Maddie Lock is a Florida-based author and essayist who writes about family, home, travel, and life’s liminal spaces.

Born in Germany and adopted by an American Army officer, Maddie Lock fell in love with words as she learned the English language. When her stepfather retired, the family settled in Florida, where Maddie graduated from the University of South Florida with a BA in English Lit. After a brief freelance journalism career, Maddie side-tracked into the business world, eventually founding and building a successful security integration firm. After selling her company, it was time to return to her first passion of writing. Her combined love for dogs and children prompted two early readers: the award-winning Ethel the Backyard Dog, and Sammy the Lucky Dog. Focus soon shifted to creative nonfiction. Her essays have been published in various journals and anthologies, and she has recently completed a memoir.

Maddie Lock at Cafe Minerva

Read My Latest Essays

WORC

When I was fifteen, I walked up to the Whataburger on Seminole Boulevard at the edge of our lower middle class neighborhood in Seminole, Florida and applied for a carhop position. My family had moved into a rental house a few months earlier and I needed a job. My stepfather Ted had recently retired after…

A Daughter’s Journey

Often in the afternoons my father will open a cabinet, and with his gnarled index finger trail the spines of binders filled with catalogued DVDs until he finds one he wants to share with me that day.

Apple Strudel

The January before her death in 2013, my mother Susi came to Florida to visit me. She was living in my half-sister Jackie’s Colorado home and wanted to get out of the cold and snow for a few weeks. During her visit, we both worked hard to be kind to one another. COPD and emphysema limited her activity; a trip to the grocery store sent her to bed for the afternoon. So we dallied over lunches, settled under the oak trees in the backyard and looked out over the lake.

Shop Published Works

Stories That Need to Be Told

My essay The Family Portrait is in TulipTree's most recent anthology Stories That Need to be Told

On Work: an anthology

On Work is a collection of poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction that explores work from a variety of perspectives. From food service to road work, sales to the office, and driving to working from home, this collection is full of emotional resonance, keen observations, and powerful words.

Conversations: An Anthology of Prose & Poetry

Congratulations to our Editor's Prize winner, Maddie Lock for her heartfelt essay, "The Stranger."

Wanderlust: 2020

"Maxhutte Lost" by Maddie Lock

Ethel the Backyard Dog

Ethel is a lonely dog who lives in her owner's backyard. When a nice lady moves in next door, Ethel jumps the fence and has an adventure that finally brings her the love she wants.

Sammy the Lucky Dog

Meet Sammy, a feisty Jack Russell Terrier with a lot of personality and a penchant for getting into trouble.

Barb and Maddie

A Tribute to Barbara Koski Maxwell

R.I.P. Barbara Koski Maxwell. Barbara was one of the most interesting and warmest people I have ever known. Over the course of two years we offered readings at local schools, libraries, and literary events. While I read, she drew sketches of the entranced children and handed it to them at the end of the reading. She was the rock star, always.