Authors and Artists

The people listed below have contributed material to Cune Magazine or Cune Press books. We also have included bios of editors and publicists, and production workers.

Click to Find
Scott C. Davis
Frederic Hunter
Steven Schlesser
Claire Simons
John Wesley
Artists and Photographers
Writers, Editors, and Production Workers

Artists and Photographers
Joseph Mack Branchcombe, artist. Click Here for work published in An Ear to the Ground, Portraits of: Kenneth Carroll, James Hall, Arthur Quinn, John Stenzel, and Sharon Streeter. Prior to becoming a professional artist, Joseph worked as a cook, warehouseman, gardener, and contractor’s assistant. Disabled as a youth from rheumatic fever, and without formal education, Joseph produces paintings, photography, and videos that draw in part from his Blackfoot Indian and African-American heritage. His work has been exhibited in San Francisco and Crete. He lives in San Francisco.   www.goldwarp.com/branchcombe

Paul Brown, artist. Click Here for work published in An Ear to the Ground, Portraits of: Miriam Frances Abety, Jocelyn M. Ajami, Sean Bentley, Mari Lynch Dehmler, Nathalie Handal, Brad Knickerbocker, Krista Koontz, Lisa Suhair Majaj, and Jerry Reid. Paul is a twenty-three year old illustration student at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. When not making art he runs a small clothing label geared toward casual wear.

Tavis Cockburn, artist. Click Here for work published in An Ear to the Ground, Portraits of: Barbara Nimri Aziz, Sylvia Benzaquen, Adrian Castro, Sara Nadia Rashad, Sande Smith, and Margaret Thompson. Tavis has been drawing as long as he can remember—muscle-bound super heroes, fantastic vehicles, and planets. A native of Ontario, Canada, he attended a regional arts high school and one semester at the Ontario College of Art before moving to Los Angeles to continue his training at the Art Center of Design, where he is in fifth term studies, majoring in illustration.

Paul Dusenbury, artist. Click Here for work published in An Ear to the Ground, Portraits of: John Felstiner, Jerome Gold, Zoë Landale, and Jody Seay. Paul has been an art teacher in Seattle Public Schools for over twenty years. His “muscular impressionistic” work has been displayed in numerous exhibitions. He received his education in art at Hampton University in Virginia and the University of Washington. Paul passed on in 1998.

Steve Grace, artist. Click Here for work published in An Ear to the Ground, Portraits of: Lance Carden, José Casarez, Donna Clovis, Kurt Hoelting, Cy Keener, Joan Piper, Vada Russell, and Shauna Somers. Steve left northern California for Seattle in 1992. A self-taught water-colorist, Steve is a student at the Academy of Realist Art in Seattle. He cooks at a local pizzeria and practices two forms of martial arts: Non-classical Wing Chung (empty hand), and Cabales Serrada Eskrima (using sticks).

Jef Gunn, artist. Click Here for work published in An Ear to the Ground, Portraits in woodcut of: Hanna Eady, Horton Foote, Arun Gandhi, Frederic Hunter, Steven Schlesser, and Dan Watkins. Jef is an artist living in Portland, Oregon. He works in woodcut, encaustic, collage, and drawing. (Contact him through Quartersaw Gallery in Portland 503-223-2264.)

Dale Hamilton, artist. Frontispiece. Dale is an artist based in Vancouver, B.C. He specializes in landscapes.

Lisbeth Hamlin, artist. Click Here for work published in An Ear to the Ground, Portraits of: jonetta rose barras, Peter Galperin, Jan Haag, Cheryl L. Schuck, Holly L. Thomas, and Kyoko Uchida. Lisbeth’s focus on art as an appreciation of cultural diversity has taken her to India, Kenya, and Namibia. Her etchings, paper collages, and watercolors form an ethnological record of traditional life. She was commissioned to paint for a resident of Saint Eustatius and illustrate a multimedia book of songs in France. Her work has been exhibited in Saint Louis, Washington, D.C., New York, and Kenya. Lisbeth received her B.A. in art from Principia College and her M.A. from New York University. She currently lives in New Jersey.

