Born in Santiago de Compostela, Yolanda Castaño has published several well-received poetry collections, including O libro da egoísta (Visor Libros, 2003), Profundidade de campo (Visor Libros, 2009), which won the El Ojo Crítico Prize, A segunda lingua (Visor Libros, 2014), and Materia (Visor Libros, 2023), which won the National Poetry Prize, and explores themes that include motherhood and family. Among her most recent works are A falsa autónoma (Xerais, 2025) and Economía y poesía: rimas internas (Páginas de Espuma, 2025), her first book of essays, translated into Spanish. Her texts have been translated into numerous languages, and in recent years she has worked on projects that combine poetry with other artistic languages, such as music, audiovisual media and performance. Examples include her book-CD Edénica (Espiral Maior, 2000) and her collaboration as a lyricist for Galician musicians like Guadi Galego and Rosa Cedrón.

In addition to her literary production, Castaño is also responsible for the 1863 residency for writers in Galicia and has directed several poetry cycles, such as the Poetas Di(n)versos cycle in A Coruña, a space that invites creators from Galicia and around the world to recite their work each month. She has also served as general secretary for the Association of Galician Language Writers (AELG) and has been involved in the promotion of Galician literature internationally, coordinating major projects such as the international poetry translation workshop held every autumn on the island of San Simón, near Vigo.