Welcome to Poetic Anatomy, a creative writing session led by Helen Hafgnýr Cova, a multilingual author whose work spans poetry, short stories, and children’s literature across Icelandic, English, and Spanish, English.

For this lesson, you will need: three pieces of translucent paper (such as baking paper), a pencil and eraser, and a light-colored surface underneath to help you see your writing clearly.

Helen Hafgnýr Cova, born in Venezuela, is an Iceland-based writer, founder of Editorial Karíba, and member of Ós Pressan. She is the author of children’s books, short stories, and poetry, including Snúlli Likes Being Alone (2019), Autosarcophagy – To Eat Oneself (2020), Snúlli Learns to Say No (2022), and her poetry collection Ljóð fyrir klofið hjarta (2023). Her book Svona tala ég (2023) was nominated for the Reykjavík UNESCO City of Literature Children’s Book Award. In 2025, she published two children’s books: Við and Snúlli Wonders About Respect.

Her work appears in international anthologies and literary magazines, and she has participated in festivals worldwide. Based in the Westfjords, she runs the publishing initiative Karíba and the Flateyri Literary Festival.