Twice a year, we invite an all-star team of the best writers and industry professionals in the business to teach, read, meet, and advise our full student body alongside our award-winning permanent faculty. This summer we're welcoming an amazing crew to help our students take that next step up. If you're interested in sitting in for a few days during our Fall Residency between December 5th-14th, please contact us at palmdesertmfa@ucr.edu.
Guest Faculty
Liz Duffy Adams’ Born With Teeth had its UK premiere with the Royal Shakespeare Company, co-produced by Playful Productions and Elizabeth Williams, at Wyndham’s Theatre in the West End, directed by RSC co-Artistic Director Daniel Evans and starring Ncuti Gatwa and Edward Bluemel. Born With Teeth was an Edgerton Foundation New Play Award recipient and a Steinberg-ATCA New Play Award Finalist, and had its world premiere at the Alley Theater in 2022, a production that won Best Play/Production, 2022 Houston Press Awards, and that moved to the Guthrie Theatre, Asolo Rep, and Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Adams’ neo-Restoration comedy Or, premiered Off Broadway at WP Theater and has been produced more than 80 times since, including at the Magic Theater, Seattle Rep, and Roundhouse Theatre. She’s a New Dramatists alumna and has received a Women of Achievement Award, Lillian Hellman Award, New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship, Weston Playhouse Music-Theater Award, Massachusetts Cultural Council Fellowship, and the Will Glickman Award for Best New Play (Dog Act, a post-apocalyptic vaudeville). Her Artistic Stamp virtual play in letters, Wild Thyme, was nominated for a 2021 Drama League Award for Outstanding Interactive or Socially-Distanced Theater. Publications include Or, in Smith & Kraus’ “Best Plays Of 2010;” Dog Act in “Geek Theater,” Underwords Press 2014; Poodle With Guitar And Dark Glasses in Applause’s “Best American Short Plays 2000-2001;” and acting editions by TRW Plays, Playscripts, Inc. and Dramatists Play Service. The UK trade edition of Born With Teeth is coming soon from Nick Hern Books. Adams began her theatrical life as a performer, receiving her BFA in acting at New York University where she trained first at the Stella Adler Academy and then at the Experimental Theater Wing. She went on to write, devise, and perform a series of experimental theater pieces at various downtown venues, and act in Off Off Broadway productions of Macbeth, Tartuffe, and Love for Love. Eventually she wrote her first play, A Fabulous Beast, which was produced by the late One Dream Theater in Tribeca starring Edie Falco, and got her MFA in playwriting from the Yale School of Drama. Adams has dual Irish and American citizenship, and lives in New York City on Lanape land, and in Western Massachusetts on unceded Pocumtuc and Nipmuc territory.
Cara Shine Ballarini teamed up with friend and former colleague Rebecca Miller in 2020 to launch the production company Good Pals. Their first foray together, “The Fallout” written and directed by Megan Park and starring Jenna Ortega, Shailene Woodley, John Ortiz, and Maddie Zeigler, debuted at the 2020 SXSW Film Festival and won all the top prizes in the Narrative Feature category, including the Grand Jury Award, The Brightcove Directing Award, and Audience Award. It was sold in a lucrative deal to HBO Max and debuted on January 27, 2022. They also produced The Holiday List, Welsh-set Christmas comedy starring Brittany Snow and Lucas Bravo. In addition to this, the pair have also set up Simon Pegg’s directorial debut at Paramount, which is based on a novel by Michelle Paver and Turn up the Sun, starring James McAvoy, which has just premiered.
Megan Beatie a veteran publicist with more than 25 years of experience in publishing, is President and CEO of Megan Beatie Communications (MBC), a book publicity and marketing agency. Megan has forged publicity campaigns for numerous bestselling authors including Linda Ronstadt, Robert Dugoni, Soman Chainani, Tess Gerritsen, Jenny Mollen, Ian K. Smith, Lee Goldberg, Becky Albertalli, Maureen Johnson, Marcia Clark, Melissa de la Cruz, Attica Locke, Tembi Locke, and Neil Gaiman and launched the debuts of many novelists such as Deborah Falaye, Victoria Lee, Robinne Lee, Sandhya Menon, and Amber Smith. She has represented authors in nearly every conceivable genre including literary and commercial fiction, mysteries and thrillers, science fiction, fantasy, and graphic novels, as well as nonfiction books covering pop culture, film, entertainment, health, lifestyle, parenting, and relationships. Representing the fifth generation of a farming family from Southern California's Ventura County, Megan was valedictorian of her high school and graduated from Middlebury College, Phi Beta Kappa and magna cum laude, with a degree in English literature. Afterwards, she joined Goldberg McDuffie Communications as a publicist where she spent nearly two decades, rising to the level of Vice President, Director of Publicity. While there she cultivated strong, long-standing relationships with editors, journalists, and producers at the most influential television shows, radio programs, magazines, newspapers, websites, and blogs around the world. In 2015, she formed her own namesake agency so she would be able to focus on more personalized strategies and outreach opportunities for authors and books about which she's truly passionate. Since then, her company has grown to include a talented and hard-working support staff. All told, MBC has delivered dramatic results for its chosen authors and has promoted dozens of bestsellers.
