Karren Ablaze! is the nom de plume of the person now called Parchin Heanue. They started writing fanzines whilst at school, and later moved into freelance journalism, copywriting, and eventually fiction. They are the author of two books, fanzine anthology The City Is ABlaze! and Revolution on the Rock, their debut novel. A lifelong creative and activist, they have worked in the music industry, played in bands, and, more recently received ordination as a Buddhist nun.

Now, at the start of a new life in Ireland, they are working on a memoir entitled Returning, a personal journey into Ireland’s landscape, language, and ancestral ties. Their writing explores creativity, spirituality, resistance, and the realities of ableism, using storytelling as a tool for illumination and change.

www.mittenson.co.uk

Brenda Arnold recently published her new book, The Road to Somewhere, where she recounts how a year in Spain inspired her to move to Germany to join her future husband. Her memoir recounts the ups and downs of integrating (or not!) and raising two daughters bilingually. She publishes a blog called Expat Chatter and a podcast by the same name about the ongoing adventure of living abroad. For even after decades in Germany, the sight of a traditional Bavarian village elicits exclamations of delight from her. At least now that her two daughters live in Berlin, she is spared their dramatic eye-rolling in response. “Stop saying that,” they plead. “We’re from here!” But she’s not, and never ceases to find something new and exciting.

Esther Guerrero Auerbach is a lover of words, both written and spoken. Having learned English as a second language in her late teens, she delights in comparing the sometimes-contradicting rules of grammar between Spanish, her native language, and English, the language she’s most comfortable writing in today. Early in her title and escrow career, she wrote a weekly advice column for a small Spanish publication about real estate issues for the consumer, and in her mid-fifties went back to school to study English Literature. When she is not reading, writing, or translating aphorisms from one language to the other, Esther enjoys hiking with her husband near their home in the Pacific Northwest and abroad.

Esther is currently penning the memories of a childhood spent in an impoverished but idyllic Mexican village, her marriage at age sixteen to an abusive man, and the enormous amount of courage it took to extricate herself from it at age thirty-three. Her hope is that at least one of her five grandchildren will find her experiences interesting someday. Her memoir, Only Half a Woman, is expected to be published in 2026.

Bahman studied computer science and later worked in the technology field, but writing has been a way for him to listen more closely to feeling and remembrance.

Inspired by the loss of his father, this piece is not only about grief. It reflects on memory, distance, and the way emotions change over time — how moments return, softened and reshaped by passing years.

Bahman was born in Iran and left the country at the age of twenty-seven. Living away from where he began has influenced how he remembers the past and how meaning quietly evolves. Through writing, he explores what remains — the persistence of memory and the changing nature of emotional connection.

https://www.bahmanzangi.com/

Christine Beck holds an MFA from Southern Connecticut State University and is the author of four books of poetry: Blinding Light (Grayson Books 2013); I’m Dating Myself, (Dancing Girl Press 2015); Stirred, Not Shaken (Five Oaks Press 2016), and Given Time: A Mother-daughter Cancer Memoir (Finishing Line Press, 2025).

She has also written a book of poetry and prompts for writers in 12-step recovery called Beneath the Steps. Christine Beck has taught creative writing and literature at The University of Hartford and in private workshops. Her essays have appeared in Dreamers, Far Villages, and the anthology, Home.

She writes a weekly essay at christinebeck.substack.com called “Beck and Call,” about reading, writing and real life. Her website is www.ChristineBeck.net

Jean Briese writes from the Carolina coast in the United States, where she finds inspiration in stories of resilience, family, and faith. Her work explores what it means to rise again after loss and to find beauty in broken places. Her story, “The Night I Learned Monsters Can Wear Friendly Faces,” is drawn from her forthcoming memoir, From Forgotten to Fierce, a journey through hardship, healing, and the fierce joy of becoming whole. In addition to writing, Jean speaks to audiences across the country on courage, leadership, and living with intention.

https://jeanbriese.com/

Sylvia Clare is a writer, speaker, poet, family therapist, and mindfulness practitioner. She holds a BA Hons. degree in psychology, an MSc in research psychology, and an MA in creative writing. Her professional qualifications include MBSR professional development training, a certificate in family therapy, a certificate in couples counselling, and an advanced diploma in hypnotherapy. She is a poet, mother, wife, friend, mindfulness teacher, survivor, gardener, and still curious

Sylvia is the author of many books, including her memoir No Visible Injuries and five other memoirs. Her other books include Releasing Your Child’s Potential (now updated as Who Will I Become?), four poetry volumes, and other books on topics related to emotional literacy and mindfulness. Her two most recent books, both memoirs, are The Mindful Gardener and Travelling The Alphabet Geographically.

Find out more at: Sylvia Clare MSc. Psychol – Medium and at www.clarity-books.com

Anna Fitzgerald is an American translator and writer born in 1976 who lives and works in southern France. She recently completed her memoir: Keys: Unlocking Solitary Confinement. 

https://writingistranslation.net/

Heather Hawk enjoys writing the long and the short of it from her positive and progressive outlook on life. She has contributed short stories to several anthologies. Her personal essays are included in Tales From a Writers’ Circle.

