Inked in Rain: New Seattle Voices in Print
Join us at Hugo House for an evening of poetry and prose in print. We welcome readings from local community writers cultivated through local open mics: Dario Cvencek, Michael Keen, Rhea Melina, William Murray, Francesca Penchant, and Iz White read from their latest books. Q&A to follow. Books will be available for purchase.
The House bar will be open to serve alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages.Caitlin Andrews
Caitlin M. Andrews (she/they) holds a fully-funded MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Miami. Her words can be found in Electric Literature, Short Ădition, New Square, the Waterproof Anthology, The New Limestone Review, and elsewhere, and sheâs received support from GrubStreet, Hugo House, and Sancho Panza Literary Society. Caitlinâs novel-in-progress is a braided queer historical adventure set during the Irish War for Independence. Her novel was just longlisted for the Masters Review Novel Excerpt Contest, and was selected as a semi-finalist for a 2021 Fulbright Scholarship in Research to Ireland. Find them fangirling about hiking, Twilight memes, and the Irish language on IG at edgarallenbro_.
Michael Keen
Michael Keen (he/him) has an MFA from Syracuse University and an MSW from Columbia University. His first novel, Notes from the Trauma Party, was published by Tailwinds Press in 2023. He lives in Seattle with his dog, Desmond, and works as a hospice social worker. He is obsessed with karaoke.
Rhea Melina
Rhea Melina (she/her) is a multi-ethnic poet, birth-worker, parent, herbalist, educator, and hopeful romantic. Her chapbooks include a place to put things (Bottlecap Press, 2023), Not My Wasteland (Bone Machine, 2024), and Ballard Coyote(Scumbag Press, 2025). Her poems have been published by Elizabeth Ellenâs Hobart, Gnashing Teeth, Literary Underground, Hareâs Paw Journal, Fiilthy Glo, Blood+Honey, Text Power Telling, and Papers Pub, among others, and her poem "Faith," calling for a free Palestine, was recently nominated for a Pushcart Prize. She believes that all illegal occupations and wars should cease and refuses to settle for less. found confetti is her first full-length collection and is available now from Carbonation Press and www.antiquatedfuture.com.
Francesca Penchant
Francesca Penchant (she/her) is a designer, writer, and publisher who teaches editing at the University of Washington. She has an MFA with a concentration in book arts and creates books and ephemera for Rachilde & Co., an independent micropress. Francesca lives with her husband in Seattle.
Dario Cvencek
Dario Cvencek is an immigrant poet from the Balkans and a research scientist at the University of Washington. By day he studies how children construct identity. By nightâor by whatever hour the poem arrivesâhe writes about war, trauma, displacement, and the slow, stubborn work of rebuilding a self in a new language. His words have appeared in Rattle, Zone 3, Hobart, and numerous other independent literary magazines and presses. His debut full-length collection âPTSD Martiniâ was published by Carbonation Press in 2025, with his follow-up collection âMirror Made of Wordsâ being released in 2026. He started writing poetry as a teenager during the Bosnian War. He has not stopped. Connect with Dario on IG @dario_poetry.
William Murray
Irish-American writer William Murray was born during the 1962 Century 21 Expositionâa Seattle Worldâs Fair baby. He is obsessed with the histories of Ireland and Seattle, and the place in them of his family, who came to Seattle in 1880 to work in the mines and railroads. Murrayâs work includes pieces in Northern Irelandâs The Magpie of Kilcoo; the anthology Visually Uplifting; and the self-published chapbook se do bheatha bhaile (Welcome Home). He is currently working to become a seanchai, a traditional Gaelic storyteller, and on 99 Blocks, a ten-year study of Seattleâs Highway 99. Seeking to illustrate the past and speak truth to power, Murray is grateful to Hugo House, where he attends Works in Progress and takes classes.
Iz White
Isadore "Iz" White (he/him) is an enrolled member of the Snoqualmie Tribe in King County. He grew up homeless in Seattle, well below the poverty line, in the 90âs. His tribe was federally recognized in 1999 and has continued to strengthen their efficiency and stability in financial development. His circumstances have given him both a unique perspective and breathing room to pursue his craft of writing. He is an up-and-coming poet who escaped the cycle of addiction. He speaks on social issues not only for his people, but all people. Iz White is committed to creating relationships between Native communities and non-native communities in an ever-changing demographic in and around the greater Seattle area.
