Carolyn Hembree is the author of three poetry collections: For Today (LSU Press, 2024); Rigging a Chevy into a Time Machine and Other Ways to Escape a Plague (Trio House Press, 2016), winner of the Trio Award and the Rochelle Ratner Memorial Award; and Skinny (Kore Press, 2012).

Her poems appear in Beloit Poetry Journal, Colorado Review, Copper Nickel, Ninth Letter, Poetry Daily, The Southern Review, and other publications. She received a 2016-2017 ATLAS grant from the Louisiana Board of Regents and has also received grants and fellowships from PEN, the Louisiana Division of the Arts, and the Southern Arts Federation.

Carolyn holds an M.F.A in Creative Writing from the University of Arizona and a B.A. in English and Theatre from Birmingham-Southern College. Born in Bristol, Tennessee, she has lived in New Orleans since 2001. An associate professor in the University of New Orleans M.F.A. program, she was awarded the university’s 2017 Excellence in Teaching Award. Carolyn serves as poetry editor of Bayou Magazine.