CURRICULUM VITAE
Education
2006 M.F.A in Creative Writing/Poetry, Southern Illinois University Carbondale, suma cum laude.
2000 B.A. in English, University of Iowa
Publications
Poetry Books:
What To Do If You’re Buried Alive (re-released). Doubleback. Forthcoming in 2023.
Ragged Eden. Glass Lyre Press. February 2019.
What To Do If You're Buried Alive. Split Lip Press. April 2015.
Damnatio Memoriae. Brick Road Poetry Press. June 2011.
Blue Collar Eulogies. Steel Toe Books. April 2009.
Leaving Iowa. Briery Creek Press. April 2007.
Fiction Books:
The Undergod. Red Adept Publishing. October 2018.
The Wintersea. Red Adept Publishing. July 2017.
The Dragonward. Red Adept Publishing. August 2016.
Kingsteel. Red Adept Publishing. December 2015.
Knightswrath. Red Adept Publishing. May 2015.
Wytchfire. Red Adept Publishing. April 2014.
Poetry Chapbooks:
To the Person Who Tends My Body. Finishing Line Press. Forthcoming in 2023.
Pure Elysium. Palettes & Quills. September 2010.
Real Courage. Jeanne Duval Editions. April 2009.
The Clay-Shaper’s Husband. Codhill Press. February 2008.
The Right Madness of Beggars. Uccelli Press. September 2006.
Cardboard Urn. Southeast Missouri State University Press. September 2005.
Poetry in Journals (Selected):
“Cosmology in Reverse.” Ninth Letter. Forthcoming.
“Middle of the Story.” Greensboro Review. Forthcoming.
“Today’s Lesson,” “White Privilege,” and “On the Four Police Officers Present at the Murder of George Floyd.” African American Review. Forthcoming.
“Baghdad” and “The Electric Chair.” Comstock Review. Forthcoming.
“Portrait of a Zen Monk” and “The Vendor.” Ocotillo Review. Forthcoming.
“Text Message Between Wildfires.” Mid-American Review. Forthcoming.
“Independence Day.” Modern Haiku. Forthcoming.
“Postcard from the Deep” and “Returning the Favor.” The MacGuffin. Forthcoming.
“Falling into a Black Hole,” “White Holes,” “Why Our Parents Never Left Earth,” and “The Reluctant Ambassador.” Fantasy and Science Fiction Magazine. March/April, 20023.
“After My Step-Brother Gets Shot and Killed by Cops in Milwaukee.” Rattle. March 5, 2023.
“Revelations.” Anacapa Review. Issue #1. February, 2023.
“The Problem with Being.” January Review. Issue #6. 2023.
“Second Grade” and “Sixth Grade.” 2River View. Issue #27.2. Winter, 2023.
“What My Grandmother Taught Me” and “One Stoplight on a Late-Night Drive.” Southern Review. Autumn, 2022.
“Climate Protesters Throw Soup…” Rattle. October 16, 2022.
“Skeletor’s Lament.” Moon City Review. 2022.
“Epilogue of the Chosen One.” Asimov’s Science Fiction Magazine. May/June, 2022. “Last Day on the Factory Floor.” The Sun. Issue 558. June, 2022.
“Once We Were God.” California Quarterly. Vol 48, #2. Summer, 2022.
“Staying in Bed,” “All the Americans Who Ever Committed Suicide,” and “Elegy for theVictorian Era.” Book of Matches. Issue #5. 2022.
“The Shapeshifter in Therapy for Survivor’s Guilt.” Atlanta Review. Fall/Winter, 2021.
“Virtue Signaling.” Comstock Review. Issue #35. Fall/Winter, 2021.
“Scavengers,” “Ode to the Repair Guy” (reprint), and “Satan Writes Home to His Mother” (reprint). FRiGG. Fall/Winter, 2021.
“Gender Studies” and “To the Person Who Tends My Body.” National Poetry Review. December, 2021.
“The Evolution of Whales.” Strange Horizons. October. 2021.
"I Can't Say," “Poem Written After Watching Hollywood’s Latest Remake of Edgar Allan Poe’s ‘The Raven,’” and “Another Elegy.” Redactions. Issue 25. August, 2021.
“Funeral Poem” and “The Protests of the Unwashed Masses." American Journal of Poetry. Vol. 12. July 1, 2021.
“Dear Daughter.” Missouri Review. Poem of the Week. May 17, 2021.
“Watching Lions Spare a Turtle on the Same Day that Derek Chauvin was Found Guilty of Murder.” Rattle. April 25, 2021.
"Watching My Mother Bake" and "State of the Union." MAYDAY Magazine. January 18, 2021.
“My Mother’s Autopsy.” River Styx. Issue 103/104. 2020.
“Watch Dogs, 390 BC,” “Marriage Proposal,” “Coping Mechanism,” “If Couches Had Sphincters,” and “Nothing Puckers into Nothing.” FRiGG. Fall/Winter, 2020.
