R. W. Haynes has taught Early British Literature and Shakespeare at Texas A&M International University since 1992. In recent years he has published a number of works on the playwright/screenwriter Horton Foote. His poetry collection Let the Whales Escape is forthcoming (2019) from Finishing Line Press. In 2016, Haynes was awarded the SCMLA Poetry Prize at the Dallas meeting of the South Central Modern Language Association. His poetry has appeared in numerous American and international journals.