Adam Day


Adam Day is an American poet and critic. He is the author of Left-Handed Wolf, Model of a City in Civil War, and one chapbook of poetry, Badger, Apocrypha. He is also editor of the anthology, Divine Orphans of the Poetic Project.

Life and work

Day was born and raised primarily in Louisville's working class south end. He graduated from Eckerd College, and from New York University with an MFA in creative writing.
He is currently director of the Baltic Writing Residency, "which was founded in 2008 in an effort to nurture the literary arts by each year offering individuals a month-long residency in Stockholm, Sweden; a week-long residency at a historic croft cottage in Brora, Scotland; three months at Bernheim Arboretum and Research Forest, just outside Louisville, Kentucky."
Day also publishes , an online and print journal of art and culture, which is guest-edited by a changing lineup of writers, thinkers and artists.
He has taught English and creative writing at Earlham College, New York University, Bellarmine University, the University of Houston, the University of Kentucky, and elsewhere.
Day's work "creates a liminal space wherein references to strange historical anecdotes share a stage with more introspective and personal utterances." In 2011, Day was selected by David Lehman for the PEN Emerging Writers Award, citing "Day is unafraid to conjoin historical and fictional personages for effects that startle and provoke, as in 'Combine,' in which Stalin, Goya, Queen Anne, and Tennessee Williams are among the cast of characters. Impressive, too, is the poem in which Day juxtaposes excerpts 'From an Interview with Kenzaburo Oe, with Stage Directions from Synge's Riders to the Sea.' This poet's technical prowess, adventurousness, and wide-ranging curiosity give pleasure now and the promise of a great deal more to come."

Honors and awards