I’m a native Californian, though I haven’t called the Golden State home since I left for college at the age of 17. Now, I reside in the Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, a place I first fell in love with during my graduate studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Here, I cherish the distinct change of seasons, which reflect the natural cycles of life in a way that California rarely does. However, I’m still getting used to the frigid winters and the heavy layers of clothing keeping warm necessitates!

I earned a PhD from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and embarked on a fulfilling academic career as a research professor of social welfare and public policy, with a focus on poverty issues, especially those affecting women. Throughout my career, I became widely published in the social sciences, driven by a desire to tackle the shameful levels of poverty in the most affluent nation on earth—a consequence of the profit-driven capitalist system that underpins our economy. Eventually, I grew disillusioned with the lack of political will to enact the necessary social policies to combat this issue, and after 26 years, I left academia.

After taking a year off, I found my way back to journalism, a field I had initially pursued as an undergraduate. I took a part-time job with a small, semi-rural newspaper syndicate, writing feature stories, editorials, and a column advocating for women’s issues. This experience reignited my passion for the beauty and power of words and their ability to stimulate thought and action, as well as inviting me to rediscover the fascinating, diverse world outside academia’s imposing ivory tower.

I enjoyed academic life but found being a journalist was a lot of fun in a different way. I held the newspaper job for eight years, until an academic publisher approached me with an opportunity to write a book about women and poverty in 21st-century America. This led to the publication of four non-fiction books and a return to academia as part of a research team at the University of Wisconsin. During this period, I also decided to venture into fiction writing, which has become a very challenging, yet immensely rewarding journey.

Growing up Catholic, I never felt quite at home in that patriarchal-driven faith. As an adult, I confirmed my matrilineal Jewish heritage, which I had long suspected. I am immensely proud of this extraordinary heritage and the family history it revealed. My pen name, Avery Michael, honors my Jewish great-grandmother, Bertha Michael, who emigrated from Germany to America through Ellis Island in the late 19th century.

Today, I live with my husband, a retired Milwaukee trial attorney and award-winning short story writer, on semi-rural land surrounded by peacefully beautiful, inspiring scenery. We share our home with our brilliant and loving dog, who happily includes us in his life of endless adventures.