Xochitl-Julisa Bermejo is the daughter of Mexican immigrants raised in San Gabriel, California. Her debut collection, Posada: Offerings of Witness and Refuge (Sundress Publications 2016), was written while living in a house in the shadows of Dodger Stadium in historic Solano Canyon. Bermejo’s seconds collection, Incantation: Love Poems for Battle Sites (Mouthfeel Press 2023), explores US monuments, memorializes Black and brown bodies murdered by state sanctioned violence, and shares love poems to family, friends, and dalliances in rituals of resistance and resilience. Most recently, Bermejo was honored with a 2023 “Distinguished Service Award” by Beyond Baroque for her work with Women Who Submit. In 2017, she was named the first “Poet in the Parks” resident at Gettysburg National Military Park in partnership with the Poetry Foundation and the National Parks Arts Foundation. During her residency she wrote first drafts of poems that would become the Locating The Dead chapbook published by the Los Angeles Print Shop and featured in the 2019 A-B Project’s “The Stacks” exhibition. The poem “Battlegrounds” was featured at Academy of American Poets’ Poem-a-Day, On Being’s Poetry Unbound, and Poetry Unbound: 50 Poems to Open Your World (W.W. Norton). Her poems and essays can be found at The Offing, American Poetry Review, Acentos Review, [PANK] Magazine, VIBE, Huizache, About Place Journal, Calyx, Santa Fe Writers Project, and many other publications. She is a former Steinbeck fellow, Poets & Writers California Writers Exchange poetry winner, Barbara Deming Memorial Fund/Money for Women grantee, Los Angeles Central Library ALOUD newer poet, Macondo Scholar at Community of Writers, and her poetry received 3rd place in the 2015 Tucson Festival of Books literary awards. She has received residencies with Hedgebrook, Ragdale, Dorland Arts, Yefe Nof, and is a proud member of the Macondo Writers’ Workshop. Bermejo is a cofounder of Women Who Submit, a literary organization using social media and community events to empower women and non-binary authors to submit work for publication. She received a BA in Theatre Arts from California State University, Long Beach and an MFA in Creative Writing from Antioch University Los Angeles. She teaches creative writing with Antioch University, MFA and UCLA Extension and facilitates online and in-person workshops in poetry and submission strategies across the nation. Bermejo’s writing, teaching, and organizing are inspired by her family, her Chicana experience, and her passion for creating love and comfort in chaotic times.
Larry Biederman was introduced to Los Angeles with his acclaimed productions of Eric Overmyer’s Dark Raptures, starring Nick Offerman at the Evidence Room and the World Premiere of Crumble by Sheila Callaghan (“Shameless”) at LATC. Both enjoyed extended runs and wide critical praise, including Critics’ Choice from the L.A. Times. In addition to these successful writers of theatre and television, Biederman’s biggest collaborator from the television world has been Winnie Holzman (Wicked, "My So-Called Life"), serving as the on-set coach for her series “Huge” (ABC Family). He also directed Holzman and husband, actor Paul Dooley, on two successful productions of their play Assisted Living, premiering at the Odyssey Theatre in L.A., and then moving east to a run at the George Street Playhouse. He also staged a festival presentation of Stupid Kid by Sharr White (“The Affair”) starring Laurie Metcalf and Tom Irwin and another Sheila Callaghan L.A. premiere of We Are Not These Hands at Rogue Machine Theatre. He has directed two premieres of Mickey Birnbaum’s plays. The first, the L.A. premiere of Big Death and Little Death, included a live death metal band at the Road Theatre. The second, a world premiere of Backyard at the Echo Theatre Company, earned Ovation awards for Best Actor and Best Fight Choreography, as well as five Stage Raw Award nominations including Best Direction. Biederman was involved with both plays since directing their first workshop presentations at ASK Theater Projects and the William Inge Theatre Festival, respectively. Other premiere productions include Keith Josef Adkin’s Farewell Miss Cotton at the Black Dahlia, David Rock’s Grand Delusion at the Lost Studio, and Matthew Benjamin and Logan Brown’s Wirehead for the Echo Theatre Company, earning seven LA Weekly Award nominations including Best Direction of a Comedy. Biederman also enjoys the classics, including direction of Moliere’s The Learned Ladies at Theatre of NOTE, and Lillian Hellman’s The Autumn Garden at Antaeus, which earned three more LA Weekly award nominations including Best Revival. In 2009, Biederman took his innovative staging of Schnitzler’s La Ronde to the New York International Fringe