February 1, 2017



February often seems like one of those months where nothing ever happens and there is not anything to look forward to until the crocus’ break through the snow. The holidays are over and we are well into the new year, but spring is not quite within our reach just yet. What color is it outside? Gray.  What color was it yesterday? Gray. Sigh.  But, I am reminded that there are, in fact, several things to look forward to this month: Groundhog Day (we are hoping Punxsutawney Phil will tell us that Spring is on its way,) President’s Day, Black History Month, Lincoln's Birthday, and “Tell a Fairy Tale Day” on February 26th. I like that one!  And, of course, let us not forget Valentine’s Day. We have incorporated stories and visuals throughout this issue paying homage to Valentine’s Day and stories of love and its importance in our lives. It is not a greeting card holiday if you celebrate it wildly, and with passion. These days we need to stop, remember, and appreciate the loved ones in our lives. If 2016 taught me anything- it was that. ~Jennifer Criss

POETRY

Three Poems by Edilson Afonso Ferreira
A Poem by Judy Moskowitz: "Making Friends with Fear"
Two Poems by Lea Boyd: "Stupid Humans" and "First Sight"
Three Poems by Steven Petersheim: "Castaways of College," "The Chase," and "Dormant"
Three Poems by Sugar Tobey: "Someday," "Gut Feeling," and "Night"
Three Poems by Sunil Sharma: "Missing," "Haze," and Earthquake Different"
Three Poems by Tameka Jarmon: "Reminder," "Sleepless," and "Haunted"
Two Poems by Thomas Alan Orr: "Doppelganger" and "Moose Into Osprey"
Three Poems by Deborah Petersen: "We, Scent," "The Portal Called the Kitchen Window," and "What a Cast of Characters"
A Poem by Andrew Hubbard: "Nostalgia"
Five Poems by Michael Lee Johnson: "Sing it Frank, Physical Therapy," "Ding Dong School," "Compliance," "Give Me Booze or Give me Jesus," and "Journaling, Labeling Theory"
Three Poems by Scott Thomas Outlar: "Magnetic Pulse," "Both Sides of the Same Soul," and "Counting Stars"
Three Poems by Gary Glauber: "A Valentine Ponders the Powers of Love (A Double Abecedarian)," Icarus No More," and "Apogee"
Three Poems by David Subacchi: "Clouds of Existence," "North Africa," and "Not Impressed"
Two Poems by Claudine Nash: "Beginner's Guide to Loss in the Multiverse" and "Magnolias"
Two Poems by Ananya S. Guha: "Kashmir" and "In Saharan Africa"
Two Poems by Lynda McKinney Lambert: "Nine Postcards from Prague" and "der Hirsch"
A Poem by Thomas Piekarski: "Donner Lake"
A Poem by Bilkis Moola and Artwork by Shameeg van Schalkwyk

VISUAL ART

Visual Art by Darrell Urban 
Visual Art by Junior McLean

ESSAY

Autobiographical Essay by Raymond Greiner: "The Marietta Hole"

FICTION

Flash Fiction by Kip Hanson: "Losing Clint Eastwood"
Fiction by Martin Chan: "And the Oscar Goes to Jail"
Flash Fiction by Elena Croitoru: "Da Capo Al Fine"
Fiction by Jason Ford: "A Hidden Identity"
Flash Fiction by Jennifer Criss: "The Chocolates"

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Edilson Afonso Ferreira, 73, is a Brazilian poet who writes in English rather than Portuguese, having been published in venues like Right Hand Pointing, The Lake, The Stare’s Nest, The Provo Canyon, Red Wolf Journal, Whispers, Indiana Voice Journal, Synesthesia, Algebra of Owls and some others. Ferreira lives in a small town with wife, three sons and a granddaughter Has been recently nominated for The Pushcart Prize.

Judy Moskowitz started playing piano at the age of three and became a professional jazz musician. She has performed throughout the New York City area and was part of the jazz scene in New York. Judy started writing poetry three years ago and has been published in Indiana Voice Journal, Midnight Dreamers Of The Yellow Haze, The Poet Community.com, Whispers Of The Wind, Leaves Of Ink, and Poetry Life & Times. She currently resides in Boca Raton Florida where she continues to play jazz and write poetry. They live side by side in her veins and soul.

Lea Boyd lives in Southern Indiana. She has been published in a book, "Upon Arrival," and is soon to be published in Spillwords.  Lea Boyd says she is "A Murky Mind on Facebook."

Steven Petersheim is Assistant Professor of English at Indiana University East in the Whitewater Valley region of Indiana, where he teaches American literature and writes poetry between pilgrimages to Walden Pond and runs through the woods of Hayes Arboretum. His poetry has appeared in Wilderness House Literary Review, The Wayfarer: A Journal of Contemplative Literature, and elsewhere. Much of his poetry explores the conjunction of nature, memory, and human activity – some of it drawn from memories of his Amish childhood.

