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Northern Arizona
Book Festival 2025
Reader, Panelist & Performer Lineup
DOMINIQUE AHKONG
(she/her) is an Arizona-based writer of Hakka-Mauritian descent. Her poetry appears or is forthcoming in The Southern Review, The Cincinnati Review, Best New Poets, The Georgia Review, and elsewhere. She co-edits Shō Poetry Journal with her spouse, Johnny Cordova. More: dominiqueahkong.com or @domkeykong.
IRA J. ALLEN
is an associate professor of rhetoric, writing, and digital media studies in the departments of English and Politics and International Affairs at Northern Arizona University. He is the author of The Ethical Fantasy of Rhetorical Theory.
MEGAN ATENCIA
(she/her/siya) holds space in the commute between South Phoenix and Downtown Mesa, Arizona. She can be found practicing poetry in motion at a local jiu jitsu gym, crocheting to an R. F. Kuang audiobook, or on most social media platforms as @mayagain_
TYLIA BEGAYE
My name is Tylia Begaye (They/them.) Born for: Tó’aheedlíinii — Water Flows Together Clan, Ma’ii Deeshgiizhinii — Coyote Pass (Jemez), Táchii’nii — Red Running Into the Water/Among the Red Waters/Red Soil/Red Streak, Bit’ahnii — Folded Arms People. I am a Business Management major at Diné College, striving to enter the BA Navajo Law program and continue the Diné fight for justice. I express my hardships and frustrations through my writing, turning negative energy into something better and more positive, much like the common Navajo practice of cleansing and restoring balance through hózhó. In this way, I create a better space for myself and those around me, transforming struggle into wisdom and healing. Writing allows me to merge my own perspective on justice with the traditional storytelling teachings passed down to me. Everything I write is for the voices of those who are no longer with us, but whose wisdom lives on within me.
CHASITY BENALLY
I am a 20-year-old Navajo artist from Lukachukai, born to Naakai Dineʼ (Mexican Clan). Being hearing impaired, I've always found art to be a powerful way to communicate my ideas beyond the limitations of verbal expression. Raised by my aunt, grandmother, and grandfather who saved me and my sisters from our alcoholic parents, I found stability and support through their love. Since childhood, art has been my sanctuary and voice. My creative work reflects my heritage, personal experiences, and the emotional landscapes I've navigated. Writing in diaries became my refuge during difficult times growing up, helping me transform childhood anger into creative expression. Through my art, I continue to tell my story, connecting my Navajo roots with my evolving identity as a young artist finding strength through creativity.
ERIK BITSUI
(he, him), a Navajo from Blue Gap, Arizona, has an MFA from the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics from Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado. Bitsui’s first book, Mosh Pit Etiquette, Volume One: Secrets of a 21st Century Navajo Headbanger, was published in November 2023 by Tolsun Books. Hostiin Bitsui lives with wife and two daughters in East Flagstaff.
MILTON BLUEHOUSE JR.
is from Ganado, AZ. When he is not writing poetry or short stories, he is a caregiver for elderly relatives, ranches, and hunts. Milton’s story writing explores tribal crime noir and Indigenous dystopia. His prose poetry investigates the Indigenous existential Catch-22. He is published in the Yellow Medicine Review and Poetry Magazine. He also has two short stories in an anthology published by Abalone Mountain Press in collaboration with the Diné Artisans and Authors Capacity Building Institute.
LAURA ADRIENNE BRADY
(she/her) is a writer, educator, and singer-songwriter (known as Wren). Her poems and essays have appeared or are forthcoming in The Iowa Review, Poet Lore, Brevity, EcoTheo, and elsewhere. Laura’s latest project Pink Stone is an album of original songs and an illustrated companion book. Explore her multidisciplinary work at LauraAdrienneBrady.com.
SIMMONS BUNTIN
is the author of Satellite: Essays on Fatherhood and Home, Near and Far; a collection of sustainable community case studies titled Unsprawl: Remixing Spaces as Places; and two books of poetry, Bloom and Riverfall. He’s also the co-editor of Dear America: Letters of Hope, Habitat, Defiance, and Democracy. Simmons is the founding editor-in-chief of Terrain.org and president of the nonprofit Terrain Publishing. He lives here in Tucson and can also be found at simmonsbuntin.com or urbanwild.substack.com.
JALEN CHARLEY & LENA LANDGRAF
Jalen Charley (she/they) was born on the Diné nation. Raised in Aztec, New Mexico, and has earned her Bachelor's in Sociology from Fort Lewis College. She is Honey Combed Rock Clan, born for the Bitter Water Clan. Her work can be found in the historic journal Women's Studies in Communication, and she is the recipient of the Skywords Emerging Writers Prize and a writing fellow of the Emerging Diné Writers’ Institute.
