LitHop 2023 Reader Bios

Listed alphabetically, by first name

Aidan Castro is a transgender queer educator and Chicano poet from Dinuba, CA. He is a graduate of Fresno State’s MFA Creative Writing program. His work can be found on Poets.org, King River Review, and elsewhere.

Alberto Saldaña Uribe is a high school dropout, a college graduate, and is currently studying in the MFA program at Fresno State. He is the current Senior Poetry Editor for The Normal School. Find him on instagram @titioso98. 

Alena Hairston’s appears in various magazines and journals, including the Norton Anthology, Angles of Ascent. Her first collection, The Logan Topographies (Persea), won the Lexi Rudnitsky Memorial Prize. She earned her MFA from Brown University where she won the John Hawkes Memorial Prize in Fiction and the Rhode Island State Council of the Arts Fellowship.

Alex M. Bibler (she/her) is an English Major at Clovis Community College. She's been writing short stories since middle school and poetry since the start of college. She hopes to transfer to UCLA for her MFA in Creative Writing and pursue a writing and teaching career in New York.

Alie Jones (she/her) is a self-care advocate, writer, artist, and Creole mermaid. Raised in Fresno, based in the Bay rea. She is Co-founder and Director of Black Freighter Press, a revolutionary press committed to the exploration of liberation, using art to transform consciousness. Alie graduated with her MFA in Creative Writing and Literature from Mills College. She is the host of the podcast called Chit Chat with Aliecat , a platform to explore self-care practices and journeys of self-love in community.

Alison Mandaville (she/her) writes and publishes poetry and essays about family, place, and the environment. She is the recipient of several Open Society and UNESCO cultural heritage grants for facilitating creative writing workshops and literary translation projects in Azerbaijan and has edited and published several book collections of writing and artwork by women from that region. She lives and teaches in Fresno, spends summers in Seattle, and camps between. Her Fresno garden is prodigious.

Amber Carpenter (she/her) is a life-long (Central) Valley girl whose childhood obsessions with bodies, pop culture, and seventeen magazine have followed her into adulthood and become fixtures in her writing. She graduated with her MFA in creative nonfiction from Fresno State in May. Her work can be found in Entropy Magazine. 

Andy Marin Contreras is a poet and journalist based in Fresno County. As an MFA student at Fresno State, Andy likes to explore womanhood, religion, and depression through her poetry and non-fiction essays. In her free time, she loves to feed stray cats, watch movies, and weightlift. She currently works as the Program Assistant for the Moreno Institute, an LLC focused on helping migrant and undocumented students throughout California. 

Angela Chaidez Vincent (she/her) writes poetry (forthcoming debut collection ARENA GLOW, Tourane Press) and fiction and has a background of livelihoods in engineering, mathematics, and programming. Her poetry has appeared in Oxford Review of Books, North American Review, 32 Poems, and Bellevue Literary Review, among others. She lives in Fresno, California. 

Apryl Lewis received her PhD in English from Texas Tech University in 2021. Her research interests center on contemporary African American literature, Black Feminist Studies, intersectionality, and trauma studies. Her book, Black Feminism and Traumatic Legacies Within Contemporary African American Literature (Lexington Books), examines select African American novels and applies trauma studies and Black Feminist Studies to advance scholarly discussions about an African American literary tradition that articulates the impact of slavery’s traumatic legacy over time. 

Ariana Enriquez (she/her) is a 19 year old writer and poet from Fresno. She started writing poetry as a hobby and finds a sense of relief when writing. Her poems consist of rhythmic structure as she ventures into the melancholy, subtly disturbed, and dark tones. 

Audra Burwell (she/her) is a creative writing major at California State University Fresno, pursuing a Master of Fine Arts degree with a specialization in poetry. Her ekphrastic poem “Liberation” was featured at the Phebe Conley Art Gallery’s Fall 2021 “Nobody Promised You Tomorrow: Art 50 Years After Stonewall” exhibition. Audra is a member of Sigma Tau Delta English Honor Society and has headed literary workshops at the Young Writers Conference as well as working on the editorial board of the Spectrum journal. Her poems “Residing in Your Veins” and “Concealed Oasis” were both selected as finalists for Fresno State’s Art Song Festival. 

Benin Lemus (she/her) is a poet and an educator based in South Los Angeles. Her debut poetry collection, Dreaming in Mourning (November 2022), is published by World Stage Press. Her work is published online and in print, most recently in Márọkọ́: Journal of African Poetry and TORCH Literary Arts. Her author site is https://www.beninlemus.com/

Brenna Womer (she/they) is a queer, childfree, Latine prose writer and poet and an Assistant Professor of Creative Writing at California State University, Fresno. She’s the author of the mixed-genre collections Unbrained (FlowerSong Press, 2023) and Honeypot (Spuyten Duyvil, 2019), and her work has appeared in North American Review, Indiana Review, McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, The Pinch, DIAGRAM, and elsewhere.

Brian Dunlap a native Angeleño capturing the city’s stories hidden in plain sight. He is the author of the chapbook Concrete Paradise (Finishing Line Press, 2018), the winner of a Jeff Marks Memorial Poetry Prize from december magazine judged by former Los Ángeles Poet Laureate Luis J. Rodriguez and a reader for december magazine. His poems, book reviews and nonfiction have been published in PacificREVIEW, California Quarterly, Lit Pub, L.A. Parent, and the anthology Reimagine America (Vagabond, 2022), among others. He is Editor-in-Chief of the online publication www.losangelesliterature.com.

Brian Sonia Wallace is the poet laureate of West Hollywood California. His collections include I wrote these poems now I want them back, (yak press 2016), the poetry of strangers, (HarperCollins 2021), Maze mouth (Moontide press 2023), and is the founder of pride poet. He grew up in Chile and California. Find him @rentpoet on Instagram. 

Brianna Alvarez (she/they) is working on a Bachelor’s Degree in Creative Writing at Fresno State. Through her familiarity with the thoroughfares that surround the Central Valley, she takes inspiration to create pieces that are reflective of a life lived.

Brice Cain (he/him) is a new writer and English major, who enjoys the craft and is always looking for ways to improve. He began writing poetry in the spring semester of 2023 after taking a poetry class at Clovis Community College. Brice centers his poetry around laments, usually using a lot of imagery, and really enjoys playing with poetry lines.

