C W Hawes is a bureaucrat by day and a poet by night. He regards as his Muses Shelley, Whitman, Basho, Issa, Ishikawa Takuboku, the Imagists, and Millay. His favorite living poet is Wendell Berry.

He has had more than 250 poems published in print and online in the USA, Canada, Phillipines, and the UK since 2002; over half of which have been in his favorite form, tanka.

He was chosen to be the featured poet twice on Poetic Voices; was guest editor of a Japanese-form issue of The MAG, which appeared Summer 2004; and was a winner in the 2004 Tanka Splendor contest.

He lives in the mid-western USA with his wife, daughter, dog, and cat.