Lena Landgraf (she/they) was born and raised in the Sonoran desert with a 7+ year professional background in elementary education and early development. Having always been fascinated with death since an early age, Lena became a certified end of life doula in 2022 with an intention to serve a communal role. In her free time, you can find Lena at the library, lounging in nature with her dog, watching documentaries, and out dancing with her friends.
Lena Landgraf (she/they) was born and raised in the Sonoran desert with a 7+ year professional background in elementary education and early development. Having always been fascinated with death since an early age, Lena became a certified end of life doula in 2022 with an intention to serve a communal role. In her free time, you can find Lena at the library, lounging in nature with her dog, watching documentaries, and out dancing with her friends.
MARCUS STERLING CAMPBELL
is a poet and film enthusiast from Phoenix, Arizona. Graduating from Mesa Community College, he received a high distinction in Creative Writing, along with degrees in Journalism and General Studies. He is a Vortex Award winner and has placed in several writing contests within the Mesa community. Marcus sweats when he writes and while growing his Magic collection. His work can be found scattered across the web or @marcus_s_campbell on social media.
HAZEL CLARK
After stints selling books for Northland Publishing, McGaugh's Newsstand, and Treasure Chest Publications I started Vishnu Temple Press with my husband Tom Martin when we self-published Day Hikes from the River A Guide to 75 hikes from Camps along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon in 1999. We moved on to publish other authors' nonfiction mostly centered on the Grand Canyon and Colorado Plateau. We have about 20 titles in print and distribute a half-dozen more for other authors. She/her.
WILL CORDEIRO
has published work in 32 Poems, AGNI, Bennington Review, Best New Poets, Pleiades, and The Threepenny Review. Will is the author of Trap Street (Able Muse, 2021) and Whispering Gallery (DUMBO Press, 2024). Will has been the coauthor, along with Lawrence Lenhart, of Experimental Writing: A Writer’s Guide and Anthology (Bloomsbury, 2024), the three-act opera Pop Goes the Ferret (produced for the ARTx Festival in Flagstaff, 2024), and the forthcoming New Foundations of Creative Writing (Bloomsbury, 2026). Will received an MFA and Ph.D. from Cornell University. Currently, Will coedits Eggtooth Editions and serves on the executive board of the Northern Arizona Book Festival.
Def-i
Award winning artist 'Def-i' continues to carve out an original niche from introspective and poetic Hip-Hop. Emerging from Dinétah & the underground rap circuit, Def-i’s eclectic repertoire has provided him with much success and opportunity; MC, Producer, Artist-Educator, Poet, Beatmaker & DJ – Def-i has been featured on NPR Music, Sway In The Morning, BBC, CBC, Democracy Now!, Shade 45 and more. His performance styles range widely from Hip-Hop and spoken word to contemporary Indigenous acoustic. Rounding out this diverse musical powerhouse, Def-i is an experienced youth workshop provider, active Recording Academy / GRAMMYs member and served as a U.S. Department of State Hip-Hop Cultural Ambassador in Nigeria & France with Next Level USA. His dedication to cultural preservation and lyrical mastery has earned him the respect of Hip Hop veterans, industry professionals, academics, and upcoming generations.
KINSALE DRAKE
(she/they) is a winner of the 2023 National Poetry Series for her debut poetry collection THE SKY WAS ONCE A DARK BLANKET (University of Georgia Press, 2024). Her work has appeared in Poetry Magazine, Poets.org, Best New Poets, Black Warrior Review, and elsewhere. She is Diné and directs programming for NDN Girls Book Club, which distributes free books to Indigenous youth and communities, and currently lives in Nashville, TN as a graduate fellow at Vanderbilt.
DANIELLE SHANDIIN EMERSON
(she/her) is a Diné writer from Shiprock, New Mexico on the Navajo Nation. Her clans are Tłaashchi’i (Red Cheek People Clan), born for Ta’neezaahníí (Tangled People Clan). Her maternal grandfather is Áshiihíí (Salt People Clan) and her paternal grandfather is Táchii’nii (Red Running into the Water People Clan). She has a B.A. in Education Studies and a B.A. in Literary Arts from Brown University. She’s a 2024 GrubStreet Emerging Writers Fellow, a 2024 Lambda Literary Fellow, and a 2024 Diné Artisan + Author Capacity Building Institute Fellow.
MICHAEL ENGELHARD
Trained as an anthropologist with a degree from the University of Alaska Fairbanks, Michael Engelhard worked for twenty-five years as a wilderness guide and outdoor instructor in
Alaska and on the Colorado Plateau. The editor of four anthologies and author of Ice Bear, a cultural history of the polar bear, he has won three Alaska Press Club Awards, and a Rasmuson Individual Artist Award. Recent books include the National Outdoor Book Award-winning memoir Arctic Traverse as well as What the River Knows: Essays from the Heart of Alaska, and the Grand Canyon essay collection No Walk in the Park. His writing has also appeared in publications like Outside, Sierra, Backpacker, National Parks, Audubon, Utne Reader, and Times Literary Supplement, with more than a hundred articles in Alaska magazine. Engelhard currently lives in Moab again, working on a book about Nome, where he also has been a resident.
