Biography

Sue Harrison is the author of seven critically acclaimed bestselling novels. Mother Earth Father Sky, My Sister the Moon, and Brother Wind make up The Ivory Carver Trilogy, an epic adventure set in prehistoric Alaska. Song of the River, Cry of the Wind, and Call Down the Stars comprise The Storyteller Trilogy.  Her most recent book, The Midwife’s Touch, released February 2023 has been an Amazon bestseller in two categories. Sue has also written a middle readers book, Sisu, released by Thunder Bay Press.

Sue Harrison was born in Lansing, Michigan. The first of five children, she was raised in the town of Pickford in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula where she lives with her husband, a retired high school principal, and their mini-schnauzer Tiffany. They are blessed with a daughter and a son, a daughter-in-law and two grandchildren.

A graduate of Pickford High School, Harrison graduated summa cum laude from Lake Superior State University with a B.A. in English Language and Literature. She was named Lake Superior State University’s Distinguished Alumna in 1992, and served eight years on the University’s Board of Regents. Prior to her career as a novelist, Harrison worked as Lake State’s PR writer and then director of the PR department.

Harrison’s first novel, Mother Earth Father Sky, was published in 1990 by Doubleday (hardcover) and Avon (paperback) and in 2013 by Open Road Integrated Media (ebook). It was nominated in the states of Michigan and Washington for the Reader’s Choice Award among high school students, and was one of ten books chosen for “Battle of the Books,” a statewide student reading competition in Alaska. The novel has had success in both the adult and young adult markets, and received a boxed review in The New York Times Book Review. It has been a national Publishers Weekly bestseller, and recently an Amazon top three paid books bestseller in ebook format. Mother Earth Father Sky was selected by the American Library Association as one of 1991’s Best Books for Young Adults.

Harrison’s second novel, My Sister the Moon, (Doubleday/Avon 1992/Open Road Integrated Media 2013) has also received recognition by reading and school groups throughout the United States and was a Baker and Taylor top ten in library sales. Both Mother Earth Father Sky and My Sister the Moon were Main Selections of the Literary Guild Book Club and alternate selections of the Doubleday Book Club. Brother Wind, Harrison’s third novel was released in hardcover by William Morrow, October 1994, in 1995 as an Avon paperback, and in 2013 as an Open Road ebook. The novel was chosen as an alternate selection by both the Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Clubs. Song of the River and Cry of the Wind were published by Avon Hardcover/Avon paperback, a division of Hearst Books and by Open Road. The third book of The Storyteller Trilogy, Call Down the Stars was published by Morrow/Avon in 2001 and 2002 and by Open Road in 2013. It was a featured alternate of the Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Clubs. Her six Alaska books have been released in audio versions by Audible. Sisu was selected as an Advanced Readers Book.

Harrison’s books have also been published in Canada, Great Britain, Australia, New Zealand, The Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden, Germany, Italy, Spain, Iceland, Denmark, Norway, Austria, Portugal, Japan, France, Finland, and South America. Her work has been anthologized by Northwest Books, Wayne State University Press, and Michigan State University Press (And Here, 2017).

Sue Harrison’s next novel, The Midwife’s Touch, was released in February 2023, from Open Road Integrated Media. Set in New York and the Ozarks in the mid-1800s, the book is a genre blender of historical fiction and fantasy.

From copy prepared for the back cover:
“The Missouri Ozarks, 1852: Named for a broken china plate, China Creed grows up in a poverty-stricken family torn apart by her curse–she has inherited the ability to grant wishes. China and her widowed mother do all they can to keep her ‘gift’ a secret, but its unpredictability makes it difficult to hide. When her mother apprentices China to a Cherokee midwife, China earns a respected place in their small Ozark community. However, accusations of witchcraft force her to flee from her small town. A romantic relationship eventually draws her into the exotic world of New York City’s Gilded Age where, betrayed by people she loves, China must rely on her backcountry survival skills and her gift of wishes to escape those who would enslave her.

“Founded on Ozark superstitions, folk medicines, Cherokee traditions, wilderness survival, 19th century obstetrical practices, and the elite lifestyles that characterized New York City’s Gilded Age, THE MIDWIFE’S TOUCH is quintessential Sue Harrison–meticulous research as the perfect foil for the rich inner lives of her odd and beautiful characters.”

Harrison was named to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan Literary Hall of Fame in May 2023. 

Sue would love your input on her Facebook page, Sue Harrison Author, to help her write scenes and develop characters and plotlines for her novels.

Sue Harrison is represented by Victoria Skurnick of the Levine, Greenberg, Rostan Literary Agency. https://lgrliterary.com/