Lori J. Torone loves everything medieval and mythical. She strongly believes in the power of reading aloud to children of any age, and she thinks that the best things in life are tea, independent bookstores, and true love, all of which can break any curse.

Book Launch for Through the Oak Door 2017

Lori writes adult fantasy and her short work has appeared in Podcastle, Crow & Cross Keys, Metaphorosis, and several anthologies. She also published several novelettes independently under the name Fitzgerald. One of which, “Loves Lies Bleeding: The Lady of the Forest,” was adapted into a corporeal mime performance by Selma and William Trevino of Corporeal Arts Inc. Several iterations were performed from 2016-2018, most of which incorporated Lori reading sections of her story, including two performances at Dixon Place in the Bowery, NYC, a Bessie and Obie Award winning non-profit institution dedicated to supporting the creative process at all stages of development.

Lori was a Staff Writer from 2012-2016 for Once Upon a Fans (OUAF – archived website), the popular fansite for the hit TV show Once Upon a Time, where she wrote Origins articles comparing the show characters to their literary counterparts as well as episode recaps under Fitzgerald. She was also the moderator for the OUAF panel at Enchantacon 2013.

Moderating Duties. Can you tell I like podiums? #ProfessorAesthetic

In 2024, Lori was a finalist for the Speculative Literature Foundation’s Older Writer’s Grant. She attended Futurescapes Writing Workshop and is a proud member of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association (SFWA). She enjoys being a part of Cat Rambo’s community of wayward writers.

Lori holds an M.A in English and has her NYC license in teaching English at the secondary education level. She began her career as a middle school English teacher, which she did with much heart and dedication for many years. Currently she is a Senior Lecturer in the English and Communication Studies Departments at her alma mater, St. Joseph’s University, NY, where she instills the magic of reading aloud and writing to future teachers in her Children’s Literature and Oral Expression course and students in her various freshman writing, creative writing, and professional writing courses.

Her favorite home is surrounded by apple orchards with cider-scented air in autumn, many deer, and the occasional fox. She loves riding her raven-black bike (yes, with a basket to keep her journal and fountain pen case) on the Rail Trail and, of course, lurking in independent bookstores. She is a mom to two college students and one small-but-bossy rescue dog.

My pretty…

Dog Tax: My lap editor (much more judgy and cute than my inner editor), with my 1936 Underwood in the background, acquired from one of my favorite indie booksellers.