Marianne Hanson, artist. Click Here for work published in An Ear to the Ground, Portraits of: Lucy Aron, Kathy Connor, Grace Druyor, Kathryn Flynn Galán, and Cynthia J. Starks. Marianne has worked as a theater costume designer, art gallery owner, graphic and advertising designer, and literacy specialist. She describes her home in Seattle as “live-in sculpture,” gardens as “hieroglyphic inspiration,” and time as “life-long learning.” She works for church outreach and is currently exploring drawing, painting, sculpture, writing, and illustration in a variety of media.

Yuki Inoue, artist. Click Here for work published in An Ear to the Ground, Portraits of: Peggy Bird, Reba Owen, and Claire Simons. Yuki was born in Kamakura City, Japan. In 1984 she attended college in the United States, earning degrees in Fine Arts and Graphics. She lives in southern California where she works as an illustrator and occasional translator.

Toby Judith Klayman, artist. Toby has had a long, distinguished career as a visual artist, an advocate for artists, and a teacher of art. She lives in San Francisco and is the author of The Artists’ Survival Manual. Her work-in-progress with Cune Press is Klayman’s Crete, text and images from a small village overlooking the Libyan Sea. Klayman is a Cune Magazine Featured Artist. Click Here.

(Artists’ Survival Manual. Scribners 1984, 1987; now published by the author, 1996. 8.5 x 11. 259 pages. $25.00. Available from Toby Judith Klayman email tobykcrete@AOL.com or snailmail 515 Prentiss St. San Francisco, CA 94110 or voice 415-285-7987.)  www.goldwarp.com/klayman

Merrily Cordova Laytner, artist. Click Here for work published in An Ear to the Ground, Portraits of: Linda H. Elegant and Anson Laytner. Merrily received her M.F.A. at Otis Institute. She is based in Seattle. Her work is widely exhibited.

Peter Malarkey, artist. Click Here for work published in An Ear to the Ground, Portraits of: Jamal Gabobe, Gary Lilley, and David L. Ulin. Peter is an oil painter living in Seattle. He is represented by the Martin-Zambito gallery in Seattle. (Martin-Zambito Fine Art 206-726-9509.)

Cydney Brooke McIntyre, artist. Click Here for work published in An Ear to the Ground: Portraits of Russell DeGroat, Václav Havel, and Hillary Rollins. Cydney has studied at the California Institute of the Arts and has a B.A. in Studio Art from Cal State Hayward. She lives in Seattle where she creates visual art and works as an independent producer for public radio. Her programs on Celtic culture and other subjects have aired on KBCS in Bellevue, Washington; WBUR in Boston; and KVMR in Nevada City, California; and have been distributed to other stations on the American Public Radio Network. Cydney passed on in 1998.

Anna Ostapiw, artist. Click Here for work published in An Ear to the Ground, Portraits of: Elizabeth Woodroof Cogar, M. Cassandra Cossitt, William I. Lengeman III, Bruce Duane Martin, Scott Richmond, Ronnie Ritts, and Carol Schirmer. Anna is an artist who lives in Pennsylvania and specializes in pastel landscape paintings in an impressionistic style. Her work has been widely exhibited and her national juried shows include the Catharine Lorillard Wolfe Exhibition in New York and the Maryland Pastel Society in Baltimore. (Contact Joe Gibbons, the Gibbons Company, 2104 N. Washington Avenue Scranton, PA 18509, 717-348-2750, ph 717-348 -0552 fax.)

 

Dan Polin, photographer, is a true Renaissance man of today; Eagle Scout, World War II veteran, aerospace engineer, photographer, classical and dixieland jazz music buff and record collector, fisherman, target shooter and reloader and presently a jazz recording producer and book publisher. He is the author of the book Let There Be Light, Words, and Music.

