebiyatı Ödülü (Keloğlan İle Köse ile)
1998 Pir Sultan Abdal Dernekleri Edebiyat Ödülü (Şiiri alanlara taşıdığı için)
2000 Oğuzkaan Koleji Şiir Ustaları Ödülü
2000 Yunus Nadi Şiir Ödülü (Kirlenmiş Kağıtlar ile)
2009 (Ş.Avni Ölez Şiir Emeği Ödülü)
2012 PEN Türkiye Şiir Ödülü
Further reading
Academic papers about Sezers literature
Sener, Merve (1 January 2020). "Sennur Sezer'in Şiirlerinde Kadın". Zonguldak Bülent Ecevi̇t Üni̇versi̇tesi̇ Sosyal Bi̇li̇mler Ensti̇tüsü Türk Di̇li̇ Ve Edebi̇yati Anabi̇li̇m Dali.
Sener, Merve (1 January 2019). "Sennur Sezer'in Şiirinde "Anne" İzleği". Sennur Sezer'i̇n Şi̇i̇ri̇nde "Anne" İzleği̇, International Black Sea Coastline Countries Symposium-3.
Sivri, Medine (November 2013). "Eskişehir'in Kültür ve Edebiyat Elçileri: Şairler ve Eskişehir"[Culture and Literature Ambassadors of Eskişehir: Poets and Eskişehir]. Eskişehir Osmangazi Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi (in Turkish). 14 (Special Issue): 73–102 – via dergipark.