Jacqueline (Cobian) West grew up in western Wisconsin, within sight of the Twin Cities. She earned a BM in voice performance with a minor in English from the University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire, changed her mind about being a classical singer midway through grad school, and earned her English teaching certification at Edgewood College. She has worked as a church soloist, barista, Montessori preschool teacher, dinner theatre actress, voice instructor, arts writer, waitress, and high school English teacher, and is now happily spending her days as a full-time writer. She lives amid the bluffs of Red Wing, Minnesota, with her husband and their dog, a Springer Spaniel mix named Brom Bones.

Jacqueline loves dogs of all shapes and sizes, is sadly allergic to cats (though she manages to write about them without developing a rash), and is at least a little bit afraid of all fish larger than a hot dog bun. If you are sharing a pizza, she will ask for the crust pieces. Don’t get her started talking about Kurt Vonnegut, Muse, The Simpsons (seasons 1 – 8, anyway), or Sylvia Plath, or you’ll be sorry.

THE BOOKS OF ELSEWHERE, VOLUME ONE: THE SHADOWS, Jacqueline’s first work for young readers, is forthcoming from Dial in the US and will also be published in Italy, Spain, Greece, Turkey, Sweden, and Germany. Her poetry has appeared in a variety of print and online publications and has garnered several awards, including a Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg prize and two Pushcart nominations. Her poetry series, Cherma, was published in March 2010 by the University of Wisconsin’s Parallel Press chapbook series.

For more, visit www.jacquelinewest.com.