Leyli Salayeva

Leyli Salayeva is an award-winning performance poet, writer, and literary translator. She is the author of the award-winning children’s book Dilber and Her Spoonful Journey (TimePrint, 2016); two poetry books in English, Twelve Thirteen (2014) and Youtopia (2016), recipient of an honorable mention at the 2016 London Book Festival; and two poetry books in Russian, Anabioz (2018) and Zatilok (2020).

Salayeva’s poems and articles have been published in numerous literature journals in the UK, Poland, Canada, Russia, Australia, and the United States. Her collaborative works with local and international artists have been exhibited at The Poetry Society (UK), the Triumph Gallery (Moscow), the Yay Gallery (Baku), the Tbilisi Art Fair, and other venues. In 2018, Salayeva was one of four role models in the series of videos for the #GirlsCan campaign rolled out by UNICEF and the Association of Football Federations of Azerbaijan (AFFA). 

Salayeva earned a bachelor’s degree in English linguistics from the Azerbaijan University of Languages and an MBA in productions and operations management from Georgia State University partnered with Azerbaijan State Oil Academy. She is a member of the Union of Azerbaijani Writers and of the United Kingdom Poetry Society. Salayeva is a founder of Updown Poetry & Squarefiftyseven poetry concepts.