“In Horror Movies, Whenever Someone Gets Their Soul Sucked Out.” Asimov’s Science Fiction Magazine. September/October, 2020.
“Columbus Day.” American Journal of Poetry. Vol. 9. July, 2020.
“Thoughts and Prayers.” Gargoyle Magazine. Issue 73. Summer, 2020.
“Ashley’s Poem” and “At the Resort.” Sweet Tea Review. May 10, 2020.
“For Ahmaud Arbery, an Unarmed Black Jogger…” Rattle. May 9, 2020.
“Go Big or Go Home.” Hobart. Jan. 27, 2020.
“After Hearing a Congressman Blame Birth Defects on Unhealthy Living” and “The Politics of Worry.” South Dakota Review. Vol. 54, #2-3. 2020.
“Rearview Mirror.” Valparaiso Poetry Review. Vol 21, #1. Fall/Winter, 2019-2020.
"Silver-Backed Chevrotain, with Fangs and Hooves, Photographed in Wild for First Time." Rattle. Nov. 24, 2019.
"Patriotic Cookie." Verse Daily. Oct. 5, 2019.
"Weekend Getaway," "Common Denominators," "In the Event of Your Parents' Murder," and "The First Person Who Saw Gold." Open: Journal of Arts & Letters. October, 2019.
“Passing Along the News” and “Two Baths.” 2River View. Fall, 2019.
“Another Anniversary.” DIAGRAM. Issue 19.3. Summer, 2019.
“The Workmen.” Verdad. Vol. 26. Spring, 2019.
“Cremation,” “When the World Will End,” “Why Don’t You Dry Off After You Shower?” “Flight Safety Instructions,” and “Washroom Lamentation.” FRiGG. Issue 53. Spring/Summer, 2019.
“An Apology to Thin Air.” African American Review. Vol. 52, 1. Spring, 2019.
“From the Hospital Bed.” storySouth. Issue #47. March, 2019.
“A Promise” and “Commercial Break.” Natural Bridge. Issue #41. Spring, 2019.
“The Moral of the Double Slit Experiment.” Asimov’s Science Fiction Magazine. Jan/Feb. 2019.
“A Belated Apology to a Transgendered Colleague” (reprint). Verse Daily. Web Weekly Feature. Dec. 24, 2018.
“Urban Legend.” Crab Orchard Review. Vol. 23, No. 2. October, 2018.
“A Belated Apology to a Transgendered Colleague.” National Poetry Review. November, 2018.
“The Big Bang Was Not.” Asimov’s Science Fiction Magazine. July/August, 2018.
“How Thirteen Famous Men Performed Cunnilingus.” Winning Writers. 2018.
“On My Fortieth Year Having Not Seen God.” Museum Americana. Issue #15. Summer, 2018.
“Eighth Grade.” South Dakota Review. Vol. 54, No. 1. 2018.
"On the Unintentional Irony of White Supremacy Groups." Red Fez. 2018.
"On the Difficulty of Loving the Theatrically Insane" and "Phantom Head Syndrome." Open: Journal of Arts & Letters. Spring, 2018.
"Lamentations from the Produce Aisle." Moon City Review. Spring, 2018.
"Advice for Winter" and "Driving to the Airport." Permafrost Magazine. Vol. 40.1. Winter, 2018.
"August Poem." Escape into Life. February 14, 2018.
"On the Argument that Chickens are Walking Flowers," "In Place of a Third Eye," "It Never Does," and "Something Awful is Going to Happen." Escape into Life. October 25, 2017.
"Not For All the Anger in Fresno." Red Fez. Issue #105. October, 2017.
"Adjunct" and "The Dying Breed." Moon City Review. Spring, 2017.
"The First Crush," "Dear Leviticus," and "Affirmative Action" (all reprints). Wordgathering. Issue #41. March, 2017.
“The Man with Six Hands,” “The Chicken: a Character Study,” “On Memory,” “A Newborn Photo of the Earth,” “Unresolved,” “Algebra Taught Me Nothing.” Arabesque Review. Vol. 4, #2. Spring, 2017.
“Building the House,” “Iconography of the Heart,” “Summer at Twelve,” “Staying Inside,” “The End of Summer,” “Poem for the Bug on My Basement Floor,” “Between,” “Superstition,” and “The Diggers” (all reprints). Eunoia Review. January, 2017.
"Divine Witness," "Patriotic Cookie" and "Ode to Silhouettes." American Journal of Poetry. Vol. 2. January, 2017.
"The Man Who Invented Fire," "Piss-Poor" and "When I Was a Kid, So Many Died." Ragazine. November, 2016.
"On the Death of Classical Physics." Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine. Vol. 40, Issue #8. August, 2016.
"The Feline Pythia of Fresno, California." Mid-American Review. Vol. 36, Issue #2. Spring, 2016.
"My Father Digs for Old Bottles" and "Women in the Bible Had Pretty Eyes." South Dakota Review. Volume 52, #3&4. 2016.
"father's day" and "Buddha statue." Modern Haiku. Issue 47.3. 2016.
