~A~

JoAnna Arnold lives in Americus, Georgia, with her husband and three children. She is a teacher of French and Spanish at a local high school. In addition, she serves as an adjunct professor of French at South Georgia State University. JoAnna regularly travels with her family and students throughout Europe and Latin America. Although she believes that teaching high school is an incomparable mission field, she continues to nurture an insatiable love for Jubilee, Haiti.

~B~

Patricia Barkman taught writing for over thirty years at several colleges and two Canadian high schools. In 2013 she self-published an autobiographical book, Lieber about her late husband, Leon.

New to publishing poetry, this selection is in her upcoming book, My Chocolate Lover. She has also self-published a children’s coloring book, Around the Flagpole. She lives in Newtown, CT.

Frederick W. Bassett is a retired academic who lives with his wife Peg in Greenwood SC. He has four books of poetry, the latest being The Old Stoic Faces the Mirror. His poems have also been widely published in journals and anthologies, including most of those published by Old Mountain Press. He is currently working on the final novel of a planned trilogy. The first two novels are South Wind Rising and Honey from a Lion.

Joann Bishop is in the process of submitting manuscripts for publication on Wildlife and Domesticate Pets she has had or have seen over a lifetime. She is working on another group of poems based upon her travels and life experience over the years. She retired from the workforce and has been pursuing her writing career.

Judy Spencer Bolton, MD is a retired Endocrinologist with several clinical publications in New England Journal of Medicine, Diabetes Care, and Hospital Practice. After 30 years of patient care and teaching in Memphis, TN, she is currently working on her memoir. Judy lives in Landrum, SC.

Rachel Bronnum lives in Lawrenceville, GA., part of Atlanta’s metro sprawl. Her work has appeared in several Old Mountain Press and other Anthologies. She is a product of the South and her work reflects this background, with the influences of family and a resistance to change.

~C~

Jim Clark is the Elizabeth H. Jordan Professor of Southern Literature and Dean of the School of Humanities at Barton College in Wilson, NC. His books include Notions: A Jim Clark Miscellany; two collections of poetry, Dancing on Canaan’s Ruins and Handiwork; and he edited Fable in the Blood: The Selected Poems of Byron Herbert Reece. He has released two solo CDs of music and poetry, and three with his band The Near Myths.

Nancy H. Cody and her husband, Bill, have been life-long residents of Hayesville, NC. They have two grown children and four grandchildren. Nancy's poetry has been previously published in four of Old Mountain Press anthologies. Other writings have appeared in Field Mules and Buttermilk Cornbread, Clay County Heritage Volume I & II, Hearthstones of Home Volume I & II, and The Clay County Progress.

Vicki Collins has taught English at the University of South Carolina Aiken for twenty-six years. Her poetry and prose have appeared in various publications. Her current research is a manuscript about characters in Appalachian literature and film.

Thomas Rain Crowe is a prize-winning poet and an internationally-published author of more than thirty books, including the multi-award winning book of nonfiction Zoro’s Field: My Life in the Appalachian Woods (2005); Learning To Dance (a collection of love poems published in 2015); and the Celtic language anthology Writing the Wind: A Celtic Resurgence. As an editor, he has worked with the Beat-inspired Beatitude magazine in San Francisco in the 1970s and was Director of the 1st Annual San Francisco Poetry Festival in 1976. He has also been an editor of Katuah Journal and the Asheville Poetry Review. He is founder and publisher of New Native Press. He lives in the Tuckasegee community in western North Carolina.

~D~

Nancy Dillingham is the author of eight books of poetry and short fiction; the latest is her chapbook 1950: Poems. This past October, one of her poems was chosen for the POETRY IN PLAIN SIGHT project. Another chapbook, More Frailer than Flowers is forthcoming. She and her co-editor Celia Miles have just published their fourth anthology It’s All Relative: Tales from the Tree from 50 WNC Women Writers.

Peter Dome’s words are always written from the heart. He hopes they will reach others, to inspire and give them pleasure. Perhaps relate to. Writing is his life, It’s the way he express his love and feelings. Peter lives in Sheffield the United Kingdom..