Shane Reiswig, artist. Click Here for work published in An Ear to the Ground, Portraits of: James Bash, Robert J. Brake, Katherine Burger, Doris Colmes, Catherine Foster, Doug Nathan, Laura L. Post, Joey Kay Wauters, John Milton Wesley, and Nancy W. Woods. Shane is a visual artist based in Seattle who works in many mediums, including gouache. Recently he has completed illustrations for Fly, Rod, and Reel. He graduated from Art Center College of Design in 1992 and has widely exhibited his work. (Contact: 206-523-9579 ph; shanespeak@easy.org email.)

Steve Rowse, staff artist. Photoshop collages of portraits of John Felstiner, Jerome Gold, Zoë Landale. A native of Canada, Steve works as a Photoshop specialist with an electronic design firm. He also does freelance graphic design and video. Reach Spilt Milk at (206) 632-2086.

Lisa Teasley, artist. Self-portrait. Lisa is an accomplished visual artist who has exhibited and published widely. She lives with her husband and daughter in Manhattan.

Gail Williams, artist. Cover illustration. Gail is a visual artist and art teacher currently studying at the California Institute of Integral Studies in the Women’s Spirituality program. Focusing on integrating the personal, political, and spiritual, she uses mixed media to make sacred containers: images, objects, altars, figures, and clay pots. Gail lives in San Francisco. She also leads support groups and workshops in the national networking organization No Limits for Women in the Arts. (415-648-1637.)

Writers, Editors, Production Workers

Neal Bastek, editor. Neal is a freelance writer and editor who devoted a couple of years to producing and promoting An Ear to the Ground. He is currently attending grad school.

Bjorn Benson, editor. Bjorn is a freelance writer and editor in the Seattle area. He is part of the team that produced An Ear to the Ground and currently is building a house on Anderson Island in Puget Sound.

Joy Benzaquen, writer. Profile of Sylvia Benzaquen. Joy lives in Oceanside, Long Island, and works in the printing industry.

Donald Blount, writer. Profile of John Milton Wesley. Donald is a journalist for a Times Mirror newspaper in Allentown, Pennsylvania. He is writing a novel and lives in Bethlehem with his children and fellow journalist Teresa.
John Boe, writer. Profile of John Stenzel. John teaches English at the University of California at Davis.

Jill Bossert, writer. Profile of Hillary Rollins. Jill is a freelance fiction writer based in Manhattan who is currently working on a novel. She has worked as a writer and editor of trade books about art and illustration and holds a B.A. from NYU and an M.F.A. in creative writing from Columbia. She also has training as an artist and has worked for the American Society of Illustrators.

Carol Bowers, writer. Profile of Claire Simons. Carol owns Tecolote Publications, which she operates from her garage in Ocean Beach, a dropout seaside community at the end of Interstate Eight. She writes occasional articles for local publications, runs a weekly writers workshop, and is president of the Ocean Beach Historical Society.
Bron Bradshaw, writer/publicist. Bron has been interested in classical music, classic literature, and European culture since early childhood. She majored in European history at both the undergraduate and graduate levels as a means of uniting those interests in a disciplined academic pursuit. Currently she serves as a departmental administrator in a major academic medical center, endeavoring to work in as many literary allusions as possible in the course of business!

Elisabeth Skowronnek Brinton, writer/publicist. Elisabeth has won numerous academic awards, served as Congressional staff, and worked as chief fundraiser for distinguished private schools. She recently won an award for her poetry and is now establishing her own public relations firm in Carmel, California.

Annye Brown, writer. Profile of Donna Clovis. Annye is a school nurse in New Jersey. She has a Master’s Degree in nursing from Jersey City State College and serves on various state committees for nurses. Her hobbies include gardening and listening to jazz and folk music.