"Lamentation." Southern Poetry Review. Vol. 53, Issue 2. 2016.
"The Animal Morgue" and "On the History Channel's Lack of Imagination." 2River View. Issue #20.2. Winter, 2016.
"On My One Hundred Sixty-Ninth Birthday," "Time Share," and "What to Do If You're Buried Alive." DIAGRAM. August, 2015.
"Caesarian Section." Redactions. Issue #19. 2015.
"Cruelest of All Are the Gods Who Never Frown." Rattle. Ekphrastic Challenge. July, 2015.
"Gold," "The Crossbow," and "Yoga Pants." South Dakota Review. Vol. 51, Issue #3-4. 2015.
“The Gender Revolution, Televised.” Hayden’s Ferry. Issue #54. Spring/Summer, 2014.
"My Mother Sent Me." Poets.org. December 18, 2014.
“If Horror Movies Have Taught Me Anything.” Asimov’s Science Fiction Magazine. October/November, 2014.
“Watching Scrambled Channels at Dustin’s House." Natural Bridge. Issue #32. Fall, 2014.
“Zazen at Thirty-Six” and “The Dharma of the Lonely Gardener.” Hobart. July 12, 2014.
“On My First Trip to a Strip Club.” Rattle. Issue #44. Summer, 2014.
"No Oasis." MAYDAY Magazine. Issue #8. Summer, 2014.
“In Defense of Hipsters.” Pine Hills Review. July 2, 2014.
“The First Law of Thermodynamics.” Valparaiso Poetry Review. Vol. 15, Issue #2. Spring/Summer, 2014.
“Trust Between Animals” and “The First Musician.” Diode Poetry Journal. February, 2014.
“Evolution of the Grade School Bully,” “A Prairie Home Champion,” “For My Brother,” and “I Love How Old People Talk About the Dead.” Tupelo Quarterly. Issue 2. Spring, 2014.
“Dinner Party.” [PANK] Issue 9.1. January, 2014.
“An Unrepentant Confession,” “The First Dancers,” “Scars,” “1985,” “Parenting,” “For Those Who Wish To Be Of Use,” and “In Defense of DARE.” Poetry Quarterly. Fall, 2013.
“Field Trip.” Mid-American Review. Vol. 34, Issue # 1. Spring, 2013.
“Breakfast” and “Quetzacoatlus.” Redactions. Issue #17. Fall, 2013.
“Virginity.” Rattle. Issue #40. Summer, 2013.
“At Sixteen,” “Dear Submitter,” “From the Husband of a Dead Confessional Poet,” and “Ode to Four Old Men Eating Ice Cream at an All-Nite Diner.” Split Lip Magazine. Issue #7. July-August, 2013.
"La Petite Credo." Barn Owl Review. Issue #6. 2013.
“Why Girls Walk Home” and “Affirmative Action.” African American Review. Vol. 45, 1-2. Fall, 2012.
“Eyeglasses” and “Umbrellas.” storySouth. Issue #34. Fall, 2012.
“Pasteurization.” Rattle. Issue #38. Fall, 2012.
“Involuntary Memory.” Cream City Review. Issue #36.2. Fall, 2012.
“Rick Santorum.” Nashville Review. Fall, 2012.
“Blessed One,” “Eighteen,” “Dear Leviticus” and “Upon Seeing Silent Footage of Eva Braun on a Swing Set” Southern Indiana Review. Fall, 2011.
“Dust.” Verse Daily. July 28, 2011.
“The Birthdays of Ex-Lovers.” Verse Daily. July 21, 2011.
“American Ronin” and “The Hindenburg.” Tidal Basin Review. Summer, 2011.
“Consummation,” “Dependence Day,” “Ode to Old Women at Poetry Readings,” “History Revisited” and “On Mother's Day, Fourteen Years After…” Portland Review. 2011.
“Class Trip.” North American Review. Vol. 296, #2. Spring, 2011.
“Westbound Elegy” and “Post Grads.” American Poetry Journal. Issue #10. Spring, 2011.
“Persephone and Oedipus.” Atticus Books, Poetry Feature. January 27, 2011.
“Damnatio Memoriae.” 322 Review. Winter, 2011.
“Ode to the Boxing Clapboard.” Hayden’s Ferry Review. Issue #47. Fall/Winter, 2010-2011.
“Dedication.” Rattle. Issue #33. Summer, 2010.
“Number Twenty-Five.” Anti-Poetry. Issue #6. Summer, 2010.
“The Birthdays of Ex-Lovers.” Los Angeles Review. Vol. 7. Spring, 2010.
“Tattoo Parlor.” Barn Owl Review. Issue #3. Spring, 2010.
“Skandha.” Verse Daily. March 17, 2010.
“Skandha.” National Poetry Review. Issue #9. Spring, 2010.
“The World’s Oldest Dildo.” Juked. March 16, 2010.
“Zen for Dummies.” Mandala Journal. “Cosmopolitanism” Issue. Spring, 2010.
“From One Poet to Another.” Another Chicago Magazine. #49. Spring, 2010.
