Steve Abbott

Steve Abbott (1943-1992) was a Nebraska-born poet, author, cartoonist and critic of primarily LGBT literature. He was also a highly regarded editor. Abbott edited the Bay Area periodical Poetry Flash for many years and the influential SOUP Magazine. In SOUP, he coined the term "New Narrative" to describe the work of Bay Area writers Robert Gluck and Bruce Boone and, with Boone, he organized the historic Left/Write conference in 1981. He was also a single father and many of his early poems reflected on his relationship with his young daughter. He died of AIDS in San Francisco in 1992.