Festival where, in addition to critical acclaim, both actors received Best Actor awards for the festival. Biederman spent seven seasons with San Francisco’s American Conservatory Theater, directing and serving in many senior capacities on the A.C.T. artistic staff, and as Associate Director of their M.F.A. program. Bay Area productions include Peter Barnes’ Red Noses, also a Critic’s Choice and named one of the year's 10 best productions, as well as the acclaimed West Coast premiere of Constance Congdon’s No Mercy which he later remounted for the 24th Street Theatre in Los Angeles. Between productions, he enjoys the countless collaborations, workshops and readings with L.A.’s great playwrights. His staging of Bryan Davidson’s Death’s Messengers at the MET Theatre earned them two LA Weekly Theater Award nominations for writing and direction. They later collaborated on an adaptation of The Yellow Wallpaper which was presented at the Theatre @ Boston Court. Biederman teaches directing and acting, both privately and for many reputable training programs throughout the country (Williamstown Theatre Festival, Old Globe) and in Australia where he has held master classes in Sydney and Melbourne for the Academy of Film, Theatre, and Television. He has had the privilege of directing great actors during their training years, including Omid Abtahi, Elizabeth Banks, Jim Parsons, and Anika Noni Rose. Starting in 2022, Biederman began teaching master classes in Authenticity and Ambiguity for JMC Academy acting students in Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane. Currently, he is a Professor of Directing at Cal State Northridge. Biederman lives in Studio City with his wife, Therese and their son, Tyler.
Duncan Birmingham is a writer and filmmaker based in Los Angeles. His short films have premiered at various festivals including Sundance and his feature directorial debut "Who Invited Them" was named one of the best horror films of the year by The Hollywood Reporter. His screenplay Swingles was bought by Paramount and appeared on The Black List. He was the writer and executive producer of the Marc Maron IFC comedy "Maron" and has worked as a writer-producer on various shows including the Starz comedy "Blunt Talk" starring Patrick Stewart and David Fincher's "Videosyncrazy" for HBO. The title story of his short story collection, "The Cult in My Garage" (Maudlin House, 2021), was chosen for the Selected Shorts radio show.
Francesca Lia Block, M.F.A., is the author of more than twenty-five books of fiction, non-fiction, short stories and poetry, and has written screenplay adaptations of her work. She received the Spectrum Award, the Phoenix Award, the ALA Rainbow Award and the 2005 Margaret A. Edwards Lifetime Achievement Award, as well as other citations from the American Library Association and from the New York Times Book Review, School Library Journal and Publisher’s Weekly. Her work has been translated into Italian, French, German, Spanish, Japanese, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Finnish and Portuguese. Francesca has also published stories, poems, essays and interviews in The Los Angeles Times, The L.A. Review of Books, Spin, Nylon, Black Clock, The Fairy Tale Review and Rattle among others. In addition to writing, Francesca is a beloved and devoted teacher. She was named Writer-in-Residence at Pasadena City College in 2014 and in 2018-19 became a Visiting Assistant Professor in Creative Writing at the University of Redlands where she was a finalist for Professor of the Year award. Currently she teaches fiction at UCLA Extension, Antioch University, and privately in Los Angeles where she was born and raised.
Ben Brooks is an editor at MCD/FSG. He joined MCD after serving for two years as a Fulbright Scholar in Brazil, where he published his own fiction and translations. As he looks towards building his list, Ben is excited to read transgressive literary fiction with heart, and non-fiction that critiques or aims to dismantle oppressive systems. He’s especially interested in translated work from Latin America, and projects centering the black experience here and abroad. He reads in Portuguese, Spanish, and Italian.
Grace Doyle is the Associate Publisher of Amazon, overseeing commercial fiction imprints, including Thomas & Mercer, 47 North, Amazon Original Stories, and Amazon Crossing. She has edited acclaimed and bestselling titles from Robert Dugoni, Tess Gerritsen, Patricia Cornwell, Dean Koontz, Barry Eisler, Lee Goldberg, Alma Katsu, Ivy Pochoda, Ace Atkins, Christa Carmen, and Tod Goldberg. A native of the San Francisco Bay Area, she began her publishing career as a publicist at Houghton Mifflin, where she worked on the Best American series and the works of Buzz Bissenger, and Tony LaRussa.
