Rodger Larson grew up on a ranch in the Central Valley of California, and got material from those childhood years on the ranch to use in What I Know Now. Larson grew up and got married, but then came out as a gay man in 1979 at the age of 38, and subsequently got divorced and lost custody of his child. Though Larson had always idealized writers and loved to read, the emotional turmoil he experienced during this difficult time led him to begin writing himself. He received his B.A. in Humanities from Evergreen State College, and his M.A. in Creative Writing from Antioch University. He then continued to study writing, both by taking formal classes and by studying privately with writers.

Larson has taught at the Portland State University School of Extended studies, the Portland Community College at the Columbia River Correctional Institution...