Clark Crouch

Clark Crouch is an award winning poet and performing artist. He is the author of ten books, seven of which are devoted to traditional western and cowboy poetry, and is the editor of four poetry anthologies featuring more than fifty other poets. Two of his books, Western Images and Views from the Saddle were winners of the Will Rogers Medallion Award for Cowboy Poetry in 2008 and 2010 and several have been finalists in annual western poetry competitions sponsored by the Western Music Association. His poetry has appeared in Chopin with Cherries (a poetic anthology), Thirteenth, Open Range Magazine, and The Country Register as well as on numerous literary and western websites. Clark's viewpoints and biases were shaped by the Great Depression and droughts in Nebraska where he worked as youthful cowboy in the 1930s and early 1940s, earning his own way from the time he was twelve years of age. Although four of his books contain free and blank verse, his preference is for traditional poetry with consistent meter and true rhymes as appeared in poems written and recited by western poets in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He has performed throughout the northwest at county fairs, community events, cowboy gatherings, retirement homes, and a variety of other venues.