#YEWCON
Meet The Team
Desirée Brown (she/her)
Founder & Executive Director
Desirée Brown is a poet & writer. She received her B.A. from University of North Carolina-Charlotte and her M.F.A. from New York University. Her work has appeared in Hedge Apple Magazine, Unlikely Stories, The Woven Tale Press, Sanskrit, and The Scene & Heard Journal. Today she lives in Atlanta, Georgia teaching college courses in English and Creative Writing, managing the Young Eager Writers Association & Conference, and writing poetry.
Michael Evans (he/him)
Outreach Coordinator
Michael Evans has published three novels and four novellas at only seventeen. As the author of Control Freakz, a post-apocolyptic thriller series, he's is driven to write every day to hopefully shed light on the dark prospects of the future, and to spread the message that humans are the control freaks of our own future.
Damien Holland (he/they)
Editor-in-Chief
Damien Una Holland is an emerging queer, trans non-binary writer who has a heart for YA fiction and poetry with a focus on queer rights, sexual health, and body positivity. They graduated from UNC Asheville with a BA in Creative Writing amidst the pandemic, with their cat, Marley, by his side. His work has appeared in Headwaters Creative Arts Journal, ode to queer, odyssey, Sanctuary Literary Arts Journal, and Unwritten in a variety of fiction, poetry, nonfiction, and creative nonfiction. Currently, they live in Asheville, North Carolina and are Editor-in-Chief of the Young Eager Writers’ Journal, helping other young writers get their footing in the editing and publishing world.
Community Division
Hannah Ward (she/her)
Workshop Coordinator
Hannah Ward is an English education student at UNC Greensboro. She has a passion for literature and teaching, and hopes to bring the art of creative writing back to public school curriculums. In her spare time, she loves to read and write YA fiction and fantasy. She is a 2021-2022 Artist in Residence for the UNCG Honors College and a writer for The Navigator at UNCG. In the future, Hannah intends to publish a novel and a few short stories.
Aina Aleeya Azri (she/her)
Writing Group Lead
Aina is an aspiring Malaysian writer who rediscovered her passion for writing whilst taking a gap year prior to starting university and is currently a psychology undergraduate student. She’s the type of person to buy discounted books she’s never heard of over books that are popular on social media in hopes of finding a gem she wasn’t expecting. She aspires to make a positive difference in the lives of the people she meets and the places she goes. She also wishes to bring about positive social change through learning, reading and writing and hopes to understand how to navigate our wide world better just a little more everyday.
Aastha Agrawal (she/her)
Writing Group Assistant Lead
Aastha Agrawal, a 12-year-old trapped in a 21 year old body, is a graduate from MU with a degree in mass media. She has a keen interest in storytelling, writing, and arts. She finds a new interest almost every day, but one dream that has stayed constant throughout her life has been her desire to become a published author. In her spare time, you will find her either reading, listening to music, getting lost in her daydreams, or researching books and tv shows that she is never going to read or watch.
Aditi Karanam (she/her)
Blog Manager
Aditi is an emerging writer and journalist from India, with a strong passion for social justice and literature spends most of her time reading, writing or discussing social justice issues. She maintains her own blog, contributes for the school newspaper and writes for various literary magazines. She aspires to make a difference in the world she lives in through her writing, She's incredibly excited to work in YEW team and hopes to broaden her perspective through the days that come
Carina Solis (she/her)
Book Club Lead
Carina Solis is a student at Villa Rica High School in Villa Rica, Georgia. She has enjoyed writing since she was small and loves reading YA, fiction, and poetry. In the future, she plans to major in English and aspires to be a poet.
Shnayjaah Jeanty (she/her)
... to be announced ...
Hailing from the brutal heat of the sunshine state, Shnayjaah Jeanty is a senior and a slam poet. Shnayjaah writes because poetry is the easiest language to learn, and the most cathartic one to speak. She finds power in documenting the most visceral parts of the human condition in her pieces, including identity, trauma, and growth. She has performed all over Broward County, including Darius Daughtry’s Umoja Cypher, where she opened for a broadcasted panel on criminal justice reform. As the president of her school’s poetry club, she has led her slam team both in competition and in community outreach. She was also named South Florida’s 2022 Youth Poet Ambassador. Shnayjaah aspires to make a dent in the world, whether it be through provocative metaphor or reforming the justice system. When she's not writing (or thinking about writing), you can find her sleeping, or rewatching Shameless and The Vampire Diaries.
Marketing Division
Asha Hunt (she/her)
Social Media Coordinator
Asha Hunt is a rising junior at Mt. Lebanon High School, in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania. She is passionate about writing and hopes to have her work published some day . She fell in love with reading at a young age with books such as The Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler and Series of Unfortunate Events. She is currently working on her first novel and wants to inspire and be inspired by the talented young writers of YEW.
Kiran (they/them)
Newsletter Coordinator
Kiran is an artist, a writer, and a creator. They have completed two unpublished books--it's been said the third is underworks. Taking a book, they'll transform them into cartoons or storyboards. Imagination makes more sense then the real world to them, so writing becomes that place of escape and experience. Despite that they are currently working on a visual arts certificate and a finishing up a bachelors with a major in natural science.
“Each word is like a stroke of a paint brush and they hope the rest of the story of who they are comes together like a completed art piece.”
