Cole Lavalais' short stories can be found in Obsidian, Apogee, Warpland, Tidal Basin Review, Aquarius Press, and others. She's been awarded writing residencies at the Vermont Studio Center and The Noepe Center for the Literary Arts. As a fellow of the Kimbilio Center for Black Fiction, VONA, and the Callaloo Writing workshops, she believes in encouraging, fostering, and championing writing by writers of color across genres. Her debut novel, Summer of the Cicadas, is available now.