MEET THE TEAM
Zala Jambrovic Hatic
Director and Chief Editor
Nathan Breakenridge
Head of Poetry
Christa Burgin
Head of Prose
Pronouns: she/her
Christa Burgin is a writer and editor based in the New York City area. She holds a master’s in creative writing from the University of Edinburgh and a bachelor’s in English and psychology from St. Lawrence University. Her passions include writing, traveling, taking photos, and spoiling her dog, Buster.
Petra Zajc
Head of Publicity
Pronouns: she/her
Petra Zajc is a student of English at the Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana. She has always admired the power of literature to change both individuals and the world. She is a big fan of dark academia literature and all things gothic, but when it comes to her own writing, she only seeks to cheer people up and make them laugh.
Kaja Persolja
Publicist
Pronouns: she/her
Kaja Persolja lives in Ljubljana, Slovenia. She has a bachelor’s degree in English and Comparative Literature, and is currently doing her master’s degree in English Language Teaching at the University of Ljubljana. She is a Shakespeare enthusiast and an avid reader of YA fiction. Her favourite hobbies are hiking, travelling, and crocheting.
S. J. Lyon
Editor & Copyeditor
Pronouns: she/they
S. J. Lyon is a queer London-based writer and charity worker. She is excited to be joining the team as a contributing editor. SJ writes fiction and narrative non-fiction. In 2022 she was selected for the London Writers Award and is working on a memoir, her first book.
Carly Craig
Copy-editor
Pronouns: she/her
Carly Craig is a British-American writer and business analyst based in Edinburgh. She is the Executive Editor for Hillfire Press and a graduate of the New England Young Writers’ Conference and the University of Edinburgh, where she was awarded an MA in English Literature with First Class Honours.
Alex Benarzi
Contributing Editor
Pronouns: he/him
Alex Benarzi is a freelance editor and writer, and an educator currently working in Alberta, Canada. Alex received his editing certification in 2022. Alex is passionate about accessibility in writing, and is fascinated by the little absurdities that colour our world.
Becky Bone
Editor, Events Officer & Submissions Reader
Pronouns: she/her
Becky Bone is a writer, performer, and facilitator from London. Her writing began in the form of stand-up comedy, and although humour often finds a way into her work, she now writes poetry, short stories, and creative non-fiction. She’s been published in Streetcake, Culture Matters, and Anvil Zine by Metal Culture.
Megan Booth
Contributing Editor
Pronouns: she/her
Megan Booth studied Music and Creative Writing in Bangor and Kyoto. She was the resident poet for the Ningbo Focus magazine for over three years. She is currently in Edinburgh working as an editor and writer, focusing on poetry, children’s and YA fiction, and fantasy.
Nicole Caratas
Contributing Editor
Natalie Jayne Clark
Contributing Editor
Pronouns: she/they
Natalie Jayne Clark is a neurodivergent writer and spoken word artist based in Perth, Scotland, with an MLitt in Publishing from the University of Stirling. They are the Assistant Producer for StAnza Poetry Festival. Natalie’s poetry has been published in anthologies from Flapjack Press, Speculative Books, and Open Book.
Emerson Rose Craig
Contributing Editor
Pronouns: she/her
Instagram | LinkedIn | Website
Emerson Rose Craig is a writer and editor living in the Pacific Northwest, USA, with an MSc in Creative Writing from The University of Edinburgh. When not writing her next fantasy story, she works as a Contributing Editor at The Selkie and on the Editorial Collective for CALYX Press.
Anastasiia Danyliuk
Contributing Editor & Submissions Reader
Pronouns: she/her
Anastasiia Danyliuk is a Ukrainian artist, writer, and editor based in Vienna, Austria. She is currently getting her MA degree in Anglophone Literatures, and she is especially interested in the topics of cultural memory and folklore. She spends most of her free time reading fairy tales and drinking tea.
Ali Glembocki
Contributing Editor
Pronouns: they/them
Ali Glembocki (aka “ali cat”) is a writer, artist, and former Tumblr book blogger based in New Jersey. Their work can be found in nss Magazine, Musée Magazine, and many other corners of the internet. Their most recent work can be found in SURViving Scandoval, a Vanderpump Rules-themed poetry anthology published by Pink Plastic Press.
Erika Jing
Contributing Editor
Pronouns: she/her
Erika Jing (she/her) calls Shanghai and New Jersey home. She is a writer and student at Williams College. Her work has appeared in Sine Theta Magazine and Eunoia Review, among others.
