Willie Lee Kinard III with Cassie Premo Steele

Willie Lee Kinard holds an MFA in creative writing -- poetry from the University of Pittsburgh. A fellow of the Watering Hole, his musings include gospel surrealism, black romance, and superstition. With written work appearing or forthcoming in Obsidian, Poem-A-Day, Best New Poets, Boston Review, and elsewhere, he is the winner of Poetry Magazine's 2021 J. Howard & Barbara M.J. Wood Prize and a Pushcart Prize nominee. He teaches English at the University of South Carolina. Go see ‘bout them at www.williekinard.com.

Cassie Premo Steele, Ph.D., is a lesbian, ecofeminist, mother, poet, novelist, and essayist whose writing focuses on the themes of trauma, healing, creativity, mindfulness, and the environment. She is an award-winning author of 16 books and audio programs ranging from novels to poetry and nonfiction and scholarship. Her newest book, Swimming in Gilead, is forthcoming from Yellow Arrow Publishing in 2023. We Heal from Memory, her scholarly work…