Melissa A. Burke, writer/publicist. Melissa is a freelance writer who works at a south central Los Angeles high school. Much of her writing is based on her experiences in the classroom. In 1987, at age 16, Melissa traveled to India; in 1994 she visited Cuernevaca, Mexico, where she lived with nuns and helped to organize the barrios.

Jean Burpee, hostess. Jean lives in Douglas County, Oregon. She has recently sent the youngest of her three children off to college. Jean serves on the boards of several service organizations including Western Rivers Girl Scout Council and Douglas County Museum Foundation. She raises vegetables all year long.

Judith Capen, writer/publicist. Judith is an architect and writer who lives in Washington. Her firm Architrave specializes in esoteric preservation and restoration work.

Victor W. Chapman, writer. Profile of James Bash. Victor is a writer in Portland, Oregon.

Cathy A. Colman, writer. Profile of Kathryn Flynn Galán. Cathy is a poet and journalist based in southern California who teaches private workshops in writing. Her poetry has appeared in The Southern Poetry Review, The Spoon River Review, Rohwedder, and The George Washington Review. She has served as a book critic for The New York Times Book Review and holds a Masters Degree in creative writing from San Francisco State University.

Sybilla A. “Billy” Cook, writer. Profile of Russell DeGroat. Billy is a freelance writer based in Douglas County, Oregon. She is a mainstay of the writers’ group, An Association of Writers.

Candace Crossley, writer. Profile of Doris Colmes. Ex-Midwestern cheerleader, ex-Lutheran, ex-Chicago model, ex-Miami dope dealer, ex-Cranbrook Academy and Brooklyn art student, ex-Long Island Sound boat-builder, ex-cross-country truck driver, ex-Sports Illustrated photographer’s assistant, ex-San Francisco homeowner, ex-singer, ex-wife, explosive, exemplary, excessive, sucker, seeker, languishing in some dogforsaken paradigm shift. And that’s not the hundredth of it.

Scott C. Davis, writer. Profiles of Barbara Nimri Aziz, Katherine Burger, Lance Carden, John Felstiner, Horton Foote, Jerome Gold, Cy Keener, Zoë Landale, Sara Nadia Rashad; “Afterword”; “Calling on Writers, Publishers, Booklovers.” Scott is a freelance writer based in Seattle. He served as editor for An Ear to the Ground and founded Cune Press in 1994.

Julie Finnin Day, writer. Profile of Krista Koontz. Julie is the former editor of The Portland Alliance, a left-wing community newspaper. She is now an overqualified copy aide at The Oregonian. Julie and her husband are building a straw-bale house in Portland.

Wendy Deeley, writer. Profile of William I. Lengeman III.

Diane Eacret, writer/publicist. Diane is a principal of The Public Relations Organization, a public interest communications agency based in Philadelphia. Phone: (215) 636-0601. Email: eacret@juno.com.

Omar Eby, writer. Profile of Bruce Duane Martin. Omar teaches British fiction and advanced writing. He lives in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia.

Thomas J. Ehrlichman, fundraiser. Tom is a lawyer whose evil twiin, “T. James,” is an accomplished acoustic guitarist. For more on “Guitars Only,” his current tape, or his legal services coontact Cune Press.

Colleen Adair Fliedner, writer. Profile of Cheryl L. Schuck. Colleen is the author of Stories in Stone: Park City, Utah. Miners and Madams, Merchants and Murderers (1995). In addition to lecturing and public relations for various organizations, she is writing a historical novel. (To purchase her book contact Flair Publishing 4141 Ball Rd. #446 Cypress, CA 90630.)

William Goldsby, writer/publicist. William is the Executive Director of Reconstruction Inc., a program to provide housing, employment, and support to men who have been convicted of two violent crimes. He is an ex-offender and veteran and served in the Peace Corps. William also serves on the Pennsylvania Futures Commission on Justice in the Twenty-first Century. He graduated from Western Washington University.