Nisha Kumari
Contributing Editor
Pronouns: she/her
Nisha Kumari is a writer based in India and has a master’s in Journalism and Mass Communication. Her passion lies in literature—immersing herself in books and spinning poetry. A seasoned intern, contributing editor at The Selkie, and accomplished book reviewer, she also freelances for magazines. Beyond words, she enjoys the art of global cuisine.
Ciaran McDermott
Contributing Editor
Pronouns: he/him
Ciaran McDermott grew up in rural Staffordshire but currently lives in Stirling, Scotland. His work has been published widely in journals and anthologies. He was highly commended in the 2023 Gingko prize for ecopoetry, and has been longlisted for the Erbacce Prize and Dai Fry award.
Claudia Menin
Contributing Editor
Pronouns: she/her
Claudia Menin is a writer and editor from Italy with a Master’s degree in Linguistics and a Bachelor’s degree in Russian Language and Literature. An amateur astronomer, Claudia is an avid collector of meteorites and mineral specimens. She hopes to discover a comet one day.
Jigeesha Mukhopadhyay
Contributing Editor
Pronouns: she/her
Jigeesha Mukhopadhyay is a Microbiology student in Canada. She is active in the slam poetry and playback theatre scene and her (often queer-themed) creative pieces are featured on various litmags. Jigeesha is also the co-founder of science magazines/blogs like InquiScitive and loves to integrate scientific jargon in her literary writings.
Samiksha Ransom
Contributing Editor
Pronouns: she/her
Samiksha Ransom is a writer from Allahabad, India. Her work has appeared in Tint Journal, EKL Review, The Chakkar, JAKE, The Lake, Live Wire, The Friday Poem and more. Samiksha shares writing and publishing tips in her newsletter and edits for three literary magazines.
Alice Rogers
Contributing Editor
Pronouns: they/them
Alice Rogers is a writer from West Wales. Their work has appeared in Reflex Press, Barren Magazine, Feed Lit Mag, and Trampset. Find them on Twitter @dimecharm.
Brendan Craine
Editor
Pronouns: he/him
Brendan Craine is an editor, translator, and perspiring author. He studied Creative Writing at Denver School of the Arts and is co-founder of Watchwords LLC, a language services firm based in Denver, Colorado. He is the kind of person who takes pains to make his bio exactly 50 words long.
Miriam Huxley
Contributing Editor
Pronouns: she/her
Miriam Huxley is a writer and editor from British Columbia who recently completed a PhD at the University of Edinburgh. She was the 2018 winner of the Sloan Prize. Her other interests involve collecting plants, researching vegan cake, and drinking lots of oat lattes. You can find her online @miriamhuxley.
Ziva Dekleva
Social Media Officer
Pronouns: she/her
Ziva Dekleva has a background in English and Russian studies, as well as International Business. She is Slovenian, though her heart belongs to every country she has visited so far. A low-budget traveler, a film music fan, a book nerd, and a life-long learner who hopes to create positive change.
Rebecca Youé
Submissions Reader
Pronouns: she/her
Rebecca Youé is a professional editor and aspiring author from Worcestershire, England. She has a degree in English and American Literature from Keele University and has worked in the publishing industry since graduating in 2012. She is working on her first novel in her spare time.
Alorah Welti
Submissions Reader
Pronouns: she/her
Alorah Welti is a Minnesota-born feminist, synesthete, poet, and prize-winning artist. Her work has appeared in Anti-Heroin Chic, Rejection Letters, Lit. 202, and elsewhere. She lives on stolen Mohican and Wabanaki land in western Massachusetts with her family.
Wendy Webb
Submissions Reader
Pronouns: she/her
Instagram | LinkedIn | Facebook | Website
Wendy Webb received her MFA from the School of Visual Arts and MA from The New School in New York. She is an Instructor for Holistic Web Design and a Squarespace Web Designer, based in Miami. She writes about culture, health, wellness at Medium.com
Alice Eaves
Submissions Reader
Pronouns: she/her
Alice Eaves is an interdisciplinary writer and artist undertaking her MSc in Creative Writing at the University of Edinburgh. She is interested combining British history and folklore with visual practices and emerging technologies.
Caitlin Flavell
Submissions Reader
Pronouns: she/her
Caitlin Flavell is an editor and writer from the Far North of Scotland who loves all things weird and wonderful in fiction. When she’s not writing or editing, she can be found on a surfboard or playing Dungeons and Dragons.
Lily M. Frenette
Submissions Reader
Pronouns: she/they
Lily M. Frenette grew up in Minnesota, raised by the woods and waters. They write from the intersection of nature, magic, art, and community. Lily has an MSc in Creative Writing at the University of Edinburgh. She founded Alba Writing Club and lives with her cat familiar, Outlaw.
