About Mary Zuelke, Author of YA Dark Fantasy & Supernatural Adventure

Mary Zuelke is an author of YA dark fantasy and supernatural adventure, blending magic, mystery, and emotional depth. She is the creator of the Warehouse Chronicles, a series where the ordinary becomes a gateway to dangerous and enchanted worlds. Her debut novel, The Magician’s Carnival of Horror, introduces readers to Lee’s journey through other worlds, deadly illusions, forgotten memories, and courage‑building chaos. Drawing on a lifetime of curiosity and imagination, Mary writes stories where heroes face the unknown, honor friendships, and discover their strength.

Genre: YA Dark Fantasy, Supernatural Adventure
Series: Warehouse Chronicles
Debut Novel: The Magician’s Carnival of Horror
Themes: Magic, courage, mystery, the uncanny
Influences: Dracula, The Hobbit, Something Wicked This Way Comes
Based in: Wisconsin
Fun fact: Born on Halloween

Mary Zuelke is a storyteller who believes magic surrounds us, shaping the adventures we dare to take. She writes young adult dark fantasy filled with the strange, the dangerous, and the uncanny—stories where ordinary teens step through unexpected doorways and discover worlds that test their hearts and sharpen their resolve. Her debut novel launches the Warehouse Chronicles, a series born from years of imagination, persistence, and a lifelong fascination with the bizarre and wondrous.

Mary didn’t begin her journey as a writer—she began it living. At eighteen, she was already working full time, married, and raising her first child. Life was busy, responsibilities came first, and writing became a quiet pastime she returned to whenever she could steal a moment. Over the years, stories grew in notebooks and computer files, waiting for their chance to breathe.

In 2010, the earliest version of The Magician’s Carnival of Horror appeared. It was a passion project, a spark that stayed with her even when the manuscript sat untouched for years. Then, in 2022, Mary made a promise to herself: I’m going to finish it. I’m going to make it a good story. And I’m going to share it. That moment of determination ignited the hard work that brought the Warehouse Chronicles to life.

Mary’s childhood was filled with daring moments and wild imagination. Born on Halloween, she grew up surrounded by ghosts, goblins, monsters in the shadows, and the thrill of the unknown. She climbed tall trees without fear, raced dirt bikes down winding trails, twirled on horizontal bars until the world blurred, and leapt from second‑story windows during childhood games. She played kick‑the‑can, swung high into the air, and explored every corner of the world around her with curiosity and courage.

As a loner, she watched and listened, developing the keen observational skills that now shape her characters and worlds. These memories—equal parts wonder and danger—became the foundation of her storytelling.

Magic is essential to Mary’s stories. She writes about enchanted places hidden in plain sight, heroes and heroines caught up in the peculiar, striving to make things right, and villains whose motives challenge hope and happiness. Her work blends adventure, mystery, emotional depth, and the belief that courage often appears when we least expect it.

Outside of her stories, Mary is a proud grandmother to five, mother to one, and a loving wife. She treasures adventures with her husband, quiet moments with her family, and the simple joys that make life feel enchanted. Her favorite pastimes include exploring forests, hiking mystical trails, kayaking on tranquil lakes, enjoying pillow fights with her grandchildren, and gazing at clouds and stars.

She loves twinkling lights, Christmas music, delicious food and wine, reading captivating books, and creating characters who feel as real as the people she loves. These joys, big and small, weave themselves into her writing.