Janne Graham, writer. Profile of Vada Russell. Janne writes for nonprofit organizations. A former metropolitan resident, she now lives in a rural community.
Natalie Greenberg, editorial consultant. Natalie served as Managing Editor with Atlantic Monthly Press for fifteen years.

Diane R. Hanover, writer. Profile of Catherine Foster. Diane is a freelance writer and editor living in Boston.

Mandy Helseth, computer application consultant. Mandy works for Polestar, an information systems company specializing in information systems technology for small businesses. (Contact Polestar at 360-892-8549 voice, 360-892-0655 fax, or Mandy@MatrixTrim.com e-mail.)

Eleanor Hernandez, writer/publicist. Eleanor is a healer who focuses on mind, body, and spirit. She is establishing a private practice based in Kitsap County. She currently works to register Latino voters in King County.

Mario Hernandez, writer. Profile of Kyoko Uchida. Mario is a writer in Ithaca, New York. His poetry has appeared in Prairie Schooner.

Deborah DiSesa Hirsch, writer. Profile of Cynthia J. Starks. Deborah has won numerous awards for her essays, articles, and fiction. She runs a marketing communications firm in Stamford, Connecticut, and specializes in placing stories about computers and the Internet in the media.

Sunny Hobbs, writer. Profile of Jerry Reid. Sunny is 26 years old, a graduate of American University in International Relations, and a resident of Richmond, Virginia. Currently she is racing in a Pro Supertruck at Southern National Speedway in North Carolina. She is a member of the Lyn St. James Automotive Team.

Bill Hudson, host. Bill is a screenwriter living in Los Angeles. He enjoys film noir and is a fan of Howard Hawks and Billy Wilder.

David Hughes, writer. Profile of Scott Richmond. David is the author of Big Indian Creek. (Available from Stackpole Books.)

Bonita Hurd, editor. Bonita works as a freelance copy editor in Santa Cruz, Ca. (408-425-1303. Bonhurd@cruzio.com email.)

Bert Jackson, Jr., writer/publicist. Bert is a resident of Spokane, Washington with degrees in physics, human resource management, and land use planning. He is married and has one teenage daughter. He and his family enjoy singing and acting in local community theatre productions.

Twyla Jasperson, writer. Profile of Nancy W. Woods. Twyla is the pseudonym for an Oregon writer. She chooses to remain anonymous so she can more easily eavesdrop on private conversations while walking down city streets.

La’Chris Jordan, writer. Profile of Jamal Gabobe. La’Chris is a freelance writer based in Seattle.

Drew Kampion, writer. Profile of Kurt Hoelting. Drew is the author of The Book of Waves. He has been editor of The Island Independent, Surfer, Surfing, Wind Surf, and New Age magazines, as well as editorial director of Patagonia, a clothing company. His current projects include freelance features, several books, and extensive home improvements. He lives on Whidbey Island. (Book of Waves, which has sold out two editions, will be available from Surfer Magazine. Readers may contact Denise Bashem at 714-496-5922.)

Carolyne Kennedy, writer. Profile of Margaret Thompson. Carolyne comes from New Brunswick and has lived in British Columbia for many years. She is a single mother of three boys and a teacher of grades 5 and 6 in a local Fort St. James elementary school. She does not think of herself as a writer, but is an avid reader who is highly articulate and very funny.

Krista Koontz, writer. Profile of Václav Havel. Krista is an essayist in An Ear to the Ground.

Jeffrey Knapp, writer. Profile of Adrian Castro. Jeffrey teaches English at Florida International University. (For poems, bios, and sound files of Castro, Philp, Sebon, and Knapp, try http://www.paradise.net/encounter and click on “poetry.”)
Brad Knickerbocker, writer. Profile of Arun Gandhi. Brad is an essayist in An Ear to the Ground.

Scott Knickerbocker, writer. Profile of Brad Knickerbocker. Scott is a student at Principia College in Elsah, Illinois. In the spring of 1996 he and several fellow students created Soulbook, a collection of poetry, short prose, and visual art.