Daphne Ming Durham joined Putnam in 2023 from MCD / Farrar, Straus & Giroux and publishes genre-blurring fiction with sharp edges, diverse perspectives, and spiky protagonists. She loves voice-driven, surprising novels that readers might devour in one sitting, but come away having learned something—vivid, gripping stories that upend familiar tropes and push boundaries in crime, mystery/thriller, suspense, speculative fiction, and horror. Daphne edits Megan Abbott, C. J. Box, Ivy Pochoda, Ron Currie, Robert Crais, Alma Katsu, Rob Hart, Mason Coile, Johnny Compton, and Rachel Eve Moulton. She acquired and published the Pulitzer Prize-winning memoir Feeding Ghosts by Tessa Hulls, New York Times bestseller Two Nights in Lisbon by Chris Pavone, winner of the LA Times Book Prize Sing Her Down by Ivy Pochoda, cult-favorite horror novel This Thing Between Us by Gus Moreno, and Edgar-nominated novel Rough Trade by Katrina Carrasco, among others. Prior to Putnam, Daphne was the founding Executive Editor of MCD / FSG. She also spent nearly sixteen years at Amazon.com in all manner of book-related roles, from Editorial Director of the bookstore to Editor-in-Chief and then Publisher for Amazon Publishing.
Matt Horwitz got his start at Sleeping Giant Entertainment before joining Echo Lake in 2013 focusing on writers and directors in all aspects of TV and film. His clients have worked on such hit shows as AMERICAN DAD, CALL YOUR MOTHER, TACOMA FD, MAGNUM PI, THE YOUNG ROCK, ARROW, THE FLASH, STRANGER THINGS, and THE CONNERS just to name a few. He has set up client projects at just about every network or streamer that you can think of, (and several that you probably didn’t even know existed). Originally from the Washington DC area, he attended Indiana University and has had a passion for TV and Film since a young age when he discovered that people actually made the things he was watching every day, and that passion has helped him guide and build the careers of creative people from the lowest levels all the way to the top!
Liska Jacobs is the critically acclaimed author of the novels Catalina, The Worst Kind of Want, and The Pink Hotel. A native of Los Angeles, her work explores desire, alienation, and the beautiful, messy landscapes of modern life. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Literary Hub, Joyland, The Millions, and Alta, among others. She holds an MFA from the University of California, Riverside's low-residency program in Palm Desert.
Jud Laghi. Launched in 2010, The Jud Laghi Agency is a full-service literary agency that represents fiction and non-fiction at every stage of the publishing process. Jud’s hands-on style includes significant editorial guidance on proposals and manuscripts for the strongest possible publisher submission, and an exploration of all potential opportunities for boosting the marketing and publicity of his clients’ books once they have been published, as well as licensing foreign and translation, audio, serial, film, television, and other digital and online rights. His clients include Jaime Lowe, Peter Zeihan, Dakin Campbell, Davy Rothbart, Brian Raftery, Tim Layden, Jason Turbow, Farah Pandith, Sally Hogshead, Justin and Sydnee McElroy, Portlandia star and Sleater-Kinney guitarist and vocalist Carrie Brownstein, all-time Jeopardy! champion Ken Jennings, and rock legends Gene Simmons and Kenny Loggins. Jud has represented, developed and launched a broad spectrum of trendsetting and bestselling books throughout his career, by authors of narrative nonfiction, journalism, cultural criticism, memoir, popular culture, prescriptive nonfiction and business, as well as select fiction, middle grade and YA. Before forming JLA, Jud worked as a literary agent at LJK Literary Management and at ICM, where he began his agenting career. He is a graduate of Trinity College with a B.A. in English and creative writing.
Stefanie Leder is a TV showrunner and writer whose credits include the MTV teen dramedy Faking It, TBS comedy Men at Work, Netflix’s Boo, Bitch, and the long-running ABC Family comedy Melissa & Joey. She is also the author of the novel Love, Coffee, and Revolution, a Barnes & Noble top indie pick and a Los Angeles Times best book of the summer. is her first novel. Her short fiction has previously appeared in the anthology Eight Very Bad Nights, was selected for Best American Mystery & Suspense, and was a finalist for the International Thriller Award for Short Fiction.
