Kelly Williams Brown is an author and reporter living in Salem, Ore., with a large loud dog named Eleanor.

She is the author of Easy Crafts for the Insane (G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 2021), Gracious (Rodale, 2017) and Adulting: How to Become a Grown-Up in 535 Easy(ish) Steps (Grand Central, 2013; revised edition, 2018).

She’s also worked as a reporter and columnists for daily newspapers and magazines, an ad copywriter, non-profit communications manager and as a cocktail waitress.

Born in Louisiana, she attended Loyola University New Orleans, and has worked in New Orleans, Hattiesburg, Miss., D.C. and Oregon.