Michelle Herman's books include the novels Devotion, Dog, and Missing; the essay collections Like a Song, Stories We Tell Ourselves, and The Middle of Everything; the novella collection A New and Glorious Life; and a book for children, A Girl's Guide to Life. She teaches in Ohio State's MFA program.

Christopher Coake is the author of the novel You Came Back and the story collection We're in Trouble, for which he won the PEN/Robert Bingham Fellowship. In 2006, he was named a Best Young American Novelist by Granta. He teaches and directs the MFA program at the University of Nevada, Reno.

Joe Oestreich is the author of Partisans, Lines of Scrimmage, and Hitless Wonder. His work has appeared in Creative Nonfiction, River Teeth, The Normal School, Esquire, and many other magazines and journals. He teaches at Coastal Carolina University, where he is chair of the English department.

Ann Townsend is a poet and essayist, and the author of The Coronary Garden, Dime Store Erotics, and Radiant Lyre: Essays on Lyric Poetry (with David Baker). She directs the creative writing program at Denison University; in 2009, she cofounded VIDA: Women in Literary Arts.

Leni Zumas is the author of two novels (Red Clocks and The Listeners) and a story collection (Farewell Navigator). She teaches in the MFA and BFA programs at Portland State University.