Brigitte Bowers holds an M.A. in education and an M.F.A. in creative nonfiction from Fresno State University. She recently retired from the Merritt Writing Program at UC Merced, where she taught creative writing, professional writing, and composition. She currently teaches creative writing and literature at Valley State Prison in Chowchilla. Her work has appeared in Under the Gum Tree and Fourteen Hills, and her essay, “Attempted Homicide,” was named a Best American Notable Essay in 2015. Her bi-weekly column, Against the Grain, was published in The Merced Sun-Star for ten years. She lives with three dogs, three cats, and one husband in Merced. Her average Wordle score is 3/6. 

Brinn Spencer (they/them) is a queer and neurodivergent poet from Visalia who has been active in the local scene for 7 years. They are past winners of the Loud Mouth Grand Slam and Queer Slam among others and have been writing creatively as long as they have been able to read; they love the outlet that poetry slams give for performing. They have also been fortunate to perform and compete in Fresno, LA, and Dallas, and are grateful for every opportunity. When not writing, Brinn loves creating art, making friends with animals, and traveling to concerts.

Brynn Saito is the author of two chapbooks and three books of poetry. Her most recent collection is Under a Future Sky (Red Hen Press, August 2023). Brynn teaches in the MFA program at Fresno State and is co-editing an anthology of poetry written by descendants of the Japanese American incarceration, forthcoming in 2025 from Haymarket Books. 

C.G. Hanzlicek (he/him) was born in Owatonna, Minnesota, in 1942. He is the author of nine books of poetry: Living in It, Stars (winner of the 1977 Devins Award for Poetry), Calling the Dead, A Dozen for Leah, When There Are No Secrets, Mahler: Poems and Etchings, Against Dreaming, The Cave: Selected and New Poems, and, most recently, The Lives of Birds.

Carole Firstman is the author of "Origins of the Universe and What It All Means: A Memoir" (Dzanc, 2016). Her work has appeared in Colorado Review, South Dakota Review, Watershed Review, Lifestyle Magazine, The Valley Voice, and many other places. Honors include a Pushcart Prize Special Mention and two Notables in Best American Essays. She teaches writing at California State University, Fresno.

Carolina V. Mata (she/her) is a queer Mexican-American writer, editor, and bruja from Fresno and the Coachella Valley. She earned her MFA in Fiction from CSU, Fresno, and has been published in The San Joaquin Review, The Painted Cave, The Wild Blue Zine, and Psychopomp Magazine. She is currently a reader for Split Lip Magazine and working on her next manuscript.

Chad Sweeney is a poet and translator. He is the author of six books of poetry, Little Million Doors (Nightboat Books, winner of Nightboat Prize, 2019), Parable of Hide and Seek (Alice James Books), Arranging the Blaze (Anhinga Press), White Martini of the Apocalypse (Marick Press), Wolf’s Milk:the Lost Notebooks of Juan Sweeney (Forklift Books, bilingual Spanish/English) and An Architecture (BlazeVOX Books), and two books of translation, The Art of Stepping Through Time, the selected poems of Iranian dissident poet, H.E. Sayeh (White Pine Press, with Mojdeh Marashi) and Pablo Neruda’s final book, The Call to Destroy Nixon and to Advance the Chilean Revolution (Marick Press, 2019).

Cheyenne Jenvey (she/her/hers) is the author of "Dragonflies & Demons". Her book launched on Amazon in 2021. She has elaborated her life story and is very proud of it. Even in the face of the greatest of adversities, she never once felt shaken in her belief in God, which led to her life eventually getting better. Discovering a spiritual relationship has given her life meaning & purpose. She is a native born in Fresno & studied at Fresno State. She has always desired to share her story with the masses. Surviving what she has and writing her book is a dream coming true! 

Christa Fraser (she/her/hers) teaches with the Merritt Writing Program at UC Merced and serves as the fiction and multimedia editor at River Styx Journal. She is a graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop and has been a fiction fellow at the MacDowell Colony and the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown. Currently, she is working on a novel. Like her ancestors for many generations, she was born and raised in the Central Valley and Central Foothills of California, where she has deep roots.

Christina Charlene Quintana Olague (they/them) is a local poet organizer born and raised in the Central Valley. Over the past 10 years they've competed in local, regional, and international poetry slams for the sense of community. They have a Bachelor's degree in Evolutionary Biology and continue exploring themes of what it means to be human in ongoing crisis. Most recently, they were a Round One Finalist in the 18th Street Arts Complex's Statewide Creative Corps. They're mission is to empower people in advocating for themselves, their communities, and their non-human relatives.

Corrinne Clegg Hales (she/her) is the author of To Make it Right, Autumn House Press; Separate Escapes, Ashland Poetry Press; Underground, Ahsahta Press; and two chapbooks. Her poems have been published in numerous journals and anthologies and awards include two NEA Fellowship Grants and the River Styx International Poetry Prize. She lives in Fresno, California, where she taught literature and poetry writing for many years at Fresno State.

Cristina Sandoval is a proud Chicana, and a Fresno transplant, originally from Modesto, CA. She is currently studying for her MFA in poetry at Fresno State. She works as a bilingual instructional aide at an elementary school. She loves working with kids and plans on working in the field after her MFA. Her writing is centered around family, trauma, and what it means to be a Mexican-American woman in America. 

Curtis Messer is a Fresno based musician and song writer with a focused interest in music theory and audio production.

Dani Potter (she/her) is a quirky cynic who often masquerades as an optimist. She enjoys writing, particularly creative nonfiction, and has been published in literary journals such as 'Meridian,' 'Poet's Choice,' 'Free Spirit,' and 'io Literary Journal.' When she's not writing, she's teaching freshman English, painting, hanging out with her cat Sushi, or, of course, editing.

Darius Simpson (he/him) is a New Afrikan writer, educator, performer, and skilled living room dancer from Akron, Ohio. Much like the means of production, he believes poetry must be used for the positive social, political, and economic development of the masses. He aims to inspire those chills that make you frown and slightly twist up ya face in approval. Darius believes in the dissolution of empire and the total liberation of Africans and all oppressed people by any means available. Free All Political Prisoners. Free The People. Free The Land.