"Subatomic Redemption." Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine. February, 2010.
“The Revision.” Rosebud. Summer/Fall, 2009.
“Anaphora.” Anon Poetry Magazine. Issue #6. 2009.
“The First Crush.” Atlanta Review. Fall/Winter, 2009.
“Diagnosing God.” Verse Daily. June 15, 2009.
“Tornado Alley.” Boxcar Poetry Review. Issue 20. Summer, 2009.
“The First Dancers.” Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine. October/November, 2008.
“Peccadillo.” River Styx. Issue 78. Fall, 2008.
“The Crayon Not Taken.” MARGIE. Vol. 7. Fall, 2008.
“Unrequited.” Crab Orchard Review. Vol. 13, #2. Summer/Fall, 2008.
“Samsara.” River Styx. Issue 76. Summer, 2008.
“The Clay-Shaper’s Husband.” Ploughshares. Spring, 2008.
“Against Etymology.” Ploughshares. Winter, 2007-2008.
“The Man With Half an Ear Gets His Hair Cut.” North American Review. Vol. 292, #1. 2007.
"Into the Deep." Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine. October, 2007.
“Diagnosing God.” National Poetry Review. Vol. 4, #2. Fall, 2007.
“Iconography of the Heart.” Verse Daily. June 16, 2007.
“Late September” and “Limbic Self-Loathing…” Arts & Letters. Vol. 18. Fall, 2007.
“Floating Womb Syndrome.” Arts & Letters. Vol. 17. Spring, 2007.
“Snowman.” Tupelo Press Poetry Project. Spring, 2007.
“Ode to Dogs.” Mid-American Review. Vol. 27, #2. Fall, 2006.
“The Check.” Green Mountains Review. Vol. 14, #1. Fall, 2006.
“The Trouble With Hammers.” Verse Daily. October 19, 2006.
“The Trouble With Hammers.” National Poetry Review. Vol. 4. Summer/Fall, 2006.
“The First Kill.” Fugue. Vol. 31. Fall, 2006.
“The Saddest Thing.” North American Review. Vol. 291, #3/4. Spring, 2006.
“Last Poem of the Day.” Re)verb. Vol. 4. Winter, 2006.
“A Knight in Cross-Section.” 4AM Poetry Review. September, 2005.
“Iconography of the Heart.” Diagram. Vol. 5, #5. Fall, 2005.
“Leaving Iowa.” Green Mountains Review. Vol. 18, #1. Summer, 2005.
“Elegy for Roxana Rivera.” Diagram. Vol. 4, #2. Fall, 2004.
“Death, the First Time” and “The First Expedition.” Southern Poetry Review. Vol. 43, #1. Spring/Summer, 2004.
“summer dusk” Modern Haiku. Vol. 35, #1. Winter/Spring, 2004.
“listening to Bach” American Tanka. Vol. 14. 2004.
“Playing Baseball with Fidel Castro.” Free Lunch. Vol. 30. Fall, 2003.
“Choose the First or Last Line and Begin.” Snow Monkey. Vol. 5, Issue 2. 2003.
“Cardboard Urn” and “Too Many Poets.” Chiron Review. Vol. 70. Fall, 2002.
Fiction in Journals:
“A Bed With a View.” BULL. Forthcoming.
“Isabeau’s New Name.” Sword and Sorcery Magazine. March 31, 2022.
“The Ledge.” The Dread Machine. November 5, 2021.
“Snow and Fire.” Sword and Sorcery Magazine. April 29, 2021.
"So You Want to Be a Guardian Angel." Analog. January/February, 2021.
“Then, Stars.” Heroic Fantasy Quarterly. Issue #41. August, 2019.
“The Glass Onion.” Juked. January 21, 2019.
“Enceladus.” Necessary Fiction. October 24, 2018.
"Godsteel." Sword and Sorcery Magazine. Issue #75. April, 2018.
"Turncrowe." Orson Scott Card's InterGalactic Medicine Show. Issue #53. 2016.
“The Stuttering Headsman.” Hayden’s Ferry Review. Issue #48. Spring/Summer, 2011.
“Ode to Dead Batteries” and “The Tanganyika Laughter Epidemic, 1962.” Mid-American Review. Vol. 31, #1. Fall, 2010.
"Celestial Encounters." Encounters Magazine. Vol. 1, #4. November/December, 2010.
"Taliessa's Wish." Realms. Vol. 1, #2. Spring, 2010.
"A Merchant's Luck." Bewildering Stories. Issue #357. October 19, 2009.
“Geoeroticism 101.” Quick Fiction. Issue #15. April, 2009.
"The Hero's Wife." Planet Magazine. July 8, 2009.
"Mission Fail." Planet Magazine. May 24, 2009.
“Lois Lane Gives Birth to a Type One Diabetic.” Sentence. Issue #14. December, 2008.
“The Shipbuilder.” Quick Fiction. Issue 14. Fall, 2008.
