Mara Paulina Briones Layana (Guayaquil, 1974) is an Ecuadorian writer, editor, and professor. She currently teaches Journalism and Literature, as well as Journalistic Projects, at Casa Grande University and the University of the Arts (both in Guayaquil). She also runs the publishing company Cadaver Exquisito, which she founded in 2012, and has been the director of La Casa Morada, a cultural initiatives company that promotes reading, since 2009. She is featured in the bilingual poetry collection “Lengua me has vencido” (2017). Some of her stories have appeared in the Latin American Culture magazine Guaraguao, as well as the virtual magazines El Otro Lunes and Matavilela from Ecuador.
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Camila Peña
Camila Peña (Cuenca, 1995) is an Ecuadorian poet, radio host and ballet dancer. In 2020 her first poetry book “Jardín Transparente,” won the Francisco Ruiz Udiel Hispanic American Poetry Award and will be published by Valparaíso Ediciones. She has a master’s degree in Artistic, Literary and Cultural Studies with a specialty in Comparative Literature, Literary Theory and Rhetoric from the Autonomous University of Madrid. In addition, she is a ballet dancer with 19 years of training and experience in creating artistic projects. She is currently the host of a cultural program on a radio station in Cuenca.
Continue reading “Camila Peña”Carlett Decker Santistevan
Carlett Miroslava Decker Santistevan (Guayaquil, 1996) is an Ecuadorian writer, screenwriter, filmmaker and director. She has a degree in Cinema from the University of the Arts with a mention in directing and screenwriting. Her short stories have been published in online magazines such as Letralia and Extrañas Noches.
Continue reading “Carlett Decker Santistevan”Jorge Tigrero Vaca
Jorge William Tigrero Vaca (Guayaquil, 1986) is an Ecuadorian poet, writer, journalist and university professor. He has published books of poetry, short stories and essays on pedagogy. He is a member of the Organization of Ibero-American States (OEI), an international governmental body for cooperation between Latin American countries in the field of education, science, technology and culture. He is also a member of the Global Network of Writers in Spanish (REMES). Tigrero works as a professor at the Casa Grande University, ECOTEC University and University of the Arts.
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Roberto Andrade Rodríguez (October 26, 1850 – October 27, 1938) was a politician, historian, author and polemicist. He was a participant in the assassination plot against President Gabriel Garcia Moreno. On August 6, 1875, Garcia Moreno was beaten with a machete while three or four others shot revolvers at him. Andrade landed a deadly shot to Moreno’s forehead. Throughout his life Andrade was persecuted for his polemicist essays and political ideology. “Pacho Villamar,” his semi-autobiographical work from 1900, is widely considered Ecuador’s first political novel.
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Carlos Francisco Vásconez Gomezcoello (Cuenca, May 16, 1977) is an Ecuadorian novelist, short story writer, essayist, columnist and educator who has published short stories and novels since 1999. He is the president of the PEN Center Ecuador and was the president of the Azuay branch of the House of Ecuadorian Culture from 2011-2016. He is the vice-rector and a teacher at Las Pencas Educational Unit in Cuenca, Ecuador. He is also a professor at the School of Language and Literature at the University of Cuenca. He is the director of the newspaper La columna del invertebrado and is part of the Editorial Board of the cultural magazine Arrebol. He has been a columnist for several magazines and newspapers, such as Rocinante, Diners, BG Magazine, Cartón Piedra and La Casa. He has prefaced several anthologies of Ecuadorian short stories and poetry.
Continue reading “Carlos Vásconez”Rommel Manosalvas
Rommel Manosalvas (Quito, 1992) is an Ecuadorian author, booktuber and architect. In 2019 his short story “Disforia” was published in the anthology “Los que vendrán 20-20” by the indie publisher Cactus Pink. In 2020, he became the second “Writing World Cup” champion for his short story “Abuelita,” defeating 5400 competitors from 42 countries. An English translation of his story was published in the Yale Review in 2021. His debut novel “Anatomía transparente” was published in 2022.
Continue reading “Rommel Manosalvas”Eugenio Espejo
Francisco Javier Eugenio de Santa Cruz y Espejo (Royal Audiencia of Quito, February 21, 1747 – December 28, 1795) better known as Eugenio Espejo was an 18th-century Spanish physician, writer, librarian, lawyer, and a pioneering figure in colonial Ecuador. Born in 1747, he was of mestizo origin and became a notable scientist and writer, but his true impact lies in his role as a polemicist and advocate for separatism in Quito. Espejo was the first journalist and hygienist in Quito, using his platform to spread enlightened ideas and critique the lack of education, corruption, and cultural aspects of the colonial authorities. He composed an important treatise on sanitary conditions, showcasing his understanding of microorganisms and their role in disease transmission. Espejo’s satirical works, inspired by the Age of Enlightenment, made him a target for persecution, leading to his imprisonment shortly before his death in 1795. Despite his hardships, Eugenio Espejo is regarded as one of the most important figures in colonial Ecuador and left a lasting legacy as a champion of education, science, and social reform.
