Rafi Aaron's A Seed In The Pocket Of Their Blood (American edition) was published in 2000 and launched at the Canadian Consulate in New York. He lives in Toronto.

Sylvia Adams' publications include a novel, This Weather of Hangmen, and Mondrian's Elephant, which won the 1998 Cranberry Tree Press chapbook contest.

*Andy Andrews and Bill Newton ran photographic studios in Ottawa (from 1940) which by 1974 had become Andrews-Newton Photographers Ltd., specializing in portraiture and a full range of commercial photography.

*Steven Artelle is writing a history of Ottawa's Confederation-era literary culture as part of his doctoral studies with the University of Western Ontario.

John Barton has published eight books of poetry. He lives in Ottawa, where he has co-edited Arc since 1990.

Maxianne Berger, a Montreal audiologist, co-edited Sun Through the Blinds, a haiku anthology forthcoming from Shoreline. Recent poems appear online in Fluent Ascension and Mixed Nuts.

*Michael Blouin's work has appeared in Descant, Queen's Quarterly, and Grain, and has been nominated for a National Magazine Award. He is currently completing a novel, “Lucky Dog.”

Marianne Bluger's eighth collection, Early Evening Pieces, was published last spring by BuschekBooks.(www.mariannebluger.com)

Stephanie Bolster's latest book is Pavilion. She teaches writing at Concordia University in Montreal and is editing The Ishtar Gate: Last and Selected Poems of Diana Brebner.

*Frances Boyle's short fiction has appeared in Room of One's Own and The Fiddlehead. This is the first of her poetry to be published since university newspaper days.

Stephen Brockwell is the author of Cometology. His work has recently appeared in The Drunken Boat, It's Still Winter, and The New Delta Review.

*Terry Ann Carter's first collection, Waiting for Julia, was published in 1999. She is the Education Chair for the League of Canadian Poets and Vice President of Haiku Canada.

*David Cation, former instructor and visiting lecturer at the Ottawa School of Art and University of Ottawa, has completed commissions for the H.O.P.E. Foundation and Theatre la Catapulte.

Marlene Cookshaw has published four collections of poetry, most recently Shameless. She lives on Pender Island and in Victoria, B.C., where she edits The Malahat Review.

*Susan Cormier, a Metis performance poet, recently won the Provincial Alternative Writing and Design Competition and was shortlisted for the National Literary Award. She lives in Burnaby, B.C.

Tony Cosier has published numerous volumes of poetry, the most recent of which include Kilmarnock and Clearwater Tarn.

*Shannon Cowan's writing has earned the Eden Mills Literary Prize and the Norma Epstein Award for Creative Writing. Her first novel, Leaving Winter, was published in 2000.

Cyril Dabydeen was Ottawa's Poet Laureate from 1984 to 1987 and received the City's first award of Excellence in Writing and Publishing in 2000. His latest book is Hemisphere of Love (poetry, 2003).

*Joseph A. Dandurand, from Kwantlen First Nation in B.C. is a poet, playwright, fisherman, researcher, archaeologist and, most important, the proud father of Danessa Renee Wa yothe.

*Michelle Desbarats' first book, Last Child to Come Inside, appeared in 1998. She was a finalist in the poetry category of the CBC/Saturday Night Literary Competition in 1996-1997.

Christopher Doda is a poet and editor living in Toronto. His first book of poems, Among Ruins, was published in 2001.

Jannie Edwards' first book of poetry is The Possibilities of Thirst. She teaches at Grant MacEwan College, Edmonton, and yearns to learn how to tango.

*Evergon, formerly at the University of Ottawa (1974-1994), now teaches at Concordia University in Montreal. His exhibition history consists of over 1,000 shows, including a retrospective at the National Gallery of Canada.

*Stephanie Farrington, who is originally from Vancouver Island, has published in Books in Canada, The Ottawa Citizen, and MoneySense.

*F. G. Foley lives in Ottawa. She is currently writing a play.

