A Life of Love

An Autobiography in Poetry

Ronald Douglas Bascombe is a poet/writer who has been writing and performing his poetry for more than forty years. Born in Harlem, New York, Bascombe developed his early writing skill at Harlems Countee Cullen Public Library in a workshop led by writer and scholar Sonia Sanchez. He performed with the Cosmos Nucleus poetry performance group and served as journalist/ editor-in-chief of the Sunday Morning Christian newspaper in New York City. He won fi rst prize in poetry in the 1976 National Ossie Davis/Ruby Dee Write-On Competition sponsored by the National Black Network and has performed his childrens poetry in schools and libraries throughout the New York Metropolitan area. Listed with Poets and Writers, Rons poetry recently has been included in The Great American Poetry Show, Vl.1 and his letters to the editor and poetry have been published regularly in local newspapers. Bascombe was named the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Developments 2011 James A. Ware Award for Excellence. He has been published under his own name as well as under Jayne Lyn Smythe and Oronde Lasana.