Laken
Ballinger

My Story

Laken was born in Toronto, Canada, and decided from a very early age that though winter was not for her, books certainly were. Her love of words began when she won a poetry contest in the fourth grade, something her parents entirely forgot about until her high school creative writing teacher asked them in for a chat. From there, she studied English and other book-related subjects in university (somehow finding 'History of Reading' to be a thrilling class), before taking a large leap to move to Melbourne, Australia and study creative writing for real. Laken had a slew of strange jobs in between, from trying not to overdose on baklava at a Lebanese restaurant to collecting fun burn stories as a cook in a camp kitchen. But through it all, she never stopped writing, so surely nothing is going to stop her now.

Laken currently lives in Melbourne, Australia with her three favourite boys: husband, son and cat. Not always in that order.