Tom Sleigh's many books include Station Zed, Army Cats, winner of the John Updike Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and Space Walk, winner of the Kingsley Tufts Award. He is a Distinguished Professor at Hunter College and he works as a journalist in Syria, Lebanon, Somalia, Kenya, Iraq, and Libya.

Jennifer Grotz is the author of three books of poetry, most recently Window Left Open. She's also the translator of Hubert Haddad's novel, Rochester Knockings, and Patrice de La Tour du Pin's Psalms of all my Days. She directs the Bread Loaf Translators' Conference.

C. Dale Young is author of four collections of poetry, the most recent being The Halo. A recipient of fellowships from the NEA, the Guggenheim Foundation, and the Rockefeller Foundation, he practices medicine full-time. His short story collection, The Afflication, is forthcoming.

Alan Shapiro is author of twelve books of poetry (most recently Reel to Reel, finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, and Night of the Republic, a finalist for both the National Book Award and The Griffin Prize), and four books of prose (including Broadway Baby). He is a winner of the Kingsley Tufts Award.

A. Van Jordan is the Henry Rutgers Presidential Professor at Rutgers University-Newark.