Ivy Locke

Junior year in high school, Ivy left her traumatic household to become an exchange student in Italy, thinking she'd get to leave the sexual peer pressures of dating behind. Her life got worse. Much, much worse. When she returned to the States, she started forming her experiences into chapters and gave them to her psychology professor. She asked, "Do you think there's something here? Do you think this could mean something to someone one day?"

Surely there were other young women out there who felt just as lost. Just as alone.

Her teacher read it and said, "Me and my wife loved this story. Please finish it."

And her first book was probably shit, but Ivy had this deep desire to tell stories that uplifted women. She wanted to foster hope and empathy and give women permission to fight for their autonomy. Ivy brought her ideas to various critique groups and found her voice—snarky, heartfelt, and drenched in dark humor.

Today, Ivy has a few feminist love stories in the works, looking for their forever homes. They all have a common core—resilient women. Women who got their asses kicked by life and got back up, evolving into better versions of themselves on the other side.