Anita Goveas
Submissions Reader
Pronouns: she/her
Anita Goveas is British-Asian, London-based, and fuelled by strong coffee and paneer jalfrezi. Her stories have been widely published, including in The Selkie Transformation issue. She’s on the editorial team at Flashback Fiction, and her debut flash collection, ‘Families and other natural disasters’, is available from Reflex Press.
Jess Kovalets
Submissions Reader
Pronouns: she/her
Jess Kovalets is a postgraduate raised and based in London, UK. Through Jess’s excitement for creative arts, this has led her to organise and run local music and club events in London, as well as illustrating and writing in her own time, and working in theatre.
Wendelin Law
Submissions Reader
Pronouns: she/her
Wendelin Law is a writer born and raised in Hong Kong’s concrete jungle. Her works have appeared in Hillfire Anthology, Voice & Verse Poetry Magazine, Cha: An Asian Literary Journal and elsewhere. She was shortlisted for Magma Poetry Pamphlet Competition 2022. She loves em dashes––
Kate Lewington
Submissions Reader
Pronouns: she/they
From the South of England, Kate is a writer/poet and blogger. They enjoy reading non-fiction/history & sci-fi/fantasy.
Eva Lewis
Submissions Reader
Pronouns: they/them
Eva Lewis is a Submissions Reader for The Selkie; Co-runner and Editor of SINK Magazine, and Editor at Young Identity MCR. They are a member of the Queer Bodies Poetry Collective. Eva is a non-binary, neurodivergent, chronically ill poet and writer interested in hybrid works and queering language.
Shawna Renée Lewis
Submissions Reader
Pronouns: she/her
Shawna Renée Lewis graduated with a MA in English and Creative Writing. Her love of fantasy, science fiction, and paranormal started early and has helped shape her imagination for her short stories and poetry. When not writing she is working on her artwork or socializing feral cats.
Angie Loveday
Submissions Reader
Pronouns: she/her
Angie Loveday is a Costa Rican-British writer and filmmaker. She holds a Masters in TV Screenwriting from Madrid Film Institute and studies English Literature at the University of Costa Rica. She currently works as a language teacher, script analyst, and translator. Her first novel, a cozy fantasy, is in process.
Esther Omoye
Submissions Reader
Pronouns: she/her
Esther Omoye is a final-year student majoring in English and Literature at the University of Benin, Nigeria. She holds the role of Creative Coordinator at the university’s Creative Writers Workshop. Her works have previously been published in Vanguard, Lickety Split, Green Black Tales, and more.
Imam Sarafadeen
Submissions Reader
Pronouns: he/him
Imam Sarafadeen is a Nigerian writer with a passion for poetry and other literary genres. His works have appeared and are forthcoming in Words Rhymes & Rhythm, Sychronized Chaos, Academy of heart and mind, Poetry Planet, Sublunary Review, Hot pot magazine, Disabled Tales, and elsewhere.
Malina Shamsudin
Submissions Reader
Pronouns: she/her
Malina Shamsudin is a storyteller from Malaysia. She finds the world of fractured fairy tales fascinating, which inspired her first short story published in From Arthur’s Seat. She is currently working on a collection of fairy tale retellings set in a contemporary Dark Forest.
Wren True
Submissions Reader
Pronouns: she/her
Wren True is a writer from Des Moines, Iowa. She’s been published in Earthwords, From Arthur’s Seat, and the first volume of Hillfire. She also has an MSc in Creative Writing from The University of Edinburgh, and misses the little cafes and sleepy seminars. She likes long naps and bubble tea.
Former Team Members
Alexandra Ye
Alexis Keir
Amanda Marie-Kale
Ames Gilchrist
Amy Spaughton
Catriona Scott
Dan Gilbert
Elena Sims
Elizabeth Castle
Eloise Wilson
Emily Wigham
Frazer Martin
Hannah Green
Hollie Monaghan
Jack Ferguson
Jane Link
Jeda Pearl Lewis
Jessica Pollard
Kat Herron
Katie Veitch
Kirsty Hammond
Lauren Thurman
Lexie Angelo
Manca Rupnik
Misbah Ahmed
Paige Wajda
Rachel Gray
Rahila Khan
Rhayna Kramer
Robin Brown
Sarah Hexter
Sha Liz
Skye Wilson
Snigdha Koirala
Stefano Paparo
Tommi Sopenperä
Wester Wagenaar