Meet our Masthead
Editor-in-Chief: Maranda Haile
Maranda is a second year grad student at Kansas State University. Her educational focus is on creative writing with an emphasis on creative non-fiction and poetry. On top of being a grad student, she also teaches English 100. Maranda has a love for gothics, vampire films, and graphic novels. In her free time, you can find her spending time with her dog, watching movies, and going to concerts.
Assistant Editor-in-Chief: Mary Adeyemo
Mary Adeyemo is a second year graduate student at Kansas State University. She specializes in the Writing, Rhetoric & Technical Communication specialization with particular focus on digital, embodied, health and social movement rhetoric. Mary teaches Expository Writing II and writes poetry and non-fiction. When she’s not reading or writing, Mary enjoys working out, playing volleyball and cooking.
Poetry Editor:
Nava Eghdami
Nava is a second-year graduate student and instructor at K-State, where she is pursuing an MA in English Literature. Her passion for poetry paved her way to be on this journey, leading her to read, write, and publish as well as to try to let the world know that “not just a poem, but even a word can change the world…”. Her love for literature has evolved as she engages with topics such as memory studies, trauma, posthumanism, and the intersection of literature and art, which are among her key academic interests. With her incredibly optimistic outlook, Nava believes in finding the silver lining in every situation, a theme she loves to express through her creative writing, particularly in her poetry. In addition to writing, she enjoys multitasking and indulges in painting, designing, and baking.
Fiction Editor: Cariana Kut
Cariana is a second year graduate student on the Creative Writing track. She holds a B.A. in Creative Writing from University of Iowa and loves reading mysteries and detective fiction stories.
Nonfiction Editor: Faezeh Rostami
Faezeh is a second-year English master's student specializing in cultural studies. As a Graduate Teaching Assistant, she teaches English 100 and tutors at the Writing Center. Her research focuses on the Persian diaspora in film and television, and in her free time, she enjoys cooking and binge-watching.
Art and Audio Editor & Social Media and Communications Manager: Hoora Ghanbari Adivi
Hoora Ghanbari is a second-year M.A. student in Cultural Studies with research interests in children’s literature, diaspora, and Orientalism. Her work engages with cultural theories of identity and representation, and the in-between spaces of hybridity and liminality. She enjoys writing lyrical prose and nonfiction, and finds inspiration in baking, photography, and walking in nature.
Readers
Fiction Reader:
Rylan Jackson
Rylan Jackson is an avid lover of all things fiction. His favorite genre to write is fantasy, where he has created his own world that almost all his fiction is set in. Rylan also has an interest in filmmaking, and he has created multiple feature-length movies on his YouTube channel, Jackelus Moonfang. He is currently working toward a BA in Creative Writing at Kansas State University.
Fiction Reader:
Grey Hedenkamp
KSU alma mater
First Year Graduate Student
Creative Writing Concentration/Track
Personal Interests are Linguistics and Conlangs
Fiction Reader: Aidia Kite
Aidia is a first year English Graduate student in the Creative Writing Concentration and serves as a Graduate Teaching Assistant for Expository Writing I. Aidia received her B.A. in English from K-State in the fall of 2024. They adore the realm of comics, in theory, practice, and fun, and she has a particular love for science fiction and fantasy stories. Her research focuses are all over the place, but comics, fiction, experimental literature, and poetry are just a few of their favorites. In their sparse free time they love to play video games, spend time with their two cats, and listen to progressive metal music.
Fiction Reader: Watson Lee
Watson is a second year MA student and GTA who is studying Creative Writing (Fiction) and Technical Writing. He studied as an undergraduate at Auburn University in Alabama. Outside of his academic pursuits, Watson enjoys hunting and golfing with friends, vacationing at the beach and lake, and cooking.
Poetry Reader:
Caitlyn Crane
Caitlyn Crane is a first-year English graduate student a K-State in the creative writing concentration. She received her B.A. in English and journalism from Texas Tech University, and her home is in west Texas. Caitlyn primarily writes fiction with a focus on fantasy, sci-fi, and classical mythology, but she also occasionally writes poetry in metered forms. In true English major fashion, Caitlyn's main hobbies are reading, writing, and playing Dungeons and Dragons.
Poetry Reader: Maria Tardiff
Maria is in her first year of the English M.A. Program at K-State. She earned her B.A. in English with an emphasis in Creative Writing from Washburn University. Currently following the Literature track within the M.A. program, Maria enjoys discovering and reading obscure Romantic and Victorian poetry in her spare time.
Poetry Reader: A.J. Ellis
A native of Vermont, A.J. is a first-year master’s student on the creative writing track. His undergraduate focus at St. Mary's College of Maryland culminated as a series of climate-fiction stories, but nowadays, his writing tends to focus more on social issues. In his free time, A.J. enjoys cooking, making music with friends, and traveling around the world wherever and whenever he gets the chance.
Poetry Reader: Ren Sturgeon
Nonfiction Reader:
Griffin Fergerson
Griffin is a second-year graduate student in the Composition & Rhetoric track with a primary interest in non-fiction and environmental writing. He obtained his Bachelor of Science in Wildlife Biology from Missouri State University in Springfield Missouri. In his free time, he enjoys reading authors such as Ernest Hemingway and Pierce Brown as well as visiting local wildlife areas.
Nonfiction Reader:
Jeffery Jones
Jeffery is a second year graduate student on the Creative Writing track. Having earned his Bachelor of Science Degree in Liberal Studies from Oregon State University, he also brings 30 years of experience in business and procedural-based writing from a career in business administration from such high-profile companies as Deloitte & Touche, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, KPMG, The Doheny Eye Institute at University of Southern California, and The William Morris Agency. Jeffery resides in West Los Angeles his husband and partner of 21 years and their two Bengal cats.
Nonfiction Reader: Sydney Kelso
Sydney Kelso is in her first year of K-State's English MA program. While here at K-State, she is excited to get more experience teaching, writing, and editing. In her free time, she can be found reading a book on her balcony or running on the trails just outside of Manhattan.
Nonfiction Reader: Taylor Graves
Taylor is a first-year graduate student here at K-State. In 2020, she received her BS in English and writing from Liberty University Online. She is now pursuing her MA in English with a concentration in creative writing through K-State’s online campus. She is a proud military brat and became a military spouse in 2016. Since being a part of a military family, she has had the privilege of traveling and living all over the world, including places such as Japan, South Korea, and Hawaii. In her free time, when she’s not juggling her four-year-old and 7-month-old sons, she enjoys reading a good book, watching sappy rom-coms, and fangirling over Ed Sheeran.
Art Reader: Maria Vasilevskaya
Maria Vasilevskaya is a first year undergraduate student. She writes mostly literary fiction, though she also dabbles in poetry. In her free time, she makes story games, and hopes to pursue game development as a career. She loves coffee shops, horror, and the springtime.
Art Reader: Ciel Trojnar
Ciel is a second-year graduate student pursuing an MA in Literature. She holds a BA in English Literature from K-State and has a longstanding interest in Medieval literature. In life, she enjoys reading fantasy and sci-fi novels, digital art, and oolong tea
Art Reader: Taylor Axtell
Taylor is a graduate student studying English literature at Kansas State University. Prior, she received her Bachelor of Science in Education and Bachelor of Arts in English from the neighboring Fort Hays State University. Taylor also spent a year teaching middle school English at Cimarron Jr. High School in Cimarron, KS. Reading classic literature and sewing or crocheting are some of Taylor's favorite pastimes