A BC Book-nominated writer, poet, research-creation scholar, and educator, Nilofar Shidmehr writes in English and Persian. She is the author of eight books of poetry and short fiction, as well as a children’s book. She is also the editor and curator of…
Majid Saberi was born and raised in Shiraz. He studied graphic design at art school, earned his bachelor’s degree in dramatic literature, and, before emigrating, completed a master’s degree in television production at the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting University. After moving…
Vahid Davar (b. 1981, Shiraz) is the author of two collections of poetry: Safar Safar (Journey Journey, Hekmat-e Kalameh, 2018), which received an honourable mention for the 2019 Ahmad Shamlou Poetry Prize, and Ahd-e Nasim (The Covenant of the Breeze, Hekmat-e Kalameh,…
Mohammad-Ali Jamalzadeh (1892–1997) was an Iranian writer, translator, and intellectual widely regarded as one of the founders of modern Persian fiction and a pioneering figure in the development of the Persian short story. Born in Isfahan, he spent much of his long…
Samad Behrangi (1939–1967) was an Iranian writer, teacher, translator, and folklorist whose short but influential career left a lasting mark on modern Persian literature, particularly children’s literature. Born in Tabriz, he worked as a village schoolteacher in Azerbaijan, an experience that brought…
Sadegh Hedayat (1903–1951) was one of the most influential writers and intellectuals of modern Iran and a foundational figure in twentieth-century Persian fiction. Born in Tehran into a prominent family, he studied in Europe and became deeply engaged with both modern European…
Bahram Sadeghi (1937–1985) was one of the most original and influential figures in twentieth-century Persian fiction and a major innovator of Iranian literary modernism. Born in Najafabad, near Isfahan, he moved to Tehran in 1955 to study medicine at the University of…
Abbas Shokri is a writer, translator, journalist, and the founder of Aftab Publishing in Norway. To date, he has published 18 books, including both translations and original works. He previously served as editor-in-chief of the literary and cultural magazine Aftab, which published…
Tannaz Khamea is a graduate of Biomedical Engineering and Control Engineering from the University of Sheffield in the United Kingdom. She began her professional career in media in 2012, entering the field as a news presenter. Over the years, she has gained…
Mahshad Abdoli is a literary translator and English language instructor based in Hamedan, Iran. With a background in pragmatics, semantics, and cross-cultural communication, her work explores the delicate interplay between language, meaning, and cultural nuance. She brings a thoughtful, interpretive sensibility to…
Mojgan Mousavi was born in 1965 and has lived in various cities across Iran throughout her life. She earned her Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS) degree and has practiced dentistry throughout her professional career. Alongside her medical profession, literature has remained a…
Mahmood Khoshchereh holds a Ph.D. in English and Cultural Studies from McMaster University. He has taught courses in English and Comparative Literature at McMaster and worked as an academic tutor for students with disabilities at George Brown College. Among various publications, he…
Dr. Mehrak Kamali is an Iranologist and Professor of Persian who specializes in Persian language pedagogy, modern Persian literature, and the contemporary history of Iran. Since 2014, he has served as Director of the Persian Language Program in the Department of Near…
Amir Hossein Yazdanbod (born 1977, Tehran) is an Iranian writer, literary critic, and translator. To date, he has published two books: the short story collection Portrait of an Unfinished Man (Cheshmeh, 2008) and the novel Stutter (Ofogh Publishing, 2013). In addition, dozens…
Fatemeh Zarei was born in 1969 in Tehran. She studied graphic design and worked in the same field for many years. Alongside her career, she pursued her passion for writing fiction. Her first short story collection, My Profession Is Dreaming, was published…
Mohammad-Ali Talebi is an Iranian screenwriter and film director whose career has spanned more than four decades. His films have been screened at major international film festivals, including Berlin, Toronto, San Francisco, Chicago, Locarno, Sundance, Tokyo, and many others, earning numerous awards…
Mahsa Nikan, born in 1984, is originally from Iranian Kurdistan. He studied psychology with a specialization in exceptional children. His first stories for children were published in the Iranian monthly magazine Aroosak-e Sokhangoo (The Talking Doll). In 2013, he emigrated from Sulaymaniyah…
Hassan “Bijan” Safdari (born February 10, 1950, in Isfahan) is an Iranian poet, writer, and translator whose literary sensibility was shaped during his high-school years under the mentorship of the late Mohammad Hoquqi and through his early connection with the first circle…
(Foad Kermani) [1851-1938] (1268 AH – 1358 AH / 1317 SH) Qodsī Kermānī—poet, vocalist, and player of the tār—was one of the leaders of the community of the People of the Bayān (the Azali Babis). Writing under the pen name “Foād,” he…
Tala Khanmalek (aka mecca monarch) is a writer, editor, and scholar with a PhD in ethnic studies from UC Berkeley. Tala is author of The Sun Planters (Asemana Books 2026) and An Infinity of Traces (Blue Cactus Press 2026) as well as the children’s book My…
Vahid Zarrabi Nasab is a PhD student in media management in Tehran and a writer, director, and film critic based in Toronto. With a 22-year career spanning journalism and editing, he has collaborated with a broad array of Iranian and Canadian media…
Peyman Yarian, born in 1971 in western Iran, began his cultural work after receiving his high school diploma at the Institute for the Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults, where he nurtured the imagination and creativity of the younger generation as…
Siamak Vossoughi is an Iranian-American writer living in Seattle. He has had stories published in various journals and is the author of two short story collections, Better Than War (recipient of a 2014 Flannery O’ Connor Award for Short Fiction) and A…
Marzieh Sotoudeh, a fiction writer and translator, was born in Tehran and currently resides in Toronto, Canada. Over the years, two collections of her stories, comprising twenty-eight tales, were not permitted for publication in Iran. However, her stories gained recognition in literary…