Not a homebody and not one to sit still she has divided her time between the rainy Pacific Northwest and the iconic Mojave desert. Her loves center on travel, rocks, cacti, trees, real estate, and whatever wildlife happens to move in.

Follow and connect with Heather as she navigates around, through and over life’s challenges: www.heatherhawk.net

Carol is the author of: https://carolhiestand.com/

She is a wife of 52 years, mom of three sons, MIL to three daughters-in-law, grandmother to six grandsons, four  granddaughters and friend to those who walk this journey with her.  Each of these precious people brings much joy to her life.

She is a writer of poetry and sometimes  “poetic prose” (at least that is what one of her writing teachers say).  She loves purple and shades of rose, blue , lavender. Lilacs, waterfalls, any body of water, porch swings and Caffeine Free Diet Pepsi make her happy. (Well, she’d rather have the caffeine……but……)

In a former life, Christina Howell was a project manager for an international tech corporation in Kansas City, USA.  She knew she loved to read, loved telling stories, and enjoyed writing her blog, Go Find Glow but never thought about writing professionally until life kept handing her incredibly entertaining and unbelievable stories. She eventually acknowledged that her life was stranger than fiction and began work on her memoir, Magicians, Cross-dressers, and My Uterus. 

She has a freelance editing business (Pen Your Masterpiece) and holds a writing certification from the University of Iowa. You can find her work in The Abstract Elephant, HerStry, and in GATHERING: A Women Who Submit Anthology.

Follow her at: https://christina-howell.com/ and listen to her podcast at: https://creativequesters.com/creative-quester-podcast/ 

David Hughes is a versatile musician and writer with a deep passion for storytelling and poetry. His work has been recognised in the FISH Literary Awards, where he was longlisted for poetry, and his novel Julia earned a placement in the Isle of Wight Book Awards for fiction.

David has spent years writing various genres including crime fiction and poetry while also writing extensively about Buddhist teachings. He frequently shares his experiences with Buddhist meditation and mindfulness on Medium and captures the quirky side of life in his Substack articles.

Anne-Marie Hussar is a Hungarian-born equestrian writer, ghostwriter, teacher, and riding instructor whose lifelong passion for horses has taken her across the globe. Driven by a deeply personal mission of processing her childhood traumas, Anne-Marie dedicated herself to creating a riding school built on strong moral values and integrity. With years of experience teaching and working within diverse equestrian communities in seven countries, she is now settled in her home country and channels her knowledge into writing, advocating for a more ethical and supportive environment for young riders, as well as educating equestrian parents, equipping them with the knowledge needed to navigate in the equestrian world. In her memoir, Riding Through Rose Fields, she sheds light on the importance of ensuring that no horse-loving child is ever mistreated, neglected, or left unheard. https://www.instagram.com/equestrian_parenting/ 

Tanjena Islam lives in the hills of Chittagong, Bangladesh. She enjoys gardening and writing prose and poetry. Through her writing, she hopes to make a change in the social life and strict rules of Muslim society.

Claire Randall was born in Chelmsford, Essex UK and grew up in the local area. From an early age she knew she wanted to write a book one day and surrounded herself with books and read whenever she could to begin the process.

Claire started work in banking, followed by registered childcare and then trained as a yoga teacher and therapist. Spending time with adults and children made her realise their need for creating time for self-care, as well as for herself.

She is married to Mark and has two grown-up children, with grandchildren who keep her busy. Her interests include writing, art, yoga, and reading non-fiction, memoir and historical fiction, . She enjoys helping others through her knowledge in health-care and how to include it as a priority in their lives.

She is currently writing a memoir with more planned and looks forward to continuing her writing journey. www.clairerandall.co.uk

Layla Sabourian is an internationally recognized author, learning strategist, entrepreneur, and keynote speaker on innovations that support learning and knowledge sharing from the symbiosis of children and culture to achieve sustainable growth with a focus on engagement and well-being.

Layla recently sold her memoir, “Everywhere and Nowhere” to Exisle Publishing (Fall 2023). The book is about a girl who loses her voice in Iran and finds it back in America. She is a former Columnist for FSHN magazine and a blogger for Yahoo!, eBay, SAP, and Logitech.

Layla has recently completed work on a short documentary on Iranian social media ecosystem “Iranian Honeymoon.”

Find out more at:
https://www.laylasabourian.com

Monika Seres dedicated over two decades of her life to healing others, until she found herself in desperate need of healing. Diagnosed with terminal cancer ravaging four of her vital organs, she faced a life-altering decision. Having witnessed firsthand the devastating effects of chemotherapy and radiotherapy during her long career as a nurse, she chose a different path: immunotherapy, combined with a complete transformation of her mindset and lifestyle.

Defying the odds, Monika emerged not only as a survivor of cancer but as a testament to the power of resilience and positive thinking. Her remarkable journey is chronicled in her deeply moving autobiography titled Life Marathon, where she shares the lessons of hope, courage, and the unbreakable human spirit.