Howard Camner is the author of sixteen books of poetry. His works are in the most prominent literary collections in the world, including ten historical archives and six royal libraries. He was nominated for Poet Laureate of Florida in 1980 and has received the Fine Arts Press Poetry Award, the MiPo Literary Award, and the Library of Congress Award for his contribution to U.S. cultural arts. During his years in New York, Camner was the headliner with the West End Poetry Troupe where he performed nightly at the famed West End Jazz Club, usually in clown makeup and often backed by members of Duke Ellington's orchestra.