Darnell Mitchell (he/him) AKA "a wordsmiF," 26 years old based in Sanger CA, is a two-time champion at the Inner Ear Poetry Slam and continues performing at local open mic events. He is a diligent student of wordplay, mindfulness, and community network building, all while earning a living. His goal is to produce music with powerful impact and invest with financial literacy.

Darren J. de Leon, a.k.a. Aztec Parrot, is an award winning poet from San Bernardino, playwright, podcast/radio producer, street DJ, high school teacher, taquero and community activist. Darren relocated to San Francisco in 1993, after receiving his BA from University of California, Riverside, to study poetry at San Francisco State University’s MA Creative Writing Program. He has published poetry in various publication including Tlaquilx: Tongues In Quarantine(Hinchas Press), New Chicano/Chicana Writings (University of Arizona Press), Cipactli, and Fourteen Hills. In 1995, he founded Los Delicados: Poetas del Sol with Norman Zelaya and Paul S. Flores. Together they established themselves as a leader in the Latino Spoken Word scene. For 12 years, he produced and hosted Radio 2050, a Latino Arts Radio Magazine for KPFA in Berkeley, CA. 

Diana Magaloni is the director of the Los Angeles County Art Museum Latin American Department. She is a renowned art historian, author, curator, and conservator. She holds a Ph.D. in Art History from Yale University, an M.A. in Art History from the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), and a B.A. in Conservation from the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (INAH). She was formerly the Director of the Museo Nacional de Antropología in Mexico City (2009-13) and has served as researcher and professor at the Instituto de Investigaciones Estéticas UNAM since 1991. Her research has focused on developing methodologies to understand the originality of the artistic and aesthetic processes of ancient America's indigenous cultures. She has published extensively, including the books Colors of the New World: Materials, Artists, and the Creation of the Florentine Codex (2014) and Albores de la Conquista (2017), which won the Antonio García Cubas award for outstanding publication in anthropology and history. She has curated numerous exhibitions, including Picasso and Rivera: Conversations Across Time (LACMA, 2017), which received the 2018 Award for Excellence from the Association of Art Museum Curators.

Diosa Xochiquetzalcóatl or Diosa X for short, is a multilingual and multidimensional Xicana, Indigenous, MeXicana poetiza and author of three poetry collections: A Church of My Own (2021), Hechizera: Sus Sultry Spells (Editorial Raíces, 2022), and West of the Santa Ana and Other Sacred Places (Riot of Roses Publishing, 2023).

Dirk Tharpe finds writing as the air of his creative life. A day without writing is one wasted. The discipline of writing allows him to take satisfaction in completing a work worthy of pride upon finishing the grueling process. Dirk will continue his education and his aspiration to teach others the value of education and language arts in the Fall semester of 2023 in Fresno State’s teaching credential program.

Elizabeth Hunt is a poet based in the Central Valley of California with a recently discovered passion for creative non-fiction. She was a regular in the poetry slam circuit and competed in the coveted Ill List in 2011. Her poems have been published in Collective Whispers and More Than Soil, More Than Sky: The Modesto Poets. She lives in Turlock with her two children and an imaginary dog, since she’s allergic.

Evaristo Rivera (he/him/his) graduated from the University of California, Merced in 2018 with a degree in English: Literature and Language. He is interested in researching semiotics and narrative, particularly in Manga. His fiction has been published in the Boston Review and he is a fiction and multimedia reader at River Styx Journal.

Dr. Felipe Mercado exudes a wealth of experience in the fields of education, counseling, and social work. With over a decade of practical experience, he has made a lasting impact on countless lives and communities. Currently a Professor at California State University, Fresno in the Social Work Department and the founder of Wise Soul LLC, Dr. Mercado brings his philosophy of compassion, leadership, and inquiry to support those he serves. In addition to his work in education, social work, and counseling, Dr. Mercado is an "Amazon Best Selling" author in 6 categories for his book: A Journey to Compassion: Learning to Stand Firm in the Face of Pain. Drawing from his real-life experiences, this book expands on topics such as poverty, homelessness, substance abuse, mental health, compassion, social work, diversity, equity, and inclusion. As a Certified Compassion Cultivation Teacher with the prestigious Compassion Institute and a Mindfulness and Happiness Coach with the renowned World Happiness Academy, Dr. Mercado is recognized as a thought leader in the field of mental wellness and compassionate leadership. Dr. Mercado is renowned for his unwavering dedication to social justice, and improving lives and communities. 

Halimah Smith (she/her) is a Fresno born writer, who earned a Bachelor’s Degree in English Education, but reignited her love for writing in the earlier years of her degree. Growing up in the foothills of the valley, her greatest joys were climbing a tree and a trip to the library. Her love of stories, literature, and human culture has made her the writer she is; taking inspiration from her weekly drives through nature, every new experience she has, and the undeniable beauty of existence.

Heather Parish (she/her) is a recovering thespian and cheery misanthrope returning to her first love of scribbling after decades of cheating with theater. She co-wrote and performed “Tea Liturgy” at the 2019 Rogue Festival, where she is a former producer. Her writing has appeared most recently in The Munro Review, and previously in Lifestyle Magazine, The Pacific Northwest Inlander, The Fresno Flyer, and Readerville Magazine. Heather also published “Tower to the People Collaborative Zine” and writes zines about personal and domestic life combining DIY information with creative non-fiction.

Hermelinda Hernandez (turtle) is of Zapoteco descent from Oaxaca, Mexico. She’s an aspiring poeta who is currently pursuing her MFA in Creative Writing at CSU, Fresno. She is currently exploring grief, the body, language, and sound. She is also a graduate artist at Juan Felipe Herrera’s Laureate Lab Visual Wordist Studio at Fresno State. Her poetry has appeared in Small Press Traffic, Acentos Review, Zone 3, Poets.org, Honey Literary, The Ana, Voicemail Poems, and elsewhere.

Itzel Xochicuicatl is originally from Mexico City. At 18 years old, she migrated to the United States. At that point, poetry became her refuge and medicine as she attempted to adapt to her new country and culture. The themes of Xochicuicatl's writing touch upon strength, mysticism, motherhood, love, culture, migration, and nature. She is an active member of Fresno's literary circles. Her most passionate role is that of being a mother of three children. She is also a Spanish teacher and jewelry artisan. Her published poems appear in Revista Raices, Artivismo Anthology, and Antologia Poetica: IV Festival Internacional De La Mujer En Las Letras de UNAM, Hidalgo Mexico.

