A published poet and writer, artist and spiritual ecologist, Jen Payne is the author of several books including LOOK UP! Musings on the Nature of Mindfulness, Evidence of Flossing: What We Leave Behind, Waiting Out the Storm, and Water Under the Bridge: A Sort-of Love Story. She is the creator/editor of MANIFEST (zine), and writes regularly on her blog: www.randomactsofwriting.net.Her work has been featured in numerous publications including the international anthology Coffee Poems: Reflections on Life with Coffee; the Guilford Poets Guild 20th Anniversary Anthology; Waking Up to the Earth: Connecticut Poets in a Time of Global Climate Crisis, edited by Connecticut's Poet Laureate Margaret Gibson; and The Perch, a publication by the Yale Program for Recovery and Community Health. Jen is the owner is Words by Jen, a graphic design and creative services company founded in 1993, based in Branford, Connecticut. She is a member of the Arts Council of Greater New Haven, Branford Arts and Cultural Alliance (BACA), and Guilford Art Center.