Beth Dragon won a few writing prizes, lived enough for two lifetimes and adopted a good many critters over the years. Her current cat is old, fat and a bit lazy. That’s why they get along so well. Miracles are everywhere and she writes about them, but folks seem to like the poetry best. Recently she moved back to Greenville, South Carolina for the THIRD time, so it must be home.

~F~

Dena M. Ferrari, is a regular contributor to OMP. Dena’s poetry are featured in Westchester Community College of NY "Phoenix" (1975);. Writers Alliance Poets World-Wide anthologies has dozens of her published works. Dena’s own books, "Poems From the Hearth" (2010) ;"Come Closer My Dearies" (2013) and her newest book "Charmed Times Three" (2015), shows diversified writing styles, leaving a Living Legacy for her grandchildren. She and her husband, Peter live in Vass, NC.

Ann Fogelman, a writer of memories in prose and poetry was born in Reading, PA. Her work has appeared in The Noble Generation, That Thing You Do, Pets Across America, Texas Poetry Calendar, Boundless, OMP Anthologies and school publications. Ann is a member of Bay Area Writers League, Gulf Coast Poets, Poetry Society of Texas and Osher Lifetime Learning Institute at UTMB, Galveston, Tx. Ann lives in Friendswood, TX.

Joanne Kennedy Frazer is a retired social justice educator. Having been guided and nourished by a gifted writing group, penning poetry has become the passion of her third stage of life. Three of her poems have been turned into a song cycle by composer C.M. Fuentes. Her poetry appears in Old Mountain Press’ anthology, Into the Coastal Sun, and Raindrop Press’ Poetic Portions anthology. Frazer lives in Durham, NC.

~G~

Christian George is from Indian Trail, NC. He attends Appalachian State University during the school year. His work has been previously published by Old Mountain Press in the anthologies A Funny Thing and Into The Coastal Sun. He has also won first place in several local poetry competitions. He continues to write in college while he attains a degree in English. Writing has allowed Christian to clearly communicate his emotions and opinions on different topics.

James Gibson, Northville, MI, has published five novels in his Anasazi Quest series, based on Native American culture in the American Southwest. The series, as well as The Last Ride, a western novel, are available at www.PentacleSpress.com  Anasazi Princess and Anasazi Journey are also available on Kindle books.

BJ Gillum has published six novels including Alabama Rising/The Erectolite Affair, Best Seller List/A dream to Die For, Forget Me Not/Love's Never Long Enough, King of the Kudzu, The Reluctant Terrorist and Darwin’s War. He lives with his wife Saundra in Rockwood, TN.

Marian Gowan is author of Notes from the Trunk, published by Old Mountain Press. Her work has appeared in several Old Mountain Press anthologies and regional publications. Most recently, she contributed to It’s All Relative: Tales from the Tree, edited by Celia Miles and Nancy Dillingham. She retired to the NC mountains from western NY in 2001.

~H~

Robin (Crowe) Haase’s publishing credits includes news articles written for various local newspapers. She has three grown children and one beautiful granddaughter. Recently widowed and retired, she now has the time to pursue her writing and art, a lifelong dream.

Kerri Mai Habben lives in Raleigh, NC. A graduate of Peace College and North Carolina State University, her work has appeared in literary journals, The News and Observer, and other publications in the United States and Canada. She has a collection of creative non-fiction essays she is working to publish.

Melissa Hager lives in Taylorsville, NC. A graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill, "Miss Mel" is a children's librarian who hopes to inspire the love of poetry in children and teens. She co-leads Art of Poetry at the Hickory Museum of Art, as well as co-edits The Alexander Muse teen literary magazine. Her work has been published in Bloodshot Journal of Contemporary Culture, The Lyricist, Wild Goose Poetry Review, 234, Art of Poetry, and other publications.

