‘Pemi Aguda is from Lagos, Nigeria. Her debut collection of stories, Ghostroots, was a finalist for the National Book Award and PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction.
Jennifer Dickinson, a graduate of Hollins University, is a book coach and writing teacher for women. Her fiction has appeared in The Florida Review, Isele Magazine, and elsewhere. Her nonfiction has appeared in Poets & Writers magazine. Her middle grade debut novel is forthcoming Spring 2026. Connect with Jennifer at jenniferdickinsonwrites.com
Alisha Drabek, MFA, PhD is a Sugpiaq Alutiiq author and artist from Kodiak Island, Alaska, living on Kaua’i. She has published several nonfiction and children’s books. She serves on the boards of Afognak Native Corporation and See Stories, an Alaska nonprofit that builds community through film and story. See alishadrabek.com
Heid E. Erdrich‘s new book is Verb Animate: Poems and Prompts from Collaborative Acts. Her honors include a National Poetry Series award for Little Big Bully. Heid edited New Poets of Native Nations and co-edited Boundless: Abundance in Native American Art and Literature. Heid is Ojibwe. She teaches online through The Loft. www.heiderdrich.com
Elizabeth Lee (she/her) is a Korean American fiction and nonfiction writer based out of Santa Fe. Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in The Georgia Review, Pleiades Magazine, Santa Fe Noir, Vestal Review, and Unbroken Journal, and has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net Award.
Amanda E. Machado is a queer nonbinary Latine writer, teacher and facilitator whose work has been published in Guernica, The Atlantic, Adroit Journal, Slate, and many others. They write on topics like Latine ancestry, gender violence, queer sexuality, nature, and the intersections between race, travel, and outdoor recreation.
Sibylla Nash is a multi-genre author and freelance writer. Based in Los Angeles, she holds an MFA from Otis College of Art and Design. Her work has appeared in LitHub, The Chicago Tribune, Essence, and others. She’s received support for her writing from the Highlights Foundation and Women Who Submit.
Kellie Richardson is a queer, Black writer and artist based in Tacoma, Washington. Her work centers Black humanity, and meditations on healing and memory. A former Tacoma Poet Laureate, Kellie has released two books, What Us Is and The Art of Naming My Pain both published by Blue Cactus Press.
Storyknife Writers Retreat 