Who We Are
The Quiet Ones is an annually produced literary magazine featuring short-form quiet horror fiction, author interviews, and special nonfiction features from new and up-and-coming voices in the horror writing community.
Meet the quiet ones – our team of horror-loving writers and artists who read submissions, edit, and produce our zine:
Executive Editors
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DM Hoffman
HE/THEY
David’s first horror stories were read to him as lullabies.
From those early days with Edward Gorey, discovering Poppy Z. Brite and Anne Rice’s works in grade school, and exploring the classic works of Shelley, Poe, and Lovecraft, David has indulged in the odd for as long as he can remember.
His own works have been featured in multiple micro-fiction and poetry anthologies, soundtrack compilations (as a singer/songwriter), and chapbooks.
David holds an MFA from the Vermont College of Fine Arts Writing for Children and Young Adults program.
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Alexis Powell
SHE/HER
Alexis loves all things vampiric and unusual. At four years old, Alexis’s first crush was Rudolph Sackville-Bagg, and she hasn’t stopped wanting to be a creature of the night since then. Darren Shan (whose novels also shaped a worrying amount of her personality), Clive Barker, Anne Rice, and Stephen Graham Jones are some of her favorite horror writers. She enjoys horror that makes her skin crawl but also acts as catharsis for everyday struggles.
She currently attends VCFA, where she will receive her MFA Writing for Children and Young Adults, and works as a bookseller in the world’s greatest bookshop. When she isn’t reading or writing, you can find her cooing at her adorable pet snake, drawing, or playing the guitar.
Submission Readers
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Aileen Johnson
SHE/HER
Aileen loves goosebump-inducing fiction and film. She especially enjoys stories that marry themes of power & privilege, race, gender, sexual identity, and xenophobia with haunting and weird elements. She’s a huge fan of filmmaker Jordan Peele, and writers Helen Oyeyemi and Jewel Gomez.
Aileen holds an MFA from the Vermont College of Fine Arts Writing for Children and Young Adults program. Aileen also has a JD from GW Law School. She is currently an acquisitions reader for a literary agency.
When Aileen is not working, writing, or cheering on fellow writers, she enjoys hanging out with her wife and son and exploring the great outdoors with their spoiled Pit Bull/Boxer mix named Wink, who sleeps as much as possible and snores very loud.
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Kyle McHugh
HE/THEY
Kyle McHugh is a trans author, artist, and educator.
His writing focus is on poetry, flash fiction, verse novels, and young adult fiction.
Kyle holds a Master’s degree in Secondary Education and a Bachelor’s Degree in English. His original flash fiction has been featured in the Hundred Word Horror series of anthologies from Ghost Orchid Press.
Kyle has been an avid reader since childhood, and enjoys scary stories that expose the anxieties of being stuck in our mortal bodies and situations.
Kyle lives in Albany, New York, with his wife and their two sons.
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Neidy McHugh
SHE/HER
When it comes to literature, Neidy McHugh believes the weirder the better.
She’s a fan of works that purposefully cross genres and experiment with form. In her own writing, she enjoys crafting characters who create chaos from order or order from chaos.
Neidy holds both her BA and Master’s degrees in English and works in higher education administration for the state of New York.
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Marianne Murphy
SHE/HER
Marianne can’t get enough of all things surreal, uncanny, and out-of-this-world. While earning her MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults and BFA in Animation, she specialized in short-form horror and experimental media. Her work has been included in publications such as CICADA, LADYBUG, SPIDER, and Highlights for Kids Magazine.
Marianne has taught writing and art workshops for over a decade, and currently develops content and UI/UX for educational software. She lives in Philadelphia with several fake plants and two mysterious cats.
You can find Marianne @flamingoboots on Instagram.
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Harper Stuart Villani
THEY/THEM
Harper’s interests in horror and dystopian fiction deepen daily.
Some of their favorite past reads include Every Bone a Prayer by Ashley Blooms, The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, and The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood.
Harper attends VCFA and is working toward their MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults. They are slated to graduate in Summer of 2023. When they’re not reading and writing, they’re tutoring kids or spending time with their polycule and six pets.
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Jay Whistler
SHE/HER
Jay holds an MFA in writing for children and young adults and an MA in technical writing. She has worked as a professional writer for over thirty years, was a university writing instructor for over 16 years, and served as an editor for a literary journal.
She is currently an acquisitions reader for a literary agency and a freelance editor with Angelella Editorial.
Her first MG nonfiction title, THE GHOSTLY TALES OF SAN ANTONIO, debuted in August 2021.
She also grew up in a haunted house and comes from a family of psychics.