Kathryn Stripling Byer has published four previous books of poetry, including Catching Light, winner of the Southeast Booksellers Association Award for Poetry. Among her other accolades are the Lamont Poetry Selection for Wildwood Flower, the Roanoke-Chowan Poetry Prize and the Brockman-Campbell Award for Black Shawl, a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship, and appointment as Poet Laureate of North Carolina. She lives in Cullowhee, located in the western mountains of the state.