Ali Lefkowitz an LA native and graduate of Northwestern University, works at Kaplan Perrone, a literary management company with offices in both LA and NYC. She represents a distinguished roster of authors, journalists, and screenwriters including Adam White, author of The Midcoast, Allie Rowbottom, author of Aesthetica, Ling Ling Huang, author of Natural Beauty, Edan Lepucki, whose novel Time’s Mouth was nominated for a Joyce Carol Oates prize, and Peter Bognanni, whose debut novel The House Of Tomorrow was turned into a movie by the same name. She also reps debut novelists Lior Torenberg, Lavanya Lakshmi, Will Damron, among others. She was previously at Anonymous Content for 7 years.
Rebecca Lucas is an L.A.-based audiobook narrator who has narrated a wide range of genres, including romance, non-fiction and horror. She’s a trained actress and has a master’s in theater from the University of Delaware.
Julie Makinen is the former editor-in-chief of The San Francisco Standard. Julie has more than two decades of experience as a writer, editor and foreign correspondent for publications including the L.A. Times, Washington Post and International New York Times. She served as executive editor of The Desert Sun in Palm Springs and California editor for the USA Today Network. She was a JSK Journalism Fellow at Stanford University and a staff member of the Stanford Graduate School of Business’ Center for Entrepreneurial Studies. Julie has a B.A. in Human Biology from Stanford and an M.A. in East Asian Studies from UCLA.
David Martinez earned his MFA from UC Riverside Palm Desert and teaches English, Mythology, and Creative Writing at Paradise Valley Community College. He is a dual citizen of the United States and Brazil and has lived all over both countries as well as in Puerto Rico. His memoir, Bones Worth Breaking, is listed as a one of the best memoirs of 2024 by Esquire. Library Journal’s starred review calls it “a powerfully honest memoir…visceral and emotionally aware…” and Publisher’s Weekly termed Martinez “a writer to watch.” He lives in Glendale, Arizona.
Robert Mitas is a film producer and screenwriter. Robert ran Furthur Films, the production company of Academy Award-winning actor/producer Michael Douglas. During his tenure at Furthur, Robert was responsible for development, production and delivery of all film and television projects. His producing credits include FLATLINERS (2017), BEYOND THE REACH (2015), WE HAVE ALWAYS LIVED IN THE CASTLE (2019), LOOKING THROUGH WATER (2025). Previously, Robert served as Creative Executive for the company, managing the development slate and serving as the senior Story Analyst. Robert Mitas is also the executive producer of the hit Netflix series RATCHED (2020), based on the iconic film ONE FLEW OVER THE CUKOO’S NEST, and over three dozen hit podcasts in his current role as Producer and Head of Original Programming at Voyage Media.
Amy Mueller is an award-winning theater director, dramaturg, playwright, new play advocate, and independent producer. For 20 years she served as Artistic Director of Playwrights Foundation, a vaunted organization dedicated to discovering and supporting emerging American playwrights in the development of new plays. During her tenure, she transformed Playwrights Foundation into a national new play center, and has been at the forefront of the effort to support artists of color and women in the theater. Under her leadership, Playwrights Foundation was awarded two Will Glickman awards for best new play to premiere in the Bay Area, and honored with a Legacy Award from the Theatre Bay Area for its 40-year legacy of considerable contribution to theater. As a director, she has staged new work at Berkeley Rep, San Diego Rep, A.C.T. Seattle, Arizona Theatre Company, Cutting Ball Theater, Magic Theatre, Crowded Fire Theater, among many other credits.
Andrew Navarro is a poet from Southern California. His work has appeared in Poet Lore, Michigan Quarterly Review, Zyzzyva, Air/Light, Shenandoah and others. He received his MFA from the University of California, Riverside, and works as a history teacher.
Jack Novak writes plays for adults and young people. His works include THE GREAT LIEUTENANT SPRINKLE DIDN'T SAVE ME (commissioned by Field Trip Theatre), TRANSFERAL (workshops at Spooky Action Theatre and Rorschach Theatre), the collection THIS HISTORIC NIGHT (Capital Fringe Festival), the plays for young actors INTERFACE and FANATICS (commissioned by Imagination Stage), JOURNEYING JACK (co-written with David Novak; Aurand Harris Memorial Playwriting Award), FOX CRIED (Source Festival), CRAZY WEIRD (winner, Dramatic Writing Competition at Adirondack Shakespeare Theatre), and A DECADE OF WANDERING (Agnes Nixon Playwriting Award at Northwestern University). Jack is also an actor, improviser, Mime, and teaching artist. He holds an MFA from University of California Riverside - Palm Desert and is currently a lecturer at Cal State Fullerton.
