(Morocco, 1975) is an award-winning writer, poet, playwright and curator. His 1996 debut, Bruiloft aan zee (Wedding By the Sea), was an immediate success. His second novel, De langverwachte (The Long-awaited) won him the prestigious 2003 Libris Literature Award. Benali's subjects vary, but sports and the migrant who never really feels at home are recurring themes. He has written novels about his great passion of running, about his travels, and about migrants' cultural identity (Bad Boy). His work has been published internationally. Recent books include the novel Paradijsvogel boven Hoge Woerd (Bird of Paradise over Hoge Woerd, 2022) and Het andere verhaal (The Other Story, 2022), an essay about his research into 75 years of modern Moroccan art.

(Hoogezand-Sappemeer, NL, 1975) modelled his successful third novel, Kinderen van het Ruige Land (Children of the Rough Country, 2012) on his youth; it won several prizes. Slaap zacht, Johnny Idaho (Sleep Sweetly, Johnny Idaho, 2015) and En ik herinner me Titus Broederland (And I Remember Titus Brotherland, 2016) both won the novel prize of the Harland Awards. Aside from writing, Hulst is a literary critic, travel journalist and essayist. In 2017 he initiated Als dit zo doorgaat (If this Goes on), a story collection in which 24 Dutch writers react to the right shift in the political climate. He is also a musician. His books Wolfskleren (Wolf's Clothing, 2009) and Motel Songs (2017) both had accompanying albums and he is the frontman of the Dutch-language band De Meisjes (The Girls).