Lois Lay Castiglioni, Poet Laureate 2001
Christopher Gibrich
John Rice, Poet Laureate 1999-2000
Poetry Editor, Betty Ann Whitney, Poet Laureate 1998
Editor-in-Chief, Craig Tigerman
Features Editor, Paula Marie Bentley
 
 

Poet, poetry judge, and writer, Lois Lay Castiglioni, a retired dietitian, lives in Galveston, Texas.  She is an active member of the Galveston Poets Roundtable, and was Sol Magazine’s Poet Laureate 2001.  In her words, I enjoy writing poetry.  It gives me the opportunity to record the lyrical sights and sound of live, and save humorous thoughts  that bubble up.”   Her work is published in “Tidelines II,” Lucidity, and Sol Magazine.

Christopher Gibrich

Born and raised in non-Chicagoan Illinois, Christopher Gibrich earned a B.S. in Computer Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, although Comparative Literature and English were among his favorite courses.  While not a native Texan, he says " I got there as fast as I could."  He lives in Trophy Club, Texas, with his wife, Christie.  He worked in Austin as a computer programmer, and is now a consultant developer at Burlington Northern/Santa Fe Railroad.  Christopher Gibrich says he reads voraciously as always, and writes poetry now and again.

Artist, poet, poetry judge, essayist, and lecturer, John E. Rice was born in Galveston in 1941. He has lived and worked in Houston, Texas, since 1969, is married with four children, and four grandchildren.  He has variously worked in horticulture, medical research and is presently an executive with an international maritime shipping company.  In addition to poetry, Rice writes fiction and non-fiction.  He was Sol Magazine’s Poet Laureate in both 1999 and 2000.  His publishing credits include “Tidelines II,” The Writer's Forum, The Houston Chronicle's Texas Magazine, Sol Magazine, Galaxy Literary Journal, the b.a.w.l. point pen and others.

Sol Magazine's Poetry Editor, Betty Ann Whitney, is talented in many areas, finding it both visually and psychologically rewarding to work with various forms of communication.  She was Sol Magazine's first Poet Laureate in 1998, and joined Sol's editorial staff in 1999.  Her prize winning poetry and prose has appeared in anthologies, magazines, journals and other creative publications for over a decade.  The numerous awards for her poetry includes a recent first place in the Texas Longhorn Competitions.  In addition to writing, her poetical responses to the natural world appear in her drawing and painting.

Betty Ann is an active member of the New River Writers and the New River Poets groups of Pasco County.  She retains membership in the Poetry Society of Texas, Florida State Poets Association, and the National Federation of State Poetry Societies.  She paints once a week with other Florida members of the Masters of Fine Art Group of Pasco County.

Poet, poetry judge, essayist, and musician, Craig Tigerman became a national semi-finalist in the 1967 Westinghouse National Science Talent Search, where a friend signed his high school yearbook with, "To the guy with the mind of a computer and the heart of a poet."  His life since then has borne out that epithet.  While working on his math degree at the University of Illinois, his interests gravitated toward humanities, so after college he entered seminary.  After five years as a pastor, he joined IBM in software support where he has been for the past 22 years.  Craig lives in Moline, Illinois, with his wife and youngest son; he has three grown children and a grandson as well.

Craig Tigerman’s avocation has always has been poetry and music, starting with writing songs for his high school band, the Consecutive Odd Integers.  He became music director of his college radio station, played guitar, and wrote a rock opera as his graduate thesis.  Reading and writing poetry and songs have been vital creative outlets for Craig, and joining Sol's staff in 1998 infused new excitement into his long-standing endeavors.  Craig's love of music carries over into his poetry, where he prefers structures, rhythms and rhyme.  In his words, "The written word is a living expression and extension of the heart's desires and values."  Craig Tigerman is Editor-in-Chief of Sol Magazine, and is creator of both “ON THE WEB,” an exclusive Sol Magazine feature that reviews poetry websites, and also “A GOOD READ,” another Sol Magazine feature that reviews poetry books.

Poet, poetry judge, and interviewer, Paula Marie Bentley lives and works in beautiful Virginia with her husband Michael and beautiful baby boy, Jacob, as well as her furry cat-child, Daisy.  She has many interests ranging from cooking to writing to reading to taking long walks with Jacob, and is currently thoroughly enjoying being a Mommy and working for Sol Magazine.

Paula Marie Bentley, who writes under the pen name Paula M. White, has published a poetry book titled "Words Elude Me..." and is currently working on a follow-up volume of poems.  Paula, Features Editor for Sol Magazine, is creator of “SPOTLIGHT,” an exclusive feature that interviews national and international member poets of Sol Magazine.