Poet Laura Walker grew up in rural North Carolina and now lives in Berkeley, California. She is the author of rimertown/ an atlas (UC Press, 2008) and swarm lure (Battery Press, 2004), and her work has appeared in various journals, including 26, Five Fingers Review, Xantippe, and Bird Dog. She has taught creative writing at San Francisco State University, UC Berkeley Extension, and University of San Francisco. She received her MFA from San Francisco State University in 2002.