J.J. Hernandez (he/him/his) is a poet in Fresno, California, holds an MFA in poetry and served as one of the inaugural fellows in the Laureate Lab: Visual Wordist Studio under Juan Felipe Herrera. His work has been supported by the Community of Writers Workshop, he reads for The Offing Magazine, and you can see some of his work in Tinderbox, Queen Mob’s Tea House, and The American Poetry Review among others.

Jack Chavoor (he/him/his), a retired high school English teacher, is a 2020 Fresno State MFA graduate, and has been telling stories since 1959 when he walked home from kindergarten, got lost, and arrived home two and a half hours late. Also, he likes egrets but hasn't seen any lately.

Jacob Simmons (he/him/his) is a Central Valley English teacher and an MFA student studying Creative Nonfiction at Fresno State. He writes about love and atrocity, and he's trying to become less of a scoundrel every day. 

James T. Morrison is a second year MFA student whose personal narratives examine addiction and other mental health disorders, and how those issues intersect with the justice system and societal stigma; he also writes about family dynamics, intergenerational trauma, and skate culture. He lives in Fresno with his wife, Sara, and three cats.

Jennifer Soria (she/her), editor of Travelers to the Grave magazine, is a proud Fresno, CA poet. She thanks her teacher, Lee Herrick, for his guidance and grace.

Jeremy Mumford lives in Merced, California with his partner, two dogs, and a geriatric cat. He teaches writing, creative and otherwise, at the University of California, Merced, Merced College, and in the prison system. He has a Master of Arts in Composition Theory and MFA in Creative Writing from Fresno State University.

Jim Schmidt’s main interests have always been music, literature and technical pursuits. After studying philosophy at UC Berkeley he got involved with racing motorcycles, then pursued a career as a jazz musician and builder of saxophones. Presently he is stretching his ideas to the limit in the form of a science fiction novel.

John Hales (he/him) recently retired after 37 years teaching classes in literature and writing at Fresno State. His writing has appeared in the Georgia Review, Fourth Genre, Hudson Review, and Creative Nonfiction, and he is the author of the memoir Shooting Polaris, from University of Missouri Press. Recognition for his writing includes numerous Notable Essays listings in Best American Essays, the Missouri Review Editors Prize in Nonfiction, and a Pushcart Prize. 

José Jimenez (he/him) is a story-teller with a passion for justice & social change. Since discovering poetry at Fresno’s Inner Ear Beat Down Slam, Jose has made connections with inspirational poets nationwide. Jose was the 2020 & 2023 Loudmouth Grand Slam Champion, a Top Finalist at the Stonewall International Poetry Slam, placed Fourth overall at the Individual Utah Arts Festival, showcased at Big Foot Poetry Slam in Portland, and headlined at The Berkeley Slam & San Jose Slam. Jose credits his passion for poetry to Coach Michael Jasso and all the incredibly talented Central Valley poets.

Joseph Rios is the author of Shadowboxing and the current Poet Laureate of Fresno. 

Juan Felipe Herrera is the 21st Poet Laureate of the United States (2015-2016) and is the first Latino to hold the position. From 2012-2014, Herrera served as California State Poet Laureate. Herrera’s many collections of award-winning poetry include Every Day We Get More Illegal; Notes on the Assemblage; Senegal Taxi; Half of the World in Light: New and Selected Poems; and 187 Reasons Mexicanos Can’t Cross The Border: Undocuments 1971-2007. He is also the author of Crashboomlove: A Novel in Verse, which received the Americas Award. He is the author of many books of prose for children. Herrera is also a performance artist and activist on behalf of migrant and indigenous communities and at-risk youth.

Juan Luis Guzmán is a poet, professor, and literary/performing arts director. The son of Mexican immigrants, Guzman's poems and reviews have appeared widely in literary publications. He is the recipient of a 2021 Established Artist Fellowship from the California Arts Council and served as former director of LitHop. He is the current Vice-Chairman of the Selma Arts Council. 

Juan Gilberto Huerta (they/them) is a queer Chicane writer who is currently in the third year of their MFA program at Fresno State, where they also teach. They are a reader for the Normal School, and the Philip Levine Prize. They were formerly the Vice President for the Chicanx Writers and Artist Association (CWAA) at Fresno State and assist in CWAA’s literary publication Flies, Cockroaches, and Poets. 

Kathee Godfrey’s (she/her/hers) early years, moving multiple times and always being new at school, has translated to a certain restlessness as an adult. Having lived in Utah, Arizona, and southern California, Kathee finally settled in Fresno where she was a professor of English for over 20 years. Recently, her restlessness took her to Marina where she is an English professor in the School of Humanities and Communication at California State University, Monterey Bay.

Kathryn Neves (she/her/hers) is an MFA student at California State University, Fresno, where she is studying fiction writing. She received a bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing and Shakespeare Studies, during which time she worked as a content writer for the Utah Shakespeare Festival. Her work has appeared in the Kolob Canyon Review, where she also served as a reader on the editorial staff. While primarily a fiction writer, she is also an essayist, playwright, and poet. After completing her MFA, Kathryn plans to pursue a PhD in classical and contemporary literature. 

Katie Quigley (she/they) is a Fresno poet studying at Fresno State for her BA in English Studies with an emphasis in Creative Writing. She attended LitHop in 2022 with her Poetry class under Lee Herrick. Additionally, she has attended and read for the celebration of Lee Herrick becoming California's new Poet Laureate, and is featured in Fresno State's journal: Flies, Cockroaches, and Poets. She typically centers her writing around themes such as: childhood, mental health, identity, sexuality, relationships, and early adulthood. 

Kenneth Robert Chacón (he/him/that vato) is a 6ixth Sun Xolo from the city of Fresno in the great state of Califas. He is a husband, father, and grandfather & the author of a collection of poetry, The Cholo Who Said Nothing, & has publications in over 30 magazines, including Spillway, Blackbird, Palette Poetry, The Colorado Review, and Huizache among others. He is a Pushcart nominated poet and won Thin Air magazine's “Bird of the Hand” Prize in 2023. 

Kirk Stone (he/him) grew up on the California coast near strawberry fields and the ocean. Except for a brief stint in Poland teaching English, he has lived in Fresno, and has an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from Fresno State, where he is currently the assistant director of the California State University Fresno's Writing Center, where he focuses on facilitating small writing groups.

