Millie Kerr grew up in San Antonio, Texas alongside her parents, three older brothers and countless pets, most of whom she liked. After studying history at Wake Forest University, Millie moved to London where she worked in the windowless basement of a large international law firm. Unpredictable hours, arrogant bosses and countless paper cuts caused Millie to pen her first “faux-story” about the link between cubicles and mental illness.
Despite her extreme dislike for private practice, Millie decided to attend law school at the University of Texas, then return to another international law firm in London. It was there, within a windowless office not much larger than a cubicle, that Millie decided to chronicle her weekend jaunts around London and the U.K. Notebook and camera in hand, Millie explored the city, recording her insights on An Expat’s Guide to London, a website she created and still maintains.
Shortly after beginning her guide, Millie decided to leave private practice, unknowingly subjecting herself to stringent visa regulations that compelled her back to the United States. She decided to give law another shot, this time within the Federal Communications Commission, but not before satisfying a lifelong dream: working with wild animals in Africa. During a brief sabbatical, Millie worked at a wildlife conservancy in Namibia, learning that the only thing she loved more than writing was writing about wildlife. She was also nearly bitten to death by vervet monkeys, but that story warrants its own post.
After a year at the Federal Communications Commission, Millie decided to move to New York, a place she’d longed to inhabit since watching Seinfeld as a teen. She returned to Namibia once more to investigate the practices of several additional cheetah conservation organizations before settling into the West Village, where she drinks coffee, admires brownstones she can’t afford, and writes. She’s also the web writer for a wildlife conservation organization based in the Bronx, which allows her endless opportunities to commune with–and write about–animals.
As a writer, Millie fancies herself a generalist. She pens pieces that range from reported pieces on cultural developments to satirical essays. A regular contributor to the Atlantic Monthly, Garden & Gun, Huffington Post and Psychology Today, she’s also written for Food GPS, Marie Claire, Prospero (The Economist’s culture blog), Texas Monthly, and the San Antonio Express-News. Although she doesn’t actively use her law degree, Millie credits it and her undergraduate degree in history for her ability to think analytically and write persuasively.