Shay Youngblood received a B.A. in communications from Clark-Atlanta University and an M.F.A. in creative writing from Brown University. She has worked as a Peace Corps volunteer in the Eastern Caribbean, an au pair, artist's model and poet's helper in Paris. The Georgia-born writer is the author of a collection of short stories called The Big Mama Stories (Firebrand Books) and a novel, Soul Kiss (Riverhead Books/Putnam). Her plays Shakin' the Mess Outta Misery, Talking Bones and Amazing Grace, all published by Dramatic Publishing, have been widely produced. Her other plays include Black Power Barbie, Communism Killed My Dog and Square Blues, a blues musical.