ADAM DE SOUZA is a Canadian cartoonist and illustrator. He has been drawing comics for as long as he can remember and self-publishing his work for the better part of a decade. His ongoing comic strip “Blind Alley” was 2022’s recipient of the Cartoonist Studio Prize for web comics. Outside of comics, he has illustrated children’s books and worked for publications such as the Globe and Mail. His latest book is the graphic novel The Gulf.

FAITH ERIN HICKS is a writer and artist who lives in Vancouver. Her published works include Friends with Boys, The Adventures of Superhero Girl, The Last of Us: American Dreams (with Neil Druckmann), The Nameless City trilogy, Comics Will Break Your Heart, and the New York Times bestselling Pumpkinheads (with Rainbow Rowell).

DEBORAH HODGE is the author of more than thirty books for children. Her honors include twice winning the Children’s Literature Roundtables of Canada’s Information Book Award, winning the Green Prize for Sustainable Literature, and receiving the honor book distinction for the National Jewish Book Award for Children’s Literature. Her work has also appeared on such lists as ALA’s Top Ten Best Environmental Books for Youth and IBBY’s Outstanding Books for Young People with Disabilities. Deborah is a former teacher and curriculum writer who lives in Vancouver.

TANYA LLOYD KYI is the author of more than thirty books for children and young adults. She has worked in the past as a graphic designer, an editor and a dishwasher. (She considers herself entirely qualified for that last one.) Her favorite color is blue, her favorite food is cheese and her favorite book is A Wrinkle in Time. Lloyd Kyi teaches for the UBC School of Creative Writing in Vancouver. Her latest book is Emily Posts.

HAYLEY LOWE is a Canadian illustrator and storyteller. She enjoys exploring a range of media but is particularly drawn to pencil, charcoal, and gouache—and a sprinkle of digital magic. In a previous chapter of her life, Lowe worked as a contemporary dancer and as a children’s yoga instructor, using storytelling as a tool to teach and ignite imaginations. She lives with her family in Vancouver. The Pie Reports is her debut book.

NICK MARINO is a writer, comedian, and elementary school teacher from Vancouver. His family has lived in Vancouver for over a century and has deep roots in the East Side of the city. Marino has performed at Just for Laughs Northwest and curated a series of comedy and music shows in the city called Bite of the Underground. He started the comedy program at Arts Umbrella and taught comedy writing to students aged 9–19. East Side Story is his debut novel. For his Writers in the Classroom event, Marino is keen to do a writing activity with students. His publisher, Arsenal Pulp Press, has kindly offered to send five copies of his book to the selected school.

JANICE LYNN MATHER is a Bahamian Canadian author. Her first novel, Learning to Breathe, was a Governor General’s Award finalist, a Sheila A. Egoff Children’s Literature Prize finalist, shortlisted for the Amy Mathers Teen Book Award, an ALA/YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults selection, an Amelia Bloomer Book List pick, and a Junior Library Guild Selection. Her second novel, Facing the Sun, was an Amy Mathers Teen Book Award winner. She lives in Tsawwassen, and prefers to visit a school in Delta, Richmond, Surrey, or Vancouver. She has a 9-month old baby who will be present during the event.

LEAH PAYNE is a writer, editor and mother. She holds a bachelor’s degree in communication from Simon Fraser University and a master’s degree in library and information studies (MLIS) from the University of British Columbia. She is the author of Less Is More: Join the Low-Waste Movement in the Orca Footprints series. Leah lives in Vancouver, where she loves spending time in nature with her family.  Her latest book is Get Outside!: How Humans Connect with Nature.

EMILY POHL-WEARY holds a PhD in Adult Education and Community Development from the University of Toronto (OISE) and teaches at the UBC School of Creative Writing. Her previous books include Not Your Ordinary Wolf Girl(YA), Ghost Sick (poetry), and Better to Have Loved: The Life of Judith Merril(Hugo Award-winning biography). Her latest YA novel is How to Be Found. Her publisher, Arsenal Pulp Press, has kindly offered to send five copies of her book to the selected school.

ADEN POLYDOROS is an award-winning author who transitioned from female-to-male when he was 14. After going ‘stealth’ for over 10 years, he came out as transgender in order to support trans youth and vocalize how transitioning saved his life. His YA gothic fantasy novel, The City Beautiful, won the Sydney Taylor Book Award and was a finalist for the Lambda Award, the National Jewish Book Award, the Cybils Award, the South Carolina Book Award, and the 2022 World Fantasy Award. His latest novel is Nightmares in Paradise: Ring of Solomon.

MICHAEL V. SMITH writes in many genres, from poetry to film to novels to improvisatory performance.  Smith has won a number of awards for both his film work and his writing. His memoir, My Body Is Yours was shortlisted for a Lambda Literary Award. The Floating Man won Director’s Choice at the Cinema Diverse festival in Palm Springs. His short ‘I Dream a Queer Allegory,’ made with celebrated writer RM Vaughan before his death, won the Cadence Best Video by Poets Award in 2021. Smith has also won the inaugural Dayne Ogilvie Award for Emerging Gay Writers and a Western Magazine Award for Fiction. He is a professor at UBC, Okanagan campus, where he teaches Creative Writing. His latest poetry collection is Queers Like Me. For Writers in the Classroom, Smith is open to conducting an hour-long poetry workshop for middle-grade or high-school students.