2025-2026 Staff
Editor-in-Chief – Miles Kovnick
Miles Kovnick is an MFA candidate at Northern Arizona University. His work focuses on how human systems impact the environment by interweaving science writing into the speculative projection of our world. He comes to Arizona by way of San Francisco, and obtained his BA in English from the University of Utah. He looks forward to leading production for Thin Air Magazine’s Issue 32: Systems!
Managing Editor – Sam Blankenship
Sam Blankenship is a second-year creative writing MFA student at Northern Arizona University, studying fiction. He serves as the managing editor of Thin Air Magazine, with literary interests including psychology, history, post-apocalyptic world building, and climate fiction. He has a lifelong passion for tennis, and currently serves on the Southwest Tennis Foundation’s board of directors.
Community Director – Danielle Hedquist
Danielle Hedquist is a fiction writer and visual artist from Gaithersburg, Maryland. Her work has been published in 805 Lit + Art. She is an MFA candidate at Northern Arizona University where they are experimenting with fictional writing styles with a focus on environmental narrative.
Creative Director – KaNeshia Hooks
KaNeshia Hooks is the current Creative Director of Thin Air Magazine, and a second year in the Northern Arizona University MFA program. She graduated in 2011 from American Intercontinental University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Media Production. She is an independent author and a devout fan of great storytelling, no matter the genre. She’s excited to be a part of Thin Air Magazine!
Public Relations Manager – Jeanine Martinez
Jeanine Martinez is a Chicana woman of many identities: rhetorician, writer, researcher, snowboarder, etc. Jeanine is pursuing her master’s in Rhetoric, Writing, and Digital Media Studies at Northern Arizona University, where her work focuses on climate change communication and access to outdoor recreation for underrepresented communities.
Web Editor – Maisie Hayes
Maisie Hayes is an MFA student at Northern Arizona University. She is presently working as a Graduate Teaching Assistant where she enjoys holding a captivating and interactive classroom. In addition to her teaching experience, she has also been a guest lecturer at ECSU’s Winter Literary Festival and CREATE conference. Her work has appeared in Eastern Exposure and Outrageous Fortune Magazine. She has publishing experience working as Editor-and-Chief for her undergraduate journal, E^2. In her free time, Maisie enjoys drawing, hiking, and fighting for sport.
Poetry Editor – Malia Levison
Malia Kai Levison is an MFA candidate with a focus in poetry at Northern Arizona University. She teaches English Composition at NAU. Her work has appeared in Word Dog Quarterly (four volumes), Zaum, Flagstaff Bike Zine, Stick N’ Choke, and White Wall Review. She currently lives in Flagstaff, Arizona, but frequently returns to her hometown of Missoula, Montana, to teach Wilderness Emergency Medical Technician courses and swim in the Bitterroot River.
Fiction Editor – Augustine Obasi
Augustine Obasi is an MFA candidate at Northern Arizona University. He holds a BA in English Language and Literature; an MA in Literary Studies both from Nnamdi Azikiwe University. He is the fiction editor at Thin Air Magazine, and teaches ENG 105 and 205 at NAU. He writes fiction, nonfiction and poetry.
Nonfiction Editor – Emile Estrada
Born in Caracas, Venezuela, Emile Estrada immigrated to the U.S. due to the deteriorating political landscape of his native country. He studied philosophy at San Jose State and is currently working on his MFA at Northern Arizona University. His fiction can be found in The Good Life Review and in Thin Air Magazine.
Assistant Poetry Editor – Alice Tyszka
Alice Tyszka is an MFA candidate at Northern Arizona University focusing on eco-poetry, poetry of place and spirituality, and feminist poetry. She shouts and whispers truths in her collections Finding My Light, Embracing the Storm, and Loving this Life, as well as her self-help and motivational book Abundance. Alice’s work has also appeared in The Echo Visual Arts & Literary Magazine and The Paladin. In addition to writing, Alice pursues connection and storytelling as the founder and publishing consultant of her company: Alice’s Authoring Agency LLC. Currently, Alice also serves as the assistant poetry editor for Thin Air and has cherished every moment!
Assistant Fiction Editor – Isaiah Acevedo
Isaiah Acevedo is a fiction writer from Southern California. His work has appeared in Horrorsmith and elsewhere. A first-year MFA candidate at Northern Arizona University, he is the assistant fiction editor for Thin Air Magazine. Acevedo also co-founded The NAU’s Writers’ Club Anthology, where he currently serves as director of operations.
Assistant Nonfiction Editor – Svitlana Libet
Svitlana Libet is an author, editor, and journalist from Kyiv, Ukraine. Her work mainly includes interviews, art critiques, and essays that were widely published in various Ukrainian cultural magazines. Currently, Svitlana is an MFA candidate at Northern Arizona University, where she is working on her debut fiction novel.
Assistant Web Editor – Kruger
Kruger is an aspiring novelist from Arizona, currently working on his debut novel. He loves using speculative fiction to explore sociological and anthropological ideas, with inspiration taken from the works of Octavia E. Butler and Ursula K. LeGuin. He is studying for his MFA at Northern Arizona University.
Faculty Advisor – Lawrence Lenhart
Lawrence Lenhart teaches creative writing at Northern Arizona University. He is the author of three essay collections, including Backvalley Ferrets. In 2025, he wrote, composed, and produced the cowpunk fantasia, Pop Goes the Ferret! With Will Cordeiro, he is the author of two textbooks, most recently Experimental Writing. Lenhart is an editor at DIAGRAM and Executive Director of the Northern Arizona Book Festival.
Thin Air Magazine Readers:
Simon Bontrager
Eric Christensen
Svea Conrad
Natalie Ibarra
Kaela Loftus
Ben Norris
Caleb Rosenthal
