January 2022 - Ecuadorian Literature

Bruno Sáenz Andrade

Bruno Sáenz Andrade (Quito, September 13, 1944 – Quito, January 11, 2022) was an Ecuadorian writer, poet, essayist and literary critic. He authored numerous books including: “El aprendiz y la palabra,” “Relatos del aprendiz,” “Comedia del cuerpo,” “1944, La promesa y la siega” and “La noche acopia silencios.” A lawyer by profession, in his working life he served as director of the School of Prosecutors in the Public Ministry, as well as Undersecretary of Culture. He was a regular speaker at the House of Ecuadorian Culture, the Benjamín Carrión Cultural Center, and the Rayuela bookstore, among other places. He was an emeritus member of the Ecuadorian Academy of Language since 2014. In 2003 his poetry book “Escribe la inicial de tu nombre en el umbral del sueño” won the Jorge Carrera Andrade Award.

Benjamín Ortiz Brennan

Benjamín Ortiz Brennan is an Ecuadorian journalist and writer. He is the author of two well-regarded historical novels: A la sombra del magnolio (2017) and El bicho que se bajó del tren (2021). He has worked as a chronicler for El Tiempo newspaper, news director of Ecuavisa, director of the newspaper Hoy for 17 years, and director of his own strategic communication agency for another 17 years.

Gonzalo Ortiz Crespo

Gonzalo Ortiz Crespo (Quito, October 18, 1944) is an Ecuadorian journalist, essayist, historian and writer. He has written three novels: Los hijos de Daisy (2009), Alfaro en la sombra (2012) and Pecunia non olet (2021), a corruption thriller which made it to Primicia.ec’s 2021 list of “the 10 books by Ecuadorian writers that marked the year.” He is a member of the Ecuadorian Academy of Language and the National Academy of History. He wrote for the newspapers El Tiempo, Hoy, EL COMERCIO and the magazine Gestión. He has worked as a university professor and has held various posts such as secretary of communication, secretary of the administration of President Rodrigo Borja, and councilor of Quito.

Elías Muñoz Vicuña

Elías Muñoz Vicuña (Yaguachi, Guayas, May 10, 1922 – Guayaquil, February 10, 1997) was an historian, writer, university professor, and member of the Ecuadorian Communist Party. His historical essays include: El 15 de Noviembre de 1922 (1978), Biografía de Olmedo (1980), and Papel Histórico de Vicente Rocafuerte (1983). In 1976 he was appointed professor of Economic, Social and Political History of Ecuador at the Faculty of Economics of the University of Guayaquil; in 1984 he was declared a member of the Institute of Labor Law; and in 1985 member of the Guayas chapter of the House of Ecuadorian Culture, and Visiting Professor of the Institute of Diplomacy of the University of Guayaquil. In 1983 he became a member of the National Academy of History. He traveled to many countries as a representative of the Ecuadorian Communist Party, including to Cuba in 1966 per the invitation of Fidel Castro; and in 1970 at the Centenary of Lenin’s birth in Ecuador, the Soviet Union awarded him with the “Lenin Gold Medal” in a public ceremony. Several educational institutions are named after him in Guayaquil.

Segundo Moreta Morales

Segundo Moreta Morales (Otavalo, Ecuador) is an author, storyteller and intercultural educator. He is the author of the children’s book Juanita the Colorful Butterfly (2015), illustrated by Into Gualapuro and Luis Uksha. Told in Spanish, Kichwa, and English, it tells a charming tale of a butterfly who loses her color when a witch casts a spell on her; Juanita’s nature-dwelling friends help her to become colorful again.

Maria Virginia Farinango

Maria Virginia Farinango (Otavalo, Ecuador) was born in an Indigenous Quichua community near Otavalo, Ecuador. In 2011, she and Laura Resau co-authored the novel The Queen of Water, based on the true story of her girlhood. After many years of running her own Andean crafts business and traveling extensively with her husband, Tino, an Andean musician, Maria Virginia earned a master’s degree in psychology. Maria Virginia now resides in Otavalo with her husband, son, and daughter, where she practices clinical psychology.