Journal Division
Kendra Carter (she/her)
YEW Journal Editor
Kendra is a 27-year-old college student, artist, and writer from North Carolina. She's been a freelance artist since age 14 and has been writing poetry and fiction since 11. She has a true love of books and inspiring others to read. Some of her fondest memories are reading books with her family; such as, The Chronicles of Narnia and the Harry Potter series. Her goal after finishing her Associates in Arts, Fine Arts, and Graphic Design is to get a Major in Illustration and a Minor in Creative Writing. She wants to be a reader and illustrator for a publishing company.
Jessica Stiehm (she/her)
YEW Journal Editor
Jessica Stiehm is an emerging Asheville writer. You can find her work so far in Headwaters Creative Arts Journal. She graduated during a pandemic and her dream is to write a queer fantasy novel and edit books. If you want to see the occasional cat picture, or offer her a luxurious book deal, then follow her Instagram @tardigradebabe
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Sophia Nitsche (she/her)
YEW Journal Editor
Sophia Nitsche is a writer and artist involved with organizations that allow writing to be more accessible to people of all ages. This includes work by disabled, LGBT, and racial/ethnic minority authors. She received her B.A. from the University of North Carolina Asheville, where she studied English and Journalism. She has been published in several literary journals and worked as an editor for Headwaters Creative Arts Journal. Sophia explores and enjoys a wide range of genres, with a special interest in science fiction and surreal themes.
Atticus Hogan (he/they)
YEW Journal Editor
Atticus Hogan is a student at UNC Asheville working towards his Bachelors in English, with a focus in Creative Writing. He enjoys writing fantasy, mainly in short story form, and is focused on constantly improving the quality of his work while helping others to do the same. In the future, Atticus hopes to become a published author, working towards that goal one step and one day at a time.
Raul Ojeda (they/them)
YEW Journal Editor
Raul Ojeda graduated summa cum laude from the University of Texas at El Paso with a B.A. in creative writing, and they hope to put that knowledge to use as an editor. They’ve been writing ever since they learned that there was nothing stopping them from putting words to paper. They love writing prose, and narratives that no one else can enjoy quite as much as they can.
Noor Nabi (she/her)
YEW Journal Editor
Noor is a Pakistani writer and published columnist. She is passionate about international affairs, cultural studies (and criticism), and various forms of philosophy including moral philosophy and existentialism. She is a rising senior and plans to double-major in philosophy and political science.
Rouen (all pronouns)
Young Rainbow Writers Lead & YEW Journal Editor
"Hi! My name is Rouen, and I’m an intern at YEW. I’m a high school senior from New Jersey who plans to major in English and Theatre. I love writing of all kinds, but my favorite genres are poetry and horror. I also enjoy playing music, going to concerts, and theatre."
Entertainment Division
Melina Kenyon (she/they)
Podcast Producer & Editor
Melina Kenyon is an award winning performance artist and digital media specialist with experience working in both corporate and influencer settings. She strives to create accessible and informative environments while utilizing consistent design elements. Recently, through the support of her friends and local writing groups, she has been writing a poetry collection. Now she has decided to join hands with Young Eager Writers to create content for those in similar positions to her.
Renata Pérez (she/they)
Podcast Producer & Editor
Renata Pérez is a Mexican-American, multimedia creative with a passion for poetry, contemporary fiction, and digital content creation. She has co-written and co-produced two regional-winning documentaries for the National History Day competition and is in her fourth year of the Audio/Video Technology and Communications Pathway at her school. Currently, she is a high school senior in South Texas and intends to pursue a B.A. in Literature. Through her work, Renata hopes to amplify diversity in media and help people of all backgrounds use their voices.
Jess Willis (she/her)
Podcast Contributor
Jessica Willis is a creative writer who specializes in various types of fiction, such as urban fantasy, speculative fiction, and magical realism. She is also known to produce works of poetry and spoken word pieces on occasion as well. An avid reader since a young age, she began to experiment with writing during her middle and high school days. After an extended hiatus, she rediscovered her passion for storytelling and resumed writing fictional works amidst her college career. She is now working diligently to turn her passion into a full-time profession, in order to spread that same creativity and joy to other young readers.
She is currently pursuing her B.A. in English, along with a Minor in Music at UNC-Greensboro. In addition to being versed in writing short stories, and having future plans to publish her own novels, Jess aims to also expand her love of storytelling into the world of screenwriting once she completes her undergraduate degree. She joined the YEW crew as a means to aid her in continuing her journey in finding her voice as a young writer, as well as connect with other amazing creative minds, also. Jess strives to tell stories that represent and uplift the voices of those in marginalized communities, and spread diversity and inclusion throughout the realms of fantasy and fiction.
Hangila Ceesay (she/her)
Podcast Contributor
Hangila Ceesay is a rising senior from Mississippi and currently attends the Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science. She is a reader and writer at heart and has loved writing short stories from a young age. She currently writes for her school's award-winning newspaper, The Vision, and has won a few independent awards for journalism and short story writing. She hopes to double major in biochemistry and Portuguese and become an OB/GYN in the near future.
Join the team!
Interested in creating supportive spaces for young writers? Want to build creative communities? Reach out to see if YEW is right for you!
(704) 930 - 9392
Be sure to check out our internship program developed to help young writers gain experience within the writing industry.