Jared Smith was born Jared Russell William Smith in Cleveland in 1950, and raised from the age of 5 in White Plains, NY. From the age of 12, he spent most of his free time in Greenwich Village, where he grew to know and spend time with many of the New York poets of the time, including William Packard, Robert Hazel, M.L. Rosenthal, Gregory Corso, Don Lev, Galway Kinnell, and many others. After studying The Great Books Program at St. John's College in New Mexico from '68-69, he quit school and hitchhiked around the country, gathering a feeling for the variety of lives one can lead and working odd jobs, sleeping on park benches, and riding with motorcycle gangs. After returning to New York in 1970, he earned a BA cum laude and MA in Literature and Poetry from New York University, while establishing a reputation as a member of the New York Underground. During this period, he joined first the editorial screening committee and then the Board of Directors of The New York Quarterly under William Packard, as well as serving as coordinator of readings at both The Cafe Feenjon and The Basement Coffee Shop.
During the time he was enrolled at NYU, hundreds of his poems began to appear in national literary journals. His first book of poetry, Song Of The Blood: An Epic, was published by Harry Smith of The Smith Press in 1983 to considerable acclaim. Dark Wing: Book II of the epic was published by Charred Norton Publishing in New York the following year. Parts of both books were adapted to stage and modern dance at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, and he had several coast to coast interviews and readings on National Public Radio. It was expected that he would continue to climb quickly up the literary ladder.
In 1986, however, he was forced by economic factors to leave New York and further a career in the energy industry while continuing his poetry. Although his writing continued, he published very little for the next 20 years. With only his two degrees in poetry, he served as vice president of The Energy Bureau, associate director of Institute of Gas Technology, Advisor to several White House Committees as well as other government agencies under The Clinton Administration, and Special Appointee to Argonne National Laboratory. The technical training and administrative experience he gained during these years undoubtedly strongly influenced his later writing.
In 1999, Jared left Argonne to resume writing poetry, essays, and literary commentary on a fulltime scale. His poetry is strongly organic in form and highly imagistic and experiential. Opposed to the academics as being too narrow, he has published detailed analysis of the works of such writers as C.K. Williams, Ted Kooser, and W.S. Merwin, as well as lesser known poets. His poetry is generally nonlinear, organic work with a strong transcendental quality but is infused with a strong knowledge of technical matter and natural detail. It is often mystical in nature, sometimes mythical. His work has appeared in hundreds of U.S. literary magazines, as well as 8 foreign countries, including, in translation Beijing, Hong Kong, and Taiwan.
The father of two grown children, he lives with his wife in Lisle, Illinois. He is currently poetry editor of Trail & Timberline in Colorado, immediate past president of Poets & Patrons in Chicago, a member of The Advisory Board of The New York Quarterly, a member of the Academy of American Poets, as well as the Illinois State Poetry Society.
He travels around the country regularly doing road trips, workshops, and readings.