Michelle Rau published her first cartoon book at the age of eight, sparking a life-long creative spree. She has explored many channels of creative expression: painting, fiber arts, collage, jewelry making, graphic design, photography, and mixed media sculpture.
In the 1980s and 1990s, her cartoons, reviews and essays appeared in independent magazines such as Factsheet Five, Off Our Backs, and the Alternative Press Review. Michelle holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Oregon. She attended graduate school in Journalism and Communications.
After twenty years of academic, business and technical writing, Michelle returned to creative writing. In 2011 she self-published The Guest Room of the Heart, poetry drawing on a love for the details of day to day life. Michelle has joined National Novel Writing Month events since 2010, resulting in one-act plays, paranormal short stories, a murder mystery, and a nonfiction book about women’s fitness at midlife. She writes in multiple fiction genres, most often mystery, paranormal or supernatural fiction, satire, erotica and romance.
As an artist and writer Michelle is especially intrigued by the life sciences, design principles within biology, applied arts and engineering. She strives to grow as a writer by experimenting with form and genre, and prefers to dive deep into subject matter expertise and meaning.
When not writing, Michelle reads biographies, nonfiction, history, murder mysteries and police procedurals. Or she’s taking road trips and photographs, cultivating a garden, wrapping up a home improvement project, or exploring the great outdoors by car, bike or kayak. On the big screen, she enjoys documentary, horror, suspense and thrillers, paranormal, and animation.
Michelle offers technical writing skills and business, marketing and ebook communications expertise under her business name How Do You Spell It Productions.
michelle rau 