In 1963 Bonner was diagnosed with a large stomach ulcer, and almost half of his stomach was removed by surgery. The shock of the operation, plus the social climate of the times (which included civil rights riots and the assassination of President John F. Kennedy), led Bonner to begin writing poetry, some of which was published in the Houston Forward Times, a weekly newspaper.
In 1963 Bonner was diagnosed with a significant stomach ulcer, and nearly half of his stomach was surgically removed. The impact of the operation, along with the social environment of that era (which included civil rights disturbances and the assassination of President John F. Kennedy), prompted Bonner to start writing poetry, some of which appeared in the Houston Forward Times, a weekly newspaper.