RHP Editorial Staff
Rock and a Hard Place is the product of a team of dedicated volunteer editors who are committed to elevating and promoting stories of marginalized, desperate people put in unwinnable situations. Learn more about the team on the page below, and read about the editorial board structure and position descriptions for the editors here. In order to contact the Rock and a Hard Place editors, click here.
Roger Nokes
Editor in Chief, Founder
Twitter: @McCaffery_Write
THREADS / IG: @stantonmccaffery
ROGER NOKES writes fiction under the pseudonym Stanton McCaffrey. His short stories have been featured in Dark Yonder, Mystery Tribune, Vautrin, Shotgun Honey, and more. He has stories forthcoming in Reckon Review and Tough. He has published two novels: Into the Ocean; and Neighborhood of Dead Ends. His short story, “Will I See The Birds When I Am Gone,” is featured in Best American Mystery and Suspense 2024.
Jay Butkowski
Managing Editor, Founding Member
TWITTER: @JTButkowski
THREADS / IG: @jtbutkowski
JAY BUTKOWSKI is a writer of fiction, an eater of tacos and an amateur pizzaiolo who lives in New Jersey. His stories have appeared in online and print publications, including Shotgun Honey, Dark Yonder, Tough, Yellow Mama, All Due Respect and Vautrin. He is a founding editor at Rock and a Hard Place Press, an independent publisher chronicling “bad decisions and desperate people.” He’s also a father of teenage twins, a doting husband, and a middling pancake chef.
Albert Tucher
Contributing Editor
Twitter: @AlbertTucher
ALBERT TUCHER is the creator of sex worker Diana Andrews, who has appeared in more than 100 hardboiled stories in venues including The Best American Mystery Stories 2010. Her first longer case, the novella The Same Mistake Twice, was published in 2013. In 2017 Albert Tucher launched a second series set on the Big Island of Hawaii, in which Pele’s Prerogative is the latest entry. He is a past president of the Mystery Writers of America NY Chapter, lives in New Jersey, and loves NJ Turnpike jokes.
Paul J Garth
Editor
Twitter: @PaulJGarth
Threads / IG: @PAULJGARTH
PAUL J. GARTH is an editor for Rock and a Hard Place Press. His short fiction has been published in Thuglit, Tough, Needle: A Magazine of Noir, Plots with Guns, Crime Factory, Rock and a Hard Place Magazine, and several other anthologies and web magazines. His novella, The Low White Plain, part of the “A Grifter’s Song” series, was release in June 2022. He lives and writes in Nebraska, where he lives with his family.
R.D. Sullivan
Editor
Twitter: @RDSullyWrites
R.D. SULLIVAN is a writer of fiction, comedy, and letters to the editor. A recent East Coast transplant, she is enjoying the trees that aren’t on fire. Her writing has been featured at Fireside Fiction Magazine, Shotgun Honey, and Tough, as well as in the Killing Malmon and Murder-A-Go-Go’s anthologies. She has also published an erotic story about a ham sandwich. True story. You can track her down over at govneh.com.
Rob D. Smith
Editor
Twitter: @RobSmith3
THREADS / IG: @robertdominicsmith
ROB D. SMITH is a common man attempting to write uncommon fiction out of Louisville, KY. He is an Honor Roll recipient for Outstanding Stories in the 2024 The Best Mystery Stories of the Year. Currently an editor at Rock and a Hard Place Press, his work has appeared in Apex Magazine, Shotgun Honey, Pyre Magazine, Thriller Magazine, Tough, Reckon Review, Vautrin, and several other crime, horror, and speculative magazines, anthologies, and online publications. Good-Looking Ugly is his debut crime novel. Find his work at https://robdsmith.carrd.co/.
Ashley-Ruth M. Bernier
ACQUISITION Editor
Twitter: @armbernier
THREADS / IG: @armbernier
ASHLEY-RUTH M. BERNIER’s stories have appeared in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Black Cat Weekly, Stone’s Throw, Smoking Pen Press, Mystery Most Devious, and The Best American Mystery and Suspense 2023. Originally from St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, Ashley-Ruth writes mysteries highlighting the vibrant culture of her home island. She currently lives in North Carolina with her husband and four children, where she teaches first grade and finds few things more valuable than uninterrupted writing time and the perfect cup of tea.
Victor De Anda
ACQUISITION Editor
Twitter: @VictorDeAnda
THREADS / IG: @DVDeAnda
VICTOR DE ANDA is a writer in Philadelphia who enjoys watching movies and searching for good Mexican food. His fiction has been published in Dark Waters Vol. 1 Anthology, His Soul's Still Dancing: A Nicolas Cage Inspired Anthology, Guilty Crime Story Magazine, Mystery Tribune, Shotgun Honey, and Punk Noir Magazine, with more forthcoming.
SUSAN JESSEN
ACQUISITION Editor
Twitter: @suzjay11
THREADS / IG: @suzjay11
SUSAN JESSEN enjoys reading, reviewing, and writing fiction of various genres. She received an MFA in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University. A former Priority Editor at Flash Fiction Magazine, she continues to provide editorial feedback during their quarterly contests. Her flash fiction has been published under a pseudonym in anthologies and magazines such as The Arcanist, Lost Balloon, and Shotgun Honey.
IN LOVING MEMORY
Jonathan Elliott
Producing Manager, Founding Member
January 10, 1982 - June 5, 2020
On June 5, 2020, JONATHAN ELLIOTT, our Producing Editor, founding member, friend, and editorial brother, died after a lengthy and courageous battle with persistent health issues. He was 37 years old.
It’s not hyperbole to say that Rock and a Hard Place would not have been possible without Jon’s charm, wit, talents, drive, and a dogged dedication to, and immense compassion for, the underdog. Jon believed that stories had power, and that our publication had a responsibility to help people tell their stories of struggle.
Jon’s struggles may have ended, but others’ continue. In his memory and with infinite gratitude, we carry on, and dedicate the unending work of Rock and a Hard Place to our brother and friend.
More Life.