Isle McElroy is a non-binary writer based in Brooklyn. Their debut novel, The Atmospherians, has been named an Editors’ Choice by the NY Times, Vanity Fair, BuzzFeed, Harper’s Bazaar, Esquire, and Isle was named one of The Strand’s 30 Writers to Watch. Other writing appears in The Cut, The Guardian, Vogue, GQ, The Atlantic, and Tin House. They have received fellowships from The Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, The Tin House Summer Workshop, The Sewanee Writers Conference, The Elizabeth George Foundation, The Inprint Foundation, and The National Parks Service.

Find out more at: http://islemcelroy.com/

Photo credit: Grace Rivera

Reuben “Tihi” Hayslett is a queer activist, writer, and storyteller and current resident of Long Beach, CA. His first fiction short-story collection Dark Corners debuted in 2019 through Running Wild press. Dark Corners received a star rating by Kirkus and was recently included in the swag bag for George Lopez’s Celebrity Golf Tournament. Tihi currently works at Demand Progress, leading online campaigns against the overreach of government surveillance, and is a Lead Training Associate with the Oakland-based Center for Story-Based Strategy. Before relocating from Brooklyn to Southern California, Tihi produced Rustik Storytellers, a monthly oral storytelling live show in 2013. In 2016 he co-produced PRACTICE, a safe-space live storytelling show designed to encourage new-comers to take up the oral storytelling tradition. As a fluent speaker of Dothraki, one of the languages created for HBO’s Game of Thrones, Tihi recently worked on the upcoming Netflix series Daybreak as a Dothraki Language Consultant. 

Patrick Nathan is the author of Image Control: Art, Fascism, and the Right to Resist, and Some Hell, a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award. He lives in Minneapolis.

Find out more at: patricknathan.com

Amy Spies is a credited writer and teacher in film, television, new media, and mindfulness. She has written for award-winning documentaries, drama, comedy, as well as writing for the Huffington Post and Los Angeles Review of Books. Amy trained in teaching Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction and Mindful Self-Compassion. She created and developed a Mindful Writing program which encourages self-expression of one’s authentic voice, while quieting self-criticism. This practice, which helps prevent writer’s block, is also emotionally healing and pleasurable. Among the global individuals and groups with whom she has shared her Mindful Writing approach are: USC (faculty staff, and students), UCLA, non-profit shelters serving homeless individuals (often homeless) with neuro-diversity, mindfulness centers, media companies, Mindful Online Learning, Inner Kids Collaborative, Insight LA, global workshops, and individuals who have been incarcerated in the juvenile justice system. She has served as a writing awards judge for PEN International Literary Association and the Writers Guild. Amy graduated from Harvard University, where she studied psychology, literature, and film. She is currently writing her first novel.