Cyd Adams

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Cydney W. "Cyd" Adams (1949-2005) was an American poet and academic. Known for his masterful command of imagery and language in his works, his writing is sometimes looked upon as a successor to the work of Dylan Thomas, who was one of Adams' chief influences. Adams portrayed his background as an East Texas farmer and his passion for hard physical labor into his writing. Adams had a masterful, elegant way of writing about the trials and tribulations of the common working man. His depictions of East Texas and its people earned him the title of Poet Laureate of East Texas in 2001, and many of his poems are acknowledged as some of the best poetry written in any language. Adams was also a professor of English and literature at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas for nearly 30 years, also his alma mater. His passion for teaching and his friendships with many of his colleagues were also recurring themes in his work.

Much of Adams' work has been featured in literary magazines and in anthologies, and in the late 1990s, Adams began a creative partnership with his close friend and colleague Charles Jones, an art professor at SFA. The partnership resulted in the award-winning book "Blackjack Bull Pine and Post-Oak Glade." Some of his other books include "On the Perimeter" and "The Labor That a Man Takes." Adams died in May of 2005, in Nacogdoches.