Sugar Tobey was born in Coney Island, Brooklyn, received a degree from the School of Visual Arts, and now lives in NYC above a pizza parlor.

Mumbai-based, Sunil Sharma has published 14 books, some solo; some joint. He is a  recipient of the UK-based Destiny Poets’ inaugural Poet of the Year award for 2012. His poems were published in the UN project: "Happiness: The Delight-Tree, An Anthology of International Poetry."

Tameka Jarmon is a blogger and social media content creator/curator. She has an obnoxious love for her alma mater, The University of Alabama, and moonlights as a radio announcer.

Thomas Alan Orr is a native New Englander who has lived in Indiana for the past forty years. He lives on a small farm in Shelby County. He raises and shows Flemish Giant rabbits. His most recent book,Tongue to the Anvil, was published in 2014 by Restoration Press. His poetry has been featured in Good Poems, edited by Garrison Keillor, and has appeared in numerous journals.

Deborah Petersen is from Bluffton, Indiana and is president of the Poetry Society of Indiana. She says: "What first influenced me as a poet, were the prayers of my childhood. Then, I became intoxicated by the complexity and cadence of William Shakespeare’s works. The most recent years have been influenced by the writings of the Persian Poet and Sufi Mystic, Rumi, and by the Japanese Haiku Master, Basho. And, as a source of inspiration, I study the many languages of the Divine, the tongues of transcendence. As artists, I believe, we are mere conduits. When I am in the moment of being a conduit, I find myself in an omniscience, a moment of vastness and grace, a connection to a universal wisdom and discerning perception.

Andrew Hubbard recently moved back to Indiana after ten years in Houston, Texas. He has had five books published, including, most recently, his first book of poetry, "Things That Get You," which was produced by Interactive Press. He was nominated for the Pushcart Prize in 2015. His new book, The Divining Rod, is available at: http://ipoz.biz/portfolio-single/the-divining-rod/

Michael Lee Johnson is a poet, editor, publisher, freelance writer, amateur photographer, small business owner in Itasca, Illinois. He has been published in more than 915 small press magazines in 27 countries, and he edits 10 poetry sites. His author's website is at: http://poetryman.mysite.com/. Michael is the author of several chapbooks of poetry and has more than 108 poetry videos on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/user/poetrymanusa/videos). He has been nominated two Pushcart Prizes and Best of the Net 2016. He is also the editor/publisher of anthology, Moonlight Dreamers of Yellow Haze, available at Amazon. A second anthology, Dandelion in a Vase of Roses, Editor Michael Lee Johnson, is due for release soon.

Scott Thomas Outlar hosts the site 17Numa.wordpress.com where links to his published poetry, fiction, essays, interviews, and books can be found. He recently received three Pushcart Prize nominations for his work in 2016. Scott is a member of The Southern Collective Experience. He serves as an editor for Walking Is Still Honest Press, The Blue Mountain Review, and The Peregrine Muse.

Gary Glauber is a poet, fiction writer, teacher, and former music journalist. His works have received multiple Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net nominations. He champions the underdog to the melodic rhythms of obscure power pop. His collection, Small Consolations (Aldrich Press) is available through Amazon, as is a chapbook, Memory Marries Desire (Finishing Line Press). His next collection, Worth the Candle, is forthcoming from Five Oaks Press.

David Subacchi lives in Wales where he was born of Italian roots. He studied at the University
of Liverpool and he has 4 published collections of his English Language poetry First Cut (2012),
Hiding in Shadows (2014), Not Really a Stranger (2016) and A Terrible Beauty (2016). His work
has also appeared in numerous literary magazines and anthologies.
More about David and his work can be found at: http://www.writeoutloud.net/profiles/davidsubacchi

Claudine Nash’s collections include her full-length poetry book Parts per Trillion (Aldrich Press, 2016) and her chapbook The Problem with Loving Ghosts (Finishing Line Press, 2014). She also recently edited the collection In So Many Words: Interviews and Poetry from Today’s Poets (Madness Muse Press, 2016) with Adam Levon Brown. Her poetry has been nominated for a Pushcart prize and has appeared in such publications as Asimov’s Science Fiction, Cloudbank, Haight Ashbury Literary Journal and Yellow Chair Review amongst others. She also is a practicing psychologist. Website: www.claudinenashpoetry.com.

Ananya S Guha lives in Shillong in North East India. He has been publishing his poetry over thirty years. He is a senior academic in India's Indira Gandhi National Open University.

