Archives: Teachers/Speakers

Marissa Flaxbart is a writer, filmmaker, and podcaster based in Los Angeles. She holds a BA in Cinema and Media Studies from the University of Chicago and an MFA in

Becky Mandelbaum is the author of The Bright Side Sanctuary for Animals (Simon & Schuster, 2020), an Indie Next Pick, and Bad Kansas (UGA Press, 2017), which received the 2016 Flannery O’Connor Award for

Melanie Márquez Adams is the author of Querencia: crónicas de una latinoamericana en USA, Mariposas Negras, and El País de las Maravillas: crónicas de mi sueño americano. An advocate of

Melissa Freeman is a writer, lawyer, mindfulness teacher, and entrepreneur. She is the founder of The Container Community, a guided journaling community based in Seattle, Washington. She is known for

Midge Raymond is the author of the novel My Last Continent and the award-winning short-story collection Forgetting English. Her writing has appeared in TriQuarterly, American Literary Review, Bellevue Literary Review,

Misha Berson is a freelance writer and teacher. From 1991-2016 she was the drama critic for the Seattle Times, after 10 years writing for the SF Bay Guardian. She has

Naa Akua, is a New York-born poet, actor, educator, and sound-word practitioner who is Ghanaian/Bajan and queer. Akua uses the vibratory energy of sound and the intent of words as

Anca L. Szilágyi is the author of Daughters of the Air, which Shelf Awareness called “a striking debut ,” and Dreams under Glass, which Buzzfeed Books called "a novel for

Soumeya Bendimerad Roberts is a literary agent and VP, Foreign Rights, at HG Literary.  In fiction, Soumeya is seeking literary and upmarket novels and collections, and also represents realistic young-adult and middle-grade.