about the writer
Ari Koontz (they/he) is a queer nonbinary writer, editor, and artist with an MFA in creative writing from Northern Michigan University, where they also taught composition and served as associate nonfiction editor for the literary magazine Passages North. In the classroom and on the page, Ari is dedicated to centering the beautiful complexities of queer & trans identity and community, and creating worlds in which everyone, but especially young readers, can see themselves represented and celebrated.
Ari has served as associate editor and digital media manager for Wizards in Space Magazine, a print mag committed to uplifting diverse voices & stories, building sustainable literary communities, and paying all contributors; they have also been a reader for Under the Gum Tree, Oyster River Pages, and Jeopardy Magazine. Ari’s stories and essays have appeared in Storm Cellar, Alien, Ruminate, Under the Gum Tree, Sweet, Alocasia, and others.
Ari’s non-literary interests include cooking & baking, sad gay music, wandering the woods in autumn, and the TV series Survivor.
ari koontz 