21st Century Writers - Ecuadorian Literature

Piedad Romo-Leroux Girón

Piedad Romo-Leroux Girón (Guayaquil) is an Ecuadorian psychiatrist, university professor, and well-known children’s author with 56 volumes to her credit, including poetry, fiction, essays, and plays. From 1970 to 2008, she was the Chief Doctor of the Children’s Ward at the Lorenzo Ponce Psychiatric Hospital; from 2008 to 2010, she supervised the hospital’s Academic Council; and from 2010 to 2011, she directed the Santa Rosa Women’s Ward.

Cristian Avecillas

Cristian Avecillas Sigüenzas (Quito, 1977) is an Ecuadorian poet, essayist, playwright, actor, singer and songwriter. He directed the cultural magazine CAMINARTE of the El Telégrafo radio. In 2008 his poetry book “Todos los cadáveres soy yo” received honorable mention at the Casa de las Américas literary prize competition (Cuba). That same year his poetry book “Ecce Homo II” won the César Dávila Andrade National Poetry Prize. He also wrote a book-length biographical study on Edmundo Ribadeneira. His first play Funeraria Travel (2009) won the Latin American Dramaturgy Award (Argentina). It had its debut in 2009 in La Plata, Argentina, and has been performed at theater festivals in Perú, Venezuela, Uruguay and Ecuador.

Patricio Guzmán Cárdenas

Patricio Guzmán Cárdenas (Cuenca, January 31, 1965) is a doctor, writer and poet. He has lived in Loja since the age of 14 and works as an anesthesiologist at the Macas General Hospital. His works have been published in different cities of Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia and Ecuador. His poems cover a wide range of topics, many of which are inspired by his work as an anesthesiologist. He has published 4 books of poetry and a book of stories.

Julia Veintimilla Jaramillo

Julia Veintimilla Jaramillo (Zaruma, El Oro, Ecuador, 1964) is a poet and writer. She is a Theologian, graduated from the IITD Institute, an extension of the Catholic University of Guayaquil. Since 2015 she has represented Ecuador in international poetry events in Peru (UNIVA World Eco-Poetry Festival, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017), Colombia (World Concert of Ecological Verses and Brushes, 2017) and in Mexico (First International Misantla Poetry Encounter, 2018).

César Hermida Bustos

César Hermida Bustos (Cuenca, 1943) is an Ecuadorian doctor, university professor and novelist. He is the son of the writer Dr. César Hermida Piedra. He was a professor at the Central University of Quito from 1972 to 1993. Later he was an honorary professor there. In 2019 his novel Amoríos won the “La Linares” award. He returned to live in Cuenca in 2018.

Juan Jacobo Melo

Juan Jacobo Melo Fierro (Tulcán, 1973) is an Ecuadorian writer, critic and essayist. He has a masters degree in Latin American Literature from the Private Technical University of Loja. Some of his work has been published in prestigious literary magazines in Ecuador as well as Spain, Mexico, Chile and Argentina. Some of his essays have been translated into English and French.

César Chávez Aguilar

César Chávez Aguilar (Tulcán, Ecuador, 1970 – November 10, 2022) was an Ecuadorian writer, bibliographer and librarian. He studied law at the Central University of Ecuador. His stories and essays were published in national and international magazines such as: Línea Imaginaria, Letras del Ecuador, and Encuentros (National Magazine of Culture). He carried out bibliographic research for the Municipality of Guayaquil and for the Benjamín Carrión Cultural Center in Quito, where he was employed as the library director. In 2012 he published “Herir la perfección,” his first book of short stories.

Tatiana Hidrovo Quiñónez

Tatiana María del Carmen Hidrovo Quiñónez (Portoviejo, 1961) is an Ecuadorian writer, university professor, researcher, historian and politician. She served on Ecuador’s Constituent Assembly from 2007 to 2008, which was tasked with drafting a new constitution.She has published several historical books about Ecuador’s Manabí region, including works on politics, the Catholic church, colonial-era proselytization of indigenous peoples, and more. In Montecristi, Ecuador, she was the president and director of the Ciudad Alfaro Civic Center.

