DHW received a B.A. in English from Witternberg University, an M.A. in English from UMass-Boston, an M.A. in Science Fiction Studies from the University of Liverpool, and a Ph.D. in English from Michigan State University. He is an Associate Professor of English at WSU-Lake Campus, where he has taught since 2006.

In addition to hundreds of stories and essays, DHW is the author of over ten books of fiction and criticism. He is also the reviews editor for the academic journal Extrapolation and the editor-in-chief of the online literary journal The Dream People.