Lorena Hernández Leonard

Lorena Hernández Leonard is a Colombian-American writer, storyteller, and filmmaker. Her writing has been recognized in The Best American Essays Notable list, was a finalist for the PEN America Emerging Writer Fellowship, and has appeared in NPR's Cognoscenti, KHÔRA, Tasteful Rude, and others. She is co-producer of the award-winning and OSCARS longlisted animated short film Demi’s Panic. She has received support for her memoir, Salsipuedes: Leave if You Can, about growing up during the Colombian drug war and her forced immigration to the U.S. from the Mass Cultural Council, Tin House, GrubStreet Creative Writing Center, and Juniper Writing Institute.