### About the Editor:

Melissa J. Klamer is a Ph.D. Candidate (post-defense) in English at Michigan State University, working at the intersection of Victorian Life Writing and Digital Humanities. The Elizabeth Gaskell Journal: Digital Edition is her dissertation project. She holds a B.A. in English and a B.S. in Education from Concordia University, Nebraska (2006), and a M.A. in English from Central Michigan University (2012), and will graduate with a Ph.D. in English from Michigan State University in August 2020.

Melissa studied TEI XML encoding with Dr. Elisa Beshero-Bondar, the Director and Co-founder of the Digital Mitford Project, and received editing training at the 2018 Institute for the Editing of Historical Documents, sponsored by the Association for Documentary Editing and the National Historial Publications and Records Commision.

Melissa is a mother of four, and enjoys the synchronicity the creation of this project has given to her roles in academia and motherhood. She is grateful to her children for their patience and support throughout the process, and to her parents and parents-in-law for the many hours of selfless babysitting which made pursuing the Ph.D. possible.

#### Dedication:

> This dissertation is dedicated to my children: Lydia, Christiana, Carl, and Jakob, whose constant love and laughter has made the process worthwhile, and to my husband, Lance, whose encouragement gave me the courage to chase my dreams.

#### Contact:

Contact Melissa: email: klamerme@msu.edu