Nicki’s debut novel, Ellis River, won the Independent Book Publishers Association’s Bill Fisher Award for Best First Book – Fiction. The next year, it won IBPA’s award for Best Audiobook – Fiction. The novel was also a finalist for the Eric Hoffer First Horizons Award, received an Honorable Mention for the Eric Hoffer Grand Prize, and was a semi-finalist for the Publishers Weekly Booklife Prize.
As an author, Michelle is passionate about creating stories that help children (and adults) build strong social-emotional skills in a fun, approachable way. Through her books, she tackles everyday challenges like learning patience, calming a busy mind at bedtime, and using art to manage emotions like anger.
Hampton County native Michael M. DeWitt Jr. is a multiple-award-winning journalist, longtime editor of the 144-year-old The Hampton County Guardian, author of four books, including Wicked Hampton County and Fall of the House of Murdaugh, and host of the Wicked South Podcast.
Mesalie Feleke is a doctor, biologist, peer reviewer, and postdoctoral cancer researcher based in Perth. She has a passion for literature, art, and storytelling, and draws on her diverse experiences to craft thought-provoking narratives that explore change, resilience, and human complexity.
Mark Bowsher has been a freelance writer and filmmaker since 2013. He’s written four award-winning short films and had short stories published by Fish Publishing and Breakthrough Books. He’s directed promo films for Jaguar Land Rover, VSO, and Unbound. He’s also written and directed several chart-topping documentaries for Dan Snow’s History Hit.
Malcolm Farrell-Mitchell is an Australian-born migrant to Ireland. He is a fan of absurdism, escapism, and humour. Whilst his head is based in Dublin working in the world of travel and events, his heart is in the clouds with fantasy, elves, and magic. He has loved writing all his life, and never had an interest in doing anything with it until his mother (also see ‘Editor’) encouraged him to submit a story to a writing competition. He has been miserably trying to write a book for almost five years, and this is the closest he has gotten to something he likes. But more importantly, it brings him immense joy. He’s now getting freaked out by writing in third person for so long.
Lynn Shattuck has been publishing essays on the topic of sibling loss for more than a decade. She was a paid columnist at Elephant Journal for ten years; several of her essays on the topic of grief and sibling loss have gone viral. Her writing has also appeared on The Huffington Post, Human Parts, Vice, The Fix, and Al Jazeera.
Leonora Ross is an artist and novelist from Western Canada. When she’s not writing novels, she enjoys writing whimsical poetry and prose and is an avid mountain hiker and amateur photographer. Her writing and photography regularly appear in literary journals.
Kimberly Nixon writes family stories featuring strong, determined—and sometimes wild—characters. She wrestles these personalities, which are based on real people, into the main characters of her works of fiction. She is a member of the Women’s Fiction Writing Association and the Writers’ League of Texas. Nixon lives in Austin, Texas, with her husband, Paul, and commits to living a great story of her own.
Kerry Brackett is a renowned writer whose work deeply explores cultural narratives and personal introspection. Originating from Birmingham, AL, his writing is influenced by the city’s rich history and culture. He is the author of acclaimed novels like Shadows at Sundown, The Spirit of Kwanzaa: A Journey, Echoes of the Past, and Light on the Horizon.
Katie Lang-Slattery began her writing career in the youth periodical market. She published her first adult book in 2015, at the age of 72. This historical novel, Immigrant Soldier, The Story of a Ritchie Boy, has garnered awards and fans. Her children’s chapter book series, Tagalong Caitlin, Caitlin’s Buddy, and Caitlin’s Party, are about the camp experiences of a little girl with big ideas and determination. Katie’s memoir, Wherever the Road Leads, recounts two years living in a VW van in the 1970s, driving across four continents. She is currently completing her second novel, Ashes and Ruins, a mother/daughter story that takes place in Nazi Germany and Blitz-torn London.
J.L. is the award-winning writer of the spooky middle grade series The Berge Sisters. When he was a kid, he used to spend recess in the woods surrounding his rural elementary school and read until the bell rang. It’s his dream to create stories that inspire kids the same way he was so long ago.
Janet Burroway is the author of poems, plays, essays, children’s books, a memoir, and nine novels, including The Buzzards, Raw Silk, Opening Nights, Cutting Stone (all Notable Books of NYTBR), and Simone in Pieces, due out November 2025. Her Writing Fiction, the most widely used creative writing text in America, is now in a tenth edition, her four-genre text Imaginative Writing in its fifth. Her plays have been produced and read in Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and London.
Hope Pecord is a 17-year-old poet whose work is deeply rooted in personal experience and emotional truth. She began writing seriously in eighth grade and uses poetry as a way to explore stigma, healing, and identity. A dancer for 12 years, Hope found her voice in writing after stepping away from the art form due to its toxic environment. Since then, poetry has become a powerful outlet and a reclaiming of self. Encouraged by family, friends, and teachers, she is now sharing her work with the world.
H. R. Reid is a 21-year-old writer from Bradford, studying English Literature at Newcastle University. She writes creatively under authors Max Adams, Lars Iyer, Alex Pheby and Jacob Polley, and also works as a freelance editor. She writes poetry, script, and prose. She lives with long-term health conditions including ASD, ADHD, PMDD, and Endometriosis.
I was born and raised in the Philadelphia area, attended Penn State University, where I majored in rugby, beer, and coeds, and miraculously graduated with a B.A. degree in journalism in 1976. In 1991, I earned an MFA in Creative Writing from Florida International University. I’ve now been writing professionally for more than 40 years, primarily as an award-winning journalist. Since 1999, I’ve owned and operated the freelance writing service SuperWriter, Inc. My work has appeared in both regional and national publications, including AARP, Life Extension, Boca Magazine, and The National Enquirer.
A native of southern California, Gary graduated from Duke University, Florida Atlantic University and the Naval War College. He first embarked on a career teaching Political Science, and then served as an intelligence analyst with the National Security Agency for thirty years, serving in various capacities at home and abroad. After retiring, Gary moved to central Florida, where he enjoys writing, golf, and swimming and lives with his wife, Tracy. He has combined his lifelong interest in genealogy and Civil War history in The Broken Fife, a historical novel loosely based on the life of his paternal great-grandfather, Junius Hart.
Gail received her BA in history from Brigham Young University and her MLIS from Syracuse University. Now a retired librarian, Gail and her husband, Richard, reside in Boise, Idaho, with their Anatolian Shepherd, Loki. When not writing her Gallagher Girls mysteries, Gail tends her medicinal herb garden, does landscape and portrait painting, and traces her family history.
Florence Nnolum is a passionate writer and educator with a deep interest in life, spirituality, and human connection. With a background in English and Literary Studies, Florence has taught both children and adults, bringing empathy and insight into her work. The Re-incarnation is her debut book, offering readers a thoughtful exploration of life, death, and the mysteries that connect us all.
My documentary Carisbrooke Castle was broadcast on SKY TV. Three of my other fourteen travel films were shown on Australian television. I have written three children’s stories, three staged plays, scenic travel features, theatre reviews, award-winning poetry, personality profiles and three novels—and I teach. I gave workshops alongside Sir Andrew Motion at the Tennyson Bicentenary and have taught for Screen South, Connexions, Isle of Wight College, independently, and with young people with learning difficulties.