our team

Leadership

Kaitlyn Bai

Director

Kaitlyn Bai is a writer and student from Seattle, Washington. She is a 2026 YoungArts Winner with Distinction in Fiction, a Scholastic Gold Medalist and Best-in-Grade Award recipient, a Seattle Youth Poetry Fellow, and a Bennington Young Writers Awards Finalist. An alumna of the Kenyon Review Young Writers Workshop and the Adroit Journal Summer Mentorship Program, she serves as a Senior Prose Editor at Afterbodies and a Prose Reader at Eucalyptus Lit. When not writing, Kaitlyn is drawing, reading, or listening to the Seattle rain.

Nehal Joshi

Director

Nehal Joshi is a writer and student from Seattle, Washington. She is the author of a published novel, and her writing has been recognized by the Alliance of Young Writers and Artists. In addition to writing fiction, she is a published essayist and blog writer. Outside of writing, she enjoys reading, tennis, exploring math, and debate.

Isabelle Li

Director

Isabelle Li is a student poet from the Greater Seattle area. Her work has been recognized by the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers and Seattle Arts & Lectures, among others. An alumna of the Iowa Young Writers Studio and the Adroit Journal Summer Mentorship Program, she serves as an Executive Editor and API Contest Reader for Polyphony Lit. Beyond writing and reading, she is passionate about flute, history, and visual arts.

Staff

Kylie Zhang

Kylie Zhang is a writer and student from the Seattle metropolitan area. She is a 2026 New York Times Summer Reading Contest winner, a runner-up in the 2025 New York Times Summer Reading Contest, and holds Scholastic Silver Keys in poetry. Besides writing, she enjoys competitive chess, debate, and tennis.

Danielle Bar

Danielle Bar is a writer and student from the Greater Seattle area. She writes across a variety of forms, with a particular interest in poetry. In 2026, she was the Washington HOSA State Champion in Extemporaneous Writing. Danielle also enjoys working with younger students, having served for three years as an Assistant Teacher with the Science is Weird online education program, for two years as an Assistant Dance Teacher at Gotta Dance, and as a math tutor at Interlake High School. Beyond writing, she is passionate about dance, reading, and science.

Join Our Team

The Inkroot Project was founded by young writers, for young writers. Our team is dedicated and passionate about providing fun, collaborative creative writing instruction for students across the Puget Sound.

Staff applications are currently open. Visit the “Join Now” page if you’re a student or young writer interesting in joining our team.