Aleron Kong
Dr. Aleron Kong , author of the internationally best-selling series The Land, which has sold over 1,000,000 worldwide, and was voted Audible’s Customer Favorite. Aleron is also on the Amazon top 100 Authors list. With help from his readers, Aleron has continued to raise funds for charities around the world!
Alexander G. R. Gideon
Alexander G. R. Gideon’s writing style can best be summed up by the phrase “and many people died”. He is a SFWA qualified writer of books and stories in a myriad of genres, including Historical Fantasy, Dark Fantasy, and Science Fiction. He enjoys exorcising, taking long walks on extraterrestrial beaches, relaxing demon hunting trips, and fishing for Old Ones.
Find out more about Alexander at https://alexandergideon.net/
Ashley Chappell
Ashley Chappell writes satire and young adult epic fantasy featuring expansive world-building and universes filled with magic, mayhem, and monsters.
Upcoming releases include A Mother of Gods: Dreams of Chaos Book 4 and Lucifer’s Hawk: A Harrowers Novel, a gritty adventure in which Hell is a job for life. Or rather, a job for the afterlife.
Ms. Chappell currently resides in Huntsville, AL. When not writing, reviewing, or burying her nose in one of her well-worn Terry Pratchett or Neil Gaiman novels, she can be found working alongside her husband building their off-grid, semi-underground dream home in the foothills of the Appalachians.
Follow Ashley at www.ashleychappellbooks.com/
Aziza Sphinx
Pounds of pecans and plates of peaches, a southern drawl to boot; Aziza Sphinx sees the world through a canopy of weeping willows while stopping to smell the roses. Family matters, and not just blood, for those who care for us are the truest who stand and fall during the winding road. When the hills and valleys of the journey summon and the pen becomes mightier than the sword, this is the world Aziza Sphinx breathes for.
Barbara V. Evers
Barbara V. Evers won the Best Fantasy Novel Imadjinn Award for The Watchers of Moniah, her debut novel and the first book in her epic fantasy trilogy. She’s a Pushcart Prize Nominee and writes about her passions including giraffes, other endangered animals, writing, and reading. Barbara is the author of the epic fantasy trilogy, The Watchers of Moniah, The Watchers in Exile, and The Watchers at War. A two-time Carrie McCray winner, her short stories and essays have appeared in the best-selling anthology, Child of My Child: Poems and Stories for Grandparents, The Petigru Review, the moonShine review, and Stupefying Stories.
When she’s not writing, Barbara is a public speaker, workshop designer, and corporate trainer. In addition, she enjoys contributing her teaching skills to the creative writing community and has taught several workshops at conferences and special events. She has a Master of Arts in Professional Communication and a Bachelor of Arts in Zoology. In other words, she knows how to communicate with animals…which is great since her books include animal characters.
Beyond writing, Barbara serves the creative writing community in many ways including judging writing contests, reading slush pile, freelance editing, and contributing to blogs, including two of her own. Barbara leads the Greenville chapter of the South Carolina Writers’ Association (SCWA) and has served on the SCWA Board of Directors multiple times, including as President of the Board.
Barbara lives in Greer, SC with two of her grandchildren, her husband, Bruce, and a rescue dog named Roxy. You can find out more about Barbara’s upcoming books and sign up for her newsletter at www.BarbaraVEvers.com. Also, you can follow her on Facebook, @BarbaraVEversAuthor, and Instagram, @Barbara_V_Evers.
Bill Bridges
Bill Bridges is a writer and game designer, most known for developing White Wolf’s World of Darkness and the Fading Suns science-fiction universe. He currently serves as the project manager for Ullisses’ line of Fading Suns roleplaying-game books.
Bill lives near Atlanta, GA, wondering how in the world he survives the humidity. When he’s not playing RPGs, he serves as a Fellow at Atlanta’s Mythic Imagination Institute and sits on the boards of the C.G. Jung Society of Atlanta and the Broadleaf Writers Association.
