Meet Our Staff

Nic Cazin (they/them) is a second-year student pursuing a B.A. in Creative Writing and Ancient Civilizations, as well as a minor in French and a certificate in sustainability. In their free time, they love to read, hike, and hang out with their cat. Nic grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina, and hopes to create a safe space where queer people can express themselves freely in this time of uncertainty.

Danny Willis (she/her) is a fourth-year Creative Writing and Screenwriting double major from Detroit, Michigan. They hope to be an educator and author after earning their degree. In their free time, they enjoy reading classic literature, upcycling clothes, and watching early 2000s cartoons. Danny is passionate about advocating for and standing in solidarity with trans women and femmes who are victims of gender-based violence.

Solomon Wong (he/they) is a first-year English/Creative Writing and Screenwriting Arts major from the Chicagoland suburbs. His hobbies include knitting and crochet, guitar, photography, going to open mics, and making Pinterest boards. Their favorite genres include speculative fiction, period dramas, and spoken word poetry.

Nathalie Angel (any/all) is in her fourth-year of pursuing a B.A. in English and Creative Writing. Some of their favorite things to do are read, write, play video games, and sing. She hopes to uplift queer voices and contribute to the further acceptance and normalization of queer people and those who struggle to exist as their truest selves in their daily lives.

Kat (she/they) is a writer who can be found doing anything but writing. This includes being on literary magazines, managing multiple social medias, working three jobs, and doing every side quest she possibly can with a lavender matcha in hand.

Emma Triaureau (she/they) is one of our Fiction/Speculative Fiction Section Editors! She is double majoring in Creative Writing and Philosophy, where her favorite book is Toni Morrison's Beloved. They most enjoy chatting with friends over tea and is often in the company of cats.

I'm Atharva Upadhye, a junior majoring in human physiology. Jumping around between a half-dozen ideas at a time, I usually split up my writing into small-scale stories about people living their lives and writing mini-essays about writing for newer writers. If you ever want to make me rant for 10 minutes straight, ask me about character psychology or queer representation in writing.

Deen Villaflor (she/her) is a first-year creative writing and screenwriting arts major from Joliet, IL. When she's not writing short fiction or a screenplay, she is likely playing board games or The Sims 4.

Riley Babel (she/her) is in her second year studying English and Creative writing with a minor in Anthropology. She plans to go into the literary publishing industry as an editor. Riley's goals are to promote acceptance and advocate for queer people to be able to express themselves and always have a voice.

Ben Van Gorp (they/them) is a 3rd year 3D Design student who enjoys making things, drawing, and rock climbing. Ben's post-graduation plans include (hopefully) making cool things for a living, potentially pursuing a graduate degree, and most definitely climbing rocks.

Madalynn Vega (they/them) is a second-year student pursuing a B.A. in History, a minor in Criminology, Justice and the Law, and a certificate of Museum Studies. They enjoy reading, spending time with their sorority siblings, and playing rugby here at the University of Iowa. Vega loves all things museums, and plans on working in the museum industry as an archivist. They hope to uplift and preserve queer voices, lives, and stories as a historian.

Riley Shell is a second-year student studying English and creative writing. Hailing from Colorado Springs, Colorado, she misses the mountains but is happy to be working on her writing alongside Iowa City’s phenomenal writing community. She spends her summers working at the Colorado Renaissance Festival for the extra money and additional sparks of creativity. In her free time, Riley is working on a fantasy novel of her own.

Jeffrey Metz is a poet seeking to make the plain new and explore the constant contradictions of personhood. Ebbing and flowing in a search for wholeness, his poetry gestures towards hope. He resides in Iowa City and can be found hiking at Hickory Hill.

Charlie Graves (Any/All) is a first year pursuing a Criminology, Law, and Justice B.A. as well as a double major in psychology and certificate in Creative Writing. In their free time, they enjoy reading, writing, playing D&D & video games, performing on stage, and witnessing nature. They hope to uplift queer voices and encourage their use through creative mediums. They most often write liminal poetry and longer fantasy pieces. Their favorite literary work so far is F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby.

Brooklyn Berglin (she/her) loves writing just as much as she loves making playlists, cozy hangouts with friends, rainy or chilly weather, fantasy books, which inspired her to write fiction of her own, and obsessing over music lyrics, which sparked her love for poetry. Studying English and creative writing on the publishing track, she is also enjoying helping run the Iowa Gymnastics Club, learning as much as she can about the craft of writing (as well as any other niche topic that captures her attention), and daydreaming about the next stories she’ll tell.

Annabelle Muñoz (she/they) is an honors political science (pre-law) student at the University of Iowa and the author of Scribblings of a Madwoman (2024). Additionally, their work is featured in the Lincoln-Way Art and Literary Magazine, Ink Lit Mag, snapshots, New Moon, the little things and Horizon. She loves sparkling water and the color pink.