Poetry and Prose in Anthologies:
“backyard burial” (reprint). string theory: The Red Moon Anthology of English-Language Haiku 2021. Red Moon Press. 2021.
“For Ahmaud Arbery…,” “Urban Legend,” “A Belated Apology…,” “My Mother’s Autopsy,” “State of the Union,” and “If Couches Had Sphincters” (all reprints). Aeolian Harp Anthology, Vol. 7. 2021.
“Rowen’s Gift.” Tangled Lights and Silent Nights. Beyond DEF Lit Services. November, 2018.
"Lamentation" (reprint). Southern Poetry Review 60th Anniversary Issue. October, 2018.
"Ice Cream" and "The Tip." Ice Cream Poems: reflections on life with ice cream. Concrete Wolf. May, 2017.
“Opening Ceremonies, 2012.” Golden Shovel Anthology. University of Arkansas Press. January, 2017.
“Joe Takes a Job as a Driver’s Ed Instructor,” “Joe Used to Say,” and “Joe’s Living Will.” Mo’ Joe. Beatlick Press. Spring, 2014.
“Give Us This Day Our Daily Worry.” Van Gogh’s Ear Anthology. Fall, 2012.
“Shame as Proof of True Love.” Bedside Guide to No Tell Motel – Second Floor. No Tell Books. November, 2007.
“Lessons of the Flood.” Hurricane Blues. Southeast Missouri State University Press. November, 2006.
“Cosmic Zen Ballet” and “Dinner Roll Zen.” Illuminations: Expressions of the Personal Spiritual Experience. October, 2006.
“Lessons in Sexual Attraction.” Bedside Guide to No Tell Motel. No Tell Books. January, 2006.
“Death, the First Time,” “Elegy for Roxana Rivera,” and “The Mennonite Girl.” Digerati: 20 Contemporary Poets in the Virtual World. three candles press. February, 2006.
“spring fever,” “done for the night,” “multiple sclerosis,” and “fresh from the bath.” Taboo Haiku. Avisson Press. 2006.
“Learn to Swim.” 2DO Before I Die. Little, Brown and Company. May, 2005.
“Platinum-Blond Dharma.” Poetic Voices Without Borders. Gival Press. May, 2005.
“mentioning divorce.” Tug of the Current. Red Moon Press. 2004.
“Parishioners’ Song” and “The Cruise.” Contemporary Haibun Vol. 5. Red Moon Press 2004.
Non-Fiction and Criticism in Journals:
“Dispatches from the Heart of the Teeming Void.” Split Lip Magazine. March 14, 2022.
Review of “The Fire Next Door” by Sarah Hughes. Red Fez. Issue #113. June, 2018.
Line Breaks: They're Not Just for Poetry Anymore. Brevity. Issue #50. Fall, 2015.
Platonic Love Letter to a Cruise Ship Lookout. storySouth. Issue #38. Fall, 2014.
James Franco's Directing Herbert White. Atticus Review. December 9. 2014.
Edward Mullany’s If I Falter at the Gallows. Rattle E-Reviews. November 25, 2013.
The Last Poem I Loved: “So the Pilot Says…” by David Hernandez. The Rumpus. July 31, 2013.
Jeff Newberry’s Brackish. Rain Taxi. Spring, 2013.
Kim Triedman’s Plum(b). Recommended Reads. April 12, 2013.
Paul Guest’s My Index of Slightly Horrifying Knowledge. Rattle E-Reviews. September 10, 2012.
Friends Read Friends’ Poems #3. HTML Giant. April 1, 2012.
Advice to Writers. THIS Literary Magazine. March 23, 2012.
Richard Donnelly’s The Melancholy MBA (reprint). Midwest Book Review. March, 2012.
Richard Donnelly’s The Melancholy MBA. Rattle E-Reviews. March 10, 2012.
Diane Lockward’s Temptation by Water. Midwest Book Review. February, 2012.
Joseph Millar’s Overtime. Rattle E-Reviews. May 10, 2011.
Susan Browne’s Zephyr. Rattle E-Reviews. October 25, 2010.
David Hinton’s The Selected Poems of Li Po. Rattle E-Reviews. February 5, 2010.
Barbara Louise Ungar’s The Origin of the Milky Way. Rattle E-Reviews. January 10, 2010.
Peter Bethanis’ American Dream. Rattle E-Reviews. August 25, 2009.
Djelloul Marbrook’s Far From Algiers. Rattle E-Reviews. May 20, 2009.
Tom Hunley’s Octopus. Rattle E-Reviews. Dec. 5, 2008.
