Since 1992 Townsend has taught modern and contemporary poetry, creative writing, and literary translation at Denison University.
[4] Her poetry collections include Dime Store Erotics (1998), The Coronary Garden (2005),[5] and Dear Delinquent (2019).
[6] She is the co-editor, with David Baker, of the collection Radiant Lyre: Essays on Lyric Poetry (2007).
[7][4] In August 2009, Townsend, along with notable American poets Erin Belieu and Cate Marvin, cofounded the national feminist organization VIDA: Women In Literary Arts.
[8] Since its founding, VIDA has published an annual report on the status of women writers by tabulating and comparing rates of publication between male and female authors.