Amanda Sledz grew up in Cleveland, and began her published writing career crafting advice columns, commentary, music and movie reviews for the Cleveland Plain Dealer. An early over-achiever, she also participated in slam poetry competitions and was interviewed for the documentary Picture Perfect by Carol Tizzano. She then attended Ohio University, where she earned a BA in English with a thesis in nonfiction writing, and wrote the column “Shaken Not Stirred” and feature articles for the Athens News. After graduation she worked as staff writer for the Athens Insider and wrote know-it-all political columns and the humor column “Issy the Advice Cat.” Amanda then left Athens to pursue an MFA at Spalding University in Kentucky, where she spent one year as nonfiction editor of The Louisville Review. Sometime around then she moved to Portland, and discovered the importance of water resistant clothing and Vitamin D supplements.

Amanda’s essays and short stories have appeared in four editions of the Voicecatcher Anthology (as well as the Best of Voicecatcher 10th Anniversary Edition), the online magazine Blood Lotus, EFiction Horror, Sphere, and other literary publications. Amanda has been a featured reader at Powell’s City of Books and at Portland annual Wordstock Festival, and has participated in two Portland performances of the popular national show Mortified. The experience proved more satisfying than mortifying, but Amanda has a lot of gym-teacher angst to exorcise and likes dropping the f-bomb on stage. She’s also a two-time recipient of Regional Arts and Culture Council’s Professional Development grants, which were used to attend conferences and promote her first book.

She’s written a nonfiction book that will likely continue to rot in its grave  (9 Dreams of Prison) and a novel (Psychopomp) which has been divided into two parts. The first (Volume One: Cracked Plate) was released November 2012, and can be purchased through this website, through One Eye Two Crows Press , through Amazon,  Powell’s, Barnes and Noble, Amazon UK, or your area bookstore. Psychopomp Volume Two: All of Us Are Hiding will be released eventually. The best way to talk her into this is purchasing even more copies of the first book.

If you’ve landed in the cyber ghost town after a little reddit sleuthing, yes: Amanda is also fractalfay, writer of satire and scathing television recaps. You can read more of these shenanigans on Patreon, if you would like her to experience money. Most writers know money as well as graphic designers and musicians, which is why they’re all in their feelings and don’t answer calls with unlisted numbers.

She’s current all about her house of wonders, Agate Acres and Cat Ranch, where you’ll find her digging holes, harvesting huckleberries, pointing out birds of prey to crows, and walking around with a cat on her back. She would leave more often, but hates standing in lines.

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