Karen Palmer is a Pushcart Prize winner and has received grants from the NEA and the Colorado Council on the Arts. She's Under Here grew out of her award-winning essay The Reader Is the Protagonist, first published in Virginia Quarterly Review and selected by Leslie Jamison for inclusion in Best American Essays 2017. She is the author of the novels All Saints and Border Dogs. More recently her short story Birds of Paradise won the 2022 Emily Clark Balch Prize for Fiction. Her writing has appeared in The Rumpus, The Kenyon Review, Arts & Letters, and Kalliope, among others. A native of Los Angeles, Karen spent twelve years in Catholic schools, plus seven more off-and-on years in college, but her education largely took place at the Cahuenga Branch of the L.A. Public Library. She trained as a classical pianist and has worked jobs of all kinds; the most useful of these taught her graphic design and typography, which came in handy in 1989 when she changed her identity. She currently teaches at Lighthouse Writers Workshop in Denver, CO, and lives with her husband in California.
Gayle Pillsbury is an LA-based Casting Director who grew up in Long Beach, California and received a BA in English and Film from USC. During her 30+ year career, she has been both a talent executive and an independent Casting Director with extensive experience across all genres, including comedy, drama, animation, independent film, commercials, and theatre works for Circle X and the Bootleg Theater. As the Head of Talent and Casting at Imagine Television, she was fortunate to work with visionary storytellers, including JJ Abrams, Aaron Sorkin, Noah Baumbach, David Lynch and Peter Berg and oversaw the casting of many projects, including Felicity, Sports Night, 24, and Mulholland Drive. In 2000, Gayle partnered with Bonnie Zane to form Zane/Pillsbury Casting and enjoyed a successful 20-year partnership casting such shows as Pretty Little Liars, One of Us is Lying, White Collar, Burn Notice, Sneaky Pete, and The Purge to name a few. She served as both casting director and co-producer on the indie films Reminisce, directed by Riverdale’s Madchen Amick and A Desert directed by Joshua Erkman, which made its premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival this past June. Gayle is excited to have been elected to the CSA Board of Directors and looks forward to being involved in any and every way. Gayle lives in Echo Park with her husband and three children.
Ivo Raza is a filmmaker, writer, and all-around story hustler who proves you don’t need blockbuster budgets to make killer films. His feature film Reboot Camp, a wild mockumentary about cults starring David Koechner and Ed Begley Jr., snagged Best Comedy at the Austin Film Festival and various others, showing that sharp writing and tight production can go a long way—even without a pile of cash. Besides feature films and shorts, he’s also directed music videos for various artists — most notably the last two for Ozzy Osbourne (RIP Ozzy). Beyond the entertainment world, Ivo’s shot content and spots for brands like Disney, Colgate, Sephora, the Harlem Globetrotters, and many others. When he’s not on set or buried in a rewrite, he’s running Scriptdive—a blog which one day may become a podcast—and tinkering with his long-in-the-works screenwriting book (here’s looking at you, 2026). Now an empty nester, Ivo lives in Los Angeles with his wife and their dog, splitting his time between writing the next feature and editing the recently shot The Subscriber, a gritty indie flick starring Spencer Garrett and Eddie McClintock. The film was dreamed up and co-written with fellow graduate Fran DiMeo while at UCR Palm Desert —proof that homework does pay off.
Robin Uriel Russin is a professor and Chair of the Department of Theatre, Film & Digital Production at UC Riverside, where he has served as graduate advisor and as director of the MFA in Creative Writing and Writing for the Performing Arts. Robin has degrees from Harvard, Oxford, the Rhode Island School of Design, and UCLA. He is a Rhodes Scholar and member of Phi Beta Kappa and the Writers Guild of America. Robin has written, produced and directed for film, TV and the theater, including Warner Bros.’ On Deadly Ground; America’s Most Wanted on Fox; and Vital Signs on ABC. His his original one-hour series about King David, Beloved, was adapted by ABC as Of Kings and Prophets. He directed the independent feature film, When I Sing, co-starring Chris Mulkey, and an independent feature about the humor and challenges of disability, The Anxiety of Laughing. Another feature he co-wrote, 2 Hearts, starring Jacob Elordi and Radha Mitchell, had a wide theatrical release in 2020, and streams on Netflix. He is currently working on The Rescuers: The Mystery of Goodness, a documentary series about the “Righteous Among The Nations,” the diplomats recognized by Yad Vashem in Israel for saving Jewish lives during the Holocaust. Robin has won or been a finalist for numerous awards for screenwriting and directing. In theatre, his play, Painted Eggs, was reviewed by The Los Angeles Times as “ambitious, heart-felt and hypnotic” and his play, The Face in the Reeds, had an extended four-month run at the Ruskin Group Theatre in LA. He has also written dozens of short plays, and directed numerous stage productions. Robin is co-author with William Missouri Downs of the books Naked Playwriting and Screenplay: Writing the Picture, both in their second editions.
