Jocelyn Doan is a sophomore at Walton High School in Georgia, and she loves to read and write poems and novels of all genres. Her love for words and art have placed her for Most Creative in the 2023 Georgia Day Art Contest as well as her poem at the county level for Georgia PTA Reflections Winners.

She is an avid reader with 2 poems currently published in Visual Verse and is also a STEM kid who loves to participate in science-related activities. In her free time, she is learning to embroider and is brushing up on her driving skills.

Updated May 2023

Miho Hirayama is a mother of an extremely low birth weight (ELBW) infant. She is a big fan of Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams. Her dreams include having children’s books that she wrote in libraries all over the world so that many children can read them, seeing her son play tennis at the US Open, and encouraging her daughter to pursue whatever she is interested in.

Updated May 2023

Born in Tokyo, graduated from the School of Letters, Arts and Sciences, Waseda University. While at university, he was a member of the Waseda University Musical Research Club, where he worked as a scriptwriter, director, and actor. After graduating, he joined a video production company. Currently, he works as a director, producing mainly informational and documentary programs.

(Updated May 2023)

Zoe Lerdworatawee is a senior who will be graduating from Westview High School and matriculating to the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign in the fall to study Computer Science. She is especially fascinated with immersing herself in different cultures. In her spare time she enjoys baking, visiting mochi stores, playing piano, and learning new languages. 

Updated June 2023

DC Palter is the author of the mystery novel, To Kill a Unicorn, about a Japanese hacker investigating a sinister Silicon Valley startup. He’s also the author of Colloquial Kansai Japanese, Tuttle’s guidebook to the Osaka dialect of Japanese, and editor of Japonica, the journal of Japanese culture. After starting his career as a research engineer in Japan, DC returned to Los Angeles as a startup founder and venture investor. He lives in Mar Vista with his wife, Satsuki, an ikebana artist and tea ceremony teacher.

Updated May 2023

Alison is an attorney and mother of three, living with her family in Santa Cruz, California. She has published several essays and short stories and she is currently working on her first novel. Her father's family has been in Los Angeles since the early 1900s, and she has many fond childhood memories of visits to Little Tokyo. Writing this piece was a lovely opportunity to research how Little Tokyo has changed over the years, and to rekindle her own sensory memories there.

Updated June 2023

Madeline Thach (13) is an eighth grade homeschooler from Texas. As a writer, singer, and creator, her awards include first place in the international Saugus Halloween Ghost Story Contest, first place in the National Association of Teachers of Singing regional vocal competition in 2022 and 2023, and a national American Hero history scholarship from the Rush & Kathryn Adams Limbaugh Family Foundation.

Madeline is passionate about spreading her love of learning through educational, entertaining, family-friendly content.  In her weekly newsletter, The Bluestocking Bulletin, she shares her stories, videos, articles, poems, and flash fiction. To join in her journey, visit BluestockingOnline.com.

Updated May 2023