Zoha Arif was accidentally given the wrong last name at birth, when her father rushed through paperwork and accidently wrote his first name as her last name. Since then, Zoha has lived the life of a person who suffers mild inconveniences due to having a different last name than the rest of her family. Though offered the opportunity to change her last name several times, she has declined the offer as her last name has become a staple of her identity (and an interesting story to tell).

 

Zoha is currently studying computer science and programming at the Academy for Information Technology where she enjoys working with machine learning modules and creating her own research projects. She lives in New Jersey and spends her free time spilling her strangest ideas into her works of fiction and creative nonfiction. Her works are usually rooted in South Asian culture with the occasional collection of thoughts on life. She currently edits for Polyphony Magazine and her high school newspaper to expose herself to the upcoming era of modern literature. Outside of creative writing and computer science, Zoha loves breathing in the outdoors and has taken her fascination with trees to avid weekend volunteer work with the New Jersey Forestry Service.