As one of the original crew behind the landmark World of Darkness property, Bill helmed the Werewolf: the Apocalypse line of books and games. He served as Senior Content Designer on CCP Games’ World of Darkness MMO and was the lead designer of the award-winning Storytelling system rules for White Wolf’s Chronicles of Darkness. He created the Mage: the Awakening and Promethean: the Created settings, and developed numerous books in the Mage: the Ascension game series.
His fiction works include My Time Among the Stars for Fading Suns, and The Silver Crown, The Last Battle, and The Song of Unmaking novels for Werewolf: the Apocalypse. Bill contributed to world design for Segasoft’s Emperor of the Fading Suns computer game and co-wrote the scripts for Viacom’s interactive horror movie Dracula Unleashed and Interplay’s Star Trek: Starfleet Academy.
He’s still waiting for his owl-mail invitation to a hidden wizard school. In the meantime, he consoles himself by reading all manner of esoteric writings, as well as the wizardly works of C.G. Jung.
Visit Bill at bill-bridges.com.
Cecilia Dominic
By day, clinical psychologist Cecilia Dominic helps people cure their insomnia. By night, this USA Today bestselling author writes steampunk and urban fantasy books that keep her readers turning pages past bedtime. She prefers the term “versatile” to “conflicted” and is thrilled that readers enjoy both her short story and novel-length fiction. Her books have been finalists in prestigious contests such as the Maggie Award for Excellence in romance and the Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery. She lives in Atlanta, Georgia with her husband and the world’s cutest cat.
You can find her at www.CeciliaDominic.com
Chris Kennedy
A Webster Award winner and three-time Dragon Award finalist, Chris Kennedy is a Science Fiction/Fantasy author, speaker, and small-press publisher who has written over 30 books and published more than 200 others. Get his free book, “Shattered Crucible,” at his website, https://chriskennedypublishing.com.
Called “fantastic” and “a great speaker,” he has coached hundreds of beginning authors and budding novelists on how to self-publish their stories at a variety of conferences, conventions, and writing guild presentations. He is the author of the award-winning #1 bestseller, “Self-Publishing for Profit: How to Get Your Book Out of Your Head and Into the Stores.”
Chris lives in Coinjock, North Carolina, with his wife, and is the holder of a doctorate in educational leadership and master’s degrees in both business and public administration.
Follow Chris on Facebook
Christine Amsden
Christine Amsden is the author of nine award-winning fantasy and science fiction novels, including the Cassie Scot Series. In addition to writing, she is a freelance editor and political activist. Disability advocacy is of particular interest to her; she has a rare genetic eye condition called Stargardt Macular Degeneration and has been legally blind since the age of eighteen. In her free time, she enjoys role playing, board games, and a good cup of tea. She lives in the Kansas City area with her husband and two kids.
Craig Campbell
Craig Campbell is the award-winning tabletop RPG designer/publisher of CAPERS, and several other RPGs. An Atlanta transplant, he has freelanced for a number of RPGs, including D&D, Pathfinder, Never Going Home, Iron Kingdoms, and others. Nowadays, he mostly designs his own games and publishes them through his imprint, NerdBurger Games. He enjoys exploring corners of the RPG world not often explored and has produced games in a wide variety of genres and styles. He’s also an avid horror movie buff, podcaster, and occasional stream guest.
You can find him at https://www.nerdburgergames.com/
Darin Kennedy
Darin Kennedy, born and raised in Winston-Salem, NC, is a graduate of Wake Forest University and Bowman Gray School of Medicine. After completing family medicine residency in the mountains of Virginia, he served eight years as a United States Army physician and wrote his first novel in the sands of northern Iraq.
