Douglas Tedards was born in Greenville, South Carolina, and studied English and philosophy at Vanderbilt and the University of Florida before moving to California. He is now a retired Assistant Dean and former Associate Professor of English in the College at University of the Pacific in Stockton, CA. At Pacific he directed various writing programs and taught American poetry, California literature, writing in the disciplines, and first-year composition. The poetry of Wallace Stevens, William Carlos Williams, and Frank O’Hara has influenced his own writing over the years.