Mahak Jain

Mahak Jain is a professor in the Honours Bachelor of Creative Writing and Publishing program. She completed her MFA in Creative Writing at the University of Guelph and writes fiction and poetry for young people and adults.

Mahak is passionate about the imagination and the arts and is the author of three picture books on the subject: Maya (illust. by Elly Mackay), winner of the South Asia Book Award; Bharatanatyam in Ballet Shoes (illust. by Anu Chouhan); and The Only Astronaut (illust. by Andrea Stegmaier), forthcoming in spring 2023. Her adult fiction has been longlisted for the Journey Prize and her debut collection, We Are Only Human, is forthcoming from McClelland & Stewart/Penguin Random House Canada in spring 2024.

Mahak is also passionate about literary citizenship. As a past host and organizer of the Emerging Writers Reading Series, she curated and developed programming featuring underrepresented and emerging voices. She has taught and mentored creative writing for community organizations such as the Toronto Arts Council, Toronto Public Library, and Inkwell Workshops. She brings an inclusive and intersectional approach to the classroom, including in her reading lists, which tend to be eclectic.

As well as being an author, Mahak was previously the Program Administrator for the University of Guelph Creative Writing MFA and the Managing Editor at Owlkids. She has edited books for Penguin Random House Canada for Young Readers, Annick Press, and Kids Can Press. She currently acquires and edits fiction for Buckrider Books/Wolsak & Wynn. Mahak's interests and experience are wide ranging, and she encourages students to use the classroom to explore their curiosities as well.