Matt Dovey is very tall and very British, and although his surname rhymes with “Dopey”, all other similarities to the dwarf are coincidental. The scar on his arm appeared one day and he can’t remember how, but it burns when the aurora can be seen. He lives in a rural market town in England with his wife, children, varying quantities of cats and/or dogs, and recent revelations of autism & ADHD. Since 2022 he’s been oversharing as the host of PodCastle, the British-Fantasy-winning podcast of short fantasy fiction. His own fiction is out and forthcoming all over the place: keep up with it at mattdovey.com, because he’s mostly sworn off social media. Mostly.

M. R. Robinson is an academic who studies time and desire in Renaissance literature. When not writing or teaching, she and her wife are very (very) slowly restoring their crumbly old house, which they share with too many pets and too many books. She is a graduate of the Viable Paradise and Clarion West writing workshops, and her fiction has appeared in publications like Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Small Wonders, and Haven Spec, among others. You can find her at www.m-r-robinson.com, or on Twitter / X or Bluesky as @mruthrobinson.

Laurence Klavan wrote the story collection, ‘The Family Unit’ and Other Fantasies, which was published by Chizine in Canada. His novella, Albertine, was published by Leamington Books in Scotland. An Edgar Award-winner, he received two Drama Desk nominations for the book and lyrics of Bed and Sofa, the musical produced by the Vineyard Theater in New York and the Finborough Theatre in London. His story collection, Adult Children, published in October 2025 by Cornerstone Press at the University of Wisconsin, is now available; and his novella, The Flying Dutchman, will be released in 2026 by Regal House. His website is www.laurenceklavan.com.

Chiemeziem Everest Udochukwu’s writing has appeared in EVENT Magazine, The Evergreen Review, Lolwe, Efiko Magazine, Peatsmoke Journal, and elsewhere. He won the EC Michaels’ Short Story Prize and has been a finalist for The Black Warrior Review Non-fiction Contest, The Quramo Writers Prize, The Kikwetu Flash Contest, The Nigerian NewsDirect Poetry Prize, and others. He can be reached on X via @everdoch, and Facebook via his writer name.

Madison Ellingsworth likes walking in Portland, Maine. Her writing has recently been published by Fractured Lit and Short Beasts, among others. Two of her short stories appear in the fiction anthology, Positivity Bias, which was published by Littoral Books in October 2025. Links to Madison’s other works can be found on her website, madisonellingsworth.com, and on her Instagram, @madisonellingsworth.

Kate Francia is a writer and teacher in the New York area. Her short stories have appeared in Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Augur, and Lady Churchill’s Rosebud Wristlet, and been featured in Best Microfiction. You can find her at katefrancia.com.