Nota bene: For a more formal, official-type bio, headshots, etc., please peruse my Media Kit.
Me, aged 2, getting a Rheingold beer.
a work in progress
I tell stories.
Sometimes they’re my own, sometimes they’re not.
Sometimes they’re true, sometimes they’re not.
Sometimes I write them alone, sometimes I don’t.
Sometimes I use words, sometimes I use images.
Some of the projects mentioned on this site are works for hire, others are labors of love.
This site is not comprehensive.
It is intended as an amuse bouche—not an entrée.
There are authors and journalists who focus on one particular topic or style of writing.
I am not one of them.
I am building a life, not a platform.
I tell stories.
“Denise Kiernan recreates, with cinematic vividness and clarity, the surreal
Orwell-meets-Margaret Atwood environment of Oak Ridge...”
“Her recreation of Biltmore’s origins hits like a flute of fine champagne.”
A (little) bit about me...
I am a writer and producer. I write books and scripts of my own, I have ghost written, I have written for adults and I have written for kids. I have also occasionally written with my husband, author Joseph D’Agnese. I started out in journalism and have covered everything from women’s issues, sports and history to food, travel and education in places like The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Village Voice, Rolling Stone, Saveur, Discover, Ms., Reader’s Digest, and others. I worked as head writer for ABC's "Who Wants to be Millionaire" during its Emmy award-winning first season and have produced for ESPN, MSNBC and a variety of independent productions.
There are a lot of other projects in various stages of development, but hey—a little mystery goes a long way.