Shawna Kay Rodenberg is originally from Seco, a tiny former coal camp near the headwaters of the Kentucky River in Letcher County, Kentucky. She is a mother, grandmother, community college English instructor and a registered nurse. Her poetry, essays and reviews have appeared in Consequence, Elle, Salon, the Village Voice, the Bennington Review, the Crab Creek Review, Kudzu and Pine Mountain Sand & Gravel; she was a recipient of the 2016 Jean Ritchie Fellowship and a 2017 Rona Jaffe Writers' Award in creative nonfiction. Rodenberg is also a vocalist; she and her husband, David, are collaborating on an album, a mix of original Americana, vintage country and traditional mountain songs. Her memoir, Kin, was published by Bloomsbury on June 8, 2021.

Overcoming Adversity, Writing, Authors, Poetry, religion, Essayist, English, Storytelling, Personal Story, Literary Faith & Religion,