Ashley-Anna Aboreden was born and raised in Miami, Florida to a Cuban mother and Saudi Arabian father. At a young age, she began writing as a form of self-discovery which eventually helped her connect with her queer identity. She received her BA in English Education from Florida International University and an MFA in fiction from The New School. She is a writer for Miami New Times, has work published in Gay City News, and was the deputy editor of The Inquisitive Eater. A former English teacher of five years, she is now the Communications Coordinator at New York County Defender Services where she works on the policy team to advance criminal justice reform. She is also the founder of Beyond the Margins Book Club, a group dedicated to only reading marginalized voices. Her fiction blends elements of horror with explorations of identity and social injustice. Represented by Janklow & Nesbit, she is working on publishing her debut novel. She spends most of her free time going on NYC walks with her fiancée and their weenie dog, Puddles.

Jennifer L. Brown is an author of middle grade and young adult novels. She spent many years as a performer, working in theatres across the country in plays ranging from contemporary musicals to Shakespeare. When not writing, she tutors standardized tests, English, and essay writing. Her novel won a space in an intensive mentoring program called Pitch Wars in the fall of 2017. She has served as a mentor in that same program for the last four years. Her writing is represented by Alyssa Jennette at Stonesong Literary.

Christiane Calixte is a Brooklyn-based Caribbean American freelance writer and public speaker studying Creative Writing at Columbia University. She is passionate about exploring literature and media to shine a light on issues affecting justice-impacted marginalized communities. As a teaching artist at the literary organization Girls Write Now, she has taught multiple community studios exploring writing as a means of cultural expression and advocacy. As a Community Service Director for the Columbia Black Pre-Law Society, she collaborated with CUNY Law School and Books Through Bars to expand access to books in prisons nationwide. Her work has been featured in The Washington Post, YR Media, the New York Public Library's Teen Voices Magazine, and the Girls Write Now Anthology.

Jasmine Chvilicek is a writer and advocate. She was born and raised in the Midwest, but longs to live under the California sun one day. Jasmine has been writing poetry since she was 11 years old and continues to write with her heart on her sleeve in hopes of reaching the souls of humanity with her words. Jasmine is a natural storyteller, with many of her poems exhibiting creative story arcs and detailed metaphors. She has a knack for free verse and often writes about all that is life, including trauma and healing, the complexities of mental health and illness, nature, emotional milestones, and the little glimmers of joy. As an emerging poet, Jasmine is currently working on her first poetry collection. In her free time, she enjoys reading, baking, and scrapbooking.

Marya Cohn is a writer/director and film professor. Her feature script, Hurricane Season, currently in development, was invited to The Writers Lab, on the Wscripted Excellent Screenplays by Women at Cannes list, a Sundance Writers Lab finalist, a Nicholls quarterfinalist, and received a Tangerine Fellowship to Stowe Story Labs. She wrote and directed the feature film, The Girl in the Book, starring Emily Van Camp and Michael Nyqvist, which premiered at the Los Angeles Film Festival and was released by Myriad Pictures and Freestyle Releasing. She directed the low-budget feature, Shoplifting Chanel, written by Kate Moira Ryan, which premiered at the San Francisco Gay and Lesbian Film Festival and played at festivals worldwide. The short film she wrote and directed, Developing, starring Natalie Portman and Frances Conroy, screened at Sundance, won grand prizes at the Belgian Festival Mondial du Cinéma de Court Métrage and the St. Petersburg Message to Man Film Festival, and aired on The Sundance Channel and 13’s Reel NY. She has also directed plays at numerous off-Broadway venues. Marya teaches screenwriting at The New School and advises students at Vermont College of Fine Arts, where she is the Chair of the Film Program. She also mentors at Nostos screenwriting retreats. She received her MFA from NYU.

Kenna DeValor (they/them) is a nonbinary + queer writer, journalist, literary agent, and current graduate student based in Northeast Pennsylvania. They hold a B.A. in English Literature with a minor in Creative Writing from Bloomsburg University. Currently, they attend Wilkes University’s Maslow Family Creative Writing MA/MFA program for Fiction, and they are writing their MA Thesis: a debut YA dark academia novel while working under the incredible YA author Allison Saft as their mentor. In DeValor’s career, they have been published 70+ times in various art/literary journals and magazines around the US, UK, and Australia. They have been nominated twice in 2025 for Best of the Net (1x for visual art & 1x for short fiction) and once for Best Short Fictions 2026. They have their poetry collection DISCOFRUIT available at certain indie bookshops in Pennsylvania! (Friendly Alien Bookstores etc.) They also started their very own nonprofit (501c3) literary arts magazine in 2019 called FlowerMouth Press that uplifts diverse voices, which has amassed over 4,000 followers. When DeValor is not writing, reading, making zines, drawing, analyzing banned books, or performing onstage, they are a journalist for a local newspaper, a professional tattoo artist, and a professional typewriter poet contracted with the Poetry Society of New York. They are a passionate library supporter and proud library card holder. Kenna can also be found occasionally performing their writing live on-stage, performing in theatre, and going on adventures with their fiancé, Drew. Learn more about Kenna: www.kennadevalor.com Kenna’s main instagram @teadragonz, Kenna’s writer instagram @kennadevalorwrites, and their magazine FlowerMouth Press @flowermouthpress.

