Fran Baird began writing at the age of 16, and his first poems were published in his school literary magazine. He has given readings as part of the Philadelphia Fringe Festival and is an alumnus of the Antioch Writers' Workshop (2007 & 2008).

Host of Poetry Aloud and Alive at the Big Blue Marble Bookstore in Mt. Airy, and a docent at the Woodmere Art Museum in Chestnut Hill, Mike Cohen advocates aesthetic appreciation, in the belief that the history of man should be presented not only as the history of war, but the history of art, as well.

The most important lessons Kate DeBevois has learned to date were a result of her quest to absorb as much effective parenting information and advice as possible. Her most treasured role is that of mother to her son. She has worked as a news reporter, medical journalist and trade journal editor. Occasionally, she quietly taps poems on her blackberry when (gasp) pencil and paper are no where to be found.

Bridget Gage-Dixon’s work has appeared (or is forthcoming) in Poet Lore, Gargoyle, New York Quarterly, and several other journals. She teaches English and lives with her three children in central New Jersey.

William Hengst’s poetry chapbook Yard Man, which was recently published by Finishing Line Press, is inspired by his gardening life, a rich imagination, and a fondness for play. He resides in Philadelphia, PA.

Lori Kagan grew up in suburban Chicago and has a degree in journalism from the University of Kansas. Her poetry has appeared in the South Carolina Review, Kalliope, Oregon East, Evansville Review, Licking River Review, Carquinez Poetry Review, and the North Atlantic Review, among other literary journals. She currently lives outside Boston, MA.

Marie Kane, whose work has been widely published, wasthe 2006 Bucks County Poet Laureate. She is a second-place winner in the Poetry Society of New Hampshire’s International Contest, an honorable mention winner in the Inglis House Contest in Philadelphia, and a finalist in the 2009 Robert Fraser contest. She has received a recognition award for her poetry from the National Foundation for the Advancement of the Arts, and an award for her teaching of young writers from The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards.

Jeffrey Kingman has written two books: Moto Girl, about a 12-year- old motorcyclist in a desperate situation, and Two Mountains and Other Stories. He has a Master’s degree in music composition and can be heard in San Francisco bars, playing drums in the band Small Gas Engine.

David P. Kozinski’s chapbook, Loopholes, is available from The Broadkill Press. It won the 7th Annual Dogfish Head Poetry Prize. He has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize by Mad Poets Review and by Schuylkill Valley Journal.

Maria Ligos’s poetry has been published in Mad Poets Review, Philadelphia Poets, Philadelphia Stories, Exit 13, and The Mid- America Poetry Review. She works as a scientist by day and writes poetry by night.

Diane Lockward’s second collection, What Feeds Us, received the 2006 Quentin R. Howard Poetry Prize. A third collection, Temptation by Water, will appear in 2010. Her poems have appeared in such jour- nals as Harvard Review, Spoon River Poetry Review, and Prairie Schooner, and have been featured on Poetry Daily, Verse Daily and The Writer’s Almanac.

In 2009, Bernadette McBride was named Poet Laureate of Bucks County, PA. She has been a finalist in the Robert Fraser Poetry Competition and was the second-place winner of the international Ray Bradbury writing competition in 2006. She teaches at Bucks County Community College and Temple University.

Bruce W. Niedt is a “beneficient bureaucrat” and South Jersey native whose poetry has appeared in Writers’Journal, Mad Poets Review, Edison Literary Review, US 1 Worksheets, Journal of New Jersey Poets, Thick with Conviction, Fox Chase Review, and many others. He has won first prize for poetry at the Philadelphia Writers Conference (2006, 2007) and has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize. His latest chapbook, Breathing Out, is available from Finishing Line Press.

Hayden Saunier’s work has appeared or is forthcoming in 5 A.M., Beloit Poetry Journal, Mad Poets Review, Nimrod, and Rattle. Her first book of poetry, Tips For Domestic Travel, was published by Black Lawrence Press in 2009. www.haydensaunier.com

Edmund B. Spaeth Jr. is a retired Pennsylvania appellate judge who taught for many years at the University of Pennsylvania Law School. An accomplished poet, he was the father-in-law of The Schuylkill Valley Journal’s founder, Jim Marinell.

Christine Redman-Waldeyer is the author of two books of poetry, Frame by Frame and Gravel (Muse-Pie Press). She teaches English at Passaic County Community College in New Jersey and her poetry has appeared in Connections Magazine, Exit 13, Lips, Paterson Literary Review, Seventh Quarry (UK), Schuylkill Valley Journal, The Texas Review, and others. She was a finalist in the 2008 and 2009 Allen Ginsberg Poetry Awards.