David A. Hecker earned a Ph.D. in American Studies, an interdisciplinary program including American History and American Literature. He created and coordinated a program in American Cultural Studies for undergraduates. He also co-founded and directed a writers' conference that included an annual publication titled Signals. He currently lives on Bainbridge Island, Washington where he participates in local writers' groups and has written a collection of poems, stories, a memoir and a historical novel.