OUR EDITORIAL BOARD
A hearing impaired writer and artist adopted in Luxembourg, Kelly Sargent is an awardwinning author of two memoirs in verse, a haiku and senryu poetry collection, and a children’s storybook. Recent honors include: Firebird Book Award winner, The Rash Award in Poetry finalist, Eric Hoffer Award nominee, Touchstone Award for Individual Poems nominee, and Best of the Net nominee. Her other works have appeared in more than eighty literary journals. She also serves as the creative nonfiction editor of TheBookendsReview. Visit www.kellysargent.com to learn more about her.
K.D. Zwierz is a lecturer, musician and poet. His poetry was recently featured in the anthology Ukraine in the work of international poets (Literary Waves). His writing explores themes of displacement, cultural identity and historical relativism, explored through the analysis of his own experiences growing up in a migrant farming community. Of PolishItalian descent, he lives and writes between Croatia, Kuwait and the UK.
Colby Flade (he/him) is a queer writer, artist, avid drinker of coffee, and student based in Chicago. He is the author of TheSmelloftheLightBlueHouseinSummertime (2021), Menthol(2022), FearHome(Oyez Review, Vol. 49, 2022), ShortSweetSimple:LovePoems (Bottlecap Press, 2022), IgnisFatuus(Beyond Words Literary Magazine, Issue 35, 2023) and TheFly&Odor(Beyond Words Press, 2023). Colby’s work can be found online, at bookshops like This Old Book in Grayslake, Illinois & The Book Teller in Whitewater, Wisconsin, and elsewhere. Flade attended DePaul University, studying Writing, Rhetoric & Discourse, and is currently pursuing a degree in Early Childhood Education. Find him on Instagram @theflade and on www.theflade.com
Noah Evan Wilson is a writer and musician based in New York City. His stories have been published in Beyond Words, Dreamers Creative Writing Magazine, and Prime Number Magazine, among others, as well as the anthology, TenWaystheAnimalsWillSaveUs , from Retreat West Books. Noah is currently an MFA candidate at Rutgers University-Newark. His latest record, The View fromtheGround – EP , is now available on all major streaming platforms.
Candi Martin is a Creative Writing tutor and published writer/editor who writes on social equality and our roots in this world. She holds MA Creative Writing and Wellbeing from Teesside University and has always written for her own wellbeing. She can usually found listening to BBC6 music with a huge cup of tea. IG: @candi_says_
Brian "Brie" Sheridan is a writer and editor existing on the East Coast. They are currently trying to publish their first chapbook. In their free time, the enjoy playing nostalgic video games, planning out tattoos, and drag.
Roberta Laurie is the author of Weaving a Malawi Sunrise. She holds an MA in Environmental Education and Communication and teaches in the Bachelor of Communication Studies program at MacEwan University. Roberta writes about writing, nature, sustainability, and sustainability communication. She is currently writing a memoir inspired by a box of letters left behind by her father.
WRITERS
Francis Flavin draws upon his experience as an educator, public interest lawyer, and observer on four continents. His novel TheMuseinaTimeofMadnesswas released in July 2024. His poetry book, ABenedictioninLightandShadows , was released in September 2025, and his novella DeathintheDarkShadowswas released in January 2026. He has over 85 poems in publication. Flavin was the Winner of the 2021 Poetry Quarterly Rebecca Lard Award. In the Soul-Making Keats Literary Competition, Flavin placed first in the Memoir/Vignette category (2022), and previously received recognition for humor and flash fiction (2), short story (2), novel excerpt (3), creative nonfiction, and personal essay categories. He also received recognition in the social impact category of the Chicagoland Poetry Contest, the Partisan Press Working People’s Poetry Competition (first place). His work appeared inBeyondWords,PoetryQuarterly , MoonstoneArtsCenter,NOVUSLiterary Journal , InwoodIndiana , Blueline , PacificReview,Vallum:ContemporaryPoetry , BlueCollar Review , LaPicciolettaBarca,ThreeLinePoetry,TheClosedEyeOpenandTemperedRunes , among others.
Hetta Jones is a poet at the start of her writing career (though quite a long way through another "real world" one!). She has been published in TheHare'sPawLiteraryJournaland the BalladsOfMedievalDevotionanthology. She is based in Lincolnshire, the big skies of which heavily influence her writing.