MaXine Carey Harker and husband Berkley, have lived 60+ years in the little one-stop-light town of Grifton, NC, reared 5 children who have produced grandchildren and great grandchildren in far-flung places. Published in national, state, and local publications, she prefers non-fiction, sonnets, and haiku. She’s taught Writing for Publication for 35+ years at 2 Community Colleges, now Rec Center in New Bern. MaXine is 86 – her doctor tells her she is 68.

Joseph Haymore retired from the U.S. Army in 1975 to live in his childhood home near Sanford, NC. He is a veteran of two combat tours in Vietnam and three tours in Germany. He is currently 60% disabled with several medical problems caused by his exposure to Agent Orange. He has been diagnosed with PTSD. He began writing poetry and prose as a vehicle to help him deal with PTSD. He never considered himself a serious writer until he joined the Writers’ Ink Guild of Fayetteville in 2000. A year after joining the Guild he was elected president and served in that capacity for ten years. His primary interest is formalist poetry.

Rachel Holbrook writes from her home in East TN. Her work has been published or is upcoming in Burningword Literary Journal, *82 Review, and CENTURY 121. She can be found at www.RachelHolbrook.net , where she writes a weekly serial, Little River. When not writing, Rachel goes on literal and literary adventures with her husband and six children.

~J~

David Jones Dd, lld, is from Hartsville, SC, presently living in Henrietta, NC. David is a newspaper columnist, and has a radio broadcast. He has self published five books which can be read for free on his website www.buzzwrites.com

K. D. Kennedy Jr. has published four (4) books of poetry, short stories, and essays: Our Place In Time, Waiting Out In The Yard, For Rhyme Of Reason, and Progenitors: A Kennedy Genealogy. He has also published works in over twenty anthologies and periodicals. He has served as Chairman of the following: The Board of Trustees of Barton College, the North Carolina Board of Ethics, the North Carolina Theater, and the Building Committee of the Duke Power Performing Arts Center.

~K~

Nita Hallford Killebrew lives on her ivy-covered acre in Lilburn, GA and loves the abundance of wildlife there. She never lacks for inspiration for writing and painting. For the past two years, she has enjoyed editing a newsletter for educators, serving as a national judge for secondary school lit. mags., and writing poems which have appeared in three OMP anthologies.

~L~

Patsy Kennedy Lain still rambles the roads in Onslow, Carteret, Craven and Duplin Counties with pens in her pockets, papers in her car along with brushes, an easel and paints in her trunk plus a camera. She continues to capture the wonders of life through flashes, words, and art. She has published works in several magazines, anthologies and even a local newspaper.

Blanche L. Ledford is a resident of Clay County, NC. Her work has appeared in many Old Mountain Press anthologies and journals. She won the Paul Green Award for her book, Planting by the Signs. Blanche also won first place for her essay in the Cherokee Senior Games Silver Art’s Contest.

Michael H. Lythgoe’s publishing credits include 3 collections, Holy Week, Brass, Visions, Revisions. He holds an MFA from Bennington College, and degrees from St. Louis U., & The University of Notre Dame. Mike contributes art reviews and poems to Windhover. He recently gave readings at UMHB in Belton, TX. Mike retired as an USAF officer. He lives in Aiken, SC. He has poems forthcoming in The Petigru Review.

~M~

Valerie Macon lives in Fuquay Varina, NC. She loves to paint the world fresh with her words. She has written three books of poetry, Shelf Life, Sleeping Rough, and A String of Black Pearls.

Kathy Merlino is the author of Kathysretirementblog.com, a blog about her perspective and thoughts on the emotional side of retirement. She is one of the most thought-provoking and influential writers on non-financial retirement topics. Kathy believes retirement is a journey, not a destination. She lives in Landrum, SC with her husband on their hobby farm. She has written on the subject of retirement for both online and print magazines.

