Bravig Wilbur Eugene Imbs is more often remembered for his chronicle of his Parisian literary friendships, Confessions of Another Young Man (1936), than for his own attempts at fiction and poetry. A worshipful regular at Gertrude Stein's salon, Imbs was also a friend and admirer of Elliot Paul, and he helped Paul and Eugene Jolas with some of the early issues of transition. Enamored with the idea of writing music as well, Imbs also studied composition for a time with George Antheil.

Imbs was born in Milwaukee to Norwegian-American parents, but he was brought up in Chicago, where he found his family's fundamentalist religious ardor restrictive. For Twentieth Century Authors, Imbs wrote: "I was given such a dose of Bible study and hymn-singing in the United Brethren Church in my childhood that I had enough for the rest of my life. My only escape was music and I studied...