Kristin Lyn Crase (she/her) is a local actor, stage manager, writer and director last seen on stage as Lotty Wilton in "Enchanted April" at Good Company Players. Her short play “Farmer’s Market” was featured in “Identity,” produced by The Fools Collaborative. She also wrote and performed “Vacations With Dad” for the Rogue Festival in 2015.

L.S. Arévalo is a Xicana-Indigenous poet, playwright, and writer originally from Cali's Central Coast. A UCLA alumna in Comparative Literature and Xicanx Studies, her publications include The San Joaquin Review, Mujeres de Maíz, Flies, Cockroaches, and Poets, Fresno City College Review, and University of Nevada at Reno's Basta! 100+ Latinas Against Gender Violence. The Light in the Dead was featured in Teasers: An Evening of 10-Minute Plays. She enjoys writing about indigenous culture, gender, identity, nature, spirituality, and all relations. She also loves to spend time with nature, song, dance, concerts/music festivals, and quality time with loved ones.

LadiRevolutionary (LadiRev) (she/her) is an educator/spoken word artist from Bayview Hunters Point. Her poetry is a reflection of personal growth along with values learned from family and community. LadiRev is passionate about community, education, and healing. She is the host of Talkn Owt Da Side of Da Necc Podcast, which focuses on individual healing practices. She is set to release her first book, Heal, in 2023. LadiRev is also a proud alum of Fresno State.

“It only takes one person to make a stand but it takes a community to make a change” LadiRev

Lee Herrick was born in Daejeon, Korea and adopted as an infant. He lives with his family in Fresno, California and served as Fresno Poet Laureate from 2015-2017. He teaches at Fresno City College and in the low-residency MFA program at University of Nevada Reno at Lake Tahoe. He is the 10th California Poet Laureate, and the first Asian American to serve in the role.

Linda Ravenswood de Montaño is a poet and performance artist from Los Angeles. Winner of an Oxford prize in poetry (2022), she is the current Edwin Markham prize in poetry winner from San Jose State University. Her recent collection Cantadora – – letters from California (Eyewear London/the black spring press group, 2023) was published in March. Her forthcoming collection – – a poem is a house – – won the Arthur Smith prize from Madville press in 2023, and is forthcoming in January 2024. She is the founding editor in chief at the Los Angeles press, est. 2018. Find her at thelosangelespress.com

Linnea Alexander (she/her) After retiring as a professor of English at California State University, Fresno, Linnea entered Fresno State’s MFA program. She is currently sending her memoir, The River of Mercy, out for publication. Her work captures the ambivalent spirit of the 60s in stories of her life in Yosemite and Mexico, waitressing in New Orleans, and working on a passenger ship. Her desire to travel has continued to shape her life in unexpected ways.

Liz Scheid is the author of The Shape of Blue. She writes about motherhood, fears, ghosts, love, astrology, and loss. Her essays and poems have been published in several literary magazines. Currently, she teaches full-time at Fresno City College. 

Lourdes Figueroa (she/her) is an oral poet. Her poems are a dialogue of her lived experience when her family worked in el azadón in Yolo County. Her chapbook Vuelta was recently published by Nomadic Press. She received her MFA in Poetry at the University of San Francisco. She works and lives in San Francisco with her wife, filmmaker, Peggy Peralta. She is a native of limbo nation. Lourdes continues to believe in your lung and your throat.

Marcelo Hernandez Castillo’s (they/them) most recent book is Children of the Land: a Memoir (Harper Collins) which received acclaim from Vanity Fair, Entertainment Weekly, the LA Times, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and was finalist for the International Latino Book Award. He is also the author of poetry book Cenzontle, winner of the A. Poulin, Jr. prize (BOA editions 2018), which was awarded the the Great Lakes Colleges Association’s New Writer Award for poetry, the 2019 Golden Poppy Award from the Northern California Independent Booksellers Association, and the FOREWORD INDIE bronze prize for best book of the year. 

Marcos Dorado is a photographer and writer whose editorial (pictures & articles) have been published in Blue Mountain Literary Review, ArtAscent Journal, Fashion As Art Magazine and others. Currently, he was just chosen as the photography for this fall’s issue of Stories of Hope Magazine to be released in Fresno. His next exhibit will be at the Museum of asocial Justice in LA.

Maria Guerrero (she/her) is a school teacher and poet from the San Francisco’s Hunter’s Point who currently educates youth in La Mission.

Mariah Bosch is a queer Chicana poet, educator, and visual artist from Fresno, CA. She is a graduate of Fresno State’s MFA program in poetry. Her work can be found on Poets.org, Small Press Traffic, Cosmonauts Avenue, and elsewhere.

Marisol Baca is the author of a book of poems Tremor, she served as the fourth Fresno Poet Laureate in 2019-2021. She teaches for Resources for American Indian Needs which is a community within Fresno City College giving support to Native and Indigenous students. She holds workshops for Poets & Writers and the California Center for the Book: Rural Libraries Tour, and she has established a community for women writers of color that seeks to support and uplift their writing endeavors.  

Mark Arax has been called a “21st Century John Steinbeck” for his books that pry open the soul of California. A writer of essays, history, biography and journalism, he is a two-time winner of the California Book Award and a recipient of Stanford University's William Saroyan International Prize for Writing. His most recent work, "The Dreamt Land," a national bestseller, has been hailed by critics as one of the most important books ever written about the West. The Wall Street Journal’s Books and Art Section recently named The Dreamt Land as “one of the five best books on the great outdoors” written over the past two centuries.

Mas Masumoto (he/his) is an organic peach, nectarine, apricot, and grape farmer and a pioneer in organic farming since the 1980s. He is the author of thirteen books including: Epitaph for a Peach, Wisdom of the Last Farmer, and a cookbook, The Perfect Peach. A documentary, Changing Season on the Masumoto Family Farm, was nationally broadcast by PBS in 2016. His newest book, Secret Harvests is about a family history of struggles, disabilities and secrets. His writing awards include Commonwealth Club medal, Julia Child Cookbook award and the Independent Publisher Book Award. He currently serves on the boards of Public Policy Institute of California and CalMatters.

