Cynthia Elder
Cynthia “Cindy” Elder is a novelist, poet and nonprofit leader. Her two-book novel, Tales of the Sea (Holand Press, 2025), tells the true story of a seafaring family from West Barnstable, Massachusetts, during the final chapter of the Great Age of Sail and the tumultuous years of the Civil War.
Kirkus Reviews, one of the publishing industry’s premier book review sources describes Tales of the Sea as “a well-developed novel that uses copious historical sources to vividly bring its characters and setting to life.” Kirkus gave the novel a “Get It” recommendation, a designation achieved by 25% of authors associated with independent publishers.​
Cindy’s poetry has appeared in many literary magazines over the last four decades, including recent editions of The Last Stanza Poetry Journal, Frost Meadow Review, Blood & Bourbon, Blue Heron Review and elsewhere. She received the Grand Prize in Notable Works’ 2023 Voices of the Earth anthology.
She earned a Bachelor of Arts in creative writing and career writing from Roger Williams University and a Master of Public Affairs from Brown University. Cindy is working with both universities to research a freedom seeker born in 1816 whose remarkable narrative of flight from slavery and life as a ship’s cook was found in her husband’s family records.
Cindy serves as executive director of the Barrington Land Conservation Trust, a local nonprofit dedicated to preserving open space and educating the public about our natural resources. Her long history in nonprofit service includes roles as executive director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness of Rhode Island and Coggeshall Farm Museum. She also served as communications director for the Rhode Island Community Food Bank and Hospice of Central Florida.
Cindy and her husband, Bob, have sailed the waters of Narragansett Bay and elsewhere for 30 years, along with their children, Emily and Elizabeth. They live on the edge of Hundred Acre Cove in Barrington, Rhode Island.
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