Meet The Belladonna Editors!
Our current Managing Editors + the Founding Editors
Managing Editors
They’re creepy and they’re kooky, mysterious and spooky, they’re all together ooky: the Managing Editor team!
Emily Kapp (she/her) is a satire and comedy writer originally from Ohio and now based in Chicago. She has studied improv at The Second City in Chicago and been published in McSweeney’s, The Belladonna, Points in Case, Slackjaw, Weekly Humorist, Little Old Lady Comedy, Robot Butt, and others. Find more of her work at emilykapp.journoportfolio.com.
What’s one of your favorite humor pieces?
Off the top of my head, two that come to mind are Love in the Time of Cutlery by Michael Ralph and It is I, Manuela — The Girl From Your Spanish-Language Textbook by Kate Schulman. I absolutely loved the dialogue in the cutlery piece, and the Spanish-language textbook format was one of the most unique I’ve ever seen, and made me want to get creative with format in my own writing.
Which member(s) of The Baby-Sitters Club are you?
My first thought is to say Kristy, because I was the type of kid who would call the local newspaper and ask them to come take a picture of a (pretty impressive) snowman my friends and I built one snow day, and then proceed to write a letter to the editor of said newspaper when they didn’t show up after they said they would. It’s fine. But when I took the quiz, I got Mary Anne, so who can really say.
Kelley Greene is a writer, satirist, and sentient wheel of cheese from Chicago. She’s a contributor to The Hard Times and Hard Drive and has been published in The Belladonna, Points in Case, Slackjaw, Weekly Humorist, and more. She also writes a weekly Substack newsletter called TMI — Too Much Internet. You can find her online (please do, she’s probably lost) on Twitter and Instagram @kelleygreene and kelleygreene.pizza.
What’s one of your favorite humor pieces?
One of my favorite pieces of all time is Nicole Erb’s “We’re the Lonely Gators of Florida’s Gatorland Theme Park and We Miss You!” The gator’s voice in this piece is absolutely perfect from beginning to end, and I laugh out loud every time I read it. I’ll never look at a big ham the same way again.
Which member(s) of the Baby-Sitters Club are you?
I am definitely Mary Anne, introvert virgo queen. I’m short, my handwriting is annoyingly good, and I once cried watching a local news story about a cat that got stuck in a tree (the cat was fine). Also, I probably need to get my hair cut.
Heidi Lux (she/her) is a Los Angeles-based writer with a focus on female-driven comedy. She has written for Nickelodeon and been published on Reductress, McSweeney’s, Macaulay Culkin’s Bunny Ears, CollegeHumor, Cracked, The Belladonna, Slackjaw, and more. She also went to NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, which was very expensive. You can follow her on Twitter: @heidi_lux and/or Instagram: @fabulux
What’s one of your favorite humor pieces?
Before We Get Serious, Please Read My Personal Brand Guidelines by Casey Rand. This is a spot on parody of corporate branding guides, and will forever have a soft spot in my heart because of that.
Which member(s) of The Baby-Sitters Club are you?
My first impulse is to say Claudia, because she was always my favorite, but self doubt creeps in and I can’t shake the voice telling me, “No, Girl, you’re a Kristy. You don’t wear real bras,” or “Don’t you think you’re more of a Stacey? You’re blonde and you freely admit you enjoy working on vacation because ‘free time is for the weak.’” But I took a BuzzFeed quiz and it told me I was a Claudia, so I guess the moral is to listen to your gut — even though I know saying that would make me a Dawn.
Katy Maiolatesi (she/her) is a comedy writer with words in Reductress, McSweeney’s, The Belladonna, and Weekly Humorist. She lives in Michigan which definitely counts as one of the important coasts. Find her on Twitter and Instagram @kmaiolatesi and at katymaiolatesi.com.
What’s one of your favorite humor pieces?
A recent favorite is Mary’s Mother Visits the Manger by Cara Marino. It focuses on a person we don’t really think about when it comes to Christmas, and the attitude and vibe Cara creates for “Joe’s” mother-in-law is so so funny. It makes me want to read about more non-traditional perspectives in history!
Which member(s) of The Baby-Sitters Club are you?
As a child I really wanted to be Dawn because she was sort of a hippie and her clothes were amazing. It was so effortless for Dawn to be fashionable and cool! As an adult I’m probably Kristy because I like to organize in a sort of bossy way and also hide my feelings.
Kristen Mulrooney is a humor writer and editor. Her work has appeared in The New Yorker, McSweeney’s (where she writes the column “Letters to Moms”), House Beautiful, and various other publications. She is the author of Gilmore Girls: The Official Cookbook. Kristen has two humor books coming out in 2024–2025 and she thinks you should read them. You can find more of her writing at kristenmulrooney.com and, to be honest, most of her writing on Twitter.
What’s one of your favorite humor pieces?
Okay, Let Me Just Share My Screen… Ah, Nope. Okay, You’re Looking At My Savings Account Now. That Is Not Good. I love this piece by Austin Adams.The title made me laugh on its own, and then the whole thing spirals out of control. I love a good spiral. And I will do everything in my power to avoid a situation where I have to share my screen because there’s just no way that ends well.
Which member(s) of The Baby-Sitters Club are you?
As a kid I thought I was Kristy because we look alike and have the same name. But now I have a theory that Kristy, Claudia, Stacey, Mary Anne, Dawn, and Jessi are meant to represent the people we WANT to be, when in reality we’re all just Mallorys.
Founding Editors
Caitlin Kunkel is a satirist, writer, and acclaimed pizza scientist whose work has been featured in The New York Times, The New Yorker, McSweeney’s, and other places across the vast internet. She was recently named one of Paste Magazine’s 15 Best Humorists Writing Today. Caitlin is the writer for Live Wire Radio and the creator of Second City’s online satire writing program. She teaches at Catapult in NY and tours her workshops to colleges and theaters across the US and internationally. She co-wrote and published the humor gift book “New Erotica for Feminists” and co-founded the Satire and Humor Festival. Follow her on Twitter and Medium as the very professionally named @KunkelTron, and visit her website here.
Brooke Preston is a Midwest-based comedy writer, satirist and storyteller. Her work can be found in The New York Times, Real Simple, Men’s Health, Electric Literature, McSweeney’s, Reductress, The Huffington Post, Romper and more. She is a faculty member of The Second City, where she teaches in the online satire writing program, and teaches workshops for The Thurber House, MadLab and others. Together with the other founding editors, she co-wrote the humor gift book “New Erotica for Feminists,” named one of Vulture’s Top 10 Humor Books of 2018. She enjoys adventuring with her husband, daughter and doofy labs, and seeking out exceptional deals on cheese. Follow her at brookeprestoncomedy.com or on Twitter @bigu.
Fiona Taylor writes comedy, satire, and fiction. She has been published in Shouts & Murmurs in The New Yorker as well as outlets like Robot Butt and The Establishment. She grew up in Florida, but it’s not her fault. Superpowers include always being cold no matter what the actual temperature, alligator wrestling, rescuing orphans from fires, and an amazing repertoire of voices for stuffed animals. Follow her on Twitter and Medium @fionaleslie
Carrie Wittmer is a Brooklyn-based comedy writer, satirist, and comedian who is scared of loud improv groups. You can find her work in McSweeney’s, Refinery29, Robot Butt, Business Insider, and some other really, really, really cool places on the Internet. She does stand-up when she’s not too tired, and has more grey hair than her mom. Follow her on Twitter , Medium, and Instagram @carriesnotscary.