His first published novel, The Mussorgsky Riddle, was born from a fusion of two of his lifelong loves: classical music and world mythology. The Stravinsky Intrigue continues those same themes, and his Fugue & Fable series culminates in The Tchaikovsky Finale. His The Pawn Stratagem contemporary fantasy series, Pawn’s Gambit, Queen’s Peril, and King’s Crisis combines contemporary fantasy, superheroics, and the ancient game of chess. His first YA novel is Carol, a modern-day retelling of A Christmas Carol billed as Scrooge meets Mean Girls. His short stories can be found in numerous anthologies and magazines, and the best, particularly those about a certain Necromancer for Hire, are collected for your reading pleasure under Darin’s imprint, 64Square Publishing.
Doctor-by-day and novelist-by-night, he writes and practices medicine in Charlotte, NC. When not engaged in either of the above activities, he has been known to strum the guitar, enjoy a bite of sushi, and rumor has it he even sleeps on occasion.
Find him online at www.darinkennedy.com
David B. Coe/ D.B. Jackson
David B. Coe/D.B. Jackson is the author of more than two dozen novels and as many short stories.
As D.B. Jackson (http://www.DBJackson-Author.com), he is the author of the Thieftaker Chronicles, a series set in pre-Revolutionary Boston that combines elements of urban fantasy, mystery, and historical fiction. He also writes the Islevale Cycle, a time travel/epic fantasy series (Time’s Children, Time’s Demon, and Time’s Assassin).
Under his own name (http://www.DavidBCoe.com) he has most recently published a supernatural thriller. Radiants was released by Belle Books in October 2021 and the second volume, Invasives, is scheduled for a January 2022 release. He has also written epic fantasy, including the Crawford Award-winning LonTobyn Chronicle, contemporary urban fantasy, and media tie-ins. He is the co-author of How To Write Magical Words: A Writer’s Companion.
David has co-edited several short fiction anthologies with Zombies Need Brains, and has recently launched a freelance editing business. He has a Ph.D. in U.S. history from Stanford University. His books have been translated into a dozen languages.
David Ekrut
Dr. David Ekrut wrote his first epic fantasy novel while earning a PhD in Biomedical Mathematics, raising three energetic children, and teaching elementary mathematics at Florida State University. Somehow he survived all of this self-inflicted torture without a caffeine overdose, though he did push the limits his brain could sustain by consuming copious amounts of coffee. To this day, he likes to tease his thesis advisor that while waiting on feedback on his dissertation, he wrote an entire novel.
After retiring from a career as a cancer research scientist, he now writes full time. Taming the Elements, the first book in the Elwin Escari Chronicles has sold tens of thousands of copies in 8 different countries—digital, print, and audio formats are available. Two more novels exist in this series with more in the works.
He grew up reading and rereading the Wheel of Time series. Having influenced him for decades, Jordan and Sanderson are colossal figures in his writings. Whenever stuck in his own works, he studies their worlds for inspiration.
His greatest joy, besides writing about himself in the third person, is to work out believable mechanics for magic systems—a place for him to apply his understanding of physics and engineering in a creative way. Though his first novels have found a modicum of success, he is more excited about the drafts he has in the pipeline, as well as the ideas he has yet to discover.
Ellie Raine
Writer’s Digest award-winning fantasy author Ellie Raine is a voracious BookWyrm when it comes to epic adventures, detailed world-building, and thrilling battles. Fueled by coffee-bean concoctions brewed by the finest caffeine alchemists in the kingdom of Atlanta, Georgia, she only emerges from the depths of these daring tales when she is summoned back to the physical realm to spend time with her brood.
Her high fantasy series, the NecroSeam Chronicles, has won several awards including First Place in Fantasy for Writer’s Digest, a Silver Medal for Readers’ Favorite International Book Awards, and additional awards from Readers’ Favorite and the Book Excellence Awards.
