Z​​​ohreh Ghahremani is an author, speaker, and painter whose work is heavily influenced by her experiences as a Middle Eastern immigrant and her background as a poet.

Zoe began writing as a child, completing two novels before her teens! However, she was (strongly) encouraged by family to pursue a more traditional profession, so she became a dentist even though her passion for literature stayed in her heart. After graduating London University, for two decades she ran a busy pediatric dentistry practice in the Chicago area while serving as a professor at Northwestern University’s Dental School. She kept reading and writing at any opportunity.

One day, while listening to her beloved public radio station WBEZ, she heard this: “If there’s something you’ve always wanted to do, you should do it.” She walked into her office, put her practice up for sale, and never looked back.

Zoe published her first novel – Sky of Red Poppies in 2010 and was blown away when it was selected for KPBS’ One Book, One San Diego, the annual city-wide reading selection. Her experience speaking to groups near and far and her joy at connecting with readers everywhere assured her that she had made the right decision. Her sophomore novel, The Moon Daughter won Writer’s Digest Book Awards for Best Literary Fiction. She is also the author of The Commiserator (in Persian) and has contributed to numerous other literary volumes. Today, she lives the life she always dreamed of: write, paint, garden, repeat!

Zoe was profiled in the book A Glorious Freedom: Older Women Leading Extraordinary Lives by Lisa Congdon, alongside Vera Wang, Cheryl Strayed, Laura Ingalls Wilder and others. The book showcases the remarkable experiences of women who pursued and achieved their ambitious dreams slightly later in life.

She now writes for both adults and children. Her debut picture book, Memory Garden, illustrated by her daughter Susie, was published by Godwin Books/Macmillan (2024) and received a a starred review from School Library Journal. Their follow-up collaboration, Celebrate Nowruz!, about the Persian New Year holiday, was released in 2026.

A strong believer in looking for the positive, Zoe believes that those years of teaching prepared her for the many public speeches she has found herself giving! She enjoys giving lively and often humorous talks about the immigrant experience, family relationships, bicultural identity, Persian culture, other themes of her work. She connects with audiences, no matter the age or size and, whether a class, a packed auditorium or a cozy meeting in a private residence (or on Zoom!) with a book club.

She has been featured on NPR Here & Now, CBS, WBEZ in Chicago, Voice of America, KPBS, Radio Iran, Osher Club, in the San Diego Union-Tribune, at the Iranian-American Women Foundation Conference, and at universities nationwide including: Georgetown University, University of Chicago, UC Berkeley, San Diego State University, UCSD, and many more. Her books are also recommended reading at several colleges and high schools.

Zoe is proud to support other writers and the world of books. She founded and for many years curated the San Diego Central Library’s Author of the Month program, is an active member of San Diego Writing Women, and sits on the Board of the Friends of the San Diego Central Library. She is a past Board member of San Diego Writers, Ink and the San Diego Writers and Editors Guild. In 2019, she was honored with a Community Leader Award from the San Diego Writers Festival. She teaches workshops, including the 2026 San Miguel Writers’ Conference and Book Festival, in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. Among her favorite recognitions is that she was named to the San Diego Girl Scouts’ Cool Women list!

Born in Iran, Zoe has been in the United States for fifty years. She lives with her husband in San Diego, where she writes whenever she can, taking breaks to garden, participate in literary events, go antiquing, or visit with her children and grandchildren.