After graduation, he taught at the university for three years[1] before moving to North Carolina, where he became the artistic and educational director of the touring group Poetry Alive!

When writing the book, Wolf created a secondary cast composed entirely of ship rats, but cut the narrative mostly out of the final draft at the request of his editor.

[18] The book received starred reviews from Booklist[19] and the School Library Journal,[20] as well as the following accolades: The Day the Universe Exploded My Head: Poems to Take You Into Space and Back Again, illustrated by Anna Raff, was published March 5, 2019 by Candlewick Press.

The book received starred reviews from Kirkus[22] and Booklist,[23] as well as the following accolades: The Snow Fell Three Graves Deep: Voices from the Donner Party was published September 8, 2020 by Candlewick Press.

While researching for the novel, Wolf spent time outdoors in the winter to understand what it felt like to be cold, and interviewed a man who experienced near-starvation.