Alma Čaušević, B.Sc. in Cultural Studies and B.Sc. in Cultural Anthropology, is a manager in the field of culture. In 2009 and 2010, she worked as an independent researcher in cultural anthropology. In 2010, she participated in the organization and execution of the World Literatures Fabula festival that was carried out in the framework of the World Book Capital Ljubljana. She also served as Executive Producer for Zavod En-Knap during that time.
Born in Belgrade in 1972, Ivan has worked in publishing, marketing and journalism for many years. He founded “Booka” publishing house in 2010 and, since then, published more than 150 books of the best contemporary authors, including Michel Houellebecq, Karl Ove Knausgaard, Elena Ferrante, Leila Slimani, Miljenko Jergović, and Dubravka Ugrešić. He owns two bookshops in Belgrade.
Tinna Ásgeirsdóttir is a translator and project manager. Ásgeirsdóttir has studied creative writing and translations at the University of Iceland and graduated with degrees in both philospohy and editing and publishing. She works part time as a project manager at the Writers’ Union of Iceland and as a translator of Swedish fiction. Among writers that she has translated are renowned author and playwright Sara Stridsberg, Matthias Edvardsson and Nina Wähä. Ásgeirsdóttir has been a jury member at both the Icelandic Translation Prize and Reykjavik City Children‘s Literary Prize.
Pavel Mandys (born 1972) is a journalist, book critic, and organizer of the annual Magnesia Litera book award. He has written numerous book reviews as an editor of the online literary magazine iLiteratura.cz. In 2012, he published the book Prague: The City of Literature to support the city’s successful bid to become a UNESCO Creative City of Literature. He was the editor of the short stories collection Prague Noir (2018) and in 2020 he wrote a book of the crime genre in Czech literature (Dějiny české detektivky, with Michal Jareš).
Inga Bodnarjuka–Mrazauskas is the executive manager of the Latvian literature export platform «Latvian Literature», responsible for developing and implementing strategy for promotion of Latvian literature abroad, which includes participation in international book fairs, organizing foreign publisher, media and festival visits, translation workshops, capacity building activities for translators and publishers, culture programs abroad, etc.
Entela Kasi is a poetess, novelist, translator and essayist. She is the president of the Albanian PEN Centre and a member of the ‘In search Committee Board’ of PEN International. She writes for Albanian journals and daily press, especially focusing on social movements, culture and politics. She has been invited as a guest writer by different Universities in Albania and abroad.
Dr. Tina Bilban (1983) is a literary critic, author, editor and a research associate at the Institute Nova revija. She is president of the Slovenian section of IBBY – International Board on Books for Young People and a member of the executive committee of the Slovene Literary Critics' Association. She works at the crossroads between contemporary philosophy, science and literature. Tina is author of five books, the sixth will be published this year.
Nenad Šaponja (1964) is born and lives in Novi Sad, Serbia. He is a poet, essayist, and literary critic whose verses are recognizable in contemporary Serbian poetry due to their stylistic perfection, hermetic quality and metaphysical insight. His poetry has been translated into English, French, Italian, Romanian, Macedonian, Slovak, Albanian, Azerbaijan, Chinese etc. The most popular of his books are Does the Touch of Your Soul Exist?; Sweet Death; and I Seem, Therefore I Am Not.
Mkrtich Matevosyan is a painter and graphic designer. He was born in 1961 in Gyumri city, Armenia. In 1995, he founded the Actual Art cultural union NGO which is mainly engaged in publishing activity. Actual Art publishes books on contemporary literature, art, philosophy, as well as children's books. Mkrtich Matevosyan is also the co-founder-editor of Actual Art magazine. He has 3 children.
David Machado was born in Lisbon in 1978. He has a degree in economics from ISEG, Lisbon's School of Economics and Management, but soon devoted himself to writing fiction and children's literature. In 2005, he was awarded the Branquinho da Fonseca Prize for his children's book A Noite dos Animais Inventados and, in 2010, he was awarded the SPA/RTP Author Prize, in the category for Best Children and Youth book, for O Tubarão na Banheira.