Michelle Petty is an Assistant Teaching Professor at the University of California, Santa Barbara. She researches higher education pedagogy and Writing Studies. She has previously published poetry in BUSTMagazine , Elevation Review , and AnacapaReview , among others. Making space for creativity during motherhood and her professional life has been a challenging pleasure.
R.G. Evans is the author of OvertippingtheFerryman , TheHolyBoth , and ImagineSisyphus Happy . His work has appeared in Rattle , PaintedBrideQuarterly , and WeirdTales , among other publications. His albums of original songs, SweetOldLifeand KidYesterdayCalling TomorrowMan , are available on most streaming platforms.
Lola DeFever is a medical speech-language pathologist based in Madison, WI. She holds a Master's degree in Speech-Language Pathology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, a Bachelor's in Linguistics and Speech-Language Pathology from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, and a Minor in Translation. Outside of writing, Lola enjoys photography. Find her on Instagram @landyshifilm and visit her website, loladefever.com.
Dick Altman writes in the thin, magical air of Old West’s high desert plains, where, at 7,000 feet, reality and imagination often blur. He is published in the AmericanJournalofPoetry , Santa Fe LiteraryReview , Fredericksburg Literary Review , Foliate Oak , Landing Zone , CathexisNorthwestPress , HumanaObscura , HauntedWatersPress , SplitRockReview , The Ravens Perch , BeyondWords , New Verse News , WinglessDreamer , Blueline , Sky IslandJournaland others here and abroad. His work also appears in the first edition of The NewMexicoAnthologyofPoetry , published by the New Mexico Museum Press. Pushcart Prize nominee and poetry winner of Santa Fe New Mexico’s literary competition, he has authored some 300 poems, published on four continents.
Marcia B. Loughran's work has appeared in the New York Times , SpoonRiver Poetry Review , California Quarterly and elsewhere. She’s the author of two prize-winning chapbooks, StillLifewithWeatherand MyMotherNeverDiedBeforeandOtherPoems . Her next chapbook, Skylights , comes out in 2026 from Longship Press. A 2023 Irish Echo Arts & Culture Honoree, Marcia is a nurse practitioner and proud resident of Queens, NY. https://marciabloughran.com/
Delores Amorelli is an emerging poet with work published in BeyondWords , HalfandOne , BlackHorseReview , and CathexisNorthwest . She lives in Los Angeles with her rescue dog, Bebo. Through poetry, she examines the spaces between loss and reclamation, harm and healing, and how memory lingers in the body.
Ingrid Nilsson is an artist and writer based in Edinburgh, Scotland, whose primary occupation has historically been visual art; first running a gallery-café for ten years, then working as a printmaker and teacher. Taking part in the NYC Midnight short story competitions from 2022 to 2025 rewarded her with enough section wins to give some belief to her writing, and she is currently working on her first novel. In March 2025 she was placed second in the Anthology magazine travel writing competition, after spending 2024 riding through Europe and SE Asia by bicycle.
Rudra S Nandy has a background in Religion, Conflict & Peace studies from Harvard University, trained in journalism at the London School of Journalism, and honed her craft in creative writing through the University of Washington and Curtis Brown Creative. Her work explores identity, survival, womanhood, and the inner lives of ethnic minorities. Her writing has appeared in Women’sWeb , HumansoftheWorld , HalfandOnePoetry , and the Beyond Queer Words anthology. She writes with lyrical precision to unearth softness beneath survival and strength within silence—turning lived experience into language that lingers.
Lina Buividavičiūtė was born on May 14, 1986. She is a poet and literary critic. Lina is author of two poetry books in the Lithuanian language. Her poetry is published in Matter , Masters and ProversePoetryPrizeanthologies, and the magazines: DrunkMonkeys , BeyondWords , The Dewdrop , The Limit Experience , Beyond Queer Words , Maudlin House , Cathexis Northwest Press , PoetryOnline , RedNoiseCollective , SadGirlsDiaries, as well as the Versopolis poetry platform. Upcoming publications include New Millennium Writings , CathexisNorthwestPress , RedNoiseCollective , TheStardustReviewand BeyondWords .
