Lester Smith

Lester Smith is a man with a mission. He just doesn’t know what it is, yet.

That makes it difficult to write a biography, of course. A story without a goal is just events with nothing in common except the person who experienced them. Maybe we can find a theme in a tale from Les’s early life.

In second grade, Les won a yo-yo contest. Actually, “won” is an understatement. He devoted himself to the yo-yo for weeks, scouring yo-yo books for their secrets, scrutinizing Roy Acuff’s yo-yo tricks on the Grand Ol’ Opry, and putting together his own yo-yo routine. The day of the contest, little Les put on such a yo-yo exhibition that the other children refused to compete, leaving him to win the grand prize by default: a plastic badminton set from Kmart. (In life, it’s the effort, of course, not the payoff.)

Les went on to graduate magna cum laude, Honors in English, University Honors Scholar, from Illinois State University. Next, as a full-time game designer, he garnered a trio of Origins Awards. Then in educational publishing, he contributed to many award-winning books. In 2004, he began publishing poetry, with two Wisconsin state awards immediately that year. He still doesn’t know what to be when he grows up, but he thinks it may have something to do with writing.

Sites: LesterSmith.com; PopcornPress.com; PoemTee.com; HobbyHearse.com