Carmen Maria Machado

(born in 1986) – writer and teacher at the University of Pennsylvania. Her essays, short stories and critical texts are published in New Yorker, New York Times, Granta, Tin House, VQR, McSweeney's Quarterly Concern, The Believer, Guernica, Best American Science Fiction & Fantasy and other periodicals. Her first book was the collection of short stories entitled Her Body and Other Parties. In her stories, she discuses female carnality and body control. Her second book was the autobiography In the Dream House. The book is an analysis of a toxic relationship and stereotypical perception of lesbian couples by the society. Machado’s fiction combines realism and metafiction with elements of fantasy and magic realism. Winner of the Bard Fiction Prize, Lambda Literary Award in the category Lesbian Fiction and John Leonard Prize awarded by National Book Critics Circle. She was also a finalist for the National Book Award. She and her wife live in Philadelphia.