Karen L West is an award-winning author. The recipient of several Booky Awards and two ACCI Fiction-Literary Awards. She writes emotionally rich stories where courage, family, and hope shine through even in the darkest of times.

Author Karen L. West creates immersive fiction shaped by resilience, courage, and the strength of chosen family. Born in Indiana and now living in the Southwest, she draws on a lifetime of experience, including service in the United States Navy, to craft stories where ordinary people are tested by extraordinary circumstances and discover who they truly are.

Now retired, Karen writes across fantasy, science fiction, shifter fiction, apocalyptic and dystopian worlds, as well as children’s picture books. Her novels explore hidden shifter communities, dragon rider adventures, collapsing societies, and young heroes learning to survive in changing worlds.

Her stories are known for emotionally grounded characters, immersive world building, and the belief that even when the rules of the world change—or disappear—courage and compassion still matter.

Fantasy author | Survival thriller author | Shifter fiction writer | Dragon rider series author | Dystopian fiction author