J.M.C. Kane is an autistic writer from England, though now claimed by New Orleans, who has spent most of his adult life trying to fit long stories into short boxes. He has worked as a paperboy, a contracting executive, and an amateur cataloguer of human regret none of which he was formally trained for. He was formally trained as a lawyer, but he is, frankly, a better cataloguer. His fiction has appeared in BeyondWordsand almost three-dozen other journals that appreciate compression and his willingness to obey word counts. Kane was Shortlisted for the 2025 Letter Review Prize for Short-Fiction, Shortlisted for 32nd Annual Robert J. DeMott Short Prose Contest (2025), Longlisted for the L’Esprit Leopold Bloom Prize for Innovative Narration, and has recently been nominated for a Pushcart Prize. His most recent work, AftertheCut , was published in Palisades Review in December 2025.
Joshua Leland Sauvie teaches writing in Flint, Michigan, where he lives with his wife and two daughters. His poems reflect on the gentle anger of aging and the tiny movements between self-acceptance and despair.
Based in Ohio, USA, R. Jerome Michael teaches writing and writes about ethics and technology. They write poetry too, though with questionable talents and little fanfare. Their work appears in TheCoachellaReview , Nocturne , and SLAM:ALiteraryMag .
Inge Lamboo lives in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, with her partner, toddler, dog, too many houseplants, and almost enough books.
Jeff Campbell is a freelance writer and book editor (www.jeffcampbellbooks.com). A former Lonely Planet travel writer, he's written three books of YA nonfiction about animal science. GlowingBunnies!?was an SCBWI Golden Kite Award finalist.
Leslie Young lives in Massachusetts with a small black dog.
Mark Williams's poems have appeared in BeyondWords , TheSouthernReview , NewOhio Review , OneArt , and other journals and anthologies. His fiction has appeared in Eclectica , ValparaisoFictionReview , TheMainStreetRag , and elsewhere. He lives in Evansville, Indiana, with his wife, DeeGee.
Isabella Nesheiwat is a poet and fiction writer based in Southern California. Much of her work centers around mythology, time, and the differences (and, more often, similarities) between the ancient world and our current era. When not writing or sobbing about Orpheus and Prometheus, she loves walking her dog, Cleo, reading everything she can get her hands on, and watching so-bad-they're-good movies with friends. You can find her work on Substack: @bellaslibrary99
Sarah van den Elzen is a translator and subtitler based in Nijmegen, the Netherlands. Her debut is forthcoming in FlashFictionMagazine . She holds an MA in English Language and Culture from Radboud University.
Michele M Miller holds an MFA. Her poetry honors include runner-up for the National Poetry Series and the Kore Press First Book Prize. Her chapbook,ThePocketMuseumofNatural History , debuted as a finalist in the New Women’s Voices Series from Finishing Line Press. Michele writes and photographs in Tucson, Arizona. Instagram: @michelemariemiller
Michelle Ray is an MFA candidate in Creative Nonfiction at the University of Nebraska Omaha and serves as a nonfiction reader for Guernica magazine. She has over 25 years of international teaching experience across Ecuador, Bahrain, Dubai, and the United States. Her memoir is forthcoming in spring 2026.
Brandyce Ingram is a writer, tutor, and jazz-head in Seattle, WA. Her work has appeared in HighShelfPress , WillowdownBooks , SandHillsLitMag , WildroofJournal , AnEveningwith EmilyDickinson(via Wingless Dreamer), BeyondQueerWords , and elsewhere. Her latest search history includes “is poetry just schizophrenia with somewhere to go,” and she eats too many beets.
Billy Bones is a young writer and ceramicist currently based in Savannah, Georgia. Billy loves combing those two artforms and including poetry onto the surface of ceramic sculptures PP the cat enjoys sitting outside with Billy, occasionally catching a lizard or cicada.
Born in Nicaragua and raised in Chicago, Nelson R. Piludu carries the blended inheritance of a Sardinian father and a Nicaraguan mother. A medical technologist by profession and a bilingual poet and storyteller by calling, he writes at the crossroads of myth, migration, and the intimate geographies of language.
