Yara Nakahanda Monteiro, a Luso-Angolan writer and artist, was born in Huambo, Angola, and now lives in Portugal. She studied human resources and worked in the field for 15 years, specializing in areas such as diversity & inclusion and talent management.

Her debut novel, Gravity of Tears (2018, published in German in 2022), has been translated into multiple languages and discussed at universities worldwide. Her short stories and poems have been published in various Portuguese magazines.

She also gives guest lectures on feminism, Afro-European identities, and narratives. Additionally, she is the co-author of two short films, Path to the Stars and The Island, both counter-narratives to Angola’s and Portugal’s colonial past.

In 2022, Yara Monteiro won the Glória de Sant’Anna Literary Prize for the Portuguese edition of the poetry collection Heart. Rhythm. Disturbances. Her poetry is decolonial and ecofeminist.

Citizenship: Portugal
Residence: Session 3 (07.04.-11.05.2025)