A writer transformed by the beatniks before her, Kristal Docter headed west after earning a BA in Literature and Creative Writing with a journalism concentration from Southwest Minnesota State University. Her career has been driven by diversification as a newspaper editor-in-chief, copy editor, corporate advertising professional, non-profit marketing maven, and brand contributor to a venture capital firm. Throughout her journey, Kristal continued asserting an appetite for all things linguistic, and now contributes a fresh voice at LOCALE.