Meet the Author

Rowan Nash is a Montreal-based writer and animal handler whose passion for nature and words alike has taken root in all parts of his life. Since graduating in environmental and wildlife management, his reverence for animals both domestic and wild has kept him ever-eager to understand every facet of the natural world, from the bare bones of skull identification to the inner thoughts of the four-legged companions who share our homes. This keen interest has only sharpened with time, leading Rowan to pour his passion into various pursuits, such as nature education, wildlife rehabilitation, domestic pet training, and animal adoption efforts.

Rowan sees the world as interconnected, and knows that words are no different. His writing journey began with novels and poetry, but has since branched out to other styles, such as educational, technical, and content writing, as well as editing and narrative design for creative pieces. His passion for teaching has equally followed him to each step of his career, through providing a wide variety of written works, including species-specific wildlife care guides, technical documentation, instructional onboarding manuals, animal nutrition guides, and even interactive ecology presentations. Currently, he’s working on an animal care course to educate and empower owners, as well as a field guide for the Montreal area—which is planned to cover everything from trees to toads!

To hone his skill, he’s attended more than 1,000 hours of university-level writing courses, a host of animal behaviour and ecology classes, and various technical and UX courses hosted by experts in the field. He’s also been published as winner of a writing contest, was accepted into a post-graduate screenwriting & narrative design program, and regularly uses compassionate communication to help pets be better understood by their human companions. He’s worked alongside and managed teams for non-profits and large-scale companies alike, but regardless of whether his intended audience is human or wild, he always brings his work back down to the base level: Who sees the words? How will it affect them? And how best to translate a vision into reality?

Most motivated where nature, teaching, and empathy converge, Rowan believes that every chance to learn is a chance to grow. Currently, he’s working on his next novel, while helping LGBT and neurodivergent authors to do the same. Whenever he’s not writing, he can be found hiking and animal tracking out in the wilderness, studying a new language, or tacking another title onto his CKC-certified circus act of a cat.

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Experience, Education & Achievements

See LinkedIn for further details.

  • ANIMAL TRAINING & HANDLING EXPERIENCE: 15+ years
    — 11th Canadian handler (2nd in Quebec) to be awarded CKC-recognized Feline ATD title.
    — Developing online animal care course to educate owners.
    — Assistant Veterinary Technician & Receptionist (5 years)
    — Pet Care Specialist (Nutrition, Grooming, Behaviour, Training) & Assistant Manager (4 years)
    — Canine Obedience Judge Assistant & Rally-O Ring Steward / In-Class Assistant Trainer & Handler (5+ years)
    — Therapy Dog Assistant Trainer & Handler (2 years)
    — Canine Behaviour Consultant (5+ years)
    — Adoption Coordinator & Animal Handler (Non-Profit) (5 Years)
    — Developing online animal care course to educate owners (1 year)
    — Member of Canadian Cat Association.
    — Member of Cat Fancier’s Association.

    WILDLIFE & ECOLOGY EXPERIENCE: 15+ years
    — Wildlife Care Specialist / Rehabilitator (1 year)
    — Nature Educator & Guide (1 year)
    — Collection Curator’s Assistant (1 year)
    — Taxidermist’s Assistant (2 years)
    — Wildlife Management Skills: Mammal Trapping, Bird Banding, Electrofishing, Invertebrate Surveys, Radio Telemetry, etc. (3 years)
    — Environmental Management Skills: Soil Sampling, Limnology, Forestry, Ecocartography, etc. (3 years)
    — Public education & content writing for educational materials: ecology, wildlife cohabitation, sustainability, domestic animal training & handling, etc. (10+ years)
    — Developing region-specific field guide for independent publication (1 year)
    — Member of Quebec Falconers & Hawkers Association (AQFA).
    — Member of Bird Protection Quebec.
    — Member of Montreal Field Naturalists.

    EDUCATION
    — Environmental & Wildlife Management degree
    — Various courses hosted by the NCC (Nature Conservancy of Canada)
    — First Aid, CPR; Wilderness First Aid (WFR)

  • EXPERIENCE: 7 years
    — Instructional Designer & Strategist (ecology & domestic animal care) (1 year)
    — Technical Writer (health care software) (2 years)
    — Technical Writer (open-source documentation & training) (1 year)
    — Technical Content Writer (animal nutrition) (1 year)
    — Technical Content Writer (wildlife care guides) (1 year)
    — Technical Content Writer (canine behaviour) (non-profit) (2 years)
    — Daily UX Writing Challenge

    EDUCATION
    — Software Documentation - JPDocu Technical Writing School
    — Technical Written Skills - University of Colorado Boulder
    — Introduction to Technical Writing - Dr. Katharina Grimm
    — Complete Instructional Designer - John Hinchliffe
    — Introduction to UX Writing - Dr. Katharina Grimm
    — UX Strategy Fundamentals - Joe Natoli
    — How to design for neurodiversity: Inclusive content and UX - IxDF (The Interaction Design Foundation)
    — Paligo Course Completion - Paligo
    — RoboHelp Training Course - Adobe
    — 1000+ hours of university writing courses: editing, tone, genre, audience, etc.

  • EXPERIENCE: 5 years
    — Content Writer & Public Educator - Arundel Nature & Science Center: 1 year
    — Content Writer (non-profit) - Foster a Child to Excel in Society: 2 years
    — Social Media Content Writer - Timberlea Veterinary Clinic: 1 year
    — SEO Content Writer & Editor - ClearEstate: 1 year
    — Technical Content Writer - Mondou: 1 year
    — Technical Content Writer - Urban Animal Advocates Wildlife Rehabilitation Center: 1 year
    — Technical Content Writer (Canine Education) (non-profit) - Self-Employed: 2 years

    EDUCATION
    — 1000+ hours of university writing courses: editing, tone, genre, audience, etc.

  • EXPERIENCE: 12 years
    — Writing Coach & Editor - Self-Employed: 5 years
    — Speculative Fiction Author - Self-Employed: 8 years

    EDUCATION
    — Creative Writing - Wesleyan University
    — Novel & Script Writing - Michigan State University
    — Screenwriting & Narrative Design (Postgraduate acceptance) - George Brown College
    — 1000+ hours of university writing courses: editing, tone, genre, audience, etc.

  • GENERAL SKILLS
    — Language: English (Fluent), French (Fluent), Finnish (CEFR-A2), Russian (CEFR-A1).
    — Writing: Educational, technical, scientific, content, creative, copywriting, documentation, editing, translation.
    — Software: MS Office, Teams, Slack, word processors, Zoom, Miro, Figma, Canva, design, retail, veterinary, game design software, ArcView GIS, GitHub, Paligo, RoboHelp.
    — General: Public education, research, data analysis, laboratory writing, client service, team management, communication, collaboration, organization, problem-solving, detail-oriented, curiosity, innovation.

    PERSONAL ACHIEVEMENTS
    — 11th Canadian handler (2nd in Quebec) to be awarded CKC-recognized Feline ATD title.
    — Published as winner of college-level writing contest.
    — Novel personally selected for publication by developmental editor.
    — Founder of author coaching business for emerging writers.
    — Developing region-specific field guide for independent publication.
    — Developing online animal care course to educate owners.