- Stacy J. Maddox is a hobbyist and artist, living in the fast-paced and diverse city of Lawrence, Kansas. She loves to soak up the sun by the river and feel the water rush over her feet, or walk the trails to take photographs and explore. Her gardens inspire her to connect with nature and her creative side. Stacy has been published in over 30 books, print magazines and online websites, and is passionate about art, in all forms.
- John Grey is an Australian poet, residing in the US. His work has appeared in New Plains Review, Stillwater Review and Big Muddy Review, and he has work forthcoming in Louisiana Review, Columbia College Literary Review and Spoon River Poetry Review.
- Mia Rose is a high school student from Virginia whose interests include singing, dancing, drawing, writing poetry, and petting dogs. This is her first published work.
- Mitchell Krockmalnik Grabois has had over a thousand of his poems and fictions appear in literary magazines in the U.S. and abroad. He has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, The Best of the Net, and Queen’s Ferry Press’s Best Small Fictions for work published in 2011 through 2015. His novel, Two-Headed Dog, based on his work as a clinical psychologist in a state hospital, is available for Kindle and Nook, or as a print edition. He lives in Denver.
- Nikole Rodriguez-Wilson resides in New Jersey with her husband and five children (two of which are four-legged). Poems live mostly inside Nikole’s head, but when she manages to write them down, she has enjoyed mild success. Her work has previously been published in Poetry in Motion magazine and several poetry anthologies. She is also the former owner of Poetic Charm LLC, a personalized poetry writing service. Nikole’s other interests include coaching youth softball, reading, and dog psychology.
- Anna Wellman Rybat. “‘Forget me Knot’ represents several layers of previously ‘failed’ canvases. I was unhappy with the first approximately three attempts at a colorfield. Abstract painting doesn’t mean it’s easy or that ‘anything goes.’ But each layer to redefine is carefully applied to allow a glimpse of the previous [layer] so that I could identify it and remember.”
- Anonymous. “[I] just love the idea of sharing a pic that made my morning that much sweeter. It’s taken me so many years to come awake to the beauty that has been all around that I was always too distracted to really see and embrace.”
- Tate A. Geborkoff is a poet and playwright working and living in Chicago. Most recently his poems have appeared in Curbside Splendor, The Doctor T.J. Eckleburg Review and Burningword Literary Journal. He was nominated for Best New Work/New Adaptation at the 2015 Broadwayworld Chicago Awards and was selected as a semifinalist for the National Playwrights Conference (2015). He is also the co-creator and editor of the quarterly queer zine electro bureau (electrobureau.com).
- Steven Harz is New England-based writer who grew up in Maryland, making these places central to his works. He uses past memories of events near these dots on the map as the basis for his poems and short stories. When navigating the “real world,” Steven is a spouse, father, businessperson, and high school football coach. He is the author of a handful of books of poetry and short fiction and has appeared in a number of literary journals.
- Shannon Curtin is a 2014 Pushcart Prize nominee and the author of two collections of poetry, Motherland (Anchor and Plume Press), and File Cabinet Heart (ELJ Publications). She is the current poetry editor for The Quotable, and her writing has been featured in variety of literary magazines including Mothers Always Write, The Muddy River Review, The Mom Egg Review, and The Elephant Journal. Shannon holds an MBA, competitive shooting records, and her liquor. You can find her at www.shannonmazur.com and @Shannon_Mazur.
- Luther Jett is a native of Montgomery County, Maryland. His poetry has been published in numerous journals, including The GW Review, ABRAXAS, Beltway, Innisfree, Potomac Review, and Main Street Rag, as well as several anthologies. His chapbook, “Not Quite: Poems Written in search of My Father” was recently released by Finishing Line Press.
- Photography is a hobby for Lisa Lucking, mother of Keagan, her four-and-a-half-year-old son. Keagan has Autism Spectrum Disorder, Sensory Processing Disorder and developmental delays. “I took this photograph on a Thursday evening after he had all day treatment, then two hours of home therapy. ASD/SPD children work so extremely hard in therapy, and this happened to be one of the most difficult evenings yet. The second he got into the bathtub he had to get under the water, close his eyes and become completely still. That is when I captured this look…moments after he smiled. As if the weight of the world had just been lifted. I see every day how important the physical aspect [of therapy] is and that is why I am on a mission to bring We Rock The Spectrum to my community of Maple Grove, Minnesota.”
- Kyle Hemmings has art work in The Stray Branch, Euphenism, Uppagus, The Bitchin’ Kitsch, Black Market Lit, Red Bird Press, Snapping Twigs, and Convergence. He loves pre-punk garage bands of the 60s, Manga comics, and urban photography/art. “What I look for in a composition is whether it stirs some emotion in me and not whether it follows a rule of thirds or proper composition. Sometimes it’s just as important to break the rules.”
- Noah Renn is writer and teacher living in Norfolk, Virginia. His poetry and nonfiction have appeared in The Virginian-Pilot, The Quotable, Princess Anne Independent News, Full Grown People, and Whurk, among other journals. He is a 2015 Pushcart Prize nominee. He teaches composition and literature at Old Dominion University, and he leads a poetry workshop at the nonprofit organization, The Muse Writers Center.
Words and Pictures by 