Melissa Cristina Ballete is a Bay Area writer, teacher, and graphic designer who believes in art and story as a catalyst for social justice and connection. Nominated in 2020 for the Pushcart Prize, her prose, centering on her experience as a second generation Filipina-American and her love of nature, has been published in Santa Clara University's student-only publication, The Owl, as well as in its global literary magazine, The Santa Clara Review. She graduated from Santa Clara University in 2022 with a BA in English and minor in Creative Writing, and is currently completing Associate's Degrees in Graphic Design, Mobile App & Web Design, and Interdisciplinary Studies in Arts and Media at the College of San Mateo through 2026.

Her latest projects include the curation of a community-made zine for the widely acclaimed free to play third person shooter Warframe, as well as expanding on the stories and art of her next chapbook, Engkantada, featured in her portfolio.