Letters From A Survivor is created by D. Maxinne Bernal, a longtime journalist, storyteller, technical writer, and founder of Survivor Media. 

Before launching this project, Maxinne spent years reporting for community newspapers and working in radio journalism. Over time, her reporting gravitated toward disaster coverage and crisis reporting, including stories connected to events such as Hurricane Katrina, the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, and the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, the Great Tohoku Earthquake, and others. Covering these events shaped her understanding of how fragile modern systems can be, and how ordinary people respond when those systems begin to fail.

Maxinne also studied Threat and Response Management at the University of Chicago, where she explored how governments and institutions plan for large-scale emergencies. That background now informs the world of Letters From A Survivor, helping shape the realism behind the story’s portrayal of crisis response, logistics, and the breakdown of infrastructure.

She has also been a lifelong fan of zombie fiction, having watched and studied nearly every major zombie film and television series over the past 20 years. From classic outbreak stories to modern survival narratives, that passion helped inspire the world and tone of Letters From A Survivor.

Maxinne lives in the mountains of New Mexico with her dog and four cats.

Write to Maxinne at, editor@lettersfromasurvivor.com.