Trudy Palmer is the Monitor's cover story editor. After earning her Ph.D. in English and American literature at Stanford University, she pursued a wide-ranging career built around a love of words. She has taught American and African American literature at Tufts University and the University of Pittsburgh; edited a scholarly book on the blues; worked as a senior staff editor for the Christian Science religious publications; and, just before joining the Monitor, served as editorial director in the Marketing Department at Principia. She moved into her current post after serving as a deputy editor for the Monitor Daily.