Mission Statement
The Kansas-Missouri Writers Collective exists to provide support and community for writers of all levels in the Kansas City Metro Area.
Our Values
KanMoWriCo believes in the transformational power of creativity through writing, whether that writing leads to publication or not. We believe that the idea of the solitary writer is a myth, and that writing community should be available to all. We have cultivated a community, both in person and online, to provide support, encouragement and accountability for writers. We center ourselves around the following values:
Openness
Inclusivity
Transparency
Creativity
Community
Meet Our Team
Joanie Saltzman
Co-Organizer
ze/hir/hirs/hirself
Joanie has lived in Kansas city for 24 years and is passionate about building community here. Ze has an Associate’s in General Education and a BA in English Writing and Rhetoric. Ze led the Kansas City region of National Novel Writing Month for 6 years, gaining experience in leading a writing group before KanMoWriCo launched as an independent organization.
Joanie has a background in social work and currently works as a receptionist. In hir spare time, ze is working to get hir current manuscript ready for querying. Ze writes queer urban fantasy set mostly here in Kansas City, but sometimes in Faerie.
Bee Hawthorne
Co-Organizer
she/they
Bee moved to Kansas City three years ago and threw herself headfirst into writing. Since then, KanMoWriCo hasn’t been able to shake her.
They write short stories across all genres, but have a soft spot for mysteries. Their other interests include watching terrible tv, crafting the perfect bad joke, and bothering their cats Copy and Paste.
Ali Petterson
Co-Organizer
she/her
Ali has lived in Kansas City for the last 30 years, and it is–by far–one of her favorite places on Earth. She lives with her two devoted dogs, two clingy cats, and her adoring husband (who is the light of her life, just don’t tell the fur-children).
After spending the better part of a decade living as a devout lurker within the KanMoWriCo sphere, Ali opted to make that status ‘part time’ once she found out about the groups discord. There, she has become a dedicated agent of chaos (in a fun way) and support. She’s been writing stories of the fantasy and sci-fi variety since she learned how to hold a pencil and write a sentence. As an adult, she now enjoys the occasional combination of romance with the aforementioned genres. Outside of writing, she enjoys reading, ADHD-fueled crafting binges, and gaming.
Discord Moderators
We have a team of awesome moderators who help keep the discord running like a well-oiled machine year round!
Rachel – Wolfy
she/her
Rachel has lived in Kansas for over two decades, married her childhood crush (after nearly a decade of missed hints), and is raising a tiny bones homunculus (a toddler). After taking one year of college, having a mental breakdown, and writing a 70k novel in 8 days, she ditched getting a degree and returned home. Shortly after, she joined KanMoWriCo and has been helping the region—in one form or another—ever since.
Rachel works at the Johnson County Library and has for nearly a decade. In her spare time, she writes fantasy and sci-fi series centered around pirates, ancient magic, animals, and gene-altering viruses, between losing sleep to her three cats, The BonesTM, and her husband.
Former Co-Organizer
Natalie Wallington was instrumental in getting KanMoWriCo off the ground. She’s off pursuing great journalism all over the country, but KanMoWriCo will always remember to 1-800-TELL-THAT-BEAR what we wrote because of her 💛
She served as co-organizer from our inception in March of 2024 until January 2025.
KanMoWriCo 