Emily St. Martin is the Digital Features Editor at Southern California News Group, where she helps lead entertainment, dining, and events coverage across 11 publications and contributes Books features. In this role, she shapes editorial strategy, manages contributors, and guides digital storytelling that resonates across a large, diverse audience. Before that, she was an entertainment and books reporter at The Los Angeles Times and a longtime freelance journalist focused on stories that sit at the intersection of culture, entertainment and identity. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, BBC, Los Angeles Magazine, VICE, The Hollywood Reporter, InStyle, Cosmopolitan, and more. She’s also contributed to audio and documentary projects, including the Tubi documentary, “Gone Before Her Time: Brittany Murphy.” Emily holds a BA in Journalism and an MFA in Creative Nonfiction, and has won five LA Press Club awards and a California Journalism Award.
Sara Sligar is an assistant professor of English and Creative Writing at the University of Southern California. Her first novel, Take Me Apart, was a Kirkus Best Book of the Year and a finalist for the Ned Kelly Award for Best International Crime Fiction. She holds a Ph.D. in English from the University of Pennsylvania and an M.Phil. in history from the University of Cambridge. Her second novel, Vantage Point, was published by MCD/Farrar, Straus & Giroux in January 2025.
Kevin Smokler is a writer, documentary filmmaker and event host focused on our relationship as human beings with pop culture. His most recent book BREAK THE FRAME: CONVERSATIONS WITH WOMEN FILMMAKERS contains 24 career-retrospective conversations with directors behind box office phenomenon like Captain Marvel, Oscar winners like Free Solo and the filmmakers who launched actors such as America Ferrera, Paul Rudd, Ryan Gosling and Jennifer Lawrence. His previous books, BRAT PACK AMERICA is a love letter to teen movies of the 1980s. His 2013 essay collection PRACTICAL CLASSICS is a 50 book attempt to reread one’s high school reading list as an adult. His feature length documentary film VINYL NATION on the American renaissance of the vinyl record, won ten awards and screened at 50 film festivals worldwide. His new documentary MIDDLE GROUNDS, about coffee shops and civic dialogue will be released this year. Onstage he has interviewed comedians, filmmakers, musicians architects, actors and authors, He sits on the board of Zyzzyva Magazine and lives with his wife in San Francisco.
Arlon Jay Staggs is a native of Florence, Alabama, and a Southern storyteller with deep roots, a sharp sense of humor, and a heart for connection. His essays and stories have appeared in The New York Times and December Magazine, and his debut novel Leta Pearl’s Love Biscuits is his debut work of fiction. He holds an MFA in creative writing/fiction from the University of California, Riverside, a JD from the Mississippi College School of Law, and teaches English at Northwest Florida State College. Arlon and his husband divide their time between Santa Rosa Beach, Florida, and San Diego, California.
Keri Picolla Stanbra is a writer, filmmaker, and talent manager. Her recent work includes adapting Kiana Davenport’s best-selling novel The Shark Dialogues, which explores the tumultuous history and landscape of contemporary Hawaii. In 2023, Keri was selected as a NAPALI Fellow by the Pacific American Leadership Institute, which cultivates emerging Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander leaders. She also consults on projects that authentically represent Native Hawaiians in media, ensuring cultural protocols are understood and respected. Keri is currently a Talent Manager at Pop Art Management. She holds a BA in Cinema and Television Arts from California State University, Northridge, and an MFA in Creative Writing and Writing for the Performing Arts from the University of California, Riverside. Keri is also pursuing a second master’s degree in Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Studies at the University of Hawai’i.
Jaime Parker Stickle is a writer, podcaster, and professor of film and television at Montclair State University. She is the author of the gripping thriller, “Vicious Cycle: A Corey in Los Angeles Mystery,” and is the creator and host of the true crime investigative podcast, The Girl with the Same Name as well as the hilarious podcast about side-hustles, Make That Paper. Jaime lives in Los Angeles with her husband, son, and fur babies.
