Sara Paretsky

No one writes about female investigators with such deft skill and ferocity as Sara Paretsky. Challenging the conventions of an entire literary genre where women were often depicted as either helpless victims or vamps, she introduced V.I. Warshawski, a tough-minded and intelligent female detective in her 1982 groundbreaking crime novel, Indemnity Only. Her astounding success in retooling the mystery novel changed the standard for female PIs everywhere.

Ten best-selling Warshawski novels later, Parestky has established herself as an author who revolutionized the mystery genre by breaking down barriers for both women crime-writers and their heroines. Unfulfilled by simply writing about women in crime, she was one of the founders of Sisters in Crime, the first organization established to support women who write mysteries.

As an author, Paretsky is driven by her personal deep-rooted concern for social justice, and by the current public climate and events happening throughout the world. An impassioned advocate for those struggling on society’s margins, she speaks strongly about issues affecting all of us. Clear and forthright in her presentation, her spoken word is as moving and powerful as her written one.