KATIE MANNING is a poet, professor of writing at PLNU, and founding editor of Whale Road Review. She’s the author of Tasty Other, which won the Main Street Rag Poetry Book Award, and her most recent collections are Hereverent (Agape Editions, 2023) and How to Play (Louisiana Literature Press, 2022). Her poem “What to Expect” was featured on the Poetry Unbound podcast, and her poems have appeared in American Journal of Nursing, december, New Letters, Poet Lore, Verse Daily, and many other venues.

JANE MUSCHENETZ is a Ukrainian-born, Russian-speaking, Jewish refugee who arrived in the U.S. as a child. Recognized for excellence in Poetry Performance by the County of San Diego, Jane is a 2023 City of Encinitas Exhibiting Artist and Director of Partnerships for the San Diego Entertainment & Arts Guild. Her debut collection, All the Bad Girls Wear Russian Accents (Kelsay Books, 2023), was shortlisted for the Jacar Press Chapbook Prize. Jane is the winner of the 2022 Good Life Review Poetry Prize, an MIT grad, mom and coffee enthusiast. Connect with Jane's work at her website, PalmFrondZoo.com and in various publications. 

MICHAEL KLAM is the executive editor of the San Diego Poetry Annual (SDPA) and editor-in-chief of Imagine the bilingual edition of SDPA. He organizes and hosts San Diego Central Library's video series, Conversations with Poets. His publishers are Puna Press and Garden Oak Press. Follow SDPA on Instagram @sdpoetryannual.