Mackie wrote her first novel, Above, at 17-years-old. The next year, she signed with Joe Veltre of the Gersh Agency and Brillstein Entertainment partners as her management company. Above would later go on to be published by Carthay Circle Publishing Co. and secure a television deal. After writing two more novels, she returned to school to further her writing experience, earning a Bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing at The New School in NYC, and participated as a member of the Riggio Honors Program. In 2017, she attended the Cambridge University Summer Programme in the UK, where out of 2000 submissions, her piece alongside 11 others was chosen as a winner. Most recently, she earned her MFA in Fiction Writing at The New School. At the age of 30, Mackie is using her 14 years of professional experience in the writing business to finish her latest novel, Honeyman.

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“After many years writing, personally and professionally, I’ve learned that nothing is more important than language and how we use it. It’s our greatest tool as a human. Because writing is often a sole endeavor, it’s imperative to have a community around you. To share with, to learn from, and to grow alongside. When we first conceptualized Finch, it was for my sixteen-year-old self, who always loved to write but never had anywhere to go.”

Christian is a 2015 graduate of Boston College, where he played Division 1 Soccer and earned a degree in Communications. He has previously worked in the advertising industry as a Social and Brand Strategist at award-winning agency, Anomaly in NYC. There, he frequently was called on to distill research and maintain a grasp of culture, using language precisely and powerfully to punch towards an overriding message – a process not dissimilar to crafting a piece of writing. He later worked as an editor and journalist for Eight by Eight, a soccer-meets-lifestyle inspired magazine, whose elite reporting and aggressive design earned itself huge respect in a fertile American market. A fervent fan of creative writing, he’s currently querying his second novel, MoonPies at the End of the World.

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“Writing is something I discovered, or rather re-discovered, later in life. Having been to school in 3 different countries (England, America, and Australia), it was a skill that I never saw get enough attention. After all, writing is not just writing. It is thinking, organizing, and knowing the true currency of your words. After I stopped playing soccer, and I had tried a few different work endeavors, I came back to it slowly and privately, on my own terms. Now, I am sure writing is something I will do for the rest of my life.”

Jill is an eighth grade language arts teacher at William Annin Middle School in Basking Ridge, New Jersey and adjuncts at Drew University. She’s currently a teacher leader and a former co-director for Drew University's National Writing Project, and continues to research with teachers nationally to create an authentic environment for writing and reading instruction rooted in a student's curiosity and driven by their life purpose. Most recently, her work was spotlighted for the 50th Anniversary of the NWP. She’s also the co-author of Inquiry Ignites Pushing Back Against Traditional Literacy Instruction in the edited collection, Acts of Resistance: Subversive Teaching in the ELA Classroom, and is currently working on a book with her former students. Her chapter, “What’s Old Is New Again” co-authored with Dr. Turner, was selected as the leading chapter published in Innovations in Digital Instruction Through Virtual Environments. An experienced educator with a natural enthusiasm for life, Jill is an ever-warm presence in the classroom with a knack for getting the very most out of people.

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“As an English teacher, my goal is to impart the power of words to my students. In a digital age of cellphones, social media, and the internet, there has been an erosion of honesty and meaning in language. At a critical time when kids are already uncertain of how they feel, they are also now less equipped to explain themselves. Through writing, they learn to structure their minds, bond with each other, and find greater contentment.”