Judith Adams Lagana

Judith writes under the pen name J. A. Lagana. She is the author of the chapbook Edge of Highway (2025) and the poetry collection Make Space (2023), both from Finishing Line Press. 

A fiction writer and memoirist, she has written numerous essays on the craft of writing and living the writer's life. She is a founder and former co-editor (2018 - 2023) of River Heron Review where she also facilitated poetry, fiction, and memoir writing workshops, coordinated interviews with poets, and wrote a monthly blog.

A retired educator who holds an M.Ed in Educational Administration from Rutgers University, Judith headed art, music, and English departments within the largest high school district in New Jersey for nearly 25 years. There, she was instrumental in developing numerous arts-based, writing and poetry resources and events for that community. She began her career with the FRHSD as a high school English and creative writing teacher.