Continue reading “Eugenio Espejo”Carlos A. Rolando
Carlos Alberto Rolando Lobatón (Guayaquil, September 13, 1881 – Guayaquil, January 5, 1974) was an Ecuadorian doctor, writer, and renowned bibliographer. Known for his contributions to Ecuadorian literature and history, he opened his vast personal library to the public in 1913. Rolando was appointed director of the University of Guayaquil Library in 1925 and became a numerary member of the National Academy of History. In 1930, he founded the Guayaquil Historical Research Center and played a key role in preserving Ecuador’s cultural heritage. The National Authors Room at the Municipal Library of Guayaquil is named in his honor.
Continue reading “Carlos A. Rolando”Patricio Rivadeneira Arandi
Patricio Rivadeneira Arandi (Quito, 1953) is an Ecuadorian poet and holistic doctor. He has published several short essays about health with titles such as “Supresión y metástasis mórbida,” “Contrarios complementarios y dinamismo miasmático,” and “Nuevas perspectivas en la alimentación.” In 2016 the House of Ecuadorian Culture published his first poetry book, “Momento,” a selection of 70 of his poems.
Continue reading “Patricio Rivadeneira Arandi”Vicente Rocafuerte
Vicente Rocafuerte Bejarano (Guayaquil, May 1, 1783 – Lima, Peru, May 16, 1847) was an independence leader, statesman, diplomat, politician and writer. He was born into wealth and was educated in Spain. He returned to Ecuador in 1807 and was instrumental in freeing the country from Spain and, subsequently, from Gran Colombia. He served in the National Congress, as governor of Guayas Province, and as the second president of Ecuador (from 1834 to 1839). Rocafuerte’s writings on political systems, social reform, religious toleration, and economic development had significant influence on liberals in several Spanish American nations. Several schools and various awards are named after him, and many statues throughout Ecuador stand in his honor.
Continue reading “Vicente Rocafuerte”Ricardo Descalzi
Ricardo Descalzi del Castillo (Riobamba, September 22, 1912 – Riobamba, November 29, 1990) was an Ecuadorian novelist, historian, playwright, short story writer, translator, literary critic, university professor and medical doctor. In 1928, he founded the magazine Surcos with his Mejía National Institute classmates José Alfredo Llerena and Arturo Meneses. After graduating from high school in 1932, he published “Ghismondo,” a 100-page novel based on his experiences as a student. He also wrote the novel “Saloya” (1962), a short story collection “Los murmullos de Dios” (1959), and the stage plays “Los Caminos Blancos” (1939), “En el horizonte se alzó la niebla” (1961), and “El huasipungo de Andrés Chiliquinga” (1981). His six-volume “Historia crítica del teatro ecuatoriano” is perhaps his most important work (1968). Among his translations is “Poemas” (1969), a French-to-Spanish translation of poems by Nobel laureate Jean Poilvet Le Guenn. The Tobar Prize was bestowed upon him by the municipality of Quito in 1968. He was a member of the House of Ecuadorian Culture, the National Academy of History, and the Bolivarian Society of Quito, where he served as its vice president.
Continue reading “Ricardo Descalzi”Fernando Jurado Noboa
Fernando Jurado Noboa (Quito, 1944) is an Ecuadorian psychiatrist, historian, biographer, essayist and genealogist. Between 1967 and 1975, he studied medicine at the Central University of Ecuador, and from 1976-1979 he studied psychiatry in Spain. In 1973 he became the youngest member of the Ecuadorian Academy of History. He has been one of the most prolific historic researchers in Ecuador and he has published a large number of works. He has authored more than 50 books and 500 articles in historical and medical journals. He founded Ceniga in Quito (1980) and Sociedad Amigos de la Genealogía (1983).
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Carlos Honorato Endara Garzon, pseudonym Delittante (Quito, December 19, 1896 – Quito, August 2, 1938) was an Ecuadorian poet, essayist, journalist and literary critic. He founded and directed the magazines Ecos Juveniles, Atenea, Bolas y Boladas, and Vida intelectual. He was also a contributor of the magazines Letras and Renacimientos. He worked as a journalist for El Dia before founding Figaro in 1925, an elegantly presented magazine illustrated with Lattore’s satirical caricatures. In 1924, he published “La alcoba de los éxtasis,” a collection of chronicles and short stories.
Continue reading “Carlos H. Endara”Miguel Moreno Serrano
Miguel Moreno Serrano (Cuenca, July 27, 1886 – Cuenca, January 19, 1943) was an Ecuadorian poet and literary critic. He had a PhD in biology as well as a medical degree in surgery, but he never practiced. He worked as the director of the Bank of Azuay, secretary of the University of Cuenca, and treasurer of Public Assistance of Azuay. He was the son of the poet Miguel Moreno Ordóñez.
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