Andrea Gibson

Andrea Gibson was born on August 13, 1975, in Calais, Maine. They are the author of seven albums and seven poetry books, including You Better Be Lightning (Button Poetry, 2021); Lord of the Butterflies (Button Poetry, 2018); Take Me With You (Penguin, 2018); Pansy (Write Bloody Publishing, 2015); The Madness Vase (Write Bloody Publishing, 2011); and Pole Dancing to Gospel Hymns (Write Bloody Publishing, 2010). They are the coauthor, with Megan Falley, of the prose work How Poetry Can Change Your Heart (Chronicle Books, 2019). They also edited We Will Be Shelter: Poems for Survival (Write Bloody Publishing, 2014), an anthology that addresses social justice issues.

In 2008, Gibson won the first Women of the World Poetry Slam. They are a two-time winner of the Independent Publisher’s Award, in 2021 and 2019, respectively, and a three-time Goodreads Choice Awards finalist. In 2023, they were appointed poet laureate of Colorado. In 2024, they received an Academy of American Poets Laureate Fellowship. 

Gibson lived in Longmont, Colorado, until their death on July 14, 2025.