Lisa N. Peterson
Award-winning Writer, Journalist, and Canine Subject Matter Expert
Born in Sleepy Hollow, New York, Lisa N. Peterson pens historical stories about horses, hounds, and homicides. Early in her journalism career, she worked as a staff reporter covering law enforcement and criminal justice at several Connecticut newspapers.
Her work has appeared in USA Today, FoxNews.com, Connecticut Magazine, Savingplaces.org, The News-Times, The Newtown Bee, The New Haven Register, The Hour, Connecticut Horse Magazine, and AKC Family Dog. She is a five-time winner of the Dog Writers Association of America (DWAA) Maxwell writing award, most recently for her work on Substack and in the AKC Gazette.
Canine Subject Matter Expert
As the communications director and spokesperson at the American Kennel Club in Manhattan for more than a decade, Peterson made regular guest appearances on television and radio, including Good Morning America, Fox & Friends, Today, CBS Evening News, CNN, Martha Stewart Living, and NPR.
She also served as a public relations consultant for the Westminster Kennel Club for six years from 2016 to 2021. Her most recent role was as the Content Strategy Lead for breeder marketing at the dog DNA company Embark Veterinary.
As an expert on purebred dog breeds, canine health, legislation, dog shows, pet theft, and presidential pets, she’s been featured in The New York Times, The New Yorker, and The Washington Post. Peterson’s show champion Norwegian Elkhounds have appeared in Sports Illustrated, New York Dog, The Connecticut Post, and in Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show TV ads.
Her dogs have won awards at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, the Morris & Essex Kennel Club Dog Show, and national specialties in the U.S. and Canada. She is an AKC Judge, AKC Delegate for the Norwegian Elkhound Association of America, a former president of the Garden State Norwegian Elkhound Club, and an AKC Board of Directors candidate for the class of 2030.
True Crime Writer
A recognized expert for her investigative journalism on the Woodchipper Murder case and Regina Brown’s mysterious disappearance in Newtown, Connecticut. Peterson has appeared on A&E’s Crime Stories, Investigation Discovery’s Murders & Mansions, BBC’s Science of Crime, and FOX61’s Cold Case.
Her true crime podcast guest appearances include Real Crime Profile with Jim Clemente, Crossing the Line with M. William Phelps, and 1-Hour Podcast. She’s been featured in Rhode Island Monthly, The News-Times, The Connecticut Post, and The Newtown Bee.
Peterson is a member of The Author’s Guild, Hudson Valley Writers Center, and the DWAA. She has judged the Western Connecticut State University (WCSU) Housatonic Book Awards, the Connecticut Press Club Writing Competition, and the DWAA Annual Writing Competition.
She received Distinguished Thesis Recognition upon graduating from WCSU with a Master of Fine Arts in Creative and Professional Writing and has lectured at Mercy College and at WCSU MFA residencies. Peterson is a lifelong equestrian and horse show competitor who lives in Newtown, Connecticut.