About

James has worked as a naval officer, deputy sheriff, high school English teacher, professor of education, and administrator in both public schools and universities.  Recipient of two Fulbright grants, he served as a visiting scholar at the University of Limerick in Ireland and at the National Chung Cheng University in Taiwan.  His academic publications included three books, as well as scores of articles in professional journals -- all on various topics in education.  Since retirement he has turned his attention to poetry and has published six poetry chapbooks, with individual poems appearing in literary journals and anthologies in the USA, UK, and Ireland. Recipient of numerous awards for his poetry, his collection Long Journey Home was named winner of the 2019 Charles Dickson Chapbook Contest sponsored by the Georgia Poetry Society.  He has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, Best of the Net, and the Modern Language Association's Conference on Christianity and Literature Book of the Year.  James divides his time between his home in Muncie, Indiana, and Mae Hong Son, Thailand, where he volunteers as an education consultant for the Jesuit Refugee Service.

Awards for Poetry Chapbooks:

• Long Journey Home: Poems on Classical Myths was named winner of the 2019 Charles Dickson Chapbook Competition sponsored by the Georgia Poetry Society.

• Stations of the Cross was named First Honorable Mention in the 2008 Open Chapbook Contest sponsored by Finishing Line Books and subsequently nominated for the 2009 Modern Language Association Conference on Christianity and Literature Book of the Year.

Awards for Individual Poems:

• "Why I Prefer Mornings to Walk in the Woods" received first place in the Hoosier Heritage category of the 2022 Poetry Society of Indiana Contest.

• "Of Theory" received second place in the Nobel Poets category of the 2022 Poetry Society of Indiana Contest.

• "Ode to Old Baseball Equipment" received second place in the ode to common objects category of the 2022 Poets and Patrons, Inc., contest.

• "Rivers of Hades" received first place in the sonnet/villanelle category of the 2021 Poetry Society of Indiana Contest.

• "Flight" received first place in the nature category of the 2021 Poets and Patrons, Inc., contest.

• "Morrning on Soi Charoen Krung 85, Near Wat Worachanyawas, Bangkok," received second place in the travel/foreign country category of the 2021 Poets and Patrons, Inc., contest.

• “Isaac Returns to the Mountain” received first place in the free verse category of the 2020 Illinois State Poetry Society contest.

• “El Camino de Santiago” received first place in the Noble Poets category of the 2020 Poetry Society of Indiana contest.

• “Civil War in Myanmar” received second place in the wild card category of the 2020 Poetry Society of Indiana contest.

• “Tonight There Are No Stars” received honorable mention in the Debra Sue Lynn award category of the 2020 Poetry Society of Indiana contest.

• "That Holy Verge" received first place in the myths category of 2019 Poets and Patrons, Inc., Contest. 

• "Isaac Aloft" received second place in the free verse category of the 2019 Poets and Patrons, Inc., contest.

• "I Sing in Praise of Boxscores" received special recognition in the formal verse category of the 2019 Poets and Patrons, Inc., contest.

• "Daedalus Laments Icarus" received first place in the speculative verse category of the 2018 Poets and Patrons, Inc., contest.

• "Oedipus Begins Therapy" received first place in the formal verse category of the 2018 Poets and Patrons, Inc., contest.

• "The Adoption" received honorable mention in the free verse category of the 2018 Poets and Patrons, Inc., contest.

• "Summer Solstice on the West Coast of Ireland" received first honorable mention in the nature category of the 2019 Poets and Patrons, Inc., contest., and subsequently nominated by the editor of Flying Island for "Best of the Net" in 2020.

• "Rewrites" received Edgar Bowers Prize in the 2013 Georgia Poetry Society contest.

• "The Color of Prayer" received Founders' Award Prize in the 2013 Georgia Poetry Society contest.

• "A Visitor While Camping in the Desert" received honorable mention in the Mnemosyne award category of the 2013 Georgia Poetry Society contest.