Abdullahi Janno

Abdullahi Janno is the author of When River Stopped Singing to Cloud, a picture book, and Dhakafaar, a collection of Somali short stories. He writes short stories and picture books. His stories appeared both online and in print including the Water~Stone Review. One of his short stories, “Heirloom”, was selected as a notable story in the 2019 Best American Short Stories. Abdullahi has a BA in English Literature from U of M–Twin Cities and MA in TESOL from Hamline University. As a recipient of the 2022-2023 Loft Mirrors and Windows Fellowship, he believes in narrative power, and his writing gravitates toward social change. He lives in Saint Paul with his wife and kids. One of his favorite inspirational quotes is: “A writer never has a vacation. For a writer, life consists of either writing or thinking about writing,” Eugene Ionesco.