Kekla graduated from Northwestern University, where she majored in History, with a concentration in the History of Africa and the Middle East. It is a relief to have people like this in your life. Even though writing is very hard work, especially when you have another full-time job to do at the same time, Kekla loved every minute of the program because she had finally figured out what she wanted to do with her life! It also gave her a chance to connect with a community of fellow writers-people who are huge book-dorks like she is, who care about storytelling and kids and reading as much as she does, and who completely understand why sometimes you just have to whip out a pen on the subway and start writing a story on the backs of your Trader Joe’s receipts, even if it makes bystanders regard you as weird.
Kekla earned a master of fine arts in writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts, via a low-residency program specifically designed for children’s writers. These jobs taught her how to raise money (a very useful skill) and how to deal with people of all ages in all circumstances (even more useful a skill) and that she is not cut out to work in a traditional office setting. She was a recruiter for the Girl Scouts (not as sinister as it sounds) a grant writer for The Salvation Army (exactly as sinister as it sounds) and a fundraising coordinator for The Brotherhood/Sister Sol, a grassroots youth empowerment agency in Harlem (nothing sinister there). Before she became a professional writer, she worked for non-profit organizations around the city. Prior to Vermont, Kekla lived in New York City. She teaches at Vermont College of Fine Arts where she mentors other writers who also want to create books for young readers. She travels to schools and libraries around the country to talk about her books with young readers, which is a lot of fun. She is a full time author, speaker, and writing teacher.
Today, Kekla lives and writes in Vermont. (Her mother is very proud of the early age at which Kekla learned to read, but beyond that, who really cares to go back so far?) Besides, what she is doing now is much more interesting than what she was doing as an infant. Most people prefer to begin their bios at the beginning, but Kekla has never been like most people.
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