John Blackard is a graduate of the University of North Carolina with advanced degrees in English Studies and Library Information Studies. He has three books of poems in print (October Queen, 2007; House-Painting on Liberty Road, 2008; Pulling Apart, 2010) and a book about the golden age of paperback publishing (Vintage Paperback Sources, 2000). He has received Fulbright and National Endowment for the Humanities fellowships. He lives in Portland with his wife, the poet Valentina Gnup, recently served as associate editor of Poetry Northwest, and creates hand-made books and broadsides in his basement man-cave. For more information, go to www.johnablackard.com.