Tamta Melashvili

Tamta Melashvili is an award-winning writer, activist, and researcher. Her first novel COUNTING OUT, published in 2010, was followed by an immense success bringing recognition to the author as a new and exceptional voice of contemporary Georgian literature. In 2011, COUNTING OUT received the leading Georgian literary award Saba and in 2013, its German translation was granted Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis. 

Her latest novels include TO THE EAST (2015) and BLACKBIRD BLACKBIRD BLACKBERRY (2020). BLACKBIRD BLACKBIRD BLACKBERRY became a bestselling text gaining the Saba Award in 2021 as the best novel of the year.  

Melashvili’s texts are translated into German, Italian, Russian, Croatian, Lithuanian, Macedonian, and Albanian Languages. She has participated in several internationally acclaimed residency programs. In her novels, the author addresses the issues of trauma, inequalities, sexuality, and power.