Meet the contributors of upcoming Issue 223
Perle Besserman
Recipient of the Theodore Hoepfner Fiction Award and past writer-in-residence at the Mishkenot Sha’ananim Artists’ Colony in Jerusalem, Perle Besserman was praised by Anthony Burgess, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, and Isaac Bashevis Singer for the “clarity and feeling for mystic lore” of her writing and by Publisher’s Weekly for its “wisdom [that] points to a universal practice of the heart.” She has written three novels, “Pilgrimage,” “Kabuki Boy,” “Widow Zion,” and a linked story collection, “Yeshiva Girl.” Her short fiction has appeared in The Southern Humanities Review, Agni, Transatlantic Review, Nebraska Review, Southerly, North American Review, and in many other publications, both online and in print. Besserman’s most recent books of creative non-fiction are “A New Zen for Women,” and “Zen Radicals, Rebels, and Reformers,” coauthored with Manfred Steger. Her forthcoming book, “Grassroots Zen: Community and Practice in the 21st Century,” also co-authored with Manfred Steger, was published in May 2017. Her latest novel, “The Kabbalah Master” will be published in 2018. Perle has appeared on television, radio, and in two documentary films about her work. Her books have been recorded and released in both audio and e-book versions and translated into over ten languages.
Julia Molloy
Julia Molloy is a short story writer whose work has appeared at The Fiction Pool. She was shortlisted for the Fresher Writing Prize 2016 and longlisted for the Doris Gooderson 2016 short story competition. Her fiction is soon to appear at Fictive Dream. She graduated from Lancaster University in 2015 with a degree in English Literature and Creative Writing.
Joe Ponepinto
Joe Ponepinto’s novel,” Mr. Neutron,” will be published by 7.13 Books in spring 2018. He is the winner of the Tiferet: Literature, Art & the Creative Spirit 2016 fiction contest, and has been published in Fugue, The Lifted Brow, Lumina, 2 Bridges Review, and many other literary journals in the U.S. and abroad. Joe lives in Washington State with his wife, Dona, and Henry the coffee-drinking dog. He is the publisher and fiction editor of Tahoma Literary Review, and teaches at Seattle’s Hugo House, and Tacoma Community College.
Mick Ó Seasnáin
Mick Ó Seasnáin is a Teaching Consultant for The National Writing Project at Kent State University and an English Language Arts for Edgewood Middle School; he holds a B.A. from Baldwin Wallace University and an M.A.T. from Miami University. His works have been featured in multiple print and digital journals and anthologies.
Andrew Bertaina
Andrew Bertaina currently lives and works in Washington, D.C. He obtained his MFA in creative writing from American University where he also now works as an instructor. His work has appeared or is forthcoming in more than thirty publications including: The ThreePenny Review, Tin House Flash Fridays, Hobart, Apt, Bayou, and Catamaran. He is currently a reader and book reviewer for Fiction Southeast.
Leonard Henry Scott
Leonard Henry Scott was born in the Bronx, New York, where he attended Evander Childs High School. He is a graduate of American University (BS) and The University of Maryland (MLS); He was on the staff of the Library of Congress for many years and he and his wife, Hattie presently live in National Harbor, Maryland. His essays, poetry and fiction have appeared in The MacGuffin, The Lyric,The Evansville Review, Foliate Oak, Still Crazy, Every Writer and various other literary magazines.
Dara Passano
Dara Passano is the author of The Guardian UK’s “Confessions of a Humanitarian” column. Dara’s fiction has appeared in numerous publications in Southeast Asia.
Mark Belair
Mark Belair’s poems have appeared in numerous journals, including Alabama Literary Review, Atlanta Review, The Cincinnati Review, Harvard Review, Michigan Quarterly Review, Poetry East and The South Carolina Review. His latest collection is “Watching Ourselves” (Unsolicited Press, 2017). Previous collections include “Breathing Room” (Aldrich Press, 2015); “Night Watch” (Finishing Line Press, 2013); “While We’re Waiting” (Aldrich Press, 2013); and “Walk With Me” (Parallel Press of the University of Wisconsin at Madison, 2012). He has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize multiple times.
Domenic Scopa
Domenic Scopa is a three-time Pushcart Prize nominee and the 2014 recipient of the Robert K. Johnson Poetry Prize and Garvin Tate Merit Scholarship. He holds an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts. His poetry and translations have been featured in The Adirondack Review, Reed Magazine, Borderlands: Texas Poetry Review, Reunion: The Dallas Review, Belleville Park Pages, and many others. He is currently a Lecturer at Plymouth State University and an Adjunct Professor of Literature at New Hampshire Technical Institute. His first book, “Walk-in Closet” (Yellow Chair Press), is forthcoming in 2017. He currently reads manuscripts for Hunger Mountain and Ink Brush Publications.