MariJo Moore, author/poet/clairvoyant/medium, is the author of twenty books including The Diamond Doorknob, Bear Quotes, and A Book of Spiritual Wisdom–for all days. She is also editor of numerous anthologies including Unraveling the Spreading Cloth of Time: Indigenous Thoughts Concerning the Universe. Soon to be published are Mystery Quotes (12/15) and When Spirits Visit (2/16). She resides in Asheville, NC. www.marijomoore.com

~N~

Jimena Novaro is a second-year creative writing student at Warren Wilson College in Asheville, NC. She was born and raised in the Patagonia region of Argentina, where some of the few remaining native populations of araucaria trees live. She’s the author of Blue Rabbit, a young adult fantasy novel. Her short story "Worlds of Clay" was published in the anthology The Adventure of Creation.

~O~

Beverly Ohler is a theater designer who loves to write. Warren Wilson College has been her working home for many decades, and since her husband’s retirement, Black Mountain is where she lives. Growing up in the Northeast provides the location for much of her writing. This is eighth edition of OMP Anthology that includes her work.

Margaret Parrish’s poems have appeared in Mountain High, Poem, Poets for Peace, Bay Leaves and other journals. She lives in Raleigh.

Dylan D. Phillips lives in Rock Hill, SC with his wife Amy and teaches English at Gaston Day School in Gastonia, NC. His poetry has appeared in Atlantic Pacific Press, and the previous OMP Anthologies Words, Traveling Time, Just Between Us, They That Go Down to the Sea, You Gotta Love ’Em, and Exit 109. His critical essays have appeared in The Baker Street Journal and The Sigma Tau Delta Review.

Nancy Posey is an Alabama transplant living in Hickory, North Carolina. A teacher, reader, and writer, she has published poetry and articles in a number of print and online journals and anthologies. Her chapbook Let the Lady Speak won the Poetic Asides November 2009 Chapbook Challenge. She worked to organized the first Fall Face-to-Face in the Foothills Poetry Festival in September 2015 at the Hickory Museum of Art. Learn more at her website www.nancyposey.com .

Michael Potts has two volumes of poetry published as well as numerous poems in literary magazines and Old Mountain Press anthologies. A new, illustrated edition of his award-winning chapbook, From Field to Thicket, is forthcoming from WordCrafts Press in Tullahoma, Tennessee. He lives with his wife, Karen, and their three cats in Coats, North Carolina.

~R~

Mary Ricketson is inspired by nature. Her poetry is published in Wild Good Poetry Review, Future Cycle Press, Journal of Kentucky Studies, Lights in the Mountains, Echoes Across the Blue Ridge, Red Fox Run, It’s All Relative, and her books, I Hear the River Call My Name, and Hanging Dog Creek. She works as a mental health counselor and lives on a farm in Murphy, NC.

Dwight Roth is a retired elementary school teacher of 29 years, who grew up in the mountains of Southwestern Pennsylvania. He enjoys writing, poetry, painting, and music. He enjoys participating in the Indian Trail Cultural Arts poetry group and has had works published in Tea and Poetry blog spot, Common Ground Magazine, and recent OMP Anthologies. He has self-published three memoirs and a book of poetry. He and his wife Ruth live near Monroe, NC.

~S~

Dr. Lynn Veach Sadler lives in Burlington, NC. A former college president, she has published 5+ books and 72 articles, edited 22 books/proceedings and 3 national journals, and writes a newspaper column on history. In creative writing, she has published 10 poetry chapbooks and 4 full-length collections, 100+ short stories, 4 novels, a novella, and 2 short story collections and written 41 plays. As a Gilbert-Chappell Distinguished Poet 2013-2015, she mentored student and adult poets.

Jane Shlensky, a teacher, writer, and musician, holds an MFA from UNC-Greensboro. Her recent work can be found in sundry online and print anthologies and magazines, including The Dead Mule, KAKALAK, 2015 Poet’s Market, NC Literary Review, Southern Poetry Anthology: North Carolina, and Writer’s Digest. Jane is one of the coordinators of the annual Fall Face-to-Face in the Foothills poetry event in Hickory.

Rishan Singh is a South African poet, a biologist, and a writer. His literary writing has appeared in books and journals, both in South Africa and overseas. He lives in Durban, South Africa.

