Mako Yoshikawa’s first novel, One Hundred and One Ways, was a national bestseller and was translated into six languages. All of her novels have received critical acclaim and coverage in The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, The Detroit News, The Philadelphia Inquirer and Time Out, among other publications. Awards for Mako’s writing include a Bunting Fellowship and a Massachusetts Cultural Council Grant. Essays inspired by her father’s death in 2010 have appeared in the Missouri Review, Southern Indiana Review, Harvard Review, Story, Lit Hub, Longreads, and Best American Essays. These essays became the basis for her new memoir, Secrets of the Sun. Mako is a professor of creative writing and the director of the MFA program at Emerson College. She lives with her husband and two unruly cats in Boston and Baltimore.

*photo by Rob Sabal

With a voice straight out of the jazz age, Savoir Faire brings the millennial existential crisis into a world of retro-noir.Having studied jazz guitar in college, Savoir Faire soon discovered the duets of Joe Pass and Ella Fitzgerald, shaping her approach to both harmonic and melodic lines on guitar and with her voice. After years performing as a lounge singer, she added the influence of dramatic 60’s noir and 90’s alternative rock, forming the aesthetic of what is now - Savoir Faire. With lush and syrupy vocals, biting lyricism, and searing guitar parts that hint at her Persian heritage, Savoir Faire invites listeners into a world of wistful nostalgia and modern rage. It's a cocktail of genres for those suffering from a case of modern reality. 

*photo by Sasha Pedro

Mona Awad is the best-selling author of the novels, Bunny, All's Well, and 13 Ways of Looking at a Fat Girl. She is a three-time finalist for a Goodreads Choice Award, the recipient of an Amazon Best First Novel Award, and she was shortlisted for the Scotiabank Giller Prize, as well as the the New England Book Award. Bunny, named a Best Book of 2019 by Time, Vogue and the New York Public Library, is currently being adapted for film by Bad Robot Productions. Rouge, her latest, was a national bestseller and a New York Times Notable Book. It was recently optioned for film by Fremantle and Sinestra. She currently teaches in the Creative Writing program at Syracuse University and is based in Boston.

*photo by Angela Sterling

Spotted Owls are a psychedelic roots band located in the Boston area. The group is fronted by the songwriting duo of Adam Garland and John Sorice, and supported by Aubrey Cloutier on bass, Brian McGrath on trumpet and synth, and Kevin Pickering on drums. Drawing from influences that include Beck and Pink Floyd, their music is built on a foundation of hypnotic grooves, layered with swirling guitar tones, soaring trumpet solos and intelligent lyrics. The band is currently booking shows around greater Boston and New England in support of their debut EP, “Filament Sound,” as well as their newest single, “Torres Mouth.” Follow Spotted Owls on Facebook and Instagram - and listen on Spotify and Apple Music.

*photo by John Sorice