E. Martin Pedersen left his hometown of San Francisco, California, in 1978 for a long hitch-hiking trip around the Mediterranean region, ending up in Messina, Sicily, where he still lives. He teaches English at the local university and has published numerous academic articles on American Studies. His poetry has appeared in Lyrical Passion (Best of the Best Haiku Award, 2012), Paper Wasp, Bear Creek Haiku, and Bay Area Poetstalk.

Martin is a 2011 alum of the Squaw Valley Community of Writers. To relax, Martin plays the banjo, follows baseball, takes summer walks on the PCT and blogs at www.emartinpedersen.com.