Yamila BÊGNÉ (fiction writer; Argentina), a teacher of creative writing, is the author of three experimental story anthologies, most recently Los Límites del control [Limits of Control] (2017) and a non-fiction writer. A recipient of a 2006 Letters and Illustration award from the Ministry of Culture in Buenos Aires, in 2017 she attended a CUNY residency on a Néstor Sánchez Grant. She participates courtesy of the U.S. Embassy in Buenos Aires.
2018 Resident
fiction writer, non-fiction writer
Aram PACHYAN Արամ Պաչյան (fiction writer, essayist; Armenia) is the author of story collections Ռոբինզոն [Robinson] (2011) and Օվկիանոս [Ocean] (2014). His novel Ցտեսություն, Ծիտ [Goodbye, Bird] (2012) has been translated into English, with French, Bulgarian, Arabic, and Georgian editions forthcoming, and was staged at the Armenian Center for Contemporary Experimental Art; his fiction has been set to music. In 2010, Pachyan received the Presidential Prize for his short stories. His participation was made possible by the Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State
2018 Resident
fiction writer
TAKIGUCHI Yūshō 滝口悠生 (fiction writer, Japan) writes stories about individual and collective memory, marked by a roaming, omniscient narrative voice and multiple temporalities. His novella Resonance (Gakki) won the 2011 Shincho Prize for New Writers; in 2015, his novella The Jimi Hendrix Experience was nominated for the Akutagawa Prize; in 2016 Takiguchi won that award for The Unceasing (Shinde inai mono). His participation is made possible by an endowed gift from William B. Quarton.
2018 Resident
fiction writer, poet
Adriana BORJA ENRÍQUEZ (fiction writer, poet; Ecuador) works as a psychologist, with a focus on human rights, gender-based violence, and refugee rights. Her short stories and poetry have been widely anthologized in South America and Europe. A winner of the International Poetry and Theater Castello di Duino Competition in 2013 and 2017, she has also received awards from the House of Ecuadorian Culture and elsewhere. Borja Enrìquez participates courtesy of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the U.S. Department of State.
2018 Resident
fiction writer, poet
Gina COLE (fiction writer, poet; New Zealand) is the author of Black Ice Matter, which won Best First Book of Fiction at the 2017 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards, and the winner of the 2014 Auckland Pride Festival’s creative writing competition for the poem “Airport Aubade”; her work is widely anthologized. She was keynote speaker at the 2017 Auckland Writers Festival and the Same Same But Different LGBTQIA+ Writing Festival. A barrister, she specializes in family law. Her participation is made possible by Creative New Zealand.
2019 Resident
fiction writer, non-fiction writer, poet
The Atayal writer and activist WALIS Nokan 瓦歷斯‧諾幹 (poetry, nonfiction, fiction; Taiwan) founded the Hunter Culture Magazine (獵人文化雜誌), which developed into the Research Center for Humanities of Taiwan’s Aboriginal Peoples. An author of two dozen books, most recently a volume of flash fiction [Path of Dreams], he has received awards that include the United Daily News critics’ top honors for prose, and Ministry of Education’s Award for Literary Creation. He participates courtesy of the Ministry of Culture, Taiwan.
2019 Resident
fiction writer, publisher
Shadreck CHIKOTI (fiction; Malawi) co-directs Pan African Publishers, and is the founder of The Story Club Malawi. He is also the founder of the Kenyenyeva ministries, which serves vulnerable children, and of the Feminart Arts and Book Festival. Writing in English and Chichewa, he participated in the 2011 Caine Prize Writers’ Workshop. He is the author of nine books of speculative fiction; the novel Azotus the Kingdom won the 2013 Peer Gynt Literary Award. He participates courtesy of the U.S. Embassy in Lilongwe.
2019 Resident
editor, fiction writer, non-fiction writer
Clara CHOW 赵燕芬 (fiction, nonfiction, drama; Singapore) is a short story writer, editor, columnist, co-founder of the arts and literature magazine WeAreAWebsite.com, and author of two short story collections. Named among Singapore’s Top 12 Writers to Watch, she won the 2018 Jane Geske Award for her story “Siren (Redux).” Chow participates courtesy of National Arts Council Singapore.
2019 Resident
critic, fiction writer, screenwriter, translator
Carlos GAMERRO (fiction, translation, nonfiction; Argentina) has authored six novels, most recently Cardenio (2016), a collection of short stories, and a body of literary criticism, as well as translations of seminal English-language literary works including Shakespeare, W. H. Auden, and Harold Bloom. His own work has been translated into German, English, Turkish and French. Gamerro’s script for Tres de corazones [Three of Hearts] was made into a feature film in 2007. A 2008 IWP alum, he returns for a teaching residency at Grinnell College.
