Thanks for stopping by. I hope you'll look around, read a few poems, and feel free to contact me. I am the author of Bulletproof, my debut collection published by Jacar Press in February, 2019 after being selected by Marilyn Nelson as the winner of Jacar's 2018 Full-Length Book Contest. My second collection, Little Joy, is due out from Cornerstone Press in January, 2026.

I was born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida, graduated from Stetson University in Deland, Florida, and then moved to Chicago in 1984. In Chicago I lived for a year at a Catholic Worker house where I met my partner. In the city, I also worked as a dishwasher, cook, bike messenger, and residential assistant. I moved to Iowa City in 1986 where I completed a graduate degree in education before returning to Chicago. Back in the city, I worked several years as a bus driver for a mental health center and - in 1992 - moved to Urbana where I was a mental health counselor for almost 8 years. In 2000 I enrolled at the University of Illinois and completed a library degree. I was a public high school librarian for over 20 years before retiring in May of  2022. My partner and I have two grown sons. You can find me on the socials under @mytwords at  Bluesky and Instagram. I still have an account at Twitter/(X), but I am no longer active there. Preferred pronouns are he/him.

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