United States Poet Laureate Howard Nemerov was born to a family active in the creative arts. The family lived in New York City, and Nemerov's father, David, was a painter, photographer, and something of a philanthropist. Nemerov's mother, Gertrude, supported and encouraged creativity as well. His sister was the photographer Diane Arbus.

New York City provided a rich cultural environment for the young poet, and he attended the Society for Ethical Culture's Fieldston School. Upon graduating with honors, he enrolled at Harvard University where he was awarded the Bowdoin Essayist distinction. He completed his bachelor's degree just in time to serve in World War II. He served as a pilot in both the U.S. Army Air Corp and the Royal Canadian Air Force, earning the rank of first lieutenant. Following the war he returned to New York, newly married, in order to finish writing his first novel.

Writing was not yet paying the bills, so he took teaching positions at Hamilton College, Bennington College, Brandeis University, and Washington University in St. Louis. At the latter he prospered as an academic and was named the Edward Mallinckrodt Distinguished University Professor of English and Distinguished Poet in Residence. He served in those capacities from 1969 until his death in 1991.

His years as an academic were productive creatively as well. Between the early 1960s and 1991 he published a number of poetry collections, including Trying Conclusions: New and Selected Poems, 1961-1991. His work is of a formal nature and style, with meticulous attention to meter and precision. However, he is also regarded as a poet with a sense of humor, and many of his poems possess a playful nature. Critic Peter Meinke has stated that the dual nature of Nemerov's work suggests that the poet possessed a "deeply divided personality." Meinke further commented that "These 'opposed elements' in Howard Nemerov's character are reflected in his life and work: in the tensions between his romantic and realistic visions, his belief and unvelief, his heart and mind."

Nemerov was the recipient of numerous awards during his long career, including fellowships from The Academy of American Poets and The Guggenheim Foundation. He received grants from the National Endowment of the Arts, and was a recipient of the Bollingen Prize for Poetry. In 1963 he was appointed as poetry consultant to the Library of Congress. He served through 1964. Nemerov was honored posthumously with the establishment of The Howard Nemerov Sonnet Award. In 2008 approximately 3000 sonnets were submitted for consideration of the award.