Biography

Dr. Richard L. Taylor is a professor of English at Kentucky State University in Frankfort, Kentucky where he teaches English and creative writing. Raised in Louisville, he holds a J.D. from the University of Louisville and a Ph.D. from the University of Kentucky. A former Poet Laureate of the Commonwealth of Kentucky (1999-2001), he is the author of six collections of poetry, two historical novels, and several works of nonfiction and history. He and his wife own Poor Richard's Books in Frankfort, KY.

Taylor's most recent book is Sue Mundy: A Novel of the Civil War (2006), a fictionalized treatment of Marcellus Jerome Clarke -- Kentucky's notorious Confederate guerrilla -- published by the University Press of Kentucky as part of their Kentucky Voices series. He has recently completed Rail Splitter, a collection of poems based on Lincoln's life that will be published by Larkspur Press in the fall of 2009.