Kevin Powers was born and raised in Richmond, Virginia. Since publishing his first novel in 2012, his books have been translated into more than a dozen languages. He has been a finalist for the National Book Award and a recipient of the PEN/Hemingway Award, the Guardian First Book Award, the Prix littéraire du Monde prix étranger, and the Grand Prix de Littérature Américaine, among other recognitions. He was a James A. Michener Fellow in Poetry at the University of Texas at Austin from 2009-2012 and later held a Guggenheim Fellowship in Fiction. A U.S. Army veteran of the war in Iraq, Kevin now lives on Florida’s First Coast with his family. Kevin will teach Fiction Workshop for the MCW during the Spring 2026 semester.

Daniel Khalastchi is a graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop and the author of four acclaimed books of poetry. His most recent collection, The Story of Your Obstinate Survival, received the National Jewish Book Award for Poetry and was longlisted for the PEN/Volecker Award for Poetry. He lives in Iowa City where he is the executive director of the University of Iowa’s Office of Writing and Communication. He is the cofounder and managing editor of Rescue Press. Daniel will teach Poetry Workshop for the MCW during the Spring 2026 semester.

Kat Candler’s award-winning feature Hellion starring Aaron Paul and Juliette Lewis, played in competition at the Sundance Film Festival. Her short films Hellion and Black Metal both premiered at Sundance. Candler’s work in television includes directing nine episodes of Ava DuVernay and Oprah Winfrey’s highly acclaimed Queen Sugar. She’s directed episodes of 13 Reasons Why, Sorry for Your Loss starring Elizabeth Olsen, three episodes of the Apple + show Home Before Dark, Dirty John: The Betty Broderick Story and Truth Be Told starring Octavia Spencer. She also directed the pilot for the CW drama The Republic of Sarah and the pilot for the Netflix limited series Echoes starring Michelle Monaghan and Matt Bomer. She oversaw Season 2 of Queen Sugar as the producing director, Season 3 as the Showrunner and Season 3 of 13 Reasons Why as the Consulting Producer. She developed a TV series inspired by the 2005 film Lords of Dogtown produced by Shawn Ryan, Marney Hochman, MiddKidd Productions and Sony TV. As a writing team with Aaron Marshall and Yen Tan, she developed and sold a limited series about the making of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre to HBO Max, as well as a one-hour drama pilot to Endeavor Content with Michelle Yeoh attached to star. In 2023, Candler wrote, directed and produced a romantic drama pilot starring Joshua Jackson and Lauren Ridloff for Starz. She recently served as a co-executive producer and producing director on the Hulu limited series Murdaugh: Death in the Family starring Patricia Arquette and Jason Clarke and directed two episodes of Little House on the Prairie for Netflix.  Kat will teach Screenwriting Workshop for the MCW during the Spring 2026 semester.

Taisia Kitaiskaia is the author of four books: The Nightgown and Other Poems; two volumes of Ask Baba Yaga advice; and Literary Witches: A Celebration of Magical Women Writers, a collaboration with artist Katy Horan. Her fiction has appeared in journals such as McSweeney’s, A Public Space, Virginia Quarterly Review, and American Short Fiction. Her story, “Engelond,” was chosen by Lauren Groff for the Best American Short Stories 2024. She is the recipient of fellowships from the James A. Michener Center for Writers, The Corporation of Yaddo, and MacDowell. She will teach the First Year Seminar and Literature of Creatureliness at MCW for the Fall 2025 semester.