Our Mission

HFR looks for well-crafted work that takes risks, challenges readers, and engages us emotionally  and artistically. The makeup of our editorial team changes every year, and we pride ourselves on our values of inclusivity and multiplicity, seeking to uplift emerging writers and artists. We are interested in creative work that takes risks with language and form, work that challenges boundaries/borders and systems of power, work that examines historically marginalized experiences, as well as work that identifies as hybrid or genre-nonconforming. As a diverse team of editors, we are invested in highlighting voices traditionally underrepresented in the literary landscape, including writers and artists in BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, TGNC, disabled, and economically marginalized communities. Through our publications and events, we aim to showcase a variety of stylistic and artistic modes.

Land Acknowledgement

Hayden’s Ferry Review and ASU’s four campuses are situated on the unceded ancestral lands of the Akimel O’odham (Pima), Pee Posh (Maricopa), and many other Indigenous peoples. We recognize the original stewards of this land and honor those living here today, including the Gila River Indian Community, the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, the Pascua Yaqui Tribe, and the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation. Furthermore, we recognize that we would not be here today if not for the American occupation of O’odham and Piipaash lands, beginning with the 1854 Gadsden Purchase, which caused a rapidly growing settler population that instigated the “Time of Famine.” We know that a land acknowledgment without action is not sufficient and are making efforts toward equitable practices most immediately by providing a number of free submissions for underrepresented writers for each print issue, keeping our submissions free for web issues, and celebrating Indigenous authors with our 2023 Indigenous Poets Prize.

Susan Nguyen,
Editor-in-Chief

Susan Nguyen is the author of Dear Diaspora (2021), which won the Prairie Schooner Book Prize, an Outstanding Achivement Award form the Association of Asian American Studies, a New Mexico-Arizona Book Award, and was a finalist for the Julie Suk Award. She is the recipient of fellowships from the Vermont Studio Center, Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, Arizona Commission on the Arts, and elsewhere. A Kundiman Fellow, she is a member of the She Who Has No Master(s) collective and is an alum of ASU’s MFA program.

Sarah Scarcliff,
Nonfiction Editor

Sarah Scarcliff is an MFA candidate studying poetry at Arizona State University. She is the author of the children's book Pitanga, a story about frogs, deforestation, and what humans can do to mitigate the effects of climate change. Her work can be found in Obindo Magazine, Spectrum Literary Journal, and MSU Roadrunner Review. She is from Birmingham, Alabama.

Tsong Chang ,
Translations Editor

Tsong Chang (She/They) is a fiction writer, and literary translator. You can find their translations in Asymptote and Poetry International Online, and their short story in Epiphany: A Literary Journal. Pursuing an MFA in Fiction at Arizona State University, they are the translations editor at Hayden’s Ferry Review. They live in Mesa, Arizona.

Fin Farmer

Maria Lata

Josephine O’Connor

Eva Tanderup

Gib Manrique

Gib Manrique is a fourth-year undergraduate student pursuing a degree in Journalism and Mass Communication. He is a queer person of color and specializes in narrative reporting and magazine writing. He also has worked in radio and podcasting. Outside of academics, he is an intern at Wasted Ink Zine Distro and active in the poetry/creative writing community in Phoenix, Arizona.

Maggie Sepeda

Maggie Sepeda is originally from Taos, New Mexico, but spent much of her twenties working and traveling. She has lived all over the world, including New Zealand, Australia, Bolivia, and Alaska. She returned to school in 2023 and got her AA in English, Creative Writing before transferring to ASU. She is currently a Journalism and Mass Communications major, and is also studying French. Outside of school, Maggie works at a dog groomer. She loves literature, traveling, cooking, and spending time outdoors with her husband and their dog.

Audrey Treon

Audrey is a third-year English student with a focus on fiction and fashion journalism. Outside of her studies, Audrey is a true lover of all artistic endeavors. She can often be found reading and writing, decorating her apartment, vintage shopping, and playing with her dogs.