University Experience
2016-present Instructor, Fresno City Community College, Fresno, CA
2014-present Visiting Professor, DeVry University, Fresno, CA
2007-2014 Assistant Professor (non-TT), Ball State University, Muncie, IN
Zen Poetry (Honors 390)
Advanced Poetry Writing (Eng 408)
Poetry Writing (Eng 308)
Introduction to Creative Writing (Eng 285)
First Year Composition I (Eng 103)
First Year Composition II (Eng 104)
2006-2007 Poetry Lecturer, Southern Illinois, Carbondale, IL
Intermediate Poetry Writing (Eng 382B)
Beginning Poetry Writing (Eng 382A)
2003-2006 Grad Instructor, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL
Advanced Freshman Composition (Eng 120)
Introduction to Creative Writing (Eng 119)
Intermediate Technical Writing (Eng 291)
First Year Composition I (Eng 101)
First Year Composition II (Eng 102)
CRLA-Certified Master-Level WC Tutor (6 semesters)
Honors & Awards
2022 Pushcart Nomination, Split Lip Press.
New American Poetry Prize (Semi-Finalist).
2021 Pushcart Nomination, Glass Lyre Press.
Pushcart Nomination, MAYDAY Magazine.
Cow Creek Chapbook Prize (Finalist).
Finishing Line Open Chapbook Competition (Honorable Mention).
2020 MAYDAY Poetry Prize (Finalist). MAYDAY Magazine.
2019 Best of the Net (Nomination). National Poetry Review.
Pushcart Nomination, Glass Lyre Press.
2018 Wergle Flomp Humor Poetry Contest (Honorable Mention). Winning Writers.
Editor's Reprint Award (Finalist). Sequestrum.
Pushcart Nomination, Open: Journal of Arts & Letters.
2017 Lyrebird Award (Finalist). Glass Lyre Press.
November Goodreads Newsletter Poetry Contest (Finalist).
Readers Favorite Award, Fantasy (Honorable Mention).
Pushcart Nomination, Escape into Life.
Pushcart Nomination, Ice Cream Poems anthology (World Enough Writers).
2016 June Goodreads Newsletter Poetry Contest (Winner).
February Goodreads Newsletter Poetry Contest (Finalist).
2015 Whirling Prize (Winner). Etchings Press, University of Indianapolis.
2014 Meritorious Teaching Status. Ball State University.
June Goodreads Newsletter Poetry Contest (Winner).
Featured Poet, Poetry Quarterly.
2013 Meritorious Teaching Status. Ball State University.
Philip Levine Poetry Book Prize (Semi-Finalist). Anhinga Press.
Pushcart Nomination, Split Lip Magazine.
Louise Bogan Award (Semi-Finalist). Trio House Press.
2012 Meritorious Teaching Status. Ball State University.
2011 Brick Road Poetry Book Contest (Winner). Brick Road Poetry Press.
Pushcart Nomination, Southern Indiana Review.
Pushcart Nomination, Palettes & Quills.
Pushcart Nomination, Tidal Basin Review.
Pushcart Nomination, Hobble Creek Review.
Sundress Best of the Net Nomination, Hobble Creek Review.
Meritorious Teaching Status. Ball State University.
2010 Palettes & Quills 2nd Biennial Chapbook Contest (Winner).
International Merit Award. Atlanta Review.
Meritorious Teaching Status. Ball State University.
Fineline Competition (Finalist). Mid-American Review.
Robert Watson Poetry Award (Finalist). Spring Garden Press.
Autumn House Press Poetry Prize (Finalist). Autumn House Press.
Grub Street National Book Prize (Finalist). Grub Street Press.
Sow’s Ear Poetry Review Chapbook Contest (Finalist). Sow’s Ear Review.
2009 Marjorie J. Wilson Best Poem Contest (Winner). MARGIE.
Meritorious Teaching Status. Ball State University.
Akron Series in Poetry (Semi-Finalist). The University of Akron Press.
Pushcart Nomination, North American Review.
Summer Poetry Competition (Honorable Mention). New Millennium Writings.
2008 Codhill Press Chapbook Award (Winner). Codhill Press.
Meritorious Teaching Status. Ball State University.
2007 Laureate Prize for Poetry (Winner). National Poetry Review.
Jeanne Duval Editions Poetry Chapbook Prize (Winner). Terminus Magazine.
Pushcart Nomination. Wordgathering.
2006 Liam Rector First Book Prize (Winner). Briery Creek Press.
Fugue Poetry Contest (2nd Place). Fugue.
James Wright Poetry Award (Winner). Mid-American Review.
Uccelli Press 3rd Annual Chapbook Competition (Winner). Uccelli Press.
Annie Finch Prize for Poetry (Winner). National Poetry Review.
Outstanding Instructor of the Year (Nomination). SIUC.
2005 Copperdome Chapbook Contest (Winner). Southeast Missouri State University Press.
Philip Levine Poetry Book Prize (Finalist). Anhinga Press.
MARGIE/IntuiT House "First Book" Poetry Contest (Finalist).
Fineline Competition (Finalist). Mid-American Review.
2004 James Wright Poetry Award (Finalist). Mid-American Review.
Outstanding Instructor of the Year (Nomination). SIUC.
2003 Pushcart Nomination. Verse Libre Quarterly.
Editing Experience
2011-present Poetry Editor, Atticus Review.
