About the author

Kathryn Kahn has lived in Oakland, California for 40 years, and is delighted to write stories that show the city's unique spirit. When the pandemic began, she began writing about it, and that project evolved into a novella, Sheltered: A Pandemic Love Story (published 2020). Unwilling to let go of those characters, Kathryn immediately began writing a sequel, which became Grounded: A Community Story (2021). Rounding out the trilogy is Inspired: A Story of Discovery, to be published in fall 2022.

Kathryn has many interests, and worked in a number of industries and organizations. Most recently, she taught writing at San Jose State University, where she wrote her own textbook and gave it to students for free. At the same time, she was publicist, photographer, marketing writer, and graphic designer/webmaster for Oakland’s 50+year-old Woodminster Summer Musicals, that presents Broadway-style musicals in an historic outdoor amphitheater. She also had a long corporate career, including a stint in a prominent public relations agency as well as over 15 years working in marketing communications for technology companies.

Serving as a parent volunteer in Oakland Public Schools inspired her to leave the technology industry and use her marketing skills to promote arts and education-related causes in Oakland. Kathy and her husband, David Kahn, were co-chairs of the Skyline High PTSA Performing Arts Committee for six years, during which time their group managed the renovation of the Skyline High School theater with the support of alumnus Tom Hanks and several hundred other contributors.

Kathy Kahn was a member of the Steering Committee for the Alameda County Alliance for Arts Learning Leadership, a member of the Oakland Schools Arts Task Force, winner of the OUSD Vibrant Arts Award for community support, and the recipient of three Academy mentor awards from the Oakland Unified School District. She worked as Arts Active Parent Coordinator for the Alameda County Office of Education, where she built a large community of parents interested in arts education and produced a monthly newsletter for them, hosted events and public discussions, and worked with parents in individual schools to encourage the growth of arts education programs in the county. She was also a member of the Board of Directors for Oakland Parents Together, a nonprofit organization that educates and empowers parents to advocate for their children in Oakland public schools. In 2013, she was awarded that organization's Valerie Denise Alexander Superparent Award for her work with parents and parent groups.

Kathryn’s love for Oakland has led to many of her most interesting experiences and relationships. While the characters in her books are fictional, they share qualities of kindness and decency she has so often seen in ordinary Oaklanders. She is delighted to now be writing stories that emphasize the honorable side of humanity during a cynical and angry time, especially with this vigorous and multidimensional city as a backdrop.