Karl Bjorn Erickson

Karl Bjorn Erickson [ [http://www.karlerickson.com] ] is an American children's author and essayist, whose work in the latter field consists mainly of religious and political topics.

Career

In addition to his two children's books ("Tristan's Travels, Scared Spitless" [ [http://www.tristanstravels.com] ] and "Toupee Mice"), Karl enjoys writing on a variety of topics [ [http://home.earthlink.net/~karlerickson/id38.html] ] . An article entitled "Mysterious Tools" recently appeared in "America, The National Catholic Weekly" [ [http://www.americamagazine.org/gettext.cfm?articleTypeID=9&textID=4865&issueID=577] ] , one of the country's premier religious magazines. The story of his conversion to the Catholic Church appeared in the "Damascus Road" section of the January '07 issue of "This Rock" [ [http://www.catholic.com/thisrock/2006/2006_ann.asp] ] , Catholic Answers' popular magazine of Catholic apologetics. His essays have also appeared in Seattle Pacific University's "Response" [ [http://www.spu.edu/depts/uc/response/summer2k2/readersessays.html] ] (an alumni magazine), as well as the "Episcopal Church News".

A political satire piece was recently published in "The Portland Tribune" [ [http://www.portlandtribune.com/opinion/story.php?story_id=116130823855186600] ] --along with a photo of his politically-minded cat. Shorter pieces of writing have also appeared in the "Letters" section of many magazines and newspapers across the country-including "Christianity Today", "This Rock", "Response" [ [http://www.spu.edu/depts/uc/response/spring2k6/letters/index.asp] ] and the "Statesman Journal".

Karl recently joined with other writers to form the Catholic Writers' Guild [ [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/catholicwritersguild/] ] . Although still in the early stages, the idea is to form an online community of Catholic writers and artists to share their works and expertise. The website also has the intention of one day becoming a sort of literary agency.

Besides writing, Karl represented Oregon several years ago when he appeared in a live television news segment which was broadcast throughout the state. He has also spoken before groups, and the mayor of Salem recently appointed him to serve on the city's Board of Ethics. He currently works for the State of Oregon.

Personal life

Raised in Washington State's bountiful Yakima Valley, having attended Seattle Pacific University [ [http://www.spu.edu] ] and the University of Kansas [ [http://www.ku.edu/about/ten_things.shtml] ] , Karl Erickson today resides in Salem, Oregon with his wife and two children. Karl's wife, Kimberly Erickson [ [http://www.kimberlyerickson.com] ] , is an illustrator and the daughter of celebrated illustrator and sculptor John Collier.

Karl and his wife often make speeches throughout the Pacific Northwest and, in his spare time, he pursues his interests in hiking, sailing and exploring the Oregon Coast - especially the coastline between Newport and Astoria.

References

Categories: List of essayists, List of Catholic authors