Beatrice Winifred Iker (eye-kerr) grew up in the picturesque (and undoubtedly haunted) valley of the Great Smoky Mountains. As a child, they spent an incalculable time in their grandmother’s living room staring at the unending ridges and peaks; eventually, they decided to write about this bewitching place. 

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A great passion of theirs is genealogy and ancestry. As a result, much of their writing lives in the southern gothic genre, where they grapple with the American South’s history, which is both terrifying and entrancing. Their stories feature characters and themes in the Black, neurodiverse, and queer communities. 

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Mentorship is deeply important to Beatrice. They are a co-host on the Afronauts Podcast with fellow Black speculative fiction authors (aka their besties). They are a Mentor-in-Residence/Mentor in the Write Team, Queery Fest, and Write Hive Mentorship Programs. 

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A member of the Horror Writers Association (HWA), they are a 2022 Voodoonauts Fellow and the Managing Editor of the winnow, an LGBTQ+ literary magazine. Their work appears/is forthcoming in issues of FIYAH Magazine of Black Speculative Fiction, Fantasy Magazine, Nightmare Magazine, and others. Additionally, they are a contributor in the DEATH IN THE MOUTH horror anthology (10/01/2022). 

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Beatrice lives in New England, where they enjoy the snow with their husband, dog, two cats, and robust tarot deck collection.

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