Barbara Fant is the author of three poetry collections, Paint, Inside Out (2010), Mouths of Garden (2022), and Joy in the Belly of a Riot (2025). Her work has been featured in Electric Literature, McNeese Review, Button Poetry, and Def Poetry Jam, amongst others. She is a Women of the World Poetry Slam Finalist, a Healing Centered Engagement specialist, and a Recording Academy member. She holds a BA in Literature, a Master of Theology, and an MFA in Poetry. For over 15 years, she has led healing-informed poetry workshops for youth and adults who are incarcerated and survivors of domestic violence. A recipient of the 2025-2026 Poetry Coalition Fellowship through the Academy of American Poets, she now serves at Beyond Baroque as the Poetry Coalition Fellow in Communications and Development. She believes in the healing power of the arts.