J.D. Mathes grew up a feral child in the deserts of the American Southwest who loved to read library books and take photographs. He is a PEN America Writing for Justice Fellow, an award-winning author of four books, a photographer, screenwriter, and librettist. Although Mathes still struggles with subject-verb agreement and where to put commas, he is currently working on a book, Ill Served: Veterans and Mass Incarceration, exploring justice involved veterans and their experiences with mass incarceration.