Dara Yen Elerath is a mixed-race, Chinese-American writer, born in California and raised in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Initially drawn toward the visual arts, she received a BFA in Painting and Drawing from the University of New Mexico and a BFA in Graphic Design from the Southwest University of Visual Arts. She went on to receive her MFA in Creative Writing from the Institute of American Indian Arts and published her first collection, Dark Braid, in 2020. Her work is informed by her interest in imaginative, fabulist and hybrid literature. A multi-time Pushcart Prize nominee, she is the recipient of both the Bath Flash Fiction Award and the New Flash Fiction Review Award. Her work can be found in journals and venues such as the Academy of American Poets, POETRY Magazine, the American Poetry Review, AGNI and Poet Lore among others.
For any inquiries or to say hello, reach out to Dara directly at daraelerath@gmail.com.