James Adams was born and educated in the United States. He has edited over six dozen volumes, treatises, and professional papers. His first collection of poems, Noble Savage, was nominated for the 2007 Pulitzer Prize. Adams’ poetry has been translated into Chinese, Dutch, French, German, Russian, Spanish, and Ukrainian. He has studied creative writing at the University of Texas (Austin), U.C.L.A., and the Université Paris IV (la Sorbonne). He is a member of The Authors Guild, Scribes, and the Academy of American Poets.

Adams has worked professionally in various capacities both in the United States and abroad, being commended by the international Red Cross for work in foreign hospitals. He sits as adjunct faculty for several major universities.

Adams' poems have appeared or are forthcoming in The Houston Literary Review, Red River Review, Illogical Muse, The Weight of Addition: An Anthology of Texas Poetry, The David Jones Journal (Wales) and Five Inprint Poets.