Thomas Burke Bishop, Jr., known professionally as Junior Burke, is an American fiction writer, songwriter and (former) educator.

Fiction

Junior Burke's debut novel, "Something Gorgeous" was published in 2005. In 2005, Burke founded the online literary journal, ''Not Enough Night'' and served as Executive Editor until he chose to discontinue publication in 2014. Two of the interviews Burke conducted for the journal were reprinted: Edward Sanders in "Beats at Naropa" (2009) and "Conversations With Gary Snyder" (2017). "A Thousand Eyes", an eco-horror novel, was published in 2018 in the UK and US by Cosmic Egg Books, an imprint of John Hunt Ltd. In 2020, "The Cold Last Swim" was published by Gibson House Press, one of five finalists for a Sidewise Award, the annual prize for works of

Alternate History Alternate history (also referred to as alternative history, allohistory, althist, or simply A.H.) is a subgenre of speculative fiction in which one or more historical events have occurred but are resolved differently than in actual history. As ...

. The short story "The Evan Price Signature Model" was included in the May 2021 anthology "Collectibles" edited by

Lawrence Block Lawrence Block (born June 24, 1938) is an American crime writer best known for two long-running New York-set series about the recovering alcoholic P.I. Matthew Scudder and the gentleman burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr. Block was named a Grand Ma ...

, published by

Subterranean Press Subterranean Press is a small press publisher in Burton, Michigan. Subterranean is best known for publishing genre fiction, primarily Horror fiction, horror, suspense and dark mystery, fantasy, and science fiction. In addition to publishing novel ...

. Burke's novel, "Buddha Was a Cowboy", was published by Gibson House Press in September 2022 and was a finalist for the Chanticleer International Mark Twain Book Award in the category of Humor and Satire.

Songwriter

Junior Burke's original recordings include "While You Were Gone" (2007) "Spot of Time" (2018) and the EP "Nothin' But" (2021). He also contributed selections to the compilations “Harry’s House” Volumes I (2012) and II (2014)

Educator

In 2002, for

Naropa University Naropa University is a private university in Boulder, Colorado, United States. Founded in 1974 by Tibetan Buddhist teacher Chögyam Trungpa, it is named after the 11th-century Indian Buddhist sage Naropa, an abbot of Nalanda. The university ...

, Burke designed and implemented a highly successful low residency MFA degree in

Creative Writing Creative writing is any writing that goes beyond the boundaries of normal professional, journalistic, academic, or technical forms of literature, typically identified by an emphasis on craft and technique, such as narrative structure, character ...

. After three years of directing that program, he was tapped to be Chair of Naropa's

Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics Jack may refer to: Places * Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community * Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community * Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas People and fictional characters * Jack (given name), a male given name, in ...

Boulder, Colorado Boulder is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule city in Boulder County, Colorado, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 108,250 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the most ...

, serving from January 2006 to June 2010. In May 2008, Burke was the recipient of Naropa's President's Award for "extraordinary dedication and service" throughout that academic year. He remained at Naropa until 2020, at which time he informed the university he would no longer be serving on its faculty, deciding to focus exclusively on creative writing.

References

External links

Burke's Official faculty page at Naropa
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burke, Junior Living people Naropa University faculty Writers from Boulder, Colorado American male composers 21st-century American composers Songwriters from Colorado Year of birth missing (living people) Songwriters from Illinois 21st-century American male musicians American male songwriters