Joseph Hutchison is Colorado's Poet Laureate and the author of eleven collections of poetry in addition to "Thread of the Real", which include "The Rain at Midnight", "Bed of Coals" (winner of the 1994 Colorado Poetry Award), "House of Mirrors", "The Undersides of Leaves", and the Colorado Governor's Award volume "Shadow-Light". Born and raised in Denver, Colorado, Hutchison teaches graduate level writing courses at the University of Denver's University College. He lives with his wife Melody Madonna in Indian Hills, a small community in the foothills southwest of Denver.