Kevin Rabas



Kevin Rabas is an American poet, professor and jazz musician. He is the author of two collections of poetry including Lisa's Flying Electric Guitar. He is also the co-director of the Creative Writing Program at Emporia State University, co-edits a literary magazine, and was the winner of the Langston Hughes Award for Poetry.

Education
Rabas received a Ph.D. in English from the University of Kansas in 2007; his dissertation is titled Against Gravity: Last Road Trip (poems) and Sidewalk Drum (a play): A Creative Dissertation. He also received an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from Goddard College in 2002, an M.A. in English from Kansas State University with an emphasis in Creative Writing in 1998, and a B.A. in English with an emphasis in Creative Writing and Journalism from the University of Missouri at Kansas City in 1995.

Writing Career
His poetry and short stories have been published or are scheduled to be published in I-70 Review, Connecticut Review, Eclipse, Hawaii Pacific Review, Spindrift, Outsider Writers, Thorny Locust, Coal City Review, Sheridan Edwards Review, Laurel Review, Event, Cannoli Pie, Present Magazine, Cottonwood Review, Mid-America Review, seveneightfive, Nimrod and other publications.

As a playwright, Rabas's work includes "Elizabeth," a full production staged at the North Park Playwright Festival in San Diego, Oct. 1—3, 2010; full production of "Elves," EMU Theatre, Lawrence Arts Center, May 29—30 and June 5—6, 2009; and publication of "After the Head Injury: A Dialogue" in Kansas English. His creative non-fiction story, "Play Out," was published in Jazz Ambassador Magazine. He co-directed a short documentary, "Don Jaffe: Jazz Poet," directed and filmed by Max McCoy for Kansas City Filmmakers Jubilee in 2008. He has written numerous reviews, interviews and profiles of writers and musicians.

Editing work
Dr. Rabas has served as co-editor of Flint Hills Review since 2008. He edited several books of poetry and fiction published by Woodley Press, including Burn by Kathleen Johnson in 2008 and Ghost Stories of the American West by Denise Low in 2010. He also edited the forthcoming Fugitive Histories by Harley Elliott and Certain Dawn by Tasha Haas.

Music
In addition to teaching and writing, he performs regularly with musicians, combining his poetry with jazz and funk music. A trained and experienced jazz musician, specializing mostly in percussion and drumming, Rabas cites music as a constant source of inspiration to his poetry.

An experienced jazz musician, Rabas cites music as a frequent influence on his work. His poetry recordings include Last Road Trip (2002), a jazz poetry CD featuring Rabas reading original poetry and drumming, with Josh Schlar on saxophone.

Recognition
Rabas's most award-winning book was a collection of poetry entitled Lisa's Flying Electric Piano. The book won the Nelson Poetry Book Award from the Kansas Authors Club and the 2010 Kansas Notable Book Award from the Great Plains Center for the Book. The book was a finalist in the Sr. Madeleine Kisner Prize in Poetry from Newman University. Three of his poems ("Bird's Horn," "Artt Frank's Speed Bag" and "Eden, or Lucas, Kansas") were nominated for the Pushcard Prize by Brian Daldorph of the Coal City Review. He won the Langston Hughes Poetry Award from the Lawrence Arts Center, the Kansas Voices Award in 2005 and 2007, and the New Voice Award from the Salina Poetry Series in 2003.