Michael Baldwin was born and reared in Fort Worth, Texas. Although he originally wanted to be an astronaut, the eyes weren't quite 20 twice. He might have been a tennis pro, but poetry proved more lucrative. He is also a professional jazz clarinetist manqué. However, he's pretty sure his great grandfather was the Lakota mystic warrior, Crazy Horse, and will be glad to tell you why over a couple of beers.

Mike holds a BA in Political Science, a Masters in Library Science, and a Masters in Public Administration. He was director of the Montgomery County and the Benbrook Public Libraries. He has also taught American Government and was a regional supervisor of the 2000 census.

Mike's publications include:

A Slam Poetry Manual, published by the American Library Association in 2003.

Scapes (landscapes, mindscapes, heartscapes, soulscapes), winner of the Edwin Eakin Poetry Book Award in 2011.

Counting Backward From Infinity, science-based poetry, winner of the Morris Memorial Chapbook Award 2012.

Murder Music, a mystery thriller, published in 2014, and a 2nd edition in 2018.

Passing Strange, science-fiction and weird short stories, 2015.

Surpassing Strange, science-fiction and weird short stories, 2016.

Beyond Passing Strange, 3rd volume in the Passing Strange series, 2018.

More Than Passing Strange, 4th volume in the Passing Strange series, 2019.

Chronicles of Frank, some "short tall tales of Texas ranch life," published in 2016.

Lone Star Heart, a book of Texas poetry, 2016 by Lamar University Literary Press, nominated for Poetry Book of the Year from Texas Institute of Letters.

Space Cat, a children's space science adventure chapter book, 2017.

Birds, Beasts, & Blossoms, 50 short poems and the Asian art images that inspired them, 2018, & 2nd larger edition, 2021.

The Quantum Uncertainty of Love: Poetry of the Entanglement of Science, Philosophy, and Spirit (Shanti Arts Press, 2019).

A Few Bricks Shy of a Chevrolet: A book of weird flash plays (Inner Eye Books, 2019).

The Sublime Landscape and Beyond, Mike's poetry with paintings by Johnny Bowen (Shanti Arts Press, 2021).

Neanderthal Gita, an exotic, high adventure, action thriller (Atmosphere Press, 2022).

Mike resides in Benbrook, Texas, where he writes, coaches youth tennis, and provides seminars on the neuroscience of poetry, creativity, and self-publishing. Visit his author's webpage: www.JMBaldwin.com.