Cassandra J. Kelly describes herself as a professional marketer, storyteller, and changemaker.
Earlier this year, she also added author to her resume with the publication of her first novel, The Clearing.
Kelly will appear at Rodman Public Library to talk about her book at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, November 13 as part of the 2024 Fogle Author Series.
[REGISTER TO ATTEND KELLY'S VISIT]
Kelly holds a degree in Journalism Communications from Ohio University and began her writing career with a brief stint as a journalist in New York. However, Kelly soon moved back to her home in Columbus to serve her community as a nonprofit communicator. She has worked with multiple nonprofits to achieve visibility, and now runs her own marketing consulting agency, Like-Minded Marketing.
She also continues to write for national publications, including Mechanical Engineering Magazine.
Through her work, she hopes to empower others with knowledge and understanding about science, history, and above all, themselves.
She also has several new books in the works in various stages following the publication of The Clearing.
Set in rural Ohio, Kelly says that many of the moments in her book are inspired by her childhood while growing up in Wadsworth, the same place where Esmond Fogle completed his high school education.
The Clearing tells the story of twelve-year-old Sadie Watkins, whose world is being uprooted by her mother's disease: a severe form of multiple sclerosis.
As Sadie seeks solace in the woods behind her house, where she processes her overwhelming home life through traditional Appalachian herbology, pressing and cataloging flowers and plants like a budding scientist, she meets Cali, a barefoot wild child who seems to come from nowhere. The two become instant friends and Cali re-introduces Sadie to the wonders of the forest and gives her the courage she needs to face the future - the one without her mom.
The novel intertwines grief, love, nature, and wonder. It also acts as a time capsule of the healthcare crisis in the early 2000s, and the many American families like Sadie's who had to make great sacrifices when illness struck.