Coming of age in San Francisco, "learning poetry at City Lights,"and now raising two daughters in the heart of North Beach, Michelle Murphy has seen her work expand from the local poetry scene to gain new audiences across the U.S., as well as in Europe, Russia and Japan. Her writings have appeared in a wide range of publications, from literary journals such as ZYZZYVA and Five Fingers Review to the cyber-mag, Hot-Wired. Her poem, "13 Versions of Surrender" (included in Jackknife & Light) has served as the basis of a song cycle by Bay Area composer Erling Wold, that was produced in Germany in 1997.