Chicanx lion, Matt Sedillo, has been called “the best political poet in the United States”. His collections mowing leaves of grass, and city on the second floor are taught in over 100 colleges and universities across the United States. He received the Dantes Laurel from Count Paulo Gambi in Ravenna Italy in 2022 for services to poetry.

Megan Anderson Bohigian (she/her) just finished a 2-year appointment as the City of Fresno's Poet Laureate. Her poems have been widely published in journals including SALT, The Comstock Review, and Whiskey Island Magazine; anthologized in the book Shadowed: Unheard Voices; and she has authored two poetry collections, Sightlines (Tourane Poetry Press) and Vanishing Point (The Orchard Street Press). She is an active member of the writing community in Fresno, and coordinates the writing portion of the annual 7-month long outdoor reading series, The Respite by the River.

Melanie Kachadoorian (she/her) attempted to write her first book at the age of nine, but it was oddly morbid and not well-received. Since then, her work has appeared in The Rumpus, Exposition Review, If and Only If, and Monkey Puzzle. Her essay "Merda di Scrittrice" was nominated for a Pushcart Prize. She holds an MFA in Creative Writing, and teaches at Fresno State. 

Mialise Carney is a writer and editor from Massachusetts. Her stories and essays have appeared in Swamp Pink, Booth, and Variant Literature, among other places.

Michael Cantu is a poet from Reedley, California. He is currently an MFA student at CSU Fresno working on his poetry manuscript. When not writing, he is teaching High School English at the School Of Unlimited Learning, a division of the Fresno Equal Opportunity Comission. He is supported in art by his loving wife, daughter, and extended family, all long time inhabitants of the California Central Valley.

Michael Jasso is a Spoken Word Artist from Visalia who has worn many hats within the community over the past 14+ years. He has traveled all across California and the country as either a Poet, Emcee, Volunteer, Workshop Facilitator, Slam Coach, or a combination of all the above. He has been Lead Organizer of Visalia’s Loud Mouth Poetry Jam for the last 10+ years bringing out the world’s most talented poets, as well as showcasing the talent of the Valley’s poetry community back to the world. He represented his home venue at the 2014 & 2015 National Poetry Slam in Oakland, competed in the 2018 Individual World Poetry Slam as a Storm Poet, and has offered coaching to every Loud Mouth representative. His work can be found in such collections as Dia De Las Poeticas (2020) & Flies, Cockroaches, & Poets (2023) He will be representing his community as a member of the 2023 Central Valley Slam Team, has served as the Slam Coordinator at the 2023 Utah Arts Festival, and was a Featured Artist in Las Vegas for Beyond the Neon's Latinx Heritage Month Series.

Michael Steiner (he/him) is a beginning poet studying Creative Writing at Fresno State. He is particularly interested in the participation of written and spoken word in mystic traditions and the potential for art to access universal human experience. His poem "To a Dog Who Ran His Race Complete" was recently a finalist in the Fresno State Art Song Festival.

Michelle Patton (she/her/hers) received an MFA in Creative Writing from CSU Fresno. She won the Ernesto Trejo Award for poetry and was nominated for a Pushcart Prize. Her poems have appeared in The Atlanta Review, Southern Poetry Review, Zyzzyva, Prairie Schooner and others. She teaches English at Fresno City College.

Mimi Tempestt (she/they) is a multidisciplinary artist, writer, and daughter of California. She has a MA in Literature from Mills College, and is currently a doctoral student in the Creative/Critical PhD in Literature at UC Santa Cruz. Her first book, the monumental misrememberings, is published with Co-Conspirator Press//The Feminist Center for Creative Work (2020). She was chosen as a finalist in the Creative Nonfiction Prize for Indiana Review in 2020, and is a creative fellow at The Ruby in San Francisco. She was selected for participation in the Lambda Literary Writers Retreat for Emerging LGBTQ Voices & writers in 2021. Her works can be found in Foglifter, Apogee Journal, Interim Poetics, and The Studio Museum in Harlem. Mimi’s second book of poetry is being released this year by City Lights Books.

Nikiko Masumoto (she/her) is an organic farmer, memory keeper, and artist. She is Yonsei, a fourth generation Japanese American, and gets to touch the same soil her great-grandparents worked in California where Masumoto Family Farm grows organic nectarines, apricots, peaches and grapes for raisins. With her family, she’s co-authored 2 books: Changing Season and The Perfect Peach. Her most cherished value is courage and most important practice is listening.

Nikolai Garcia (he/him) started It's All Gravy fanzine in 2000 to cover the punk and ska backyard scene in South Central L.A., while he was still a journalism student at East L.A. College. These days he is content collecting and listening to records at his home in Compton, and hosting his monthly reading series, "Trenches Full of Poets," in Long Beach.

Norla Henderson (she/her) has worked in fabric, knitting and needlework stores most of her life, selling, designing, and teaching. When sent home to duck the virus she set the knitting needles down, as there was no place to wear new sweaters, and picked up paintbrushes. She also joined an online storytelling group, Stories to Tell with Dr. Bertice Berry, because it turned out she needed a lot of attention. With the storytelling she also learned to stop hiding from the camera.

Norma Beatriz Sánchez is a Mexican poet living in Southern California. Is a member of the literary groups Escritores del Nuevo Sol, Círculo de Poetas & Writers, and Contracorriente. Her poems have been published in the anthologies Voces y Cuentos del Nuevo Sol, The Border Crossed Us, Poesía en Vuelo, Soñadores; Mujeres de Maíz Zine, St. Sucia, Cantera, Los Brotes de la Palabra, Artevismo, and Antologia Poetica: IV Festival Internacional De La Mujer En Las Letras de UNAM, Hidalgo Mexico. Has participated in various poetry events such as Festival Internacional de Poesía, Comala, Pueblo Blanco, Voces Colectivas, Círculo de Poesía para Mujeres, el Festival Boca de Oro, and the IV Festival Internacional De La Mujer En Las Letras, Hidalgo Mexico.

Norman Antonio Zelaya (he/him) was born and raised in San Francisco, CA. He has published stories in ZYZZYVA, NY Tyrant, 14 Hills, Cipactli, and Apogee Journal, among others. He was a 2015 Zoetrope: All-Story finalist, and 2019 Anginas Scholarship recipient for latinx writers to attend the Community of Writers Workshops in Squaw Valley, CA. In 1997, he co-founded Los Delicados (a poetry theater ensemble), and has performed extensively throughout the US with them. Zelaya has appeared on stage, in film, and in the squared circle as luchador, Super Pulga. He is the author of two collections of fiction, most recently Gente, Folks (Black Freighter Press, 2022) and Orlando & Other Stories (Pochino Press, 2017).