Lynda McKinney Lambert writes Poetry and Creative Non-Fiction Essays. Her book, “Concerti: Psalms for the Pilgrimage,” was published by Kota Press and is available on Amazon. Her work has appeared in literary magazines, newspapers, academic books and journals since 1985. She is a retired professor of fine arts and humanities from Geneva College, Beaver Falls, PA. Currently, Lynda has 3 books in development for publication in 2017.

Thomas Piekarski is a former editor of the California State Poetry Quarterly. His poetry and interviews have appeared widely in literary journals internationally, including Nimrod, Portland Review, Mandala Journal, Cream City Review, Poetry Salzburg, Pennsylvania Literary Journal, Boston Poetry Magazine, and Poetry Quarterly. He has published a travel book, Best Choices In Northern California, and Time Lines, a book of poems.

C:\Users\Bilkis\Pictures\AdamLevonBrown Pic'_files\12936581_1081625915230028_3787207028935916729_n.jpg
Bilkis Moola is an Educator who works as a Head of Department in Languages at a school in Vukuzakhe, a township located in Volksrust, Mpumalanga Province, South Africa.  Her first published anthology, “Wounds and Wings:  A Lyrical Salve Through Metaphor” was received throughout South Africa and launched her poetic persona.  It evolved as an introspective quest for recovery from her personal narrative of an abusive marriage.  She presently divides her time between professional responsibilities and  postgraduate studies in Education.  Her pen continues to sketch the flotsam in her mind from the passion in her heart on shreds of paper that bloom into poems.

   Visual artist- Shameeg van Schalkwyk




Darrell Urban Black I was born in Brooklyn, New York, I grew up in Far Rockaway, New York. In high school, I excelled in science with an affinity for outer space. In June 1969, as America fulfilled J. F. Kennedy's dream to put the American Stars and Stripes into the dusty surface of the moon My fascination with spaceships grew. As a child I made spaceship models eventually placing my artistic visions on paper resulting in some 500 drawings. Phantasmal spaceships eventually carried me to unique wonderland of strange forms and colors.





Junior McLean is Bronx native, for a time lived in Anderson, Indiana and back, current freelance digital artist and graphic designer since 1996 and a digital cover “2D/3D” artist for Gaming, Fantasy, Sci-Fi; and fractals which have been used for public exhibitions and more.
Currently, he multi-tasks, runs a small freelance business, sells art online, and is just looking to get himself out there for the world to see.



Raymond Greiner's writings include short stories and essays published frequently in various literary journals and magazines:  Branches magazine, La Joie Journal, Literary Yard Journal, Nib Magazine, Canary Literary Journal, Bellesprit Magazine, Freedom Journal, Grace Notes Literary Magazine. His latest book, "Queenie; a novella" is available on Amazon. Raymond lives in a remote area of southern Indiana in a cabin far off a lightly traveled road with his two dogs Orion and Venus.  

Kip lives in sunny Tucson, where his wife makes him watch Poltergeist while insisting clowns are not scary. You can find his work scattered about the Internet, at Foundling Review, Inkspill, Bartleby Snopes, and a few other places, proving that a blind squirrel does occasionally find a nut. When not telling lies, he makes a few bucks cobbling together boring articles for technical magazines.

Martin Chan is an international student who is dedicated to expressing his emotions and thoughts through pens and paper. Besides writing, he is also an avid reader.

Elena Croitoru is based in London and is working on short stories, novels and poetry. She followed University of Oxford's Advanced Creative Writing Course and is currently studying for the Diploma in Creative Writing at the University of Cambridge. Her work has appeared in Ekphrasis - A Poetry Journal, Amaryllis Poetry, Foliate Oak, The Front Porch Review and other magazines. One of her stories has been selected as an Editors' Choice in Bewildering Stories' Fourth Quarterly Review of 2015. She also works as a software developer.

Jason Constantine Ford is from Perth in Australia. He writes for the love of writing. His major influences poetry and fiction are Edgar Alan Poe, William Blake and Gerard Manley Hopkins. Most of his poetry is rhyming poetry as he is dedicated to it. He also writes fiction. His main influences for fiction are Bram Stroker and Phillip K. Dick. Jason is interested in the genres of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror. He has a personal page at https://myspace.com/jasonconstantine.ford

Jennifer Criss graduated from Ball State University with a minor in Creative Writing. Jennifer writes mostly short stories but has discovered a love for writing poetry.  Her poetry has been published in Poebita Magazine, Whispers, The Poet Community, NY Literary Magazine and Indiana Voice Journal. Her work also appears in several print anthologies. She was nominated for a Pushcart Prize in 2016. She now works at Ball State, is a busy mother of two girls and the art editor at Indiana Voice Journal. 

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