Alaska and on the Colorado Plateau. The editor of four anthologies and author of Ice Bear, a cultural history of the polar bear, he has won three Alaska Press Club Awards, and a Rasmuson Individual Artist Award. Recent books include the National Outdoor Book Award-winning memoir Arctic Traverse as well as What the River Knows: Essays from the Heart of Alaska, and the Grand Canyon essay collection No Walk in the Park. His writing has also appeared in publications like Outside, Sierra, Backpacker, National Parks, Audubon, Utne Reader, and Times Literary Supplement, with more than a hundred articles in Alaska magazine. Engelhard currently lives in Moab again, working on a book about Nome, where he also has been a resident.
SHANNEL GARCIA
is a Diné and Hispanic writer, student, and ADHDer from Shiprock, New Mexico. Her pronouns are she/her. She is Áshįįhí (Salt People Clan) born for Tódích’íi’nii (Bitter Water People Clan). She was a Diné Artisans + Authors Capacity Building Institute 2024 Spring fellow. Her work can be found in Chapter House Journal and Yellow Medicine Review.
RYAN GREENE
(he/him) writes, translates, makes, and caretakes books in "Phoenix, Arizona," the city where he grew up. His most recent translations include projects with Elena Salamanca, Claudina Domingo, Giancarlo Huapaya, and Yaxkin Melchy. Like Collier, the ground he stands on is not his ground.
REECE ROWAN GRITZMACHER
lives in Flagstaff, but grew up hugging trees and kissing moss in the Pacific Northwest. Their poetry and prose have appeared on Sundog Lit, Drunk Monkeys, Another Chicago Magazine, Chapter House Journal, and elsewhere. They hold an MFA in Creative Writing from Northern Arizona University.
MATTHEW HENRY HALL
has written two traditionally published children’s picture books set in the Grand Canyon, The Lucky Hat (Grand Canyon Conservancy, 2015) and Phoebe and Chub (Rising Moon, 2005), a finalist for a Western Writers of America Storyteller award. His cartoons have appeared in Reader’s Digest, The Chronicle of Higher Education, The Missouri Review, Inside Higher Ed and many other publications, including the recent book, What They Didn't Teach You In Graduate School (Routledge, 2024). He also likes to sing, play guitar, and believes in being kind to everybody, small animals and bugs included.
JULIE HAMMONDS
(she/her) fell in love with "Hamlet" during a high school trip to the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and has nurtured her passion for Shakespeare ever since. She studied the plays in school, stage-managed "The Winter’s Tale" and "Much Ado About Nothing," and helped create the Flagstaff Shakespeare Festival. Her quest to complete the canon as an audience member has taken her from a community hall in Juneau, Alaska, to the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford-upon-Avon. She has four plays to go.
CHRIS HOSHNIC
(He/Him) is a Navajo poet, playwright, and filmmaker, honored with the 2023 Indigenous Poets Prize for Hayden’s Ferry Review and Poetry Northwest James Welch Finalist. His fellowships include the Native American Media Alliance’s Writers Seminar, UC-Berkeley Arts Research Center, and the Diné Artisan and Authors Capacity Building Institute, with support from Indigenous Nations Poets, Playwrights Realm, Tin House, and others.
JAMES JAY
has taught poetry at public schools, jails, community colleges, Northern Arizona University, and given Irish Literature lectures at the Arizona Highland Celtic Festival. He currently teaches poetry for the Missoula Writing Collaborative. He received the Copper Quill Award for his poetry, and his work has been featured on National Public Radio’s Poetry Friday on KNAU. His poems have appeared in numerous journals and magazines, including, Alligator Juniper, Nerve Bundle Review, and A Dozen Nothing. His fourth book of poems, Whiskey Box, was recently published by Foothills Publishing.
For a decade, he served as the president of the Northern Arizona Book Festival. He has an M.A. in Literature from Northern Arizona University and an M.F.A in Creative Writing from the University of Montana. He owns a pub with his wife, the musician and runner Aly Jay. They have two sons and three dogs (they’re all a wily pack). In his spare time, he plays the ancient Irish game of hurling as a half-forward for the Thomas Meagher Hurling Club.
For a decade, he served as the president of the Northern Arizona Book Festival. He has an M.A. in Literature from Northern Arizona University and an M.F.A in Creative Writing from the University of Montana. He owns a pub with his wife, the musician and runner Aly Jay. They have two sons and three dogs (they’re all a wily pack). In his spare time, he plays the ancient Irish game of hurling as a half-forward for the Thomas Meagher Hurling Club.
ED KABOTIE
is a Tewa/Hopi singer/songwriter from the village of Khap’o Owinge. His music draws attention to social and environmental justice issues faced by tribes of the four corners region.
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