Hey there! I'm Melissa.
I'm the Digital Editorial Manager at Your Teen Media, offering expert advice and nonjudgmental support for parents and caregivers raising teenagers and preteens.
I'm also the Co-Director of the Squam Writes Retreat. We focus on authors with big goals and inspire them to improve their craft by providing professional insight, personal support, and a laid-back community where all are welcome.
I'm a 2021 graduate of the Break Out Novel Intensive (BONI) Story Lab with Donald Maass and Lorin Oberweger. My writing has been showcased in Pitch Wars, Write Club, Pitch Plus One, and the Crested Butte Sandy Writing Contest.
The novels I write are for both children and adults and they typically feature witchy Jews like me whose beliefs skew more mystical than mainstream.
Before becoming a full-time author, I was a practicing attorney working as in-house counsel. I also worked pro-bono representing immigrants defending their rights against deportation.
I spent many (many) years honing my psychic and mediumship skills and I trained intensely for three years to become a certified intuitive healer. I'm also a Reiki Master. I'm especially good at helping ease anxiety and pain.
I love digging my hands into the soil in my organic garden, hanging out with my chickens, playing with my dogs, and snuggling with my husband. Raising two humans into adulthood with good values and kind hearts is undoubtedly the best and most worthwhile thing I've ever done.
Though my interests, education, and practices are wide and varied there's always been a thread running through it all: I find magic in everything.
Let's connect! You can find me at:
Twitter: @MelissaHed
Instagram: @petrichor8
Facebook: @Melissa.Hed