ETSU’s Poet in Residence is Dr. Jesse Graves, an avid reader and writer.

Jesse Graves

Graves is from Sharps Chapel, Tennessee, a small town about 40 miles north of Knoxville. He earned his bachelor’s degrees in English and philosophy from the University of Tennessee, his Master of Fine Arts degree in poetry from Cornell University in New York and his doctorate from the University of Tennessee.

Graves was first introduced to East Tennessee State University when he attended the Southern Appalachian Student Conference on Literature on campus while he was in his undergrad at the University of Tennessee. There, he presented his paper and received an award, while also meeting with professors from the department. It just so happened that ETSU had a position open, and since his family is from this region, it seemed like the perfect option for him. In 2009, he began his journey with ETSU.

“I was always a very creative kid,” Graves said. “I loved writing songs, and my mom told all of these great stories, which made me always look up to her. I also loved reading. I had a great professor at LMU, and it is there that I realized I could write and that I could tell stories, but most of all, with some great teachers encouraging me over the years, I realized my love for writing had been developing for years.”

Graves had been working in a record store in Nashville, which he said, besides his current job, was the best fit possible for him. It doesn’t hurt that he also met his wife there.

Graves’ says the reason why he loves poetry more than fiction is the compression. He loves the musical element that poetry has, which comes full circle to his childhood love of music. He says rock-and-roll songs seemed to especially have an impact on him.

Graves currently has two works that are soon to be released: a collection of interviews with one of his past professors titled “Conversations with Robert Morgan” and a collection of poems titled “Merciful Days.” These titles are available for preorder through University Press of Mississippi and Mercer University Press respectively.

Author