About us
KOZA Publishing was founded by writers Jovan Zafirović and Jelena Kovačević with the aim of supporting creative work that does not follow trends, but instead steadfastly explores inner worlds and the reality that has shaped us and continues to shape us, preserving what is most valuable within us — our ability to feel, think, and understand one another.
Jovan Zafirović (Donje Korminjane, 1997) holds a degree in sociology and is the head of KOZA Publishing. He is the author of two collections of aphorisms, Glavom kroz stid (2022) and Kosovski cirkus (2024).
He is the recipient of the Vib Award, presented by the newspaper Politika to the best young satirist, as well as the Mladi Tipar Award, the Vuk Gligorijević Award, and the “Poenta” Award, presented by the Novi Sad Book Festival to the best young author.
In 2024, the Library for the Blind of Montenegro published Glavom kroz stid in DAISY format.
His aphorisms have been translated into Russian, Bulgarian, Romanian, and Macedonian. His writings and aphorisms are regularly published in print and digital media in Serbia and throughout the region.
He has worked as a scriptwriter for the comedy program Karavan on Radio Belgrade.
He is a member of the Journalists’ Association of Serbia and of the Board of Directors of the Belgrade Aphoristic Circle. He is also the editor of the satirical magazine Etna.
He lives and works in Belgrade.
Jelena Kovačević (Bajina Bašta, 1988) is a historian, senior archivist, co-founder, editor, and social media content manager at KOZA Publishing.
She is the author of the poetry collection Stradanje (2021), which received the Vuk’s Foundation Award for Art in 2021 and the “Dušan Đaković Duja” Award of the Krajina Literary Community in 2023.
The collection consists of 41 poems based on archival documents and historical literature, dealing with the genocide committed against the Serbian people in the Independent State of Croatia, including events in Petrinja, Jajce, the Jasenovac and Slano concentration camps, Glina, Dvor, Trebinje, Rogatica, Bosanski Petrovac, Bosanski Brod, Prebilovci, Miloševići and Stari Brod, Kozarska Dubica, Ilidža, Sunja, Draksenić, Stolac, Bihać, Glamoč, Bosanska Gradiška, and other locations. Twenty-nine of the poems are accompanied by excerpts from archival sources and historical literature.
Her work has been featured in Serbian and international print and digital media, literary journals, and anthologies, and her poems have been translated into English, Russian, and Macedonian.
She lives and works in Belgrade.