In addition to handling regular poetry submissions, I also select, review, and often interview Featured Poets like Wendy Chin-Tanner,
Cortney Lamar Charleston, Karen Craigo, Jeannine Hall Gailey, Allison Joseph, Mary Biddinger, Jon Tribble, Barbara Ungar,
Djelloul Marbrook, Bruce Covey, Patricia Clark, Tom Hunley, John Guzlowski, Jenny Qi, Barbara Ungar, Clay Matthews, and many others.
2012 Columnist, THIS Literary Magazine.
2006 Assistant Editor, Crab Orchard Review.
2005 Intern, Crab Orchard Review.
Additional Professional Activities
2023 Poetry Contest Judge, Mississippi Poetry Society.
Guest Contributor, Past Ten. (March 9, 2023.)
2022 Mentor, AWP’s Writer to Writer Mentorship Program.
Poetry Reader, Best of the Net Anthology. Sundress Publications.
2021 Mentor, AWP’s Writer to Writer Mentorship Program.
2020 Mentor, AWP’s Writer to Writer Mentorship Program.
2019 Mentor, AWP’s Writer to Writer Mentorship Program.
Poetry Reader, Best of the Net Anthology. Sundress Publications.
2018 Poetry Contest Judge, Fresno County Public Library.
2016 Poetry Contest Judge, Fresno County Public Library.
2014 Outgoing Chairperson, Contract Faculty Salary Committee. Ball State University.
Thesis Advisor, Honors College. Ball State University.
Panelist, To E, or Not to E: Journals in the 21st Century. AWP Conference.
Poetry Contest Judge, Uppercut Chapbook Award. Split Lip Magazine.
Literary Citizenship Guest Lecturer, Ball State University.
Independent Studies, Ball State University.
Judge, Senior Capstone Projects. DeVry University.
2013 Incoming Chairperson, Contract Faculty Salary Committee. Ball State University.
Thesis Advisor, Honors College. Ball State University.
Novel-Writing Guest Lecturer, Ball State University.
Panelist, Graduate School for Creative Writers FAQ. Ball State University.
Graduate Thesis Reader. Ball State University.
Independent Studies, Ball State University.
2012 Graduate Thesis Reader. Ball State University.
Member, Contract Faculty Steering Committee. Ball State University.
Member, Freshman Connections Program Committee. Ball State University.
Screenwriting Guest Lecturer, Ball State University.
Independent Studies, Ball State University. Columnist, THIS Literary Magazine.
2011 Counselor, Creative Writing Day Camp (grades 6-8). Northern Illinois University.
Guest Contributor, PoetSpeak.
Member, Freshman Connections Program Committee. Ball State University.
Poetry Contest Judge, Penscape. Ball State University.
Independent Studies, Ball State University.
2010 Debate Team Judge, Ball State University.
Member, Freshman Connections Program Committee. Ball State University.
Independent Studies, Ball State University.
2009 Contest Judge, Undergraduate Writers Gala. Ball State University.
Co-Organizer, Writers on the Road Literary Reading. Ball State University.
Member, Freshman Connections Program Committee. Ball State University.
Independent Studies, Ball State University.
2008 Judge, National Poetry Contest for the Poetry Society of New Hampshire.
Member, Freshman Connections Program Committee. Ball State University.
Independent Studies, Ball State University.
Consultant, Foreign Language Institute Writing Center, Yonsei University.
2007 Member, Freshman Connections Program Committee. Ball State University.
Online Writing Lab Tutor, Smarthinking.com.
2006 Writing Center Administrator. Southern Illinois University Carbondale.
Poetry Contest Judge, John A. Logan College.
Intern, Young Writers Conference. Southern Illinois University Carbondale.
2005 Graduate Mentor, Southern Illinois University Carbondale.
Textbook Evaluation Committee. Southern Illinois University Carbondale.
Intern, Young Writers Conference. Southern Illinois University Carbondale.
2004 Graduate Mentor, Southern Illinois University Carbondale.
Intern, Young Writers Conference. Southern Illinois University Carbondale.
