Joanne Spataro is an independent journalist and fiction writer living in Charlotte, N.C. She broke into writing at 13 as a movie critic for The Charlotte Observer. She learned how to survive horrible films like Pokemon: The Movie, sneak in hot dogs wrapped in aluminum foil, and take legible notes in a dark theater.
A nose for politics and pop culture landed Joanne at the alt-weekly Creative Loafing. She had an exclusive interview with Marvel Comics founder Stan Lee at the 30th Annual Heroes Convention in Charlotte, NC — dressed as DC character Wonder Woman. In 2012, she covered the Democratic National Convention, where she interviewed big names like director Rob Reiner, president of Planned Parenthood Cecile Richards, and E! Channel personality Ross Matthews. She had a brief run-in with John Leguizamo that they both wish to forget. She has also contributed to the Observer, Charlotte Style Magazine, and Charlotte Viewpoint. When she stops hermiting long enough to go to a party, the society pages find her caked in red lipstick.
Today, Joanne writes about gender politics on her Huffington Post blog. She recently had a sit-down interview with 2012 Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein and was disappointed to learn they do not have the exact same initials. She is currently working on her first novel.
In her spare time, Joanne will abruptly stop watching a movie if it’s terrible within the first 10 minutes.
I write because I need to record the world around me or I feel like the experience has gone to waste. I want to settle down my mind and be sure I capture the moment I was living in so I can remember it later.
"Heartburn" by Nora Ephron because it tells a serious story about divorce and infidelity while including food recipes and humor.
