Janis Laurie studied at UT Austin and graduated with a B.A. in English and Secondary Education from Northland College in Ashland, Wisconsin. She currently holds a license as a high school English teacher and has previously been employed as a legal secretary, grocery store manager, and census taker, among other sundry occupations, in addition to being a single parent for the better part of thirty-six years. Currently she is living to write about it all in the wilds of Wisconsin.