Mariah Stovall joined Trellis Literary Management after agenting at Howland Literary and Writers House. Prior to that, she worked on the other side of things, at Farrar, Straus and Giroux and at Gallery Books. She represents adult literary and upmarket fiction, narrative nonfiction and essay collections, all by writers with strong voices and interdisciplinary perspectives. She is also the author of the novel I Love You So Much It’s Killing Us Both, an NPR and ELLE best book of the year, and her work has previously appeared in the anthology Black Punk Now, and for Ninth Letter, Vol 1. Brooklyn, Hobart, the Minola Review, and Joyland; and nonfiction for The Los Angeles Review of Books, Full Stop, Hanif Abdurraqib’s 68to05, The Paris Review, Poets & Writers, and LitHub.
Susan Straight latest book, Sacrament, was released in October and has already received rave reviews in the Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times, which hailed the novel as her best to date. Her previous novel Mecca, was published March 2022 by Farrar, Straus & Giroux, and released in paperback March 2023. Mecca was a national bestseller, a finalist for The Kirkus Prize, and named a best novel of the year by The Washington Post and NPR, as well as a Top Ten California Book by the New York Times, and winner of the Southwest Book of the Year for Fiction. Her memoir In the Country of Women: A Memoir (Catapult Books, paperback edition September 2020), was longlisted for the Carnegie Medal for Excellence, as well as a Finalist for the Clara Johnson Prize for Women’s Literature, named a best book of 2019 by NPR, Code Switch, Real Simple, and others. It was a Barnes & Noble September National Choice for Memoir. The book has gone into four printings. She has published eight previous novels: Aquaboogie (Milkweed Editions, 1990, 2006, fourth printing; Open Road Media, 2013; Counterpoint Books, 2020); I Been In Sorrow’s Kitchen and Licked Out All The Pots (Hyperion, 1992; Anchor, 1993; Open Road Media, 2013; Counterpoint Books, 2020), named one of the best novels of 1992 by both USA Today and Publisher’s Weekly, as well as named a Notable Book by the New York Times, is in its 14th printing; Blacker Than a Thousand Midnights (Hyperion, 1994, Anchor paperback 1995; Open Road Media, 2013; Counterpoint Books, 2020); The Gettin Place (Hyperion 1996, Anchor paperback 1997; Counterpoint Books, 2020); Highwire Moon (Houghton Mifflin, 2001; Anchor, 2002; Open Road Media, 2013, Counterpoint Books, 2019), which was a finalist for the National Book Award and won the Commonwealth of California Gold Medal for Fiction. Highwire Moon was a San Francisco Chronicle bestseller and Los Angeles Times bestseller, and was named one of the year’s best novels by The San Francisco Chronicle and The Washington Post. It is taught in college and high school classrooms around the nation. A Million Nightingales (Pantheon Books, 2006, two printings; Anchor Books, 2007) was a San Francisco Chronicle bestseller. It was a Finalist for the 2006 Los Angeles Times Book Prize and published in a new Spanish translation in 2014. Take One Candle Light a Room (Pantheon, 2010; Anchor, 2011) was named a best novel of 2010 by the Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, and Kirkus. Her novel Between Heaven and Here (McSweeney’s, 2012) was featured on NPR’s All Things Considered, and named a Best Book of 2012 by The Los Angeles Times and The Daily Beast. Her middle grade reader, The Friskative Dog, was published by Knopf in21 2007. Her picture book Bear E. Bear was published in 1995 by Hyperion Books. In 2021, she was named Woman of the Year for the 61 st Assembly District, by Assemblyman Jose Medina, for her thirty years of writing stories of African- American, Mexican-American, Asian-American, and immigrant life in southern California, bringing little-known histories, especially of women, into American books, museums, magazines and libraries. In 2014, Straight received the Kirsch Award for Lifetime Achievement from the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. In 2011, she received the Gina Berriault Award for Fiction from San Francisco State University. In 2007, Straight received The Lannan Prize for Fiction, for her body of work. In 1998, she received a Guggenheim Fellowship for Fiction. She has published hundreds of essays and articles in numerous magazines and journals, including The New Yorker, The New York Times, O Magazine, Salon, Harpers, Reader’s Digest, The Believer, Orion, and The Sun. Her fiction has appeared in Granta, Alta, Ploughshares, Zoetrope All-Story, McSweeney’s, Black Clock, TriQuarterly, and The Ontario Review, among other magazines. Her short story “The Golden Gopher,” published in Los Angeles Noir, won the 2008 Edgar Award. Her short story “El Ojo De Agua” won a 2007 O Henry Prize, and was a finalist for a National Magazine Award in 2007. Her novels and stories have been translated into French, Italian, German, Polish, Arabic, Russian, Turkish, Japanese, and Spanish. She was born in Riverside, California in 1960, and still lives there with her family. She is Distinguished Professor of Creative Writing at the University of California, Riverside, where she has taught since 1988.