Plainsong

Contributors

Ashley Benson is an instructional designer with the Office of Academic Innovation and Development at the University of Jamestown. Prior to joining UJ, she taught English, composition, writing, and rhetoric at the college and university level for ten years. She is a writer and a baker, and she lives with her husband in Washington state, though they have made homes together in the south and northeast too.

Mark Brown teaches freshman writing and English literature at the University of Jamestown.

Jake Clapham: Anxious millennial Korean. Husband. Appa. Plant lover (@hellomrfancyplants). Practice manager.

Lisa Cloyd recently moved to Jamestown, North Dakota from Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. She enjoys dabbling in nature photography while running her online creative business on Etsy.

Marlie E. A. Desarmes (aka MEAD) will graduate from the University of Jamestown this spring with university honors. She is majoring in studio art (fine art), graphic design for e-commerce, and business administration with a concentration in IT. She is eager to begin the next phase of her life and will treasure the connections she established with her fellow Jimmies.

Lily Donohue is a Freshman at Dakota Prairie High School. She lives on a farm near Tolna, ND and is active in 4-H and FCCLA.

Carolyn Espe has lived in Minot, North Dakota for the past two years with her husband and their cat after moving there to be closer to her husband’s family. She works as a nurse and enjoys swimming, baking, and reading in her free-time. She also enjoys spending time outdoors with her garden and tall cottonwood trees that surround her little home.

Sean Flory teaches English at the University of Jamestown. In his downtime, he occasionally draws pictures of his cat.

Jonathan Frey is associate professor of English at North Idaho College, teaching creative writing and composition. His work has appeared in a range of online and regional publications, most recently The Millions. He lives in Spokane, WA, with his wife and daughters, and has just completed work on his first novel.

Brian L. Gray is 42 years old and lives in Bismarck, North Dakota. He works full-time as a TV news producer and a part-time musician. Brian’s interest in playwriting began in grade school. Since then, he has continued to write in his spare time. Much of his writing involves exploring the subtle conflicts and struggles encountered in everyday life. Brian’s short plays have been performed at national and international festivals.

Elias Harris is a baseball player at the University of Jamestown. He grew up with photography as his number one passion and pastime and has spent many hours photography flowers, birds, and many other animals.

Mark Jorritsma is currently the Executive Director of a non-profit organization. He is blessed with a wonderful wife, two grown children (one who recently graduated from the University of Jamestown), and a goofy, rescue dog named Annie. Mark's hobbies include photography, competitive archery, and camping.

Stephanie Jorritsma is a writer, performer, and artist currently living in Bismarck, North Dakota. Stephanie graduated from the University of Jamestown in 2022 with a degree in English/Writing and Theatre, and she is currently pursuing her passion for the arts. She also enjoys traveling, playing music, and spending time with family and friends.

Alayanna Klein is a junior at the University of Jamestown. She is currently studying psychology and has plans to become a sports psychologist. She enjoys spending time with her cat and her friends. Her hobbies include reading, writing, painting, going to the gym, and traveling.

Kirsten Vander Kooi has lived in Thailand as a missionary since the age of two, but she has family in Jamestown, North Dakota. Her grandpa and uncle both graduated for the University of Jamestown. She moved to Jamestown this past summer from Chiang Mai, Thailand which has a large Korean community, so she also grew up surrounded by Korean culture. Her exposure to the culture influenced the story she wrote which is based in approximately 1400-1900 AD.

Elia Lang is 18 years old and is currently a student at the University of Jamestown. She was adopted from Taiwan and has lived in Jamestown, North Dakota a majority of her life. She comes from an artistic family and was taught photography in middle school. She has always enjoyed taking photos of people, but last year she concentrated on taking portraits of pets where she has found enjoyment in capturing their unique personalities.

Karen Lauseng was born and raised in Watertown, and after 50 years of moving from place to place, she has settled back in her hometown. Her artwork has been exhibited widely and showcased in various national and international magazines including Art Jewelry, Lapidary Journal/Jewelry Artist, Art Doll Quarterly, Metalsmith, The Crafts Report, and Creative Home Arts. Her creative designs have been presented in numerous Lark Crafts Publications.

Sydney Lewellen Sydney Lewellen is a student at the University of Jamestown who studies Graphic Design and Communications. She enjoys anything artistic, being with her family, and exploring.

Ezra Mabe is a pursuer of the thoughts of the soul. He is fond of his Colorado mountains and his freshly brewed coffee. Enjoy his play on words and his love for alliteration.

Brandi Malarkey is a multimedia storyteller, artist, administrator, and occasional hot mess. She is a collector of dead bugs and good books, and she believes that ordinary miracles and small kindnesses have the power to change the world. There is more information about her and her business at www.itsallmalarkey.com.

Contributors

Matt Mason has run poetry workshops in Botswana, Romania, Nepal, and Belarus for the U.S. State Department and has published poems in The New York Times. Matt is the Nebraska State Poet and is the recipient of a Pushcart Prize and fellowships from the Academy of American Poets and the Nebraska Arts Council. His work can also be found on NPR’s Morning Edition, in American Life in Poetry, and other publications. Mason's 4th book, At the Corner of Fantasy and Main: Disneyland, Midlife and Churros, was released by The Old Mill Press in 2022. Find more at: https://matt.midverse.com/

Derrick Mindt was born and raised in small town North Dakota and has always appreciated the hidden beauty that North Dakota has to offer. Photography started as his "COVID hobby" when everything was shut down, and it is something that he's stuck with and enjoyed doing ever since.

Elizabeth Naglak is originally from Little Rock, Arkansas and has been teaching biology courses at the University of Jamestown since 2017. She has an obsession with her cats, and she enjoys taking photos of them when she’s not busy grading lab reports.

Sierra Schlenker is a junior at the University of Jamestown. She is a psychology major with a concentration in the addiction studies program. She enjoys swimming, spending time with her friends and family, playing card/board games. She adores poetry and occasionally enjoys writing her own.

Taylor Waring is a poet, musician, journalist, and all-around renaissance person living in Spokane, WA. His academic interests include Surrealist poetry, Gothic Literature, and our relationship with technology in our increasingly post-human culture. His academic, creative, and journalistic work has been published in: Wisconsin Review, Oshkosh Scholar, The Spokesman, The Inlander, and many more beautiful publications. He also designs poetry books for Black Ocean and Lynx House.