Joaquín Gallegos Lara (April 9, 1909 – November 16, 1947) was an Ecuadorian social realist novelist, short story writer, poet, and essayist.

Lara's early poems include "Al Potro", "Vieja Despedida", and "Mamá-Jijí" (a character in his novel Las Cruces Sobre el Agua), among others.

In 1930, he wrote the collection of short stories Los Que Se Van, together with Demetrio Aguilera Malta and Enrique Gil Gilbert.

Both writers are credited as the authors of Guandos On October 4, 1944, Lara was awarded the Gold Medal from the Municipality of Guayaquil for his patriotic journalism.

His paternal uncle Julián Lara Calderón wanted to take him to the U.S. to seek treatment, but he was denied a visa, so he went to Lima, Peru, but they expelled him from the country due to his affiliation with the communist party.