Poet. Writer. Martian.

Richard Leis writes poems and stories that have been published in The Deadlands, F&SF, Nightmare, Star*Line, Weird Fiction Quarterly, and other publications and anthologies.

Press Kit

Press & Interviews

Extended Bio (379 words)

RICHARD LEIS (pronounced LEES and “lease”) (he/him) has written poems and stories that have been published in The Deadlands, Eye to the Telescope, Harpy Hybrid Review, Impossible Archetype, Larina’s Lit Lounge, Laurel Review, The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Manzano Mountain Review, The Molotov Cocktail, Nightmare, Star*Line, the Timberline Review, and in anthologies from Brigids Gate Press (Poisoned Soup for the Macabre, Depraved, and Insane: Nostalgic Terrors), Crone Girls Press (Coppice & Brake and Stories We Tell After Midnight, Volume 3), House of Zolo (Journal of Speculative Literature, Volume 1), and Weird Fiction Quarterly (Folk Horror, Road Trip, Masquerade, Ghosts, The King in Yellow, and Artificial Intelligence) His poem “After ‘Wave, North Shore of Oahu’ Photograph” published in the Timberline Review was runner-up for The Paulann Petersen Award for Poetry in 2024. His poem “We Carry Our Ghosts to the Stars,” published in Star*Line, was a finalist for the 2025 Rhysling Awards. His poem “La fantasmas en Su Boca,” published in Poisoned Soup for the Macabre, Depraved, and Insane: Nostalgic Terrors, was a finalist for the 2026 Rhysling Award. His poetry has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize. He was a finalist for the Tucson Festival of Books Literary Awards in 2018 and 2021.

Startled me and a painting of Pennywise the clown in my room at The Clown Motel in Tonopah, Nevada.

Richard is a member of the Horror Writers Association (HWA), the Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers Association (SFWA), the Science Fiction & Fantasy Poetry Association (SFPA), and Willamette Writers. In February 2025, he joined the Willamette Writers Board and now serves as board secretary. In June 2025, he was elected secretary of the HWA Oregon Chapter.

He holds degrees in Creative Writing and English from the University of Arizona and honed his craft in workshops offered by the University of Arizona Poetry Center, The Writers Studio, the Tucson Festival of Books Masters Workshop, and Moanaria’s Fright Club. From 2019 to 2022, Richard taught as a writing instructor at The Writers Studio (at their Tucson, Arizona branch and online) and served as a board member for the Tucson Poetry Festival.

“Ride an explosion, walk on another rocky surface, collect some samples, more vials, return with the samples on top of another explosion. We can be there to cheer them on.

“If all goes well.”

from “Goodbye to Rock”

Richard works at the University of Arizona with the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) team, which has had a camera in orbit around Mars since 2006. Richard helps make stunning images of the Martian surface taken by the HiRISE camera freely available to the public and science community. This spirit of exploration and sharing carries over into his writing.

Press Kit

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Permission is granted to use the linked photographs and the bios below for promotional or press purposes only. Please credit Richard Leis (2021) for the photographs. He wrote the bios, last updated in May 2026.

Author Headshot

Head and shoulders shot of Richard Leis taken in March 2021. He is wearing glasses and a blue striped button shirt, and he sits in front of a bookshelf.

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Very Short Bio (10 words)

Richard Leis writes literary, horror, and speculative poems and stories.

Short Bio (24 words)

Richard Leis writes poems and stories that have been published in The Deadlands, F&SF, Nightmare, Star*Line, Weird Fiction Quarterly, and other publications and anthologies.

Medium Bio (48 words)

Richard Leis writes poems and stories that have been published in The Deadlands, F&SF, Nightmare, Star*Line, the Timberline Review, and other publications, including anthologies from Brigids Gate Press, Crone Girls Press, House of Zolo, Weird Fiction Quarterly, and Wising Up Press. He works on an active Mars mission.

Long Bio (100 words)

Richard Leis writes poems and stories that have been published in The Deadlands, F&SF, Nightmare, other literary and speculative journals, and anthologies from Brigids Gate Press, Crone Girls Press, House of Zolo, Weird Fiction Quarterly, and Wising Up Press. His poem “After ‘Wave, North Shore of Oahu’ Photograph” was runner-up for The Paulann Petersen Award for Poetry in 2024. His poem “We Carry Our Ghosts to the Stars” was a finalist for the 2025 Rhysling Awards. His poem “La fantasmas en Su Boca” was a finalist for the 2026 Rhysling Award. His poetry has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize. He works on a Mars mission.

Longer Bio (152 words)

Richard Leis writes poems and stories that have been published in The Deadlands, Eye to the Telescope, F&SF, Harpy Hybrid Review, Impossible Archetype, Larina’s Lit Lounge, Laurel Review, Manzano Mountain Review, The Molotov Cocktail, Nightmare, Star*Line, and anthologies from Brigids Gate Press, Crone Girls Press, House of Zolo, Weird Fiction Quarterly, and Wising Up Press. His poem “After ‘Wave, North Shore of Oahu’ Photograph” published in the Timberline Review was runner-up for The Paulann Petersen Award for Poetry in 2024. His poem “We Carry Our Ghosts to the Stars” was a finalist for the 2025 Rhysling Awards. His poem “La fantasmas en Su Boca” was a finalist for the 2026 Rhysling Award. His poetry has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize. He was a finalist for the Tucson Festival of Books Literary Awards in 2018 and 2021. He works with a University of Arizona team that has a camera in Mars orbit.