Marjan Kamali is the author of three books, including Together Tea, which was a finalist for the Massachusetts Book Award, an NPR WBUR Good Read pick, and a Target Emerging Author selection. She is the 2022 recipient of the National Endowment for the Arts Creative Writing Award. She was born in Turkey to Iranian parents and spent her childhood in Kenya, Germany, Turkey, Iran, and the United States. She holds degrees from the University of California at Berkeley, Columbia University, and New York University.