Annie LaBarge, writer. Profile of Holly L. Thomas. Annie, a former college art instructor and teacher of the disabled, is now a writer, artist, and disabled teacher. She lives in Highland, New York.

Heidi Lane, writer/publicist. Heidi is a freelance writer living in West Point, New York.

Beck Lee, writer. Profile of Peter Galperin. Beck is a native New Yorker and graduate of Wesleyan University. Beck runs a public relations/marketing company specializing in the entertainment industry.

Wooten Lee, writer. Profile of Shauna Somers. Wooten is a screenwriter living in Los Angeles. She makes her living as a publicist and freelance writer.

Kealy Connor Lonning, writer. Profile of Kathy Connor. Kealy—a reading teacher, wife to Greg, and mother of two—lives in LaCrosse, Wisconsin.

Mary Ann Marger, writer. Profile of Grace Druyor. Mary Ann has published two novels for adolescent and numerous articles and poems. She graduated from the University of North Carolina and is art critic for The Saint Petersburg Times.

William J. Martin, writer. Profile of Jocelyn Ajami. William is a Boston resident who used to direct programs for people with severe disabilities and now works as an entrepreneur in the energy business. He also writes short stories, plays, and novels.
Susan Chernak McElroy, writer. Profile of Jody Seay. Susan lives on a small farm in western Oregon. She is the author of Animals as Teachers and Healers: True Stories and Reflections (New Sage Press, 1996).

LaDonna Meredith, writer/publicist. LaDonna writes poetry, short fiction, and has plans for a book. Her interests include Scottish history and folklore, particularly the early 1300s. She lives with her husband in Springdale, Arkansas.

Marilyn Meyer, writer/publicist. Marilyn is a Seattle teacher and writer. She has a B.A. from the University of Michigan and a M.Ed. from the University of Washington. Her poems and essays have appeared in Poet Lore, Seattle’s Child, Simiple Living, Duckbush Journal, Spindrift, and other publications in the Northwest.

E. Ethelbert Miller, mentor. Profile of Kenneth Carroll. Ethelbert is a widely recognized poet who serves as director of the African-American Resource Center at Howard University. His most recent books are First Light: Selected and New Poems (Black Classic Press, 1994) and In Search of Color Everywhere (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 1994).

S.P. Miskowski, writer. Profile of Hanna Eady. S.P. is a dramatist/director based in Seattle. Her recent works include The Red Room, Duende, and Feasting.
D.A. Murray, writer. Profile of Joan Piper. D.A. works for Homestead Books in Seattle. She is a painter and published cartoonist, whose work appeared in the 1994 anthology Seattle Laughs.

Kay Nelsen, writer/publicist. Kay has published stories in Renovated Lighthouse, The Strain, Supernatural Magazine on Audiobook, and Street Beat Quarterly. She lives in Denver, Colorado, with her husband, Doug.

Dudley W. Nelson, writer. Profile of Reba Owen. Dudley is a poet and writer and has been a state game warden in Oregon for twenty-eight years.

Terry O’Donnell, writer. Profile of Steven Schlesser. Author and lecturer, Terence served on the staff of the Oregon Historical Society for nearly two decades. His memoir of his years in Iran, Garden of the Brave in War, is now in its third printing and will be translated into French. In addition, he has written Portland: An Informal History and Guide; That Balance So Rare: The Story of Oregon; and most recently, An Arrow in the Earth: General Joel Palmer and the Indians of Oregon. When not lecturing, he divides his time between Portland and the Oregon coast.

Sandi Griffiths O’Neil, writer. Profile of Mari Lynch Dehmler. Birthplace, Shanghai, China; present residence, Elkhorn, California. Artist, musician, traveler, film aficionada, avid reader, former marine biology librarian.

Herb Payton, writer. Profile of Sean Bentley. Herb, an English major, manages electronic media for CD-ROM projects at Microsoft.