Lisa Ochoa is a writer based in her hometown, Tucson, Arizona. Her work explores memory, intimate relationships, and the emotional and material systems people use to survive them, often focusing on what is carried forward and what is left behind. She works across poetry, fiction, and essay. Her work has been published or curated by Beyond Words , In Parentheses , MoonstoneArts , Poet’sChoice , BridgeEightPress , Musepaper , and others. More work can be found at www.lisaochoa.com
Celeste Raynor has been writing poetry since she was six years old in Miss Linda's first grade class. Now she's all grown up, holding a Bachelor's degree in English and Creative writing. She hopes she's making Miss Linda proud!
David Pizzurro is a longtime blogger whose candid, real-life writing built a devoted readership. His work appeared in BeyondWords ’ Father anthology. He lives in Detroit, where he continues to write flash nonfiction with unfiltered honesty.
Anthony Mittal is a poet whose work explores silence, devotion, and renewal through the intersection of natural and sacred imagery. He is currently completing his first full-length manuscript, Winterroot: Songs of Stone and Silence . He lives in Paris. TikTok: @thesorrowsofyounganthony
VISUAL ARTISTS
Cover art: WhattheLionSeesby Tony Murray Tony is a self-taught artist whose primary works include scratchboard and mixed metal sculpture. “My first love in art has always been scratchboard I do consider it a form of two-dimensional sculpture since it is the carving away of media as opposed to adding it. The inspiration for this particular piece came about while pondering how cruel it seemed to have a Zebra, plain as day, walk about adorned, like a referee in an open field, just waiting to be pounced upon. It then occurred to me that perhaps this is by design, the Lion, whose vision is not quite as colorful as ours, sees this differently.”
Bruce MacDonald, Absence Arrives . Bruce is a poet, photographer and mental health professional living in Toronto, Ontario. His photography has featured in a video by The Waterboys and has been published throughout Canada and the US.
Dan Gay, Ahead.Dan Gay (dang) is a veteran of the Portland creative community whose recent work includes two stop-motion feature films. His sculptural work has ranged from monumental to minuscule, appearing in installations, advertisements, museums and festivals. His ongoing series of improvisational portrait painting remains central to his personal studio work.
Lindsay Torres, Playtime(2023). Lindsay is a curious, passionate, hardworking artist who is currently a student at the University of Montana (UMT) studying Fine Arts with minors in Art History and Business Administration. As she explores herself through her art within school and her personal life, her work has been a memento to her coming of age story. Each piece is a representation of themes of memory, family, emotion, history, storytelling, and the imaginary. Art Instagram: @lindsay_i_torres
Emily Marie Shaw, Endurance . Emily Marie is an artist, cancer survivor and retired attorney who loves reading and writing poetry. She lives in New York and enjoys long walks and biking. She works in various art mediums but acrylics and mixed media are her favorites.
Kaitlyn Synan is a contemporary artist whose work explores the fleeting nature of human emotion and the temporary moments that shape our reality. Using acrylic, she captures these passing impressions with layered color and loose, expressive form, inviting quiet reflection on the transient experiences that sculpt our inner world.
Cyn Silva,PhoenixRising , Oil on Raymar Linen Panel. Cyn's unique style utilizes large-scale canvas “to make an impact on the viewer,” and the electric essentialism of her pieces is what attracts many of her art followers. Cyn Silva is an accomplished versatile artist since the young age of 10. A true visionary contemporary artist whose bold, electrifying works ignite the senses. Renowned for her fusion of modern abstraction, expressive landscapes, and urban energy, her paintings pulse with vibrant color, movement, and depth. Each piece is a masterful interplay of light and texture, creating immersive experiences that draw viewers into a world where the past and present collide in striking harmony.
Wendy Greenhut,Possibility . Wendy is a self-taught abstract artist and photographer whose use of color ignites emotions! She lives in the Catskill Mountains in upstate NY with her husband, Doug and their Havanese, Fonzie. IG:@wendy555 @thesheshedartist TikTok: @thewonderfulworldofwendy
Pamela Viggiani, OutofShape ; CancerisNotaWorkofArt . Pamela is a mixed-media artist and art educator living in Canandaigua, NY. A native of the Finger Lakes region, Pamela received a BS and MS from Nazareth College of Rochester. She began teaching art in 1986. Now in retirement, Pamela continues to foster enthusiasm and creativity in her students by teaching local after school art programs for children.
Lloyd Galbraith is a Los Angeles–based photographer and installation artist whose work explores the thresholds between beauty, decay, and transformation. Through submerged and reflective environments, he constructs optical illusions that blur the line between the physical and the imagined.