See what Ellie is up to at www.NecroSeam.com
Ellis Bray
Ellis Bray is a science fiction author, poet, and artist. He is a graduate of the Taos Toolbox Masterclass, and his writing can be found in the Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Narratively, NewMyths, and the SciPhi Journal. He holds a Master’s degree in Medieval Scandinavian Studies, where he wrote his thesis on the possible influence of 12th century Icelandic volcanism on the retelling and transcription of the Ragnarök myth. His novels are represented by the JABberwocky Agency in NYC. You can find more of his blithering on Twitter at @flytingnwriting
Emily Leverett
Emily Lavin Leverett is an author, editor, and scholar. She is the author of the paranormal romance series The Wolf and the Nun based on the life and stories of 12th century abbess Marie de France: The Wolf and the Cloiser and The Enchanted Rose are out now; The Song of the Black Wolf and An Honorable Love will be out in late 2021 and 2022. She is the co-author of the contemporary fantasy series The Eisteddfod Chronicles: Changeling’s Fall and Winter’s Heir are out now; Traitor’s Spring, Summer’s Regent, and A Queen for all Seasons will be out in late 2021 and 2022. She is the co-editor of several volumes of short stories including the kickstarted volumes Predators in Petticoats, Lawless Lands: Tales from the Weird Frontier, and The Weird Wild West; she also co-edited The Big Bad Volumes I and II. She has published multiple short stories as well. As a medievalist, she has published articles on medieval romance, medievalism and Terry Pratchett, and Shakespeare in Neil Gaiman’s Sandman. She is the co-editor of the scholarly collection Terry Pratchett’s Ethical Worlds. She is working on an article about the intersection of her fiction writing in The Wolf and the Nun and her studies as a medieval scholar and academic. She has appeared at several SFF conventions in recent years including Con Carolinas, Jordan Con, Multiverse Con, Mars Con, Raven Con, and Congregate. She lives in North Carolina with her spouse and three cats.
Follow Emily at www.EmilylavinLeveret.com
Gerald L. Coleman
Gerald L. Coleman is a philosopher, theologian, poet, and Science Fiction & Fantasy Author. He was born in Lexington and now makes his home in the Atlanta area. He did his undergraduate work in philosophy, english, and religious studies, followed by a Master’s degree in Theology. He is the author of the Epic Fantasy novel saga The Three Gifts, which currently includes When Night Falls (Book One), A Plague of Shadows (Book Two), and the upcoming When Chaos Reigns (Book Three). His most recent poetry appears in Pluck! The Journal of Affrilachian Arts & Culture, Drawn To Marvel: Poems From The Comic Books, Pine Mountain Sand & Gravel Vol. 18, Black Bone Anthology, the 10th Anniversary Issue of Diode Poetry Journal, About Place Journal, and Star*line Vol. 43, Issue 4. His speculative fiction short stories appear in: The Cyberfunk Anthology: The City, the Rococoa Anthology by Roaring Lion, the Urban Fantasy Anthology: Terminus, the 2019 JordanCon Anthology: You Want Stories?, Dark Universe: Bright Empire, Cyberfunk! by MVMedia, and Whether Change: The Revolution Will Be Weird. His most recent essay appears in the science fiction & fantasy publication Apex Magazine. He has been a Guest Author at DragonCon, Boskone, Blacktasticon, JordanCon, Atlanta Science Fiction & Fantasy Expo, The Outer Dark Symposium, World Horror Con, Imaginarium, and Multiverse. He is a Scholastic National Writing Juror, a co-founder of the Affrilachian Poets, an SFWA member, and a Rhysling Award Nominee. He is currently working on new editions of When Night Falls and A Plague of Shadows, writing book three in series – entitled, When Chaos Reigns, and his new poetry collection – On the Black Hand Side. You can find him at Geraldlcoleman.com.
You can find him at www.Geraldlcoleman.com
James Nettles
James Nettles has a thirty-year career consulting for clients from startups to Fortune 100’s, media contributor, speaker on the I0T, privacy, business continuity and disaster recovery, futurism, coming disruptive technologies and their impact on businesses and individual daily lives. He teaches workshops on Intellectual Property, Marketing and Branding, Social Media, book development and publication, and the business of creativity.
Leveraging his background in technology, game theory, anthropology, and sociