Mark LEIDNER is the author of two books of poetry, Returning the Sword to the Stone (Fonograf, 2021) and Beauty Was the Case that They Gave Me (Factory Hollow, 2011), a book of aphorisms The Angel in the Dream of Our Hangover (Two Dollar Radio, 2011), and a short story collection Under the Sea (Tyrant Books, 2018). He also wrote two feature films: the sci-fi thriller Empathy, Inc. (2019) and the relationship comedy Jammed (2014). He lives in California and is originally from Georgia.

Justin MARKS’ books are, The Comedown, (Publishing Genius Press, 2021), You’re Going to Miss Me When You’re Bored, (Barrelhouse Books, 2014) and A Million in Prizes (New Issues, 2009). Recent poems appear in Conduit and Iterant. He is a co-founder of Birds, LLC, an independent poetry press, and lives in New York City with his family.

This event was made possible by generous contributions by the Creative Writing Program at the Kansas City Art Institute.