Eric Folsom lives in Kingston and has written three books of poetry, most recently Icon Driven. In 2002 he appeared on Stuart McLean's The Vinyl Cafe, reading from Poems for Little Cataraqui.

Mark Frutkin, co-editor of Arc from 1988 to 1990, has published eight books, including Atmospheres Apollinaire. His most recent collection of poetry is Iron Mountain.

*Jerry Grey is best known for her drawings and commissioned art works including The Tiles of Time mural at the Ottawa Police Station. Her project Rare Spirits: A Personal Tribute to Vintage Elders has been touring Canada.

*Eliza Griffiths' paintings have been exhibited widely in North America; these include a solo show at the Ottawa Art Gallery, part of the 3 project, and Daring Confessions (group) at the Mendel Art Gallery.

*Brecken Rose Hancock's poems have appeared in Grain, Other Voices, and The Antigonish Review. She co-edits and co-publishes the independent art/lit zine Backyard Ashes.

Elisabeth Harvor's first book of poetry, Fortress of Chairs, won the 1993 Gerald Lampert Award. A new novel, All Times Have Been Modern, is forthcoming in 2004.

*Warren Heiti, originally from Sarnia, is a graduate of the University of Victoria. His poems have been published or are forthcoming in Grain, Matrix, and Descant.

Tom Henighan, a founder of Arc, has published seven books of poetry, fiction, and non fiction. He has just completed a second volume of poetry, a memoir, and a juvenile novel.

Matthew Holmes recently moved to Toronto and took his zine, Modomnoc, with him. In July, above/ground press published his first chapbook, hitch.

Bill Howell has three poetry books, with recent work in Arc, Canadian Literature, Dalhousie Review, Descant, Grain, Queen's Quarterly, and Queen Street Quarterly.

*R. Johnson is an academic and journalist who lives in southern Ontario.

*Natalie King lives and works in Ottawa. She likes to eat breakfast and discuss social issues.

*Germaine Koh is a visual artist and independent curator currently collaborating with Phil Klygo on the art music salon weewerk. 2003 exhibitions include Artspace, Sydney, and the Seoul Museum of Art.

Anita Lahey's work has appeared in The Fiddlehead, Grain, The Malahat Review, New Quarterly, and Pagitica. She is the recent winner of the Ralph Gustafson Prize for Best Poem.

Anne Le Dressay is glad to be back in Ottawa after 11 years in Alberta. She has published one book of poetry, Sleep is a Country, and two chapbooks, This Body That I Live In and Woman Dreams.

*Dilys Leman's fiction and poetry have been published in Prairie Fire, Contemporary Verse 2 and Grain. She is working on a play about her great-great grandfather, Dr. Augustus Jukes, and Louis Riel.

Andrew Lesk recently completed his Ph.D. on Sinclair Ross's “gay fiction” and has published essays and reviews on Canadian fiction and poetry. He lives in Toronto.

Christopher Levenson edited Arc from 1978 to 1988, ran the Arc Reading Series from 1981, and oversaw Carleton University Press's Harbinger Poetry Series from 1994 to 1999. His most recent book is The Bridge.

*Karen Love, a Vancouver independent curator and editor, was the director/curator of Presentation House Gallery from 1983 to 2001. Born and raised in Ottawa, she is developing projects on visionary landscapes, and contemporary art and the weather.

*Rod MacIvor, formerly with United Press International (1970-1982) and a recipient of the Canadian Press Pictures of the Year Award, is a staff photojournalist with The Ottawa Citizen.

*Allan MacKay has worked variously as a gallery director, curator and visual artist. As an official war artist, he documented Canadian peacekeeping activities in Somalia and recently in Afghanistan.

Blaine Marchand has published four books of poetry, and “is struggling to finish” the manuscript of his fifth, The Craving of Knives.

Seymour Mayne is the author, editor, or translator of more than 40 books, including Carbon Filter (1999), Light Industry (2000), Hail (2002), and the co-authored Cinquefoil (2003).

