About RK Brainerd (me!)

Romantic ecopunk fantasy author

Definition: an author of character-driven fantastical worlds with environmental themes and a heavy dollop of romance

I reside in the rainy Pacific Northwest on nearly 6 acres and have been living in my own little world and writing it down since I was itty bitty. I’m obsessed with anything related to dragons, myth and magic, and political/social commentary. I believe that through the lens of science-fiction and fantasy we can understand our world better. (And if not, then we can have a fantastic time exploring imagination.)

I grew up devouring speculative fiction, so naturally gravitate towards this in my writing.

Probably because of all this speculative fiction, social commentary of some element always finds itself somewhere in my stories. It also explains why I went and got a degree in politics.

It doesn’t, however, explain why romance ends up in my writing too—that’s purely my romantic soul.

You can see my works here
Check out the Awakedragon blog here

Non-writing related facts

Meet Solara, Spoticus, and Fern, who are always very helpful when it’s writing time.

  • A herd of goats follows a white girl with sunglasses as she walks across a pasture
    Follow the leader!
  • A girl in a dark brown coat reaches up to pull down fir tree branches as a brown goat and a black one jumps on her and the fence to reach up too
    I am often a stepping stool
  • Three side by side long panels of goats running progressively closer over a light layer of snow
    They immediately raced back inside after discovering snow is COLD
  • Three tiles in different poses of a young white girl and a brown goat with white ears and nose snuggling and looking at the camera
    Sari, who’s a love
  • Three goats (two brown, one white, one black) hang out in tall grass under a tree casting shade
  • A white baby goat is falling asleep on the shoulder of a young white girl
  • A brown goat has her foot out and stepping on the rump on a young white girl who's lying there; the girl has a bewildered look on her face
    Idk Phe was a weirdo
  • A brown goat with a white nose looks up into a camera, with several other goats in the background
  • Half the image is taken up with a brown goat with a white nose snipping at the camera, while a white girl and a black goat with white ears and nose looks on from behind with amusement

I also raise dairy goats, which are the stubborn, fanatically-curious cat-dogs you never knew you needed in your life.

If you’re interested in learning more, head over to my Instagram. I lurk there and update a lot, so you’ll be sure to see plenty about goats, cats, building things, social justice information, and, of course, writing life and updates.

Latest Instagram Posts

Head to IG!
Two weeks into classes at #LancasterUniversity! Here are some photos of what I’ve been up to, including a field trip up to #Ullswater and #Keswick in the #LakeDistrict. I’ve also joined the Living History society here and am learning leather-working and drapery crafting. Photo dump of my first week+ in Lancaster City/Lancaster University! Obligatory #pdxcarpet feet photo! I am off to England to start my Masters Degree program in Political Ecology. I’ve been anticipating this adventure for so long it’s bizarre to finally be here. I’ll keep y’all updated; with me luck! I’ve been on a re-reading kick and am working through an old nostalgic classic for me: The Warlock In Spite Of Himself series. My dad put me on to it when I was a teen, so it’s nice to revisit these and get to feel a little of him again ♥️ I thought it was time for a cat picture dump! They’ve been doing great 😁 Personal and writing update, really. Here's to this new adventure!