Kay Diane Lee is primarily a poet but also writes fiction, memoir, and essays. She has been a member of Highland Lakes Writers since 1994 and currently serves as secretary.

Born and raised in Dallas, Kay attended The University of Texas at Austin, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.

She retired in 2008 after 43 continuous years of State of Texas employment — 30 with UT-Austin, the last 13 with the Texas Department of Transportation. At UT, she became an editor and technical writer after first holding clerical and administrative positions. She also taught freshman English in UT’s evening school program.

Kay has won several poetry contests, two at the national level. Publication, however, has never been her goal. “I write mainly for self-expression,” she says. “I have always loved words and the feelings, the myriad shades of meaning, words convey. In each of my poems, I try to capture a tiny sliver of life, the essence of something universal.”

Recently, she has “thought about” self-publishing some of her poetry; she hopes some day to write a novel.

Kay and her husband divide their time between Austin and Spicewood near Lake Travis. Married since 1965, they have one adult son and, at the moment, four cats.