Kathryn Ganfield is a nature writer and essayist in the river town of St. Paul, Minnesota. Her work focuses on family, environment, and the climate in crisis. She was a 2022-2023 Loft Literary Center Mentor Series Fellow in nonfiction, winner of the 2023 Paul Gruchow Essay Contest, a winner of the Writing By Writers 2021 Short Short Contest, multi-time winner of the Tiny Truths contest, and a two-time Pushcart Prize nominee. Her words have been published in Water~Stone Review, Creative Nonfiction, and MoonPark Review, among other journals.

As a communications professional and creative storyteller in the environmental field, Ganfield advocates for wildlife conservation and environmental education. She volunteers as a Minnesota Master Naturalist, and has served as a grant reviewer and artistic evaluator for the Minnesota State Arts Board. Ganfield holds a BA in creative writing from Metropolitan State University in St. Paul, where she edited The Metropolitan newspaper.

Distinctions

Loft Mentor Series Fellowship in Nonfiction, 2022-2023

Winner, Paul Gruchow Essay Contest, 2023

Nominee, Best Microfiction anthology series, 2024

Nominee, Pushcart Prize: Best of the Small Presses, 2021 and 2022

Winner, Writing x Writers Short Short Contest, 2021

Multi-time winner, Creative Nonfiction magazine's Tiny Truths contest

Readings

Water~Stone Review Annual Reading | Hamline University - St. Paul, Minnesota | November 10, 2023

Loft Literary Center Mentor Series Reading | Minneapolis, Minnesota | April 14, 2023

Writing x Writers Boulder Generative Workshop | Boulder, Colorado | March 18, 2022

Photo credit: Jake Ganfield