All Things Books and Publishing

Dan Hollifield was born in November of 1957 at almost the same moment that Sputnik II was launched. However, the two events are not, in fact, related. His father was a machinist, graduating from the General Motors Institute in the mid 1950s. After fleeing the harsh Michigan winters for a return to the families ancestral home, Dan's father began working in Oak Ridge, TN making toys for the physicists to play with. Dan's mother is an artist specializing in oils, china painting, glass painting, and multimedia home-crafts.

 Few can claim the varied background of Stephanie Osborn, the Interstellar Woman of Mystery.

Veteran of more than 20 years in the civilian space program, as well as various military space defense programs, she worked on numerous space shuttle flights and the International Space Station, and counts the training of astronauts on her resumé. Her space experience also includes Spacelab and ISS operations, variable star astrophysics, Martian aeolian geophysics, radiation physics, and nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons effects.Her travels have taken her to the top of Pikes Peak, across the world’s highest suspension bridge, down gold mines, in the footsteps of dinosaurs, through groves of giant Sequoias, and even to the volcanoes of the Cascade Range in the Pacific Northwest, where she was present for several phreatic eruptions of Mount St. Helens.Now retired from space work, Stephanie has trained her sights on writing

 

The Mystery continues.

Fran Orenstein, Ed.D. is the founder of Sunwriter, a multi-faceted writing project. This award-winning poet and writer wrote her first poem at age eight, submitted a short story to a magazine at twelve, continued to write professionally and academically, and is the published author of fiction novels for children, ‘tweens, teens, and adults, and  poetry. She gives workshops and hands-on presentations for adults and children on diverse writing subjects, including developing characters, writing for children, publishing, and free verse poetry.  Dr. Orenstein has won awards for her poetry and short stories, from the Florida Poetry Society and The American Association of University Women. She has been a member of a number of national and local organizations, including Sisters in Crime, National League of American Pen Women, The Florida and Arizona Poets’ Society, The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, writing newsletters for several of these groups.

Jane Jordan was born in Essex, England, and grew up exploring the history and culture of London and surrounding counties. In the 1990s she immigrated to Detroit, USA, eventually settling in Southwest Florida. She returned to England after a fifteen-year absence, to spend six years in the Southwest of England living on Exmoor. Here, inspired by the atmosphere, beautiful scenery and the ancient history of the place, she began writing.

Jane's writes in the dark romance genre. She has four published novels. She also writes short stories and being a trained horticulturist, she occasionally writes for a Florida gardening magazine.

Jane returned to Florida in 2013, and lives in Sarasota.

Debbie De Louise is an award-winning author and a reference librarian at a public library on Long Island. She is a member of Sisters-in-Crime, International Thriller Writers, and the Cat Writer’s Association. She has a BA in English and an MLS in Library Science from Long Island University. Her three published novels include Cloudy Rainbow, A Stone's Throw, and Between a Rock and a Hard Place (Solstice Publishing, 2016) that has been on the Amazon bestseller list for cozy mysteries. Debbie has also written articles and short stories for several anthologies of various genres. Her third novel was out in April. It's Written in Stone, the 3rd of the Cobble Cove mystery series..  She lives on Long Island with her husband, daughter, and two cats.

Nancy Quinn was born in Royal Oak, Michigan, but has lived in many areas of the country.  She is an internationally known wildlife artist whose work is noted for its detail and accuracy, and she is the recipient of two World Wildlife Art Championship awards.

 

Nancy has always had a love of animals and nature.  After college, she worked as a conservation law enforcement duty officer for the state of Florida.  She volunteered her spare time at wildlife rehabilitation centers, bringing their birds and reptiles into the schools to educate children of all ages.

 

Over the years she has handled many domestic and exotic species, including cougars, leopards, and tigers, and always had interesting stories to tell about her encounters with wild animals.  Upon leaving a suburban lifestyle in the metro Washington, DC area, to live in rural Montana, she discovered a new world of exciting and unusual adventures.  Encouraged by friends and family alike, she wrote her first book, "Go West, Young Woman!"

 

She now happily resides on a mountainside in Montana with her husband, daughters, dogs, and horses, where she continues to paint and write about her experiences living in the still wild west.

Over the centuries, Frank Bittinger has experienced many existences. In this incarnation, Mr. Bittinger is a vegan who lives and writes in historic Western Maryland, sharing his home with a menagerie of pets, several alternate personalities, and the occasional ghost. One of his favorite pastimes is taking walks in old cemeteries in the evening.

