PEN America Chapter: Arizona

Michelle Beaver is an author, editor, journalist and dedicated social-justice volunteer. She’s written two health books for Reader’s Digest and John Wiley &  Sons. A book she self-published helped bridge the gap between gay Mormons and their church and was the focus of a National Public Radio program. Michelle has edited fiction and nonfiction books and served as the judge of Fiction500, a national short-story competition. Her forthcoming novel, Cypher Crew, is about five misfits who unite through hip-hop street dance to save Arizona’s oldest high school from getting shut down by greed.

Michelle has reported full time for the Associated Press and Bay Area News Group and has won national journalism awards. For 20 years she’s freelanced for publications such as PHOENIX Magazine, The Oakland Tribune, The Mercury News, Los Angeles Review of Books and the USA Today Network. She’s also served as editor in chief of five national healthcare magazines.