Apart from her writing, MARY LEWIS has long been drawn to the outdoors, which led her to study aquatic biology, microbiology, and sustainable agriculture. Together with her husband, she built a log house on a piece of land where they cultivated hazelnuts—helping to lay the foundation for the Midwest’s hazelnut industry. Later, she taught at Luther College. Along the way, she also taught dance and piano. She has a particular weakness for Beethoven, loves both ice and roller skating, though she finds wheels are best reserved for parades.

Lewis holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Augsburg University. Her work has been recognized with nominations for a Pushcart Prize, the Best of the Net Anthology, and the Best American Series. Her stories and essays have appeared in numerous journals, including Allium, Antigonish Review, Blue Lake Review, Cleaver Magazine, Feels Blind Literary, Ginosko, Inscape, Main Street Rag, Map Literary, Minerva Rising, Nonbinary Review, North American Review, Persimmon Tree, Rivanna, Rundelania, Sensitive Skin, Sleet Magazine, Superstition Review, Taj Mahal Review, The Opiate, The Woven Tale Press, Thieving Magpie, Toasted Cheese, Wilderness House Literary Review, and Wordrunner.

More on Lewis may be found on her website.