My name is Parisa Ally Ahmadi. While my given name is Parisa, I go by “Ally” in my personal and creative endeavors, a name that resonates deeply with my soul. I was born in Iran in 1996 as a refugee and later returned to my motherland, Afghanistan, when I faced rejection in Iran during my second grade. This experience not only shaped my identity but also inspired the name “Ally,” which I hold dear.
N. Thomas Padilla has been under the sway of literature since reading Indian Two Feet and His Horse when he was six. When asked by his mother’s friends what he wanted to be when he grew up, little six year old Tommy said, “An author!” to the delight and giggles of the ladies present. His passion found a path to an English degree from several institutions. He has taught writing and literature at the high school and college level since 1995. He is happily married to his wife Joan, and they have four beautiful children and four grandchildren, so far. Travel and live music keep Tom buys when he does not have his nose in a book or a laptop, working on his latest writing. He has self-published a book of short stories, Ite, Missa Est: Stories from the Edge of Faith, and he has two novels completed and seeking publishers.
Harker Jones is the author of the best-selling love story Until September and nine screenplays, revealing truths through humor and horror. His short thrillers Cole & Colette and One-Hit Wonder have been accepted into more than 60 film festivals combined, garnering several awards. Managing editor of Out magazine for seven years, he is a member of both the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle and Mensa.
I spent my professional life as an academic (studying social aspects of information and computer technologies, and in particular, how women experience technological change in healthcare settings). I’ve published 6 books (1 sole authored, 4 edited books, and most recently a co-authored book) as well as numerous book chapters, journal articles and conference papers.
I am a poet and an essayist. Been writing since my junior years in secondary school. Wrote my first short story, “A Greeen Snake In a Green Grass” at age 12. I split my time between writing and working as a cellphone technician. Ash Wednesday is my first serious novel.
Priti Ghai, hailing from the picturesque state of Uttarakhand, India, is a passionate poet and aspiring author. Her love for literature was kindled by the timeless verses of renowned poets such as John Keats, William Wordsworth, Edgar Guest, Rudyard Kipling, and Maya Angelou. Their words left an indelible mark on her creative soul, shaping her artistic journey.
Eve Elliot is a Canadian/Irish author of over a dozen published short stories and a self-published romance novel. She has also written and produced a full-cast radio drama in homage to Agatha Christie entitled The Death of Doctor Davidson. She is currently completing her chapter-by-chapter release of her latest novel with the working title Noah and Kate, which is supported entirely by fans on Patreon.
C. W. McClain is an aspiring writer based out of North Carolina. He is also a husband, a father, and a pet parent to WAY too many cats. At the time of this writing, he is working towards his BA in Creative Writing (Fiction) with plans to further his academic and professional careers in the near future.
Mmesoma Ugwu is a graduate from a prestigious university in Nigeria. She is a writer and freelances on Upwork. She is a woman of great dreams and has a passion to see young people grow correctly. She believes that addictions can be broken no matter how intense one gets addicted to a sexual sin. She is a Christian and believes in the power of God.
Zack Albertini is a writer from New Jersey. After almost ten years of producing television and digital media, Zack dedicates his time to his current work in progress, The Scents of Memories, and a new passion of his, poetry. He has been a storyteller since he can remember, as a child growing up in Philadelphia and coming up with comic books and movie scripts, through his decision to focus on journalism at La Salle University (2013), and his time producing content for ESPN. It has always been about storytelling. Now, as Zack enters the next phase of his life, he focuses on the next set of stories, while he raises a son and daughter to tell their own stories, along with his wife.
Brooke Stewart is currently working on her first novel, a contemporary sports romance. When she isn’t furiously writing complex characters, and encouraging them to fall in love like she did her Barbies back in grade-school. Brooke enjoys baking, from cookies to pies to sourdough bread and everything in between, if you hear a stand mixer running late at night it’s probably Brooke baking cookies.
My name is Amber James. I have an MFA in Creative Writing from Antioch University. I almost finished a PhD in Creative Non-Fiction Writing, but felt like I wasn’t progressing in my writing because I was so focused on the academics and grades—so I stopped. I am an educator and have been teaching for more years than I can remember, and that brings me so much joy. I have a lot of cats, a child, and a life where I feel super fulfilled.
Robert Allen Ligon has lived in the Pacific Northwest for the entirety of his life and currently resides in rural Western Washington, in the foothills of the Cascades. Writing is his passion, and he is currently working on a collection of poetry and a fantasy trilogy, the first book of which, Such is the Way, will be published in late 2024. Through his novels and his poetry, he aims to connect with his readers and share a part of himself with them.
Carlo Antico was born in Sao Paulo, Brazil, but raised in the wonderful town of Jundiaí, a forty-minute drive from Sao Paulo. He is a journalist and a translator (Englsih-Portuguese/Portuguese-English). He has written for a heavy metal magazine for eight years, had a local tv, radio, and magazine show called “Rock Forever,” which dealt with all things Rock and Roll. His first book, Straight and Lethal, a short story collection, was issued as limited self-published copies only in the USA.
Paula Obé has been a performance poet for the past 35 years. She blends words, music and silence to create a unique sound. With her trademark guitar, she has performed in Trinidad & Tobago, Barbados, Guyana, Venezuela, The Dominican Republic and Canada.
Dita Dow is a best-selling and award-winning author who enjoys crafting stories that sweep you into thrilling adventures. With over three decades of experience in law enforcement, private investigations, and consulting, she possesses a deep understanding of the human psyche, which she skillfully weaves into her narratives.
Elizabeth Conte is a women’s fiction writer bringing what she loves about 19th-century literature to the 21st-century reader. She writes poetry, short stories, and novels, with her award-winning debut novel, Finding Jane, released in Spring 2022, and Chosen Mistress in Fall 2023. Other published work includes anthologies, The Truths That Can’t be Told, The Truth That Can’t Be Told 2, Love Is In The Air, Let’s Begin Again, Summer Fireflies, and I Have A Dream. Her writing is featured in The Pangolin Review, Sad Girls, Platos Cave, Lost Coast Review, Lake Forest Writers Roundtable, and PennWriters.
Frank was born in Newark, New Jersey during the post-World War II era. He has completed two novels based on his personal experiences of growing up during the 1950s and 1960s, which he considers to be unique and interesting times. He has completed an outline for a third novel to be set at the very end of the 1960s and early 1970s, which were very turbulent days in America. He believes that writing from personal experience gives an author greater credibility. On one hand, he considers himself to be an expert of his life but, on the other, he still doesn’t understand it. Writing, he thinks, helps him solve the puzzle.
Jack Sheedy is the author of the memoir Sting of the Heat Bug (2012), a collection of essays titled Magical Acts in Two Suitcases (2020) and a poetry chapbook titled The Wanting Place (2021). He is the award-winning playwright of Guardrail Nikes (2000) and Moratorium (2020) and an award-winning journalist for The Catholic Transcript and other publications. His articles have appeared in Litchfield Magazine, The Litchfield County Times, The Hartford Courant, The Register Citizen, The Republican-American, Housatonic Home and Business Digest. He is a lifelong resident of Litchfield County.
Hannah Southcott is an Australian journalist and writer eager to encourage people to enjoy reading as much as she did as a child.