Salsabeela is a Saudi writer and aspiring filmmaker. She is fascinated by the complexity of human relationships and their impact on the individual and the community. She believes that stories help us see things in ourselves that we would otherwise be blind to. Other than reading and writing, she loves to travel. She enjoys the company of people, young and old, and from every background, and she talks to strangers a lot. She has a bachelor’s degree in English Literature from King Abdulaziz University. She is currently an MSc Creative Writing student at the University of Edinburgh.

Barbara Athanasoulas is an aspiring writer from Toronto, Ontario. She completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Toronto, studying History, English, and Classical Civilisations. She most often writes fantasy and novel-length works but also enjoys creative non-fiction, short stories, and works that explore grief and loss.

Katie Brown is a poet from Oklahoma in the United States, where she worked as a barista for two years after receiving her Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing from The University of Central Oklahoma in 2021. She is excited for this journey in Edinburgh, and she longs to further explore the beauty of Scotland. She has been writing and reading stories since she was little. Katie’s love for words has kept her warm company throughout her life. She also loves her friends, her cats (Moussikis and Professor McGonagall), her family, and playing Dungeons & Dragons and Zelda games. Her poetry is influenced and inspired by the little things in everyday life and nature.

Maddie Heidari is a 90s kid (still refusing to identify as an adult) from Iran who has accomplished most of her academic studies in the field of humanities, especially literature. Due to an ever-present sense of detachment from her mother tongue, Farsi, she took up the writing of her diaries in English at a young age and found the experience quite satisfying. So much so that this exercise was gradually transformed into the composition of fiction and observational essays and is currently manifested in the shape of pursuing an MSc in Creative Writing at the University of Edinburgh.

André is a writer of fiction, poetry, and non-fiction of British-French nationality raised in Devon. He is dyslexic with particular and variable difficulties in short-term working memory, short-term visual memory, phonological awareness, and processing speed. He graduated from UEA’s BA in English Literature with Creative Writing in 2022 and is currently completing the MSc in Creative Writing (Fiction) at the University of Edinburgh. His first publication, the prose poem After Noon, was translated into Spanish (Atardece) as part of the Masked Writers/Historias Desconfinadas project – a collaboration with the Universidad de Alcalá and UEA – and published by Egg Box Publishing. His second publication, the short story For those Now Lost, was published in Underground UEA Undergraduate Anthology 2021-2022. André has furthered his theoretical and literary interests through the MSc modules Postcritique and Writing in/as Translation. He’s currently putting together a collection, a novel, and a creative non-fiction piece: https://andréhughes.com.

Jesús Nares Jaramillo (Mexico, 1991) has worked as a copyeditor, translator, and assistant editor for several publishing houses, including Ediciones SM, Tintable, and the Center for Research on North America (CISAN-UNAM) academic journal Norteamérica. His most recent editorial experience was at Hachette Livre, where he worked on children’s books, textbooks, art books, and translations, including scientific works, art history books, and cookbooks from English, Italian, Portuguese, and French. His short story “Chivo” appeared in the collection Resistencia and was a runner-up for the 5th edition of Premio Endira de Cuento Corto; his essay “Erótica de los ‘Sonetos con lugares communes’” was published in the literary magazine Acequias.

Florentina writes literary fiction set in Edinburgh. She previously studied English Literature at the University of Edinburgh focusing on contemporary feminist poetry and has worked as an editor-in-chief for two anthologies that were published by the University of Vienna’s English department. Florentina likes to use every spare moment of her free time traveling and exploring new places. She particularly enjoys writing poetry about the places she travels but always returns to her home of choice, Edinburgh, both to live and as a setting for longer prose pieces.

Leah Levy is a poet, writer, and editor from Ontario, Canada. She attained her undergraduate degree in Honours English Literature and Creative Writing, graduating with great distinction. Her poems have appeared, or are forthcoming, in Arc Poetry Magazine, The Student, and The Inkwell. Her research article on constraint poetry and disability was published in the UWill Discover Journal and received several undergraduate awards. She was the third-place winner of the 2023 Vera Manuel Award for Poetry and was shortlisted for the gritLIT 2023 Short Story Contest.

Kai Ray is based in London. Her work mostly explores the intersection of folklore, nature, and liminal space and time. Other focuses include the unexpected, survival, and a serious love of crows. She writes mostly prose but occasionally dives into poetry. When she’s not writing, you can usually find her in the studio painting, sculpting, or casting silver. Or walking around taking an overwhelming amount of photographs.

Audrey Renner hails from Kansas City, Kansas, USA. She graduated from Full Sail University in 2022 with a BFA in Creative Writing and hopes to write for the BBC. Her favorite books include The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, If We Were Villains, and 1984.

Holly Sargent is originally from Bracknell, England, and moved to Edinburgh in 2019 to pursue an undergraduate MA in English Literature. During this time, she was awarded runner-up for the Lewis Edwards Memorial Prize, and her writing for theatre was performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. She has a particular passion for contemporary Scottish writing and the Gothic tradition. These interests are combined in her writing to explore interpersonal issues with a folkloric twist.

Xabier Usabiaga (San Fernando, Chile, 1996) is an actor, musician, and writer. He is the author of various theatrical works, among which Fábula de las Tres Mujeres (2022, Fraude Editorial) and Canción del ciervo y el niño (2023, Pez Espiral) stand out. His poetry has been published in different Latin American magazines, translated into English and Italian, and has been recognized with the Fernando Santiván Poetry Prize 2020 and the Chilean Book Fund Scholarship 2023. His work—influenced by J. Teillier, E. Lee Masters, D. Maquieira, among others—explores the relationship between theater and poetry through symbolism and larist imagery. As a musician, he has released Buena Persona (2020) and Toi toi (2023), both with a sound that blends Latin folklore, indie, and lo-fi. He currently lives in Edinburgh and is preparing the publication of his first book.

Jennifer Sara Widelitz is currently pursuing an MSc in Creative Writing at the University of Edinburgh and is a board member of the Mystery Writers of America, Florida Chapter. She has a BFA in Visual Effects from the Savannah College of Art and Design and worked as a compositor at SPIN VFX, creating special effects for film and television. Additionally, her poetry has been published in various literary magazines, including Open Minds Quarterly, Stonecrop Magazine (formerly Basalt), The Pointed Circle, and The Gateway Review; and her photography has been featured in Kelp Journal, Camas Magazine, and Months To Years. Recently, her flash fiction was published online in 50-Word Stories. She is the author of Battle Cry, a poetry collection advocating for warriors battling autoimmunity, and the illustrator of A Heavenly World, a heartwarming children’s book that helps kids cope with the loss of their beloved fur friends. For more information, visit her website: jenniferwidelitz.com.