James E Cherry is a poet, fiction writer, professor, literary activist and impresario. He is the author of four books of poetry, two novels, and a collection of short fiction. He has been nominated for an NAACP Image Award, a Lillian Smith Book Award, and a Next Generation Indie Book Award. His writing has been published in journals and anthologies, both in the U.S. and internationally. Cherry has an MFA in creative writing from the University of Texas at El Paso and resides in Tennessee with his wife, Tammy.