Marco Simonelli was born in Florence, where he still lives today. A leading voice in the Italian LGBTQ movement, he defies homophobia with mordant humor. Though still in his forties, he has published a dozen titles. His collection Will, winner of the Russo–Mazzacurati prize, is a contemporary take on Shakespeare’s sonnets, set in modern Tuscany. His most recent book is Litania nervosa (A Litany of Nerves), published by Valigie Rosse. For a full bibliography and discussions of his work, please consult the internet.

Hoyt Rogers is an award-winning translator, essayist, poet, and novelist. He has published many books, including a study of Renaissance verse; he has contributed to a wide variety of periodicals and anthologies. His latest works are a poetry collection, Thresholds (MadHat Press); the novel Sailing to Noon (Spuyten Duyvil), book one of The Caribbean Trilogy; and a translation of Yves Bonnefoy’s The Wandering Life (Seagull Books). For more information, please visit his website, hoytrogers.com