Robin Parker, writer/publicist. Robin lives and writes in La Porte, Texas. Her main focus is her husband, three kids, and two cocker spaniels. But when all are fed and the laundry’s caught up, she works on her novels and short stories.

Sowmya Parthasarathy, hostess. Sowmya is a New Delhi native who has a Master’s in Architecture from M.I.T. and works as a planner for a San Francisco urban design firm. Her interests are reading and water color painting.

Kevin Powell, writer. Profile of Lisa Teasley. Kevin is the author of recognize (Harlem River Press, 1995) in which “she has many ancestors” appears, and co-editor of In the Tradition: An Anthology of Young Black Writers (Harlem River Press, 1992). He was in the original cast of MTV’s Real World and is a staff writer for VIBE magazine. He lives in New York City.

Chris Cocklin Ray, writer. Profile of Carol Schirmer. Chris is a jeweler and metal worker and is determined to create outrageous, unsaleable pieces of metal work combined with beading. She lives in the Seattle area and is the mother of two children.
James Robb, writer. Profile of Dan Watkins. James lives in Seattle.

Lynne B. Robertson, writer. Profile of Elizabeth Woodroof Cogar. Lynne is a freelance writer and editor based in Richmond, Virginia, who has twenty-seven years’ experience in journalism and advertising. Her travels have taken her to Russia, Australia, and points in between.

Max Rodriguez, writer. Profile of jonetta rose barras. Max publishes The Quarterly Black Review of Books (QBR). (625 Broadway, 10th Floor, New York, NY 10012; 212-475-1010.)

Mamoun Sakkal, art director. Mamoun hails from the ancient Syrian city of Aleppo, has a Masters in Architecture from the University of Washington, and lives in Bothell, Washington. He is a licensed architect, an award-winning interior designer, and an accomplished illustrator. His father was a teacher who published the first children’s books in Syria. Mamoun’s love is graphic design and, especially, the design of Arabic typefaces. Mamoun is also a scholar who has achieved international recognition for his research into medieval Islamic domes and muqarnas. (Contact: 425-483-8830.)

Peter Schramm, writer. Profile of David L. Ulin. Peter has known David for years.
Macaria Cossitt Scott, writer. Profile of M. Cassandra Cossitt.

Sourav Sen, host. Sourav is a New Delhi native who recently received a Master’s in City Planning from U. C. Berkeley.

Janice Sethne, writer. Profile of Robert J. Brake. Janice is a graphic designer, teacher, and writer. She owns a Website production company in Portland, Oregon.

Aishah Shahidah Simmons, writer. Profile of Sande Smith. Aishah is an Afrolesfemcentric film maker/writer/activist who is based in Philadelphia. She is currently writing, directing, and producing NO! an experimental narrative documentary about rape in the black community. (Contact Afrolez Productions, P. O. Box 58085, Philadelphia, PA 19102-8085.)

Bruce Smith, writer. Profile of Linda H. Elegant. Bruce is the author of The Common Wages (Sheep Meadow), Silver and Information (University of Georgia, National Poetry Series Selection), Mercy Seat (University of Chicago), and two forthcoming volumes: To the Executive Director of the Fallen World and New and Selected Poems.

Sabrina Smith, writer. Profile of James Hall. Sabrina is a full-time mother of two boys, part-time travel agent, assists her husband’s musical career, and edits the Dominican College newsletter, Pathways. She lives in Anselmo, California.
Diane Solvang-Angell, graphic arts consultant. Diane has had a long career as a freelance graphic designer and a teacher of graphic design. She has mastered the arcana of corporate marketing in her current position as Communications Manager at SAFECO Insurance Corporation. In her spare time she creates clay portraits and studies screenwriting.

Les Standiford, mentor. Les directs the Creative Writing Program at Florida International University. He is a recipient of fellowships in fiction from the National Endowment of the Arts and the Florida Arts Council and is the author of five novels, including Spill (Atlantic Monthly, 1991) and Deal to Die For (HarperCollins, 1995).