Readings, Guest Lectures, & Interviews
2023 Reading, Palace Poetry Group 4/6
Guest Lecture, February Publishing Circle (with Diane Zinna) 2/16
Reading, Fig Tree Gallery. Fresno, CA 1/14
2022 Reading, Poets Respond Live podcast, Rattle 10/17
Reading and Lecture, Reentry Through the Arts. Fresno Metro Black Chamber of Commerce. Fresno, CA 8/13
Reading, Respite By the River Series. Fresno, CA 7/14
Reading and Lecture, Poetry & Pints. Fresno, CA 4/25
2021 Reading, Poetry on Sunday Series. Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center. 11/21
Reading, Jingletown Reading Series. 11/20
Reading, Glass Lyre Press. 10/8
Reading and Workshop, Wrightwood Arts Center (Rattle), Wrightwood, CA 9/19
Guest Lecture, Alpha Writers. Osage, IA 8/14
Creative Writing Camp, Northern Illinois University (Skype reading/lecture). Dekalb, IL 6/18
Pulling Up the Floorboards: Two Radical Approaches to Revising Poems, Indiana Writers Center (Zoom lecture/workshop) 5/4
Poets Respond Live podcast, Rattle 4/25
2020 Zoom Reading with Karen Weyant, Michael Meyerhofer, and Justin Hamm. 9/14
Second Tuesday Poetry, Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center (reading). 7/14
Creative Writing Camp, Northern Illinois University (Skype reading/lecture). Dekalb, IL 7/9
2019 Reading and Lecture, Poetry & Pints. Fresno, CA 11/24
Reading, Writers in Common. Southern Illinois University. Carbondale, IL 6/21
Reading. Muncie, IN 6/19
Reading, Words Against Hate II. Fresno, CA 2/28
2018 Reading, ArtHop. Fresno, CA. 11/01
Poet Laureate Presents (guest reading). Fresno, CA 9/9
Lit Fantastic (podcast reading/interview). 8/28
Fig Garden Library. Fresno, CA 7/26
Creative Writing Camp, Northern Illinois University (Skype reading/lecture). Dekalb, IL 7/25
Porterville College (reading/lecture). Porterville, CA 7/24
The Art of Poetry Writing Symposium. Fresno, CA 5/12
Pakatelas (radio interview/reading). 3/22
2017 Creative Writing Camp, Northern Illinois University (Skype reading/lecture). Dekalb, IL 7/26
2016 Community Writing Workshop, Politi Library. Fresno, CA 10/29
Reading, LitHop. Fresno, CA 4/23
Reading, Fresno Arts Council, Fresno, CA 1/7
2015 Reading and Interview, Out of Our Minds podcast. 10/10
Creative Writing Camp, Northern Illinois University (Skype reading/lecture). Dekalb, IL 7/28
Kellogg Writers Series, University of Indianapolis. 2/26
Online Interview, Pine Hills Review. 10/24
Guest Reader, Long Beach Poetry Festival. 10/18
2014 Guest Lecturer and Reader, Rhino Poetry Forum. Evanston, IL 6/22
2013 Borderlands Project: Western Reading. Swope Art Museum, Terre Haute, IN 11/1
Georgia Southern University (Skype reading/lecture). Statesboro, GA 10/31
Creative Writing Camp, Northern Illinois University (Skype reading/lecture). Dekalb, IL 7/31
Young Writers Conference, SIU. Carbondale, IL 6/27
College of St. Rose. Albany, NY 3/28
SUNY Adirondack. Queensbury, NY 3/27
2012 The Cup, sponsored by the Midwest Writers Workshop. Muncie, IN 4/28
Savvy Verse and Wit, Guest Blog. 4/6
2011 River Styx at Duff’s Reading Series. St. Louis, MO 11/21
Guest Lecture: “Writing Poetry in the 21st Century.” Just Poets Group. Bristol Hills, NY 10/15
Lift Bridge Book Shop. Brockport, NY 10/14
St. John Fisher College. Rochester, NY 10/13
Young Writers Conf., Southern Illinois University. Carbondale, IL 6/24
2010 Writers’ Community, Ball State University. Muncie, IN 11/9
Guest Lecture: “Diagnosing Free Verse.” Writers’ Center of Indiana. Indianapolis, IN 10/23
Online Reading and Discussion. Splinter Generation. 6/8
Guest Lecturer and Reader, Rhino Poetry Forum. Evanston, IL 2/28
2009 Writers’ Community, Ball State University. Muncie, IN 10/26
Young Writers Conference, Southern Illinois University. Carbondale, IL 6/25
Steel Toe Books. Bowling Green, KY 5/12
2008 Devil’s Kitchen Literary Festival. Southern Illinois University. Carbondale, IL 10/25
Georgia Southern University. Statesboro, GA 4/4
Valdosta State University. Valdosta, GA 4/3
Columbus State University. Columbus, GA 4/2
Macon State College. Macon, GA 4/1
Mercer University. Macon, GA 3/31
Berry College. Mount Berry, GA 2/22
University of Georgia. Athens, GA 2/21
Newton Campus, Georgia Perimeter College. Newton, GA 2/20
Decatur Campus, Georgia Perimeter College. Decatur, GA 2/20
Lawrenceville Campus, Georgia Perimeter College. Lawrenceville, GA 2/19
Clarkston Campus, Georgia Perimeter College. Clarkston, GA 2/19
Brenau University. Gainesville, GA 2/18
2007 Alumni Reading, Southern Illinois University. Carbondale, IL 3/23
2006 Guest Lecturer/Reader, John A. Logan Writers Guild. Carbondale, IL 9/9
2005 Rosetta Stone Bookstore. Carbondale, IL 11/18
Southeast Missouri State University. Cape Girardeau, MO 10/6
Hungry Young Writers Series, Duff’s Restaurant. St. Louis, MO 8/15
Longbranch Coffee House. Young Writers Benefit, Carbondale, IL 6/3
2004 Longbranch Coffee House, Young Writers Benefit. Carbondale, IL 5/24
Afternoon Reading Series, Southern Illinois University. Carbondale, IL 4/8 & 9/9