Tim Stafford is a public school teacher, poet, and storyteller from Lyons, IL. He is the editor of the Learn Then Burn anthology series.

“Blunt, hilarious, and heartfelt, Tim Stafford's debut collection is a knock-out—a sweet, sober, and hard-won lesson on staying authentic.”—Cristin O'Keefe Aptowicz, author of Dr. Mutter’s Marvels“This collection riots with narrative and coming of age in a laugh and music-filled tour of Chicago.”—Peter Kahn, author of Little Kings“Tim Stafford’s poems hit you like a punch in the arm from a best friend, simultaneously violent and funny.”—Joaquín Zihuatanejo, author of Arsonist“While I was never a young punk growing up in the suburbs of Chicago, reading Tim Stafford’s Patron Saint brought many smiles to my face, returning me to the sweetness of the open-heartedness of it all, of what the world can offer us, small as we may have been.”—Anis Mojgani, Oregon Poet Laureate