George Looney is the author of numerous books and chapbooks of poetry, several of which have won national awards, a novel, a novella, and a collection of stories, all three of which won national awards. He is Distinguished Professor of English and Creative Writing at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, where he has taught for over twenty years and where he founded the BFA in Creative Writing Program. He serves as Editor of the literary journal Lake Effect and Translation Editor of Mid-American Review, and he was co-founder, with the poet Philip Terman, of the original Chautauqua Writers' Festival. His most recent works include ODE TO THE EARTH IN TRANSLATION (Red Mountain Press, 2021), THE WORST MAY BE OVER (Elixir Press, 2020), THE ITINERATE CIRCUS NEW AND SELECTED POEMS 1995-2020 (Red Mountain Press, 2020), and WHAT LIGHT BECOMES: THE TURNER VARIATIONS (Red Mountain Press, 2019).