Kayla Dudley (she/her) is a poet, educator, and artivist dedicated to using storytelling as a tool for social change. A recent graduate from John Jay College with a B.A. in Political Science and a minor in Africana Studies, she explores the intersections of identity, justice, and healing through her work. She is the CEO/Founder of Healotry, a workshop series that invites participants to confront silence and reclaim their voices through creative expression. Her poetry often centers on love, resilience, and the lived experiences of Black women and queer communities. She aspires to continue blending art and advocacy as she pursues her graduates in creative writing and Africana Studies.

Shira Engel is a GWN mentee alum and the Chief Academic Officer at Storyshares, where she focuses on creating engaging books and curricula for teens and adults who are learning to read. She is also a dyslexia specialist and former middle school Humanities teacher. Shira is passionate about culturally responsive and sustaining pedagogy and social justice through literacy. She earned her M.A. in secondary English education from Teachers College, Columbia University and her B.A. in English and Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at Wesleyan University. A born and raised New Yorker, she now lives in Philadelphia with her husband and baby. 

Jordan E. Franklin hails from Brooklyn, NY. She received her MFA from Stony Brook Southampton and a PhD from Binghamton University. She is the author of the poetry collection, when the signals come home (Switchback Books, 2021), and the chapbook, boys in the electric age (Tolsun Books, 2021). Her work has appeared in SWIMM, Obsidian, Grist, the Southampton Review, Torch Literary Arts, Foglifter, and elsewhere. She is the winner of the 2017 James Hearst Poetry Prize, the 2020 Gatewood Prize, and the 2024 AWP Intro Journals Project Award. She has participated in residencies offered by Art Omi and the Stadler Center for Poetry. Her second poetry collection, make it to the end (of the movie), a 2025 Blessing the Boats selection, will be published by BOA Editions in Fall 2027.

Ayame Huber Munemura is a current high school senior passionate about reading, writing, teaching (her favorite form of learning), and activism. She has experience teaching and tutoring elementary to high school aged students, subjects ranging from instrumental music to English and Japanese. When not occupied with Brass Captain duties in marching band, she serves as Head of Research for the anti-book ban organization Golden State Readers and president of her school’s poetry club. Ayame lives with a chronic impulse to try every new activity in her path.

Jeanna Kadlec is the author of Heretic: A Memoir (HarperCollins, 2022) and the creator of the New York Times featured newsletter Astrology for Writers. Her second nonfiction project is forthcoming from Hachette. A born and bred Midwesterner, she now lives in New York City.

Vasvi Kejriwal is a former lawyer. She leads Fresh Mint, a project that serves to share and highlight literary works from underrepresented communities. She is a Pushcart Prize nominee and also the recipient of the AI Young Memorial scholarship from the Community of Writers Conference. Her poems have been a Finalist for the Epiphany Breakout! Prize and the Yellowwood Poetry Prize. Her work appears or is forthcoming in Rattle, Nimrod, Florida Review, Shō Poetry Journal, and elsewhere. She serves as Associate Poetry Editor for The Bombay Literary Magazine. She'll teach creative writing to NYU undergraduates this Fall. 

Raised in Los Angeles and now residing in Santa Barbara, CA, Marley Korzen is a published writer of fiction and poetry and a working copywriter. With a diverse skill-set in self-publishing, social media strategy and content creation, her workshops provide insight on getting started with a portfolio career. Marley's work is featured in MudRoom, Talk Vomit, Brown University’s The Round, Bodega, Gone Lawn and forthcoming in Tiger Leaping Review and The Broadkill Review.

Raquel Lesser graduated from Manhattanville College with a B.A. in Digital Media. They wrote five books, love to dance, and make art. Apart from their many hobbies, they love to write, make mechanics, and robots. For three years in a row, they participated in the Yale Writers Workshop, as well as taught at Champion Kindercare, and are now a mentor for Girls Write Now. 

Crystal Reyes is a Latinx essayist & poet native to Houston and works as an educator. She is a graduate candidate at Bay Path University, working on her MFA in Creative Nonfiction. Her debut poetry collection, Wildflower Blooming was released last Spring. Her essays and nonfiction works have been featured in Hip Latina, Entre Magazine, Autostraddle, & other literary magazines and anthologies. She has received support from the following literary organizations: The Kenyon Review and The Writer’s Center. You can follow her work at @Crisreyeswrites

Joi Ysabella Carla Salvino is a Filipino advocate with an interdisciplinary focus on social justice and universal rights and freedoms. She is passionate about the intersection of art, politics, and media, and is dedicated to uplifting marginalised groups. Currently involved with nonprofit and development initiatives, she seeks to contribute to teaching spaces that foster curiosity, creativity, and critical thinking, while promoting equity, social justice, and civic engagement. Her advocacy is centred on justice-driven storytelling, while her art reflects her individual and collective experiences with nuance and depth.