Ray Sikes

Ray Sikes was a public high school and community college teacher for over thirty years. He is the author of five books, and his short stories, poems, and essays have appeared in numerous print and online publications. His most current writings can be found in his eclectic Substack archives.

"Ray Sikes has the ability to stay detached from moralistic blacks and whites or reduction to simple answers, and he treads on the more complicated tightrope of 'real' human affairs...Blues for a Dime Store Guitar is a deftly written and refreshingly prismatic look at human tendencies." —Phyllis Barber, writer, critic, professor at Vermont College

"Sikes manages to connect with his readers through universal feelings and experiences and makes it an interesting journey along the way." —Eric Landfiend, The Phantom Tollbooth

"Reminiscent of Bill Bryson’s finest, the first twelve tales in his latest collection [Life in the Cathode Ray Glow] are amusing, insightful, and true to life. All of them have some trenchant point to relate and leave one thinking more deeply about some aspect of human existence, though they are in no way preachy…Provocative and stimulating are two words that I would definitely choose to use in reference to his latest collection." —L.C. Henderson, Goodreads

"If you are expecting an innocuous coming of age story, you'll be disappointed. Ray doesn't shy away from the hard realities of life—the heartbreak, disillusionment, sex, and drugs that the main character experiences growing up in the 70s. [The Lives and Loves of William B. Taylor] documents a journey of faith but does not simplify the complexities of faith (unlike many other narratives, whether memoir or fiction). I enjoyed the main character's honesty and slightly dark but astute observations about the world. This is a deep book, one that will make you question and consider, though you may also laugh at times. One man's life becomes the jumping off point to consider what all of it—this life—really means" —Emily Donovan, Amazon reviewer