Heather Derr-Smith was born in Dallas, Texas in 1971. She spent most of her childhood in Fredericksburg, Virginia. She earned her BA in Art History at the University of Virginia where she took poetry workshops with Charles Wright, Rita Dove, and Greg Orr.
Mark Doty. Charles Wright. Wolfgang Tilmans. Sylvia Plath. Mahmoud Darwish. Adonis. Emily Dickinson. Louis Gluck. Sonic Youth. Mary Szybist. Sam Witt. Amy Woolard. D.A. Powell. Ray Nelson. Bosnian Folktales. Palestinian Birds. The Sound of Music.