John Lent was born in Antigonish, Nova Scotia in 1948; he grew up in Edmonton, Alberta. He studied at the University of Alberta from 1965-71, concentrating in his graduate studies on Modernist art movements and experiments with form. He was taught by the noted Canadian novelist, Sheila Watson, and the Canadian playwright, Wilfred Watson. Lent's thesis was on the plays of T.S. Eliot: an analysis of "the schizophrenic adjustment we all have to make to the demands of Western society--a society that imposes material, social and spiritual roles." Lent pursued Doctoral studies at York University on Malcolm Lowry and the issue of subjectivity. For the last thirty years he has taught English literature and Creative Writing at a number of universities: Alberta, Notre Dame (Nelson), Regina, and Okanagan University College. Lent currently is retired now and lives in Vernon, British Columbia. He has published seven books of poetry, three books of fiction and one book of non-fiction (with Robert Kroetsch). He is working on a novel he'll never finish called The Kitchen Sessions.