Len Stevens, writer/publicist. Len lives in Portland with his wife, Kathleen, and three children Sarah, Hart and Ethel Elizabeth. He graduated from Lewis and Clark College and then obtained what he was assured would be a valuable degree from University of Puget Sound Law School which subsequently folded. A lawyer for several years in Portland and Micronesia, he now dabbles in a number of dubious business schemes—and writes. He has written four novels.

Renée Stout, writer. Profile of Gary Lilley. Renée was the first American sculptor to exhibit at the National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institute. In 1993 she was awarded a Tiffany Fellowship. Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally and is in several collections, including the National Museum of American Art and the Dallas Museum of Art. She lives in Washington, D.C.
Seth Stroh, computer support. Seth is a Senior Systems Engineer for Specialized Communications in Bellevue, Washington.

Amy Thornberry, writer. Profile of José Casarez. Amy is a scenic artist based in Los Angeles. Her credits include Fargo and The Mighty Ducks III. She attends print and sculpting classes at the Burnsdall Art College and is also in the teacher training program at Iyengar Yoga Institute.

Linda Thornton, hostess. Linda lives in Portland, Oregon where she works as a Christian Science Practitioner and helps to nurture the family recording company (Cocoa Mill Music) and the singing career of daughter Dawn-joy.

Lina Tibi, writer. Profile of Nathalie Handal. Lina is a Syrian poet living in London and is one of the most prominent contemporary Arabic poets. She has published three collections of poetry, including A Sun in the Closet (1989) and Self-Portrait (1994). Her latest is Here She Lives (1996). She is also co-editor of the journal Al-Katiba.

Sallie Tisdale, writer. Profile of Peggy Bird. Sallie is the winner of several literary awards, the author of five nonfiction books, most recently Talk Dirty to Me, and a contributing editor of Harper’s. Her work has also appeared in The New Republic, The New Yorker, Outside, and other magazines. She lives in the Pacific Northwest.

José Toledo, writer. Profile of Miriam Frances Abety. Cuban born José is a writer who currently makes his living as a social worker in Miami. A member of Café-con-leche Writer’s Group, Toledo is working on A Way to the World, a novel set in revolutionary Cuba of the 1960s.

Nancy Travers, writer. Profile of Sharon Streeter. Nancy is a visual artist who taught at Clackamas Community College for twenty-five years. She is now retired and devotes time to her own work.

Barbara Sachs Turner, writer. Profile of Lucy Aron. Barbara has published a novel, short stories, and several magazine articles. She has received awards from the Individual Arts Fund of Santa Barbara and the James Kirkwood Fund at the UCLA Writer’s Program.

Constance Warloe, writer. Profile of Jan Haag. Constance is the author of the novel The Legend of Olivia Cosmos Montevideo (Atlantic Monthly Press, 1994) and editor of I’ve Always Meant to Tell You: Letters to Our Mothers, An Anthology of 80 Women Writers (Pocket Books, 1997).

Barbara Weston, writer. Profile of Ron Ritts. Barbara’s articles and short stories have appeared in magazines including Writer’s Market, Earthwise Review, ByLine, Minnesota Ink, and Wellspring. Her reviews and profiles of writers have been featured in The Bloomsbury Review, New Letters Review of Books, and Inside Books. A member of National League of American Pen Women, she has won numerous awards for her writing.

David Williams, writer. Profile of Lisa Suhair Majaj. David is the author of Traveling Mercies (Alice James Books, 1993), a collection of poems.

Bonnie ZoBell, writer. Profile of Joey Kay Wauters. Bonnie has won an NEA Fellowship in Fiction and a PEN Syndicated Fiction Award. She teaches at Mesa College in San Diego. Her fiction has appeared in The Greensboro Review, The Cimarron Review, and Gulf Stream Magazine.