Matty Heimgartner, EmotionalRegulation , Acrylic on canvas (2019), 20x16in. Sober Queer multi-hyphenate artist Matty Heimgartner blends their lifelong obsession with pop culture and their fascination with psychology to create playful surreal paintings, vulnerable memoir essays, and experimental electronic dance music. You can discover more of all these on Instagram and YouTube @fabulousmatty and on their website: mattyheimgartner.com
Nicholas Matsas, MyBrother#2 Nick is a published Author and plumber. His work has appeared in 3ElementalReview , AquariumDrunkard , and TimSaunders'Publications . His plumbing can be found in hospitals, assisted living facilities, and convention centers. He was born in Chicago and currently lives in Los Angeles.
Marine Fonteyne, Jump Marine has been a successful international professional photographer for more than 20 years and recently felt the need to move beyond her bidimensional work. She started to build new tactile stories using embroidering over photography, and experimenting with fiber sculptures, textile installation, and printing her meaningful images on intricate fabrics to express in a more compelling way her visual narratives.
Michelle Spiziri,Paperdolls . As a painter, Michelle is interested in what happens when color, form, movement, and shape interact with each other forming their own dialogue. Painting for her is as much about self-discovery as it is about visual space. She paints in response to what her subconscious mind makes room for. Michelle is using art to escape from old patterns towards a freedom of undeniable love of the self. She wants all emotions and all parts to be present. She paints to make a place for all the parts of herself that seek expression, even if she doesn’t want to see or love all the parts that make herself.
Barbara Canney photographs what makes her smile in the moment. Nature, people, bugs and boats. IG: @bcanneyphotos
Alexandra Rigores has been making drawings since she was a toddler. She recently took the decision to start living as an artist and try to make this passion her living. She is always open to the idea of learning and trying new techniques.
Brian Keane is a painter and sculptor from Chicago, Illinois. He teaches drawing and painting at the High School he attended
Mary Morgan, BirdsoftheAirandFishoftheSea . Mary is an abstract expressionist painter and a former art teacher. Her artwork is about her life's journey and expresses the joy of living through abstract form and color. Her influences include: nature, spiritual truths, family and everyday events.
Tracey Dean Widelitz, OnceBuriedUndera Tree.Tracey is a published writer, poet and photographer, and is a proud member of The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. Her personal experience of pet loss would later become her first children’s book, AHeavenlyWorld . She is a proud mom to two incredibly creative daughters (and the cutest fur baby, Honey Bun). Her poetry and photography have been published and featured in various literary publications, and her Dragonfly photography was featured at Agora Art Gallery, New York City, for the NewYork,ILoveYouExhibition, October 2025.
Javan McGriff, HigherPerspective(16x20). Javan is a dynamic creative whose work blends expressive art and powerful storytelling. Drawing from a background in psychology, their creations explore healing, self-discovery, and personal growth with depth and intention. As the author of two books and a podcast host, Javan uses both visual art and voice to inspire, empower, and connect, encouraging others to embrace their truth and step confidently into who they are becoming. “In a season when I felt constrained and overwhelmed by life’s challenges, I realized the power of seeking a higher perspective. This piece emerged from a moment of meditation, leading me back to a profound sense of inner peace and wholeness.” Instagram: @Planetjavv
Lior Locher, DewPond Lior is a nonbinary mixed-media artist, mainly working in acrylic, collage and printmaking. After having lived in 6 countries on 4 continents and being homeless at some point, they are now based at the English seaside. Their training is in personal development, coaching and therapy. They are fascinated by people’s inner lives and how we make sense of our own inner journeys as humans, and the inner dynamics and stories we tell ourselves.
Rex Wilder writes and creates art on Ballona Lagoon near Venice, California, as he dodges fires, floods, and government.
Michael Mayes,AmethystHeartGeode . Michael holds an MFA from the University of Arizona and a BA from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville. He is a professor, poet, musician and artist living in Jackson, Tennessee, ground zero for rockabilly and the home of Carl Perkins.
