About

Our Mission

Twelve poems each month— Kissing Dynamite curates compact issues that honor the thematic threads presented by contributing poets. Our goal is to present multiple facets of a theme/topic/issue to break the narrative of "the single story."

Editorial Statement

My work as a teacher of English, writer, and editor has left me with the overarching question: "Who gets to tell the story?" As we know, large groups of folks historically have been left out of the realm of publishing, often leaving us with "a single story." And even as the writing community has begun to address underrepresentation in our art and letters, we still in small ways bar entry into publishing: submission fees, narrow definitions of what makes "good" literature, limited access. There are wonderful journals out there doing the critical work of providing accessible venues for multiple voices, and I want to do my part by joining that effort.

—Christine Taylor, EIC

Masthead

Christine Taylor, Head Editrix

photography by Emilie Alpert

Christine Taylor, a Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net nominated poet, resides in her hometown Plainfield, New Jersey, aka “The Queen City,” with Kissing Dynamite's mascot Nahla, the clumsiest black cat ever. She has degrees in English literature from Drew University and National University and that makes her important. Check her out at www.christinetayloronline.com.

Shon Mapp, General Editor

Shon Mapp a poet whose writing explores queer intimacy and immigrant identities. Born in Barbados and raised in the U.S., she now resides in Europe with her wife and their havapoo. She has no regrets about writing and creating abstract art, rather than using her engineering degree. To view her website, visit www.shonmapp.com.

Belinda Munyeza, General Editor

Belinda Munyeza is a Zimbabwean poet currently based in Navarra, Spain. Her poem "Independence Song" was featured on VS the podcast in May of 2020. Her poems have also appeared/are forthcoming in Pidgeonholes, Twin Pies Literary, Understory Quarterly and others. You can find her tweeting @MdnightIsAplace.

Morgan Ridgway, General Editor

Morgan L. Ridgway is a queer Black/Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape writer and historian from Philadelphia, PA. They are currently completing a PhD in history thinking about gathering, care, and joy. Their work has appeared or is forthcoming in Querencia, CP Quarterly, Horse Egg Literary, among others. They tweet @morgan_ridgway.

Adrienne Crezo, Assistant Editor

Adrienne Crezo (she/her/hers) is an editor, Pushcart-nominated writer, Tin House scholar (2022) and native Oklahoman of Comanche descent. She is an editor at Daily Kos, a progressive political news and activism organization, an associate poetry editor at Pidgeonholes, and a poetry reader for Okay Donkey. Adrienne lives in Ohio and on Twitter @adriennecrezo.

Matt Hsu, Assistant Editor

Matt Hsu is a student from San Francisco, California. His work has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, and he’s published or forthcoming in Roanoke Review, (mac)ro(mic), Longleaf Review, and The Lumiere Review. Currently, he's querying his first novel: a twisty, thriller-mystery about a crafty assassin. You can find him on Twitter at @MattHsu19 or at his personal website matthsu156538437.wordpress.com.

Lytey Kay, Assistant Editor

Lytey Kay was a participant in AWP's 2017 Writer to Writer Mentorship, Bread Loaf Environmental Conference, and Tin House Summer Workshop. She is a poetry reader for Okay Donkey Magazine and SWWIM. Her poetry has been published or is forthcoming in Hayden's Ferry Review, SWWIM, North American Review, and Black Fox Literary Magazine. She can be found on Twitter @lyteykay or her website lyteykay.com.

Dia Roth, Assistant Editor

Dia Roth is a non-binary femme poet living in Seattle. Their work has appeared in HAD, Ghost City Review, DEAR Poetry Journal, and elsewhere. When they’re not writing or reading, you can find them daydreaming about two-stepping with a stranger. They tweet @diaroth____.

Adeola Victoria Olatunji

Adeola Victoria Olatunji is a student from Nigeria. She writes articles, short stories and sometimes, poems. Her works has been published in Teen Exploits UK and High School Magazine, Ghana, where she also doubles as a copy editor. Currently, she runs a lifestyle blog where she writes articles and short stories. You can find her on Twitter and Instagram at @CocoDeola or at her blog www.thedeolaolatunji.wordpress.com

Anthony Salandy, Social Media Consultant

Anthony (he/him) is a mixed-race poet & writer who has spent most of his life in Kuwait jostling between the UK & America. Anthony's work has been published 180 times internationally. Anthony has 2 published chapbooks titled 'The Great Northern Journey' 2020 (Lazy Adventurer Publishing) & 'Vultures' 2021 (Roaring Junior Press). Anthony's chapbook 'Half Bred' is the Winner of the 2021 'The Poetry Question' Chapbook contest. Anthony is the Co-EIC of Fahmidan Journal. Find him on Twitter/Instagram: @anthony64120 https://arsalandywriter.com/

David Stolarz, Music

Dave Stolarz, a classical and jazz pianist, can be found on Instagram @david_stolarz

Previous KDP Team Members

Jason Bates, Assistant Editor
Justene, Social Media Manager
Emma Holdaway, Book Review Editor
Hailey Saga, Social Media Manager
Khalisa Rae, Consulting Editor
Sofia Fey, Assistant Editor
Tim Lear, Consulting Editor
Jeni De La O, Managing Editor
Zora Satchell, Supervising Editor
Erica Abbott, Community Content Manager

Meet Our Contributors

Robin, Cyndie, Deon, Jeffrey, Joaquin, and Lynne are six of our fantastic poets. Click HERE for an alphabetized list of all our poets and artists, complete with links to their work!

In the News

Please check out the following interview in The Review Review with Denise Nichole Andrews, EIC of The Hellebore:

"Champion the Narratives of Those Who Are Not Always Celebrated in Media."

See our interview in Issue 16 of The Blue Mountain Review!