Write on

MIKAELA STRINGER

2013 graduate of SUNY Adirondack with a degree in Hospitality Management

CURRENTLY: Author and dog care provider

Mikaela Stringer called her mom crying tears of disbelief and utter joy.

Stringer was nominated as author of the month by one of her literary heroines, Kiersten Modglin, on a Facebook group for thriller writers.

“That was a wicked fan-girl moment,” said Stringer, who has self-published six books in the past three years. “Mind blown.”

Stringer grew up in Queensbury and attended SUNY Adirondack, where she earned a Hospitality Management degree. “I didn’t have a clue what I wanted to do when I went to college,” she admitted. “I was working at The Sagamore at the time and I liked waitressing. But I still didn’t figure it all out until a couple of years ago.”

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit the Burlington, Vermont, area, Stringer was working at a school with a large population of refugees, helping them learn English, and was considering returning to college to become an English as a second language (ESL) teacher.

“They shut down the school, I was at home and had a lot of sit-around time doing nothing,” she said. “I am an avid thriller reader, so I decided to try to write my own book.”

Between working for DoorDash and InstaCart, Stringer wrote and, within a year, had a book. “When the school reopened, I said, ‘I’m going to try this writing thing out; this is actually kind of fun’,” she said.

Her first book, “The Lake House,” is based on her parents’ house on Lake George. (All her stories take place in the Adirondacks or Burlington area.) “We had a group of friends up there and I was like, ‘This could make for a good story: What if someone wasn’t trustworthy?’ The premise is they’re stuck on a secluded island and someone could possibly be dangerous, so the friends go up there expecting it to be a much different experience than it turns out to be.”

A sequel, “The Mad House,” quickly followed. In the time since, Stringer released standalone novels “Dear Violet,” “Triggered” and “Hazardous Conditions,” and in spring 2023, “From This Day Forward,” the first in the three-part The Wedding Nightmares series.

Stringer — a newlywed who writes under her maiden name, Mikaela Bee — didn’t start reading regularly until about five years ago. “I read that book, ‘Girl, Wash your Face,’ a self-help book and she [author Rachel Hollis] said something like, ‘You can do anything you put your mind to,’ and for some reason, that motivated me. I didn’t think I could write a book and it turns out I did and it was the best feeling ever.”

BUY THE BOOK(S)

Mikaela Bee’s books are available on amazon.com, or, for signed copies, through her social media accounts, www.facebook.com/mikaelabeeauthor or mikaelabee_author on Instagram.

Strategic Goal 4 STRENGTHEN ORGANIZATIONAL CAPACITY

Increase racial and ethnic diversity of employees, improve investments in employee development and continue to streamline administrative work.