Patricia Loofbourrow, MD is an SFF and non-fiction writer, PC gamer, ornamental food gardener, fiber artist, and wildcrafter who loves power tools, dancing, genetics and anything to do with outer space. She was born in southern California and has lived in Chicago and Tokyo. She currently lives in Oklahoma with her husband and three grown children.

Ritter Ames is the USA TODAY bestselling author of the Bodies of Art Mysteries and the Organized Mysteries series. She lives atop a steep green hill with her husband and Labrador retriever and spends each day globetrotting the world from her laptop. Much like her Bodies of Art Mysteries, Ritter’s favorite vacations start in London then spiral out in every direction. She’s been known to plan trips after researching new books and keeps a list of “can’t miss” foods to taste along the way. Her most recent release, Fatal Forgeries, fourth book in the fast-paced, light suspense Bodies of Art Mysteries, released June 6, 2017. All her titles are available in print and ebook formats. Ritter blogs regularly at her website http://ritterames.com  and posts at Pinterest http://www.pinterest.com/ritterames/  to capture great places and ideas she wants to use in both series. Follow her blog and boards to learn more about Ritter and her upcoming books. You can find her on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/RitterAmesBooks  and on Twitter @RitterAmes

Name: L. A. Nantz (Aka Vodalok –Voa da lock) Objective: It is the goal of this author to create in words a world of horror both unique and griping, while attempting to reclaim the glory of the Gothic horror classics of the late 18th century. It is his opinion that there is more use of gore in place of real horror in today’s genre. It is he desire to revive what horror was and should be. Skills: Short of a formal education in writing, the author understands the elements of a good story, that the need to grip and hold the reader in the first few paragraphs is essential to successful writing. He has written many poems and short stories, and uses an exercise that he believes gives him the skills to do just that. In taking a single word ( as in Rabbits, the bonus story in Mia’s Tempest) he aims to turn that word into a story of horror, as well as hone his skills as a writer. Experiences: His first novel, Incubus Succubus helped him learn a great deal about what it takes to write a successful book. It however is still a work in progress. He has also written a great number of poems that can be found online. Accomplishments: The author was nominated, but did not win, best poet of the year two years in a row with his poems Alone, and “And”. he was first published by Black Bed sheets publications early in the year 2016 with his book of short stories “Mia’s Tempest”. Projects currently being worked on: The author is currently working on the second book in the Incubus Succubus series, another book of short stories, and a book on Vampire Runes and magic. L. A. Nantz has spent the last 10 years working hard on finding a publisher and creating the stories that keep one awake at night. At the age of 46 now he has but one goal, to finally be self-sufficient and get off of disability upon the merits of his hard work as an author.

Sherry Rentschler is a multi-award-winning, multi-genre author, writing coach and speaker. Currently, she has authored one photography book (I Wish You Joy), three books of poetry (Paper Bones, By Light Betrayed, Poetry of the Vampires; The Book of Now) and Midnight Assassin – A Tale of Lust and Revenge, a dark urban fantasy novella. Her most recent release, The Book of Now, is a compelling book of nonfiction poetry, issues taken from current events. On the horizon, is a workbook for writers who need help building a daily writing routine (projected Aug 2016), a fictional memoir (Nov 2016) and the summer of 2017, a vampire series

A retired US Air Force non-combat veteran, Sherry Rentschler completed her bachelor and graduate degrees while serving her country. Her background includes bylines in newspapers and online journals, plus previous work as an assistant poetry editor for an online poetry journal, a freelance columnist, and photojournalist. Rentschler was a featured author in Southern Writers’ Magazine and in Focus on Women Magazine, as well as a featured guest speaker on numerous radio shows. Also, Rentschler is the Charlotte, NC regional Municipal Liaison for National Novel Writing Month, promoting writing and literacy for all ages.

Her causes include the National Network to End Domestic Violence well as programs to end bullying like StopBullying.gov. Also, Rentschler is a strong advocate of SmileTrain (seeing children get corrective surgery for cleft lips and palates).

Sherry’s guilty pleasures include indulging in fine wine, dark chocolates, and old b&w movies. She’s a recognized vampire scholar plus a dragon lover. She and her husband are living in Mint Hill, NC.