About

Brief Bio

Last Updated March 7, 2021

Katie Rose Guest Pryal, J.D., Ph.D., is an IPPY-award-winning author, keynote speaker, and professor of law and creative writing.

She is the author of the bestselling Life of the Mind Interrupted: Essays on Mental Health and Disability in Higher Education (2017); the Foreword INDIE Gold winner The Freelance Academic: Transform Your Creative Life and Career (2019); and the IPPY Gold winner Even If You’re Broken: Essays on Sexual Assault and #MeToo (2019).

She’s also the author of the Hollywood Lights series, which includes Entanglement (2015), Chasing Chaos (2016), Fallout Girl (2018), and Take Your Charming Somewhere Else (2021).

As a professor, she is the author of many academic books on law and writing. She writes often about her subjects of expertise for national magazines, including Catapult, The Toast, Women in Higher Education, The Chronicle of Higher Education, Quartz, The Establishment, and many more. She speaks frequently about mental health and disability, writing and publishing, gender issues, and higher education. She lives in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

Awards and Recognition

  • LIFE OF THE MIND INTERRUPTED and THE FREELANCE ACADEMIC were named to THE PROFESSOR IS IN Top 12 Books About Academia in 2021.
  • THE FREELANCE ACADEMIC was named to the Recommended Reading list by FROM PHD TO LIFE in 2021.
  • EVEN IF YOU’RE BROKEN: ESSAYS ON SEXUAL ASSAULT AND #METOO won a Gold 2020 Independent Publisher Book Award—an “IPPY”—for small press titles
  • THE FREELANCE ACADEMIC: TRANSFORM YOUR CREATIVE LIFE AND CAREER won a GOLD 2019 INDIES Award (for small press titles).
  • BOOKRIOT picked LIFE OF THE MIND INTERRUPTED: ESSAYS ON MENTAL HEALTH AND DISABILITY IN HIGHER EDUCATION as one of the top 5 Books to Help You Understand Higher Education in 2019.
  • Essay in CATAPULT Magazine, “The World Doesn’t Bend for Disabled Kids (or Disabled Parents),” was the most-read article in the magazine of 2018.
  • CHAPEL HILL MAGAZINE picked FALLOUT GIRL: A NOVEL as one of its top 5 Books From Local Authors to Take to the Beach in 2018.
  • Essay in MOTHERWELL Magazine, “With New Life Comes a Fear of Death,” was named one of the top-10 most popular articles in the magazine of 2017.

Media

If you are with the media and would like to interview me, great! Email me at contact@krgp.us.

Bookings

If you are interested in booking me to speak, contact BrightSight Speakers, and my amazing team there will help you.

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My Expertise

  • Mental health and disability, including creating accessible and collegial workplaces
  • Gender issues, and sexual violence, assault, and harassment
  • Writing, including creative writing, writing craft, profession of writing, and publishing
  • Higher education, careers in and state of, including legal education
  • View my Portfolio to learn more

Download my CV – updated May 2020 

Connect with Katie:

01. About Me

Award-winning author, speaker, and law & creative writing professor. I write books that shine light on difficult subjects with grace and humor.

02. Book Me

03. Support Me

04. Letter from Me

06. Commentary