Biography

A woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction.

— Virginia Woolf

Ana leads creative writing workshops in the Napa Valley, the City of Sonoma and on Zoom. She’s a member of the Witness Protection Program Poets and founded North Bay Poetics, the social and educational arm of the WPPP. Ana coaches writers, assists in developing projects and copyedits through her editing service, JAM Manuscript Consulting.

When Ana isn’t helping other writers, she reviews favorite author’s books, showcases student work, posts on writing craft and the business of writing at Building a Better Story. She’s currently at work on her next chapbook and the fourth JadeAnne Stone Mexico Adventure, Coyote—Terror and Pursuit Across the Border. Her memoir of living in Mexico is scheduled for completion this year.

Ana has branded cattle in Hollister, lived on houseboats, consulted brujos, visited every California mission, worked for a PI, swum with dolphins, eaten a chapuline and out-run gun totin’ maniacs on lonely Mexican highways—the inspiration for The JadeAnne Stone Mexico Adventures, a serialized story set against the backdrop of organized crime. She blogs about her transformative experiences living in Mexico at Saints and Skeletons, which can be read at www.saintsandskeletons.com.

In addition to writing, editing and teaching, Ana is active in the writing community. Currently she sits on the board of Sisters in Crime Northern California. She is the former Treasurer of CWC branches, Redwood Writers and Napa Valley Writers, among other board positions. Ana was awarded the Helene S. Barnhardt award for service to the writing community.

She holds a B.A. in English and Education and an M.A. in Linguistics: Curriculum, Teaching and Learning. She has attended the Tomales Bay Writers Conference and several Left Coast Crime conferences where she has moderated and participated on panels.