Mary Louise Stark enjoys a country life and finds much to write about living so close to the season's changes and the natural beauty of rural GA. She has studied English literature, drama and storytelling and thinks writing embraces it all. She and her retired husband live on a track in Monroe, GA, not far from Athens in one direction and Atlanta in another. They have three children, six grandchildren, a foundling dog, and a cat, not to mention the many wild critters that share their farm.

Tonya Staufer found her way back to writing a few years ago. She is a real estate investment broker by day and a writer by night. She and her husband call Saluda, NC home. Her stories have appeared in Spirit of the Smokies, A Long Story Short, Western NC Woman, Moonshine Review, and numerous anthologies.

Shelby Stephenson is the Poet Laureate of North Carolina. His current books: Steal Away (Jacar) and Fiddledeedee (Press 53). Shelby lives near, Benson, NC.

Wendy S. Stephens lives in Transylvania County, NC, which she considers a magical and inspiring place. An avid traveler of inner and outer journeys, she enjoys journaling about each as well as writing short stories, travel blogs, poems, and essays. Her work has appeared in a variety of publications, including Into the Coastal Sun and It’s All Relative.

~T~

Fred Tarr, former member NetWest continues poems of North Carolina, reflecting his time with friends Wayne Wright, Waynesville and Joe Bunten woodcarver from Sylva, the latter’s rendition of Jesus Passion in relief and free standing filled his mobile home. Fred’s publication credits: Dove Tales, Writing for Peace anthology; HOD issue2;Diverse Voices Quarterly, issue 7 centerfold; The Spirit That Moves Us, Morty Skylar, ed. vol.1,no.3; Fred lives in Ft. Thomas, KY.

Saana Tykka, originally from Finland, and having first tried Austria, England, Scotland and Belgium, now lives in Greenville, South Carolina. She shares her life with her husband and their Dachshund. When not reading, writing or exercising, she speculates on the plot of the new Star Wars movie.

~W~

Elizabeth Watson makes a habit of submitting short prose and poetry to Old Mountain Press and other anthologies. Friends ask, "When are you going to write a book?" She has no plans to change her habits. Natives of MA, the Watsons retired years ago to the Carolinas and live today in Greenville, SC. They promised each of four accomplished daughters one degree and one wedding! The result is the next two generations make them proud.

Evelyne Weeks is a writer of both poetry and prose. Her work has been published in The Hollins Critic, Appalachian Heritage, and Out of the Rough: Women’s Poems of Survival and Celebration. Today she lives in Rock Hill, South Carolina, where she has taught English at Winthrop University since 1989.

Stella Ward Whitlock is a writer, retired teacher and university instructor, widow of a Presbyterian minister, mother of four, and grandmother of seven. She has published poems, articles, and short stories in various magazines and journals, and a poetry chapbook Florida Heat. One of her plays, After the Funeral, was professionally produced. She currently lives in the Glenaire Retirement Community in Cary, NC.

Glenda S. Wilkins grew up on a North Carolina tobacco farm, and believed she'd never live beyond the county line. Decades later, she moved with her husband to Europe for a dozen years. Her poems have been published in Europe, Great Britain, & North America. Thus far, she appreciates several poetry awards. She lives on an air strip, Winterville, NC.

Barbara Ledford Wright, associate editor to Moonshine and Blind Mules frequently contributes to OMP anthology series, also several family history books, Muscadine Lines: A Southern Journal, Express Yourself 101 Vol 2 For Your Eyes Only, Kaleidoscope, Fireflies and June Bugs, Yesterdays Magazette, Fresh, Mused, Bread ‘N Molasses, Northern Stars, The Oxford So and So, Carolina Country, Angels on Earth: a Guideposts Pub., Field Mules and Buttermilk Cornbread. Barbara lives in Shelby, NC.

~Y~

Joe Youngblood is a retired Navy Deep Sea Diver who now works for the US Army at Ft. Bragg North Carolina. "Glory" is a shortened version of a much longer work titled "Old Glory" written after 9/11. Joe greatly admires the men and women he works with and deeply appreciates their daily sacrifices. Joe lives in Fayetteville, NC.