Tessa Fontaine

Tessa Fontaine is a writer and performer who spent a season with America's last traveling sideshow, the World of Wonders.

She learned various sideshow acts including fire eating, snake charming, and performing as the Electric Woman.

Fontaine has an MFA in creative writing and her work has appeared in literary journals.

In addition to her sideshow experiences, she writes about her mother's recovery from a severe stroke and their complex relationship.

Fontaine's memoir explores themes of fear, family, and pushing personal boundaries.

She currently teaches at Warren Wilson College's MFA program for writers and lives in South Carolina.