2019 Resident
fiction writer, filmmaker, poet, screenwriter
Soukaina HABIBALLAH (poetry, fiction, screenwriting; Morocco) has four poetry collections and one novel [The Barracks] (2016), with a second novel forthcoming in 2019. Habiballah has received many awards including, in 2015, the Buland Al Haidari Prize for Arabic poetry, and the 2019 Nadine Shames Prize for Arab Screenwriters for her short film [Who Left the Door Open?]. Her poetry has been translated into seven languages (including English). Ms. Habiballah participates courtesy the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State
2019 Resident
fiction writer, non-fiction writer, publisher
Yamkela TYWAKADI (fiction, nonfiction, South Africa) is a novelist, publisher, performer, and the founder of Blank Page Edu, a company that develops mobile apps and board games. Often working in South Africa’s native languages, she has published 15 books; her first, Andingombala Ndingumntu: IsiXhosa novel, is used in isiXhosa classes throughout the country. Ms. Tywakadi is on Mail & Guardian’s list of 200 Young South African Leaders for 2019. She participates courtesy of the U.S. Consulate General in Johannesburg.
2019 Resident
activist, fiction writer, journalist, non-fiction writer
Martha MUKAIWA (nonfiction, fiction, journalism; Namibia) is an arts and travel journalist, and activist for black Namibians, women, and the LGBTQIA+ community. She has written for The Namibian, Quartz, Matador Network, and The Africa Report, among other publications. She has also served as film juror for the Namibian Theatre and Film Awards, on panels providing grants to Namibia’s upcoming voices in the arts, and on UNESCO’s #JournalistsToo campaign. She participates courtesy of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
2019 Resident
fiction writer, playwright, poet, screenwriter
BUDDHISAGAR बुद्धिसागर (fiction, poetry, drama; Nepal) authored the bestselling novel कर्नाली ब्लुज [Karnali Blues], which won the 2010 Rastriya Pratibha Puraskar award; an English translation is forthcoming. He has three other novels and one poetry collection; his radio scripts appear on Nepali broadcasts as well as on BBC; a feature film based on his screenplay will be released in 2020. He participates courtesy of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and the U.S. Department of State.
2019 Resident
fiction writer
Amanda MICHALOPOULOU Αμάντα Μιχαλοπούλου (fiction; Greece) is the author of eight novels, three story collections and children’s fiction, and a contributing editor to Greek and German dailies. Her debut novel Yantes won the 1997 Diavazo Award; I’d Like (2005), in Karen Emmerich’s translation, received National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) International Literature Prize. Her work has been translated into 20 languages; she has had fellowships and literary residencies in Germany, China, the U.S., and elsewhere. She teaches creative writing in Athens, and participates courtesy of an anonymous gift to the IWP.
2019 Resident
fiction writer, playwright, poet
Gabriela ROMÁN (poetry, fiction, translation, drama; Mexico) is a playwright, stage director, and actor, whose plays have been staged throughout Mexico. In 2018, Román won the Theater Exhibition of Morelos State and was a finalist for the National Young Drama Prize for her play Iridescentes; Cósmica was a finalist for the 2015 ASSITEJ-Spain Theatre for Young Audiences International Prize. Her work has been translated into English and Portuguese, and anthologized. Román participates courtesy of an endowed gift from William B. Quarton.
2019 Resident
critic, editor, fiction writer, performance artist, publisher
Róbert GÁL (poetry, fiction; Czech Republic), a literary editor and publisher, works at intersections of genres and media. His six volumes of philosophical prose have been translated from his native Slovak into English and Czech; he has collaborated with composers, dancers, filmmakers, and visual artists in performance and installation work in Europe and the U.S. His participation was made possible by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
2019 Resident
fiction writer, filmmaker, non-fiction writer, playwright
Amira-Géhanne KHALFALLAH (fiction, nonfiction, drama; Algeria) is a journalist, novelist, filmmaker, and playwright. Her plays Les draps [Sheets] and Shams et les poissons du désert [Shams and the Desert Fish] have been published; her debut novel Le naufrage de la lune [The Wreck of the Moon] appeared in 2018; her short film Essebat [The Shoe] screened at several international festivals; a feature film is in development. She participates through a grant from the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
2019 Resident
fiction writer, poet, visual artist
CHAN Lai-kuen 陳麗娟 (poetry, essays; Hong Kong), whose blog handle is “Dead Cat,” is a poet, a public speaker, and teacher. Her three books include [There Were Cats Singing], the winner of the Recommendation Prize at the 11th Hong Kong Biennial Awards for Chinese Literature, a prose collection, and a bilingual Chinese-English volume of poetry. Chan’s work has been translated and published internationally. She participates courtesy of the Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation.
2019 Resident
fiction writer, non-fiction writer
Ben SOHIB (fiction, nonfiction; Indonesia) is known for his popular novels The Da Peci Code (2006) and Rosid dan Delia [Rosid and Delia] (2008); adapted to film as Tiga hati, dua dunia, dan satu cinta [Three Hearts, Two Worlds, and One Love], which garnered Best Film at the 2010 Indonesian Film Festival. Author of five books, including two story collections, he has represented Indonesia at international arts festivals. He participates courtesy of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and the U.S. Department of State.
2019 Resident
activist, fiction writer, non-fiction writer, poet
Samuel MENGHESTEAB ሳሙኤል መንግስትኣብ (fiction, nonfiction, drama, poetry; Eritrea) is the author of the Tigrigna story anthology Seb ziseanet seb, and a regular contributor to Tigrigna-language magazines. He teaches adult and youth theater and literary programs, and writes pop song lyrics. His participation is courtesy of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and the U.S. Department of State.
Find Us Online