J. E. Irvin grew up in Struthers, Ohio, in the industrial north area of the state. The oldest of seven children, she spent her childhood caring for her siblings and reading her way through the shelves of the local library. She completed her undergraduate BA at Ohio University, earned an M.S. in Education from the University of Dayton and an M.A. in Spanish from the University of Cincinnati. Her stories have won numerous awards and appeared in a variety of print and online publications. A career educator, Irvin taught high school for 38 years and served as adjunct faculty in Spanish at Wright State University for four years. Her interests include canoeing, gardening and travel. She is a member of the Springboro Historical Society and serves on the Springboro Park Board.