Optimism One is a Buddhist, an Ironman triathlete, and a tenured English professor who has been clean and sober for over twenty years. His essays have been anthologized by Peter Lang Publishing and In Fact Books, and published in The Normal School and Brevity, among others. He is currently completing his memoir, Goodbye, Suicide: A Love Story.

Pacifica is a 36-year-old mother of a 9-year-old son. She suffers from bipolar-schizophrenia and is a recovering alcoholic. As you can imagine, she says, those two things don't go well together.  Reading “Dragonflies & Demons” really helped her put things into perspective about what addiction really is and how to overcome it. She loved how the author shared a few love stories in the book, which were affected by addiction, as she is currently dating a man who is a Drug & Alcohol counselor for a living.  This book impacted her life & she highly recommends reading this book.  It is truly inspiring!

Paula Treick DeBoard is a fiction writer by trade who accidently began writing creative nonfiction. Her fourth novel, Here We Lie (Park Row Books, 2018), was a praised as a contribution to the #MeToo movement. She teaches writing at University of California, Merced and spends her free time accumulating pets.

Peter Garza (he/him) is a graduate from Fresno State with a Bachelor’s Degree in English Literature. He has had a love for writing since he was a scrawny twig from Porterville. Residing in Fresno the last twelve years, he finds inspiration in the orange groves that border his hometown and the battered 99 he traveled often.

Rebeca Antoine (she/her/hers) earned an MFA from the Creative Writing Workshop at the University of New Orleans and is the editor of Voices Rising Vols. I and II: Stories from the Katrina Narrative Project. Her fiction has appeared in Upstreet, The Briar Cliff Review, Gulf Stream and other publications. She currently teaches at UC Merced in the Merritt Writing Program.

René Rodriguez-Astacio (he/his/él) was born and raised in Humacao, Puerto Rico. A professor of secondary English Education at Fresno State and writer, his work, writing, and interests are fueled by his experiences and identity as a bilingual queer Puerto Rican. He is an avid reader and die hard fanatic of young adult literature. He also writes in his spare time about fantastic worlds, Puerto Rican queer teens and culture, and the occasional spur-of-the-moment poem. A nerd at heart, you can always find him hanging out at bookstores and theme parks.

Rooja Mohassessy (she/her) is an Iranian-born poet and educator. She is a MacDowell Fellow and an MFA graduate of Pacific University, Oregon. Her debut collection When Your Sky Runs Into Mine (Feb 2023) was the winner of the 22nd Annual Elixir Poetry Award. Her poems and reviews have appeared in Narrative Magazine, Poet Lore, RHINO Poetry, Southern Humanities Review, CALYX Journal, Ninth Letter, Cream City Review, The Adroit Journal, New Letters, Poetry Northwest, The Rumpus, The Journal, and elsewhere.

Originally from Seattle, Rosie Bates (she/her) moved to Fresno in 2020 and earned her M.F.A in Creative Writing at Fresno State. If she isn’t writing or hanging out with her cat, Steve, you will most likely find her out rock climbing in Yosemite. Her essays about climbing have appeared in Alpinist Magazine. 

Sally Vogl’s career involved teaching visually impaired students, first in the Peace Corps, where her love of travel began, and later in the United States. After receiving an MFA in creative writing from California State University-Fresno, Sally taught poetry in the California State Prisons. Some of her pieces have appeared in Lunch Ticket, The Main Street Rag, Panoply, and Stone Voices.

Samina Najmi (she/her) teaches multiethnic U.S literatures at Fresno State. Her creative nonfiction has appeared in various publications. A Hedgebrook alum and Pushcart nominee, Samina is back in graduate school 25 years after her doctorate, studying creative nonfiction in the MFA program in Creative Writing at Fresno State. This is keeping her humble. 

Sean Andersen (he/him) graduated from Fresno State with a Bachelor’s in English - Creative Writing. Since graduating, he splits his time between writing, music, and education. He finds joy in the arts and seeing others passionate about craft and the process of making.

Shane Lara Jr. who goes under the poet name Walks-Between-Worlds is a Native American Hip-Hop and Spoken Word Artist who is a member of the Natchitoches Tribe of Louisiana. From battle rap to slam poetry Shane uses these mediums to raise awareness of issues that affect indigenous communities all over Turtle Island. The 2022 Grand Slam Champion of Visalia has also opened up for poet laureates like Lee Herrick, Joseph Rios and Bryan Medina. In his travels Shane has Ranked top 20 poets in the Nation in Florida's Nationals as well as ranking top 5 in Utah's art festival slam.

Shane “Chango” Moreman (he/him) is a Communication professor who uses arts based research methods to explore and express his own and other’s Latinx, queer world-making sensibilities. Raised within the bilingual and bicultural South Texas borderlands, his writings offer eternal optimism that our differences provide us new ways toward yet-to-be-realized social justice capacities.

Sharon K. McClain (she/her) finds impetus to write from her unconventional childhood growing up in the beach cities of southern California. Utilizing creative non-fiction memoir and poetry, she alchemizes a painful past into healing and beauty. Themes prevalent in her writing are grief, trauma, addiction, survival, familial bonds, and love, healing, and forgiveness. Her creative nonfiction and poetry have won awards at the Art Song Poetry contest and creative writing contests at Fresno State. In fall of 2023, Sharon will begin pursuit of a Master of Fine Arts degree in Creative Nonfiction at Fresno State.

Shelby Pinkham is a Chicanx, bipolar poet from the Central Valley. They received their MFA in creative writing from Fresno State. Their poems appear in ANMLY, ctrl + v, Lunch Ticket, and elsewhere. They received a fellowship from Lambda Literary where they were selected for the Emerge Editorial Scholarship. They also help edit the Kern County literary journal Rabid Oak and teach at Clovis Community College.