Russell Fennick, ElectricBirch . From the wide-open expanse of Lake Superior to the dense wilderness of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, Russell Fennick captures sunrises, sunsets, waterfalls, lakes, rivers, forests and the occasional wild animal. Russell is inspired by the beauty of nature. Much of his time is spent outdoors from sunup to sundown, experiencing scenes that many might miss during his everyday adventures in the woods or on the water. After sharing his adventures on social media for many years, many suggested he should sell his photos. He had gathered thousands of shots. In November 2025 Russell decided to take their advice and started an art photography business. His goal is to share the calm, quiet and breathtaking colors of nature that he experiences daily, hoping to bring a sense of peace and awe into everyone’s world. If you love landscapes, skyscapes and tranquil waterscapes, it would be worth your time to check out Russell’s work.
Jeanne C Wilkinson, CloudTunnelSun Jeanne is an artist and writer currently living in Brooklyn, NY and Madison, WI. Having grown up on the edge of the pristine waters of Lake Superior, she currently works with digital collages, animations and video installations that address environmental concerns and also revel in the beauty and wonders of our earth. The writer David Gibson, in his recent essay on her Cloud Tunnel video installation work, says her images contain "mad energy" and are "proof of an evolving consciousness, each
one a highly charged interval with esthetic consequences.” Her writing and artwork have been featured on NPR’s LeonardLopateShowand LivingonEarth , in AdirondackReview , ColumbiaJournalOnline , NewMillenniumWritings , BeyondWords , and many more. Her artwork has won awards in 440 Gallery exhibitions, Fusion Art Online, and at Upstream Gallery's "Our Bodies, Ourselves, Ten Years On" exhibition honoring this iconic book that was a milestone in women's lives. Her experimental videos have been screened at BAM, at the Greenpoint and New York Independent Film Festivals, and a video installation was featured in “Lovers, Letters and Killers” at the 13th Street Repertory Theater in Manhattan.
Anastasiya Fluegel, TheAwakening . Anastasiya is an artist, poet, chef, and mother (all selftaught), currently living and working in Corning, NY.
Patricia Cannon, InsomniacDreams . Patricia was a registered nurse at UCSF. She worked in various fields of critical care, including cardiac and neuro-intensive care, hemeoncology, and research. Patricia finds solace and creative expression in photography and poetry. Her artistry captures life's delicate interplay of light and shadow, resonating with themes of nature, love, and loss. As a poet and photographer, Patricia's creative work is deeply intertwined with her life experiences and faith. Her images and words invite readers and viewers to explore emotional landscapes, providing a tender yet powerful glimpse into moments of beauty and reflection. Patricia has the unique ability to transform her personal experiences into universal truths. The emotional depth of her photography, combined with her poetic insights, makes her a distinctive voice in both the art and literary worlds. Her book, WildHeart , was published by The Poetry Box.
Soledad Van Emden is painter working in St. Louis, Missouri.
Aimee Bungard is an artist living and working in the hills of Appalachia just outside Pittsburgh with her guitar player husband, 3 freerange children, 2 Suessian mutts and 1 perfect Torti kitty. She considers Giacometti, Vincent, Frida, Hilma Af Klint, Tascha Tudor, Bukowski, Dylan, Townes Van Zandt and RamDass' "Ahhhh" to be of the highest inspiration.
Carol Schoder, Circles . Carol is a Chicago-area writer and visual artist whose work has been featured in PoetrySuperhighway , StreetcakeMagazine , BeyondWords and Sonic Boom . Her flash fiction story, DayOldCabbageRollonaPlateintheFridge , was shortlisted in the 2025 Bridport Prize competition. In addition to gathering words, she enjoys painting, photography and creating one-of-a-kind artist books.
JC Alfier, Shadow Travel JC Alfier’s (they/them) artistic directions are informed by Francesca Woodman, Brittany Markert, and Katrien De Blauwer. Their most recent poetry book, The Shadow Field , was published by Louisiana Literature Press. Journal credits include CopperNickel , Faultline , Fugue , NotreDameReview , PennReview , RiverStyx , and VassarReview
Megan Holley found her voice as a poet, photographer and artist when she was ten years old, growing up in the wild woods of New England. In 2010, Holley earned a dual masters in education and library science, and since then has worked professionally as a teacher, librarian, poet and artist. She has published one hybrid work of poetry; a creative, nonfiction memoir titled, ThereisOnlyLampyridae , under the pen name Holley M. Hill.
