Indy Maven launched with a small but mighty team in October 2019. Our mission is to uplift women in Central Indiana through content, community, and curated events. Our team remains small, but our impact is big.
We’ve worked with hundreds of people including creatives, contributors, and interns, and are supported by an amazing group of operations and editorial board members.
Interested in joining the #mavenmovement? We’d love to get to know you! Contact us.
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Leslie Bailey
Leslie Bailey is a seasoned writer, editor, and media consultant. Before launching Indy Maven, she was the managing editor for AAA Crossroads magazine, lifestyle editor at Indianapolis Monthly, and a reporter for The Indianapolis Star where she penned a popular column called “The Adventuress.”
Originally from Michigan, she lives in the heart of the city with her husband, two sons, two cats, and one very large slobbering dog. Her hobbies enjoy cooking, reading, organizing (yes, really), and binging all the TV shows and Masterclasses she can find time for.
Amanda Kingsbury
Amanda Kingsbury is an experienced, award-winning journalist who spent an afternoon in a dressing room with Diane Von Furstenberg, nine days covering a Harley ride from San Diego to Milwaukee, and a year doing cartwheels in public places.
She was a lifestyle, arts and entertainment editor at The Indianapolis Star before joining Newfields: A Place for Nature and the Arts before joining the Arts Council of Indianapolis as the director of communications and marketing.
Her longtime passion is writing about women who do interesting things. Amanda lives in Irvington, a historic neighborhood on Indy’s Eastside, with her daughter and black cat. She also has a black-cat tattoo.
Maura Malloy
Longtime Indy Maven contributor, Maura is a seasoned writer with a diverse background in corporate, collegiate, and entertainment fields. At 35 weeks pregnant, she gave a TedX Talk that spoke of her path to simple living, and she continues to explore that in her work at Less is Maura.
She lives in the heart of Indy with her husband, daughter, and dog. She loves mugs of hot water, large blocks of unstructured time, and Cafe Patachou’s cobb salad.
Faith Blackwell
Faith Blackwell is an artist and photographer specializing in business, commercial, fashion, and event photography. (psst…You’ll often see her at Indy Maven events, too, serving as our event photographer!)
She holds a position on boards for the Stutz Artists Association and Fashion Arts Society at Newfields. Faith has also been actively involved at Dress for Success Indianapolis for over 10 years.
Stephanie Groves
Stephanie Groves is a Contributing Editor and Editorial Board Member of Indy Maven, as well as a writer, reporter, and stylist who is passionate about food, culture, fashion, and lifestyle. Prior to moving to Indy with her husband to start a family, she lived in NYC for almost half her lifetime, got a law degree and worked as a corporate lawyer for a hot second, then scrapped it all to pursue a career in magazines. She has worked as the fashion and home director for Woman’s World, a fashion writer at Life & Style, and a nightlife reporter for People. She was also a contributing fashion and beauty editor at Working Mother (waaaay before she ever thought about having a child), and was a fashion expert for About.com back when it was a thing. She has styled magazine and celebrity photo shoots ranging from fitness fashion spreads for Shape to the cover of AARP The Magazine.
Until she can finally get around to writing one of the chick-lit novels she has in her head or starting one of the business ideas she dreams up but never does anything with, you can usually find her playing with her young daughter and fostering at least one rescue dog.
Jalysa King
Jalysa is originally from Northwest Indiana but now considers the Indy area home. She is a proud two-time IUPUI graduate with two degrees in Communication Studies. Jalysa’s time in Indy has been full of rewarding experiences from her days working in radio, sales, research, and now higher education. She truly believes each piece has shaped who she is today.
During the day, you can find Jalysa working with the Indiana School of Medicine and AHEC as their Program Outreach Manager. She loves to write and has had the honor of contributing to platforms such as @huffpost, @elitedaily, and @indymaven. Jalysa is so excited to not only write for Indy Maven but to now join their team and help spread their mission that she believes in so much.
Jalysa is a published author and released her first children’s book “When I Grow Up I Can Be Anything” in March 2021. She finds joy in writing about the tough topics and representation with the hope her work creates a dialogue that leads to a sense of belonging and community.
Jalysa hosts the podcast @letstalkaboutrepresentation where she addresses many topics to create awareness and ways we can bridge the gap to be more inclusive. Jalysa is also a licensed Zumba instructor and loves to dance, loves a good Netflix binge, and will never get tired of Indian food.
Jalysa strives to show up authentically to build relationships and community both personally and professionally. She believes that we all have something in us that makes us special and she hopes to inspire others to see that in themselves.
Rachel Hickey
Rachel Hickey is the Director of Digital Marketing at Pulp Functions where she works with small and medium-sized businesses to create customized digital strategies. She is also a Board Director for the Broad Ripple Village Association and on the board for RecycleForce, a social enterprise focused on the re-entry of returning citizens from incarceration.
When not at work, she’s trying to convince her husband to let her adopt more Dobermans, planning her next trip, and trying (but mostly failing) to keep her houseplants alive.
Abby Gardner
Abby Gardner has spent years covering beauty, health, fashion, and lifestyle. She started her career in print at magazines like Jane, Allure, and YM before diving into the digital world at The Daily Front Row, Fashionista, Glo, Marie Claire, and Cosmopolitan.
Currently she is a freelance writer, editor, and consultant with several magazines and brands, based in her hometown of Indianapolis after spending many years as a New Yorker.
Her work is frequently featured at places like Glamour, where she is a contributing writer. You can also find her spending way too much musing on all things beauty, fashion, sports, and pop culture on Twitter (@abbygardner) or in her weekly newsletter, We Have Notes.