Shelley Kay Mast (she/her) is a nurse by trade, a mom to two adult offspring and a temporary stand-in for many others through her work with Free Mom Hugs©, a steadfast partner, and a willing servant to a persnickety terrier, Olive Juniper. She is also a participant and student of the arts, and a lover of the natural world. She has a deep curiosity about human behavior, what makes us tick and why we click. She recently discovered the power of, and therapy through, storytelling and practically leapt at the chance to be part of LitHop.

Skyler Wilson (she/her) is a STEM and Comm tutor at the CCC tutorial center. She’s just recently found a creative outlet in poetry. She hopes to eventually become a professor in math and geology.

soledad con carne (he/they) is known as the poet laureate of the San Fernando Valley. They are a first generation Chicanx poet, mixed media artist, and co-editor of the literary journal Acid Verse. Originally from the heart of the Valley, soledad now represents the 818 on Ohlone Chochenyo land in the Bay Area. Their poetry covers topics like mental illness, taking the bus, punk activities, and loneliness all while exploring their place in the San Fernando Valley and now Oakland.

Sophia Rain Kerbow is 20 years old and is majoring in Deaf Education. Rain has been writing short stories and poetry since childhood. In a world that is so expensive, there isn't much that comes free, but art comes at no expense, and thus expression is free by association. This is why Rain loves to write as it is free and is freeing in such an expensive society. 

Soul Vang is the author of "To Live Here," "Song of the Cluster Bomblet," and Of "Tigers and Wars." Soul is a poet, teacher, and U.S. Army veteran. He holds an MFA in Creative Writing from California State University, Fresno and is an editorial member of the Hmong American Writers’ Circle (HAWC).

Steven Church (he/him/his) is the author of six books of nonfiction. His essays have been published and anthologized widely, including in the Best American Essays. He teaches in the MFA Program at Fresno State and is a founding editor of The Normal School. 

Steven Sanchez’s debut book, Phantom Tongue (Sundress Publications, 2018), was chosen by Mark Doty for the Rochelle Ratner Memorial Award. He is a CantoMundo Fellow, Lambda Literary Fellow, and the inaugural winner of the Federico García Lorca Poetry Prize for an emerging Latinx poet. He was also awarded residencies from Tin House and the Civitella Ranieri Foundation. His poems appear in journals that include Agni, American Poetry Review, The Missouri Review, Poet Lore, and North American Review.

Susan Varnot (she/her/hers) teaches at UC Merced where her teaching and research interests include empowering pedagogy and praxis, creative writing, interdisciplinarity, poetry, and creativity studies. Her poems have appeared in numerous publications, including journals such as Arts and Letters, Spoon River Poetry Review, Cimarron Review, Beloit Poetry Journal, and in the anthology, A Face to Meet the Faces: Contemporary Persona Poetry.

Sylvia Savala is a poet, essayist, painter, and a feminist voice for the Latino community. She graduated from CSU Fresno with a BA in Spanish and a MFA in Creative Nonfiction and teaches English at Fresno City College. Her essays and paintings were published in “Entering the Picture, Judy Chicago, The Fresno Feminist Art Program and the Collective Vision of Women Artists’ and the “Introduction to Mexican-American Studies.”

Talia Lakshmi Kolluri (she/her) is the author of “What We Fed to the Manticore,” a collection of short stories published by Tin House in September 2022 and a finalist for the Carol Shields Prize for Fiction. Her short fiction has appeared in The Minnesota Review, Ecotone, Southern Humanities Review, The Common, Orion, One Story, and others. She was born and raised in Northern California and currently lives in California’s beautiful Central Valley with her husband and cat.

Tauri (she/her/he/him/they/ella) graduated from Cal State San Bernardino with an MFA in creative writing. They were born and grew up in East LA where the tacos are abundant and the music and art are found on almost every esquina, from corridos to punk. Tauri is a part of the Los Angeles Poet Society and is the Chief Editor of Acid Verse LIterary Journal. They are also a part of California Poets in The Schools and teach poetry. Aside from being a poet, Tauri is an astrologer, tarot reader, outdoor educator, and professional cat lover. 

Tim Simmers is telling tales about searching for music, rough traveling, farming in the West and growing up on the San Francisco Bay. A long-time Bay Area newspaper writer, he recently escaped from the perils of Silicon Valley and is now soaking up the literary tradition of the San Joaquin Valley in Fresno State’s creative writing department.

Originally from San Francisco, Tongo Eisen-Martin (he/him) is a poet, movement worker, and educator. His latest curriculum on extrajudicial killing of Black people, We Charge Genocide Again, has been used as an educational and organizing tool throughout the country. He is the author of Someone’s Dead Already, Heaven Is All Goodbyes, Waiting Behind Tornados for Food, and Blood on the Fog. In 2020, he co-founded Black Freighter Press to publish revolutionary works. He is San Francisco’s eighth poet laureate.

Victor Trejo (him/he) spent a moderately idyllic childhood in Fresno, where he was exposed at an early age to music, theater, and the beauty of poetry. After winning several poetry awards, he attended University of California, Santa Barbara. He considers himself a lapsed writer and works as a teacher and photographer of the events and people in his corner of Fresno.

Walks-Between-Worlds (He/him) Is a Native American spoken word artist From the Natchitoches Tribe of Louisiana and Current Grand slam Champion of Visalia. He has competed at the National level in Florida ranking in as one of the top 20 Poets in the Nation as well as opening up for the current California Poet Laureate Lee Herrick. Walks-Between-Worlds is currently working to give back to his people through poetry by establishing the first Native American slam in his community. He has upcoming projects for his Native American community that would help raise awareness for indigenouWalks-Between-Worlds Is a Native American spoken word artist From the Natchitoches Tribe of Louisiana and Current Grand slam Champion of Visalia. He has competed at the National level in Florida ranking in as one of the top 20 Poets in the Nation as well as opening up for the current California Poet Laureate Lee Herrick. Walks-Between-Worlds is currently working to give back to his people through poetry by establishing the first Native American slam in his community. He has upcoming projects for his Native American community that would help raise awareness for indigenous issues.

Will Freeney (he/him/his) is a dabbler in poetry and a writer of creative nonfiction, with an MA in English with a concentration in Creative Writing from Sacramento State University (2008) and an MFA in Creative Writing (CNF) from Fresno State University (2022). Besides writing (and reading, the prerequisite) he enjoys cycling, jogging, and hot yoga. Will practices Nichiren Buddhism (since 1985) and an innate worship of the Sun.