Willy Maley is the son of James Maley, one of the last surviving members of the International Brigade.From the Calton to Catalonia, a play based on his father's experiences as a POW in Spain in 1937, was staged at The Tramway Theatre, Glasgow, in 2004. He is Professor of Renaissance Studies at the University of Glasgow and co-founded, with Philip Hobsbaum, the Glasgow's Creative Writing Master's course.

Willy Maley's work featured in PN Review comprises one contribution of poetry.