Edwin Ulloa Arellano

Edwin Ulloa Arellano (Riobamba, 1947) is an Ecuadorian poet, novelist, short story writer, journalist, psychologist and retired university professor. Ulloa has lived in Guayaquil since adolescence. He was an official of the House of Ecuadorian Culture in Guayaquil. His books include Sobre una tumba una rumba (1992, short stories), La sombra de tu sonrisa (2014, poetry), Polvo de Ángel (2010, novel). He has worked as the general editor of the ANDES State News Agency, Diario Expreso, and La Otra Magazine, and as the director of the newspaper El Telégrafo.

Pedro Gil Flores

Pedro Gil Flores (Manta, May, 18, 1971 – January 22, 2022) was an Ecuadorian poet and short story writer. He published his first book of poems at the age of 17, Paren la Guerra que yo no juego (1988), followed by Delirium Tremens (1993), Con unas arrugas en la sangre (1997), He llevado una vida feliz (2001) Sano Juicio (2003), 17 Puñaladas no son nada (2010) and Crónico, Poemas del Siquiátrico Sagrado Corazón (2012). In 2014 Gil published a book of short stories titled El príncipe de los canallas (2o14). He has directed a writing workshop at the Eloy Alfaro Lay University of Manabí (ULEAM). He was called the “Ecuadorian Rimbaud” by the literary historian Hernán Rodríguez Castelo. He coordinated the poetry workshop of the Portoviejo branch of the House of Ecuadorian Culture.

Vicente Espinales Tejena

Vicente Espinales Tejena (Portoviejo, 1940) is a lawyer, doctor, painter, poet and former president of the Manabí chapter of the House of Ecuadorian Culture. He is cardiologist with a medical degree from the University of Guayaquil and earned a law degree from the Vicente Rocafuerte Secular University. He has also worked as a radio newscaster and as a university professor at the Technical University of Manabí. He has received national and international awards for his poetry.

Santiago Vizcaino

Santiago Vizcaíno Armijos (Quito, 1982) is an Ecuadorian poet, novelist and short story writer. He has a degree in Communications and Literature from the Catholic Pontifical University of Ecuador (PUCE). He has worked as an editor at the newspaper Hoy, the Office of Publications of the House of Ecuadorian Culture, and the magazine Nuestro Patrimonio (Our Patrimony). In 2008 he published his first book of poetry, Devastacíon en la tarde (translated into English by Alexis Levitin as Destruction in the Afternoon) and a book-length study of the Argentine poet Alejandra Pizarnik, both of which received awards. In 2015, La Caída Editorial published a bilingual version of his short story collection “Matar a mamá/Matricide” with the English translation by Kimrey Anna Batts. In 2017 Vizcaíno published his debut novel Complejo. His second novel Taco bajo was published in 2019. Vizcaíno is currently the Director of the PUCE Center for Publications.

Ana Minga

Ana Minga (Loja, 1984) is an Ecuadorian journalist, poet and short story writer. She has published five books of poetry. Her book entitled “Tobacco Dogs / Perros de Tabaco” (2013) is an English translation of her poems by Alexis Levitin, published in a bilingual edition by Bitter Oleander Press. Her latest and fifth poetry collection, “La Hora del Diablo,” was released in 2018. Her works have been published in Argentina, Mexico, United States, Spain and Italy. She has lived in Quito and currently lives in Cuenca.

Xavier Oquendo Troncoso

Xavier Oquendo Troncoso (Ambato, 1972) is an Ecuadorian poet, editorial writer, editor and professor. He has published over 11 titles, including poetry, short stories, children’s literature and anthologies of young writers from Ecuador. In 1993 he won the Pablo Palacio Short Story Award and the National Poetry Award. In 1999 the city of Ambato awarded him the Juan León Mera Award for all his literary work. His book “Salvados del naufragio” (2005) is a compilation of his poetry from 15 years of work up to the year in which it was published. His poems appeared in English translation in a book entitled “Poems That Love Me” (2016), translated by Gordon E. McNeer. Some of his poems have also been translated into Italian and Portuguese.

Ramiro Caiza

Victor Ramiro Caiza Guamán (Machachi, April 19, 1963) is an Ecuadorian poet, essayist and cultural promoter. He is the author of over 18 books of poetry and essays. He is the former president of the House of Ecuadorian Culture’s branch in Barcelona, Spain. He has served as secretary of the Association of Poets and Writers of Catalonia, Spain. He founded and was the president of the House of Ecuadorian Culture’s branch in the Mejía Canton of Ecuador. His latest books are Mejía Festivo (2020) and Haikus Cotidianos (2020). Caiza currently lives in Quito, Ecuador.