Poet Bios

PNG Poetry Online is interested in taking full advantage of the graphical aspects of the World Wide Web. In doing so, we are asking all contributors to send us photos of themselves for inclusion here. Understandably, not all contributors will wish to have the world see them—it is, after all, the words of the poems that really count. If, however, you would like to have your mug on this page in future issues, please send us either a scanned photo converted to the Web format—i.e., either GIF or JPEG—or, if you don't have access to a scanner, you can send the photo itself via land-mail. The street address of PNG Poetry Online is: 46000 Geddes Road, #86, Canton, MI 48188. Now, on to the bios...

Who're are these jokers flipping you off? Contributor Virgil Hervey—who sent this photo attached to email—explains: "Here's a jpeg for ya. Taken in Kent, Ohio in April. (Michael) McNeilley is Gerry Garcia in the wheelchair. (Earl) Nelson is the muscle man with tattoos. I'm in back. Janet Bernichon is on the left. Jeanine is behind her. And that's Jan McLaughlin on the right. We are all quite drunk, except for Jeanine, whom I had just picked up at the airport." The reference to Kent, Ohio?—a poetry reading there...

As for Hervey's poem in this issue, he writes: "You know the story behind that one? I wrote it specifically to enter in that bogus national library of poetry contest. It's about their phony anthology. At the latest report, I have reached the top 10% in the competition, which entitles me to purchase a laminated plaque for $79.95."

Janet Bernichon's poem here—A Penny For Your Thoughts, Twenty Dollars For A Blowjob—is snatched (with permission, of course) from her PORTRAITS website. She also has a chapbook out—Part of the Scenery—from GOD'S BAR PRESS. Janet is pictured above with the rest of the rabble...

Albert Huffstickler is "retired from the U. of Texas Library with a pittance. I wasn't a professional librarian, just a peon, kind of found a niche and stayed for twenty years, not knowing what I wanted to do besides write... So anyway, here I am in Austin, retired, not doing much but writing and drawing, glad to be rid of the grind, determined to survive to 100 just so I can keep getting my payback from the system."

Kelly June Hutcheson is a Los Angeles performance artist. When We Speak Out is featured on her PEACE OFFERINGS website. "I never much cared for poetry," she writes. "It always seemed cryptic and secret, like a puzzle I was supposed to care about..." Kelly's poem here is anything but cryptic—it's a great in-your-face poem, the kind we like at PNG Poetry Online...

Hans Ebner is a former Detroiter now residing in Las Vegas. He made it out of Vietnam alive—and now writes about it.

LeeAnn Heringer has a chapbook out—Picture Postcards—by A SMALL GARLIC PRESS. She lives in California with Dean, her husband—pictured here with her—and she works for Lexicus, a divison of Motorola, developing application software for small handheld pen-driven computers. She also has a website of poetry. Check LeeAnn's stuff out by clicking here.

Mike Dayoub... I had trouble with his web page, where a collection of his poems reside and personal info about him. The page was there a few weeks ago, but when I tried it later—as I wrote this—I was presented with the familiar: "403 Forbidden...Your client does not have permission to get URL /~dayoub/poems/ from this server." Sorry, Mike...

Deb Kilgore... couldn't find anything personal on her—and she didn't email me anything. Her poem here—Honey—was taken from her poetry page—DEB'S SHRINE - AN ELECTRONIC CHAPBOOK IN PROGRESS. I snatched the graphic of (presumably) Ms. Kilgore from DEB'S POETRY PAGE.

Janet Kuypers is out of Chicago. She works for a publishing company as a graphic artist. In her spare time, she cranks out mega poems, stories, and opinions. She has had two books published, Hope Chest in the Attic and The Window, and is currently working on her third collection, Close Cover Before Striking. Check the lady's website out—THE WRITING OF JANET KUYPERS.