*Sharon McCartney's second collection, Karenin Sings the Blues, was published in October. She is a poetry editor at The Fiddlehead.

*Una McDonnell attended the 2002 Banff Wired Writing Studio and has poetry forthcoming in Prairie Fire and Musings: An Anthology of Greek-Canadian Literature.

Nadine McInnis' recent books are Hand to Hand (poetry) and Quicksilver (stories). A bilingual new and collected poems, First Fire/Ce feu qui dévare, will appear in 2004.

rob mclennan's ninth book of poetry, what's left, is forthcoming. He is currently finishing a novel, a collection of essays, & a long poem titled The Ottawa City Project.

Colin Morton, publisher of Ouroboros Editions and member of the performance group First Draft, and two-time winner of the Archibald Lampman Award, just published his long poem Dance, Misery.

*Stacey Munro is a media content producer and occasional webmistress for Arc.

Barbara Myers, an Arc associate editor, is working on the manuscript of her first book of poems.

Shane Neilson's The Beaten Down Elegies won the 2003 Frog Hollow Press Chapbook Contest. His essay on Alden Nowlan in Arc 49 won Dalhousie's 2003 Kim Rilda LeBlanc Memorial Award.

*Michael Oliver is a poet and an essayist living in Charlottetown. His latest book is Alden Nowlan and His Works.

David O'Meara is the author of Storm Still. His new poetry collection, The Vicinity, was published this fall.

*Craig Poile's First Crack was shortlisted for 2000's Gerald Lampert Award. He lives in Ottawa's notoriously writer-ridden Hintonburg neighbourhood and co-owns its bookstore, Collected Works.

*Pamela Porter's chapbook is Poems for the Luminous World. Her poems have appeared or are forthcoming in Atlanta Review, Descant, Grain, and North American Review.

Monty Reid's articles and poetry have appeared in magazines as diverse as Canadian Geographic, Muse and The Malahat Review. His books include The Alternate Guide, Flat Side, and Dog Sleeps.

Harold Rhenisch's ninth book of poetry, Free Will, a series of poetic riffs on the theatre, will be published in 2004. He lives in 150 Mile House, B.C.

Shane Rhodes won the Alfred G. Bailey Award and the Alberta Book Award for Poetry for his first book, The Wireless Room. His second, holding pattern, won the 2003 Archibald Lampman Award.

Ian Roy's second book, People Leaving, was nominated for the Ottawa Book Award in 2003. Ian served on the Arc editorial board from 1999 to 2002.

Armand Garnet Ruffo's book, At Geronimo's Grave, won the 2002 Archibald Lampman Award. His play, A Windigo Tale, will go into production this winter and also appear as a feature film.

*Fathia El Sakka is a graduate of Canterbury High School's Literary Arts Program and a student at the University of Ottawa. “Weekly Circle” is her first published poem.

E. Russell Smith's most recent book of poems, Snowdrops and Other Flowers, is a joint project with artist Gerard Brender à Brandis.

*Christal Steck is a mom and a teacher. She enjoys literature and is the author of the chapbook Fluting Through Bamboo (Friday Circle, 1996).

*Paul Tyler's poems have appeared in North American literary journals. His work is forthcoming in the Antigonish Review, and the anthology Listening with the Ear of the Heart.

*Vivian Vavassis' work has appeared in Montage and The Pillar. She co-edits incunabula, a journal of arts and literature.

Bruce Whiteman lives in Los Angeles, where he heads UCLA's William Andrews Clark Memorial Library. His most recent book of poems is The Invisible World Is in Decline, Book V.

*Deborah Wills teaches at Mount Allison University. She has published short fiction and creative non-fiction in Room of One's Own, Matrix, and Women in the Canadian Academic Tundra.

Deanna Young's second book of poems, Drunkard's Path, was published in 2001. She placed third in the 2002 Poem of the Year Contest.

*The editors congratulate these contributors on their first appearance in Arc.