I have a Masters of Fine Arts in Fiction Writing from Texas State University, where I currently teach English composition and video game studies.

My current project is a fantasy series called the Imperial Saga. I publish my fantasy under the name Anne Winchell. The first book, Rise of the Phoenix, came out on August 15, 2022. The second in the series, Knight of the Dragon, came out December 15, 2022. The third book, Heart of the Guardian, was released on August 15, 2023. I’m now settling in on the fourth, Dance of the Empire, with an anticipated release date of early 2024.

I publish science fiction under the name Anne Elizabeth Winchell, and I’ve self-published one novel, a science fiction novel called The Last War, and a collection of science fiction short stories and poems entitled Dystopian Galaxies: Visions of the Future. I also have a novella called The Moon of Lycca about alien werewolves.

My creative nonfiction short story “Not Pregnant at Mercy Hospital” was a finalist in the Pacific Northwest Writers contest in the Adult Short Topic category.

In academics, I’ve published a peer-reviewed article entitled “Video Games as a New Form of Interactive Literature” as well as a chapter entitled “Storytelling in Video Games (HON3396X)” in the peer-reviewed book Teaching the Game (Volume 1) on the pedagogy of teaching storytelling in video games, and I regularly present on using video games and popular culture in the classroom.

I design and sell 3D assets for Daz Studio, used in art and video games, at Renderosity.com. You can find my store here, and I specialize in characters and poses.

I spent hours of my childhood haunting the gold room at Powell’s bookstore in Portland, OR, absorbing the sci-fi/fantasy masterpieces. In young adult, I adore Diana Wynne Jones, especially Howl’s Moving Castle, and newer works such as Nnedi Okorafor’s Akata Witch. In adult fiction, Nnedi Okorafor is also a favorite, especially Lagoon. I reread books by C.S. Friedman to inspire me, especially Black Sun Rising and This Alien Shore, and Anne Bishop’s Black Jewels trilogy directly inspired the dark fantasy trilogy I’m working on.

I live in San Marcos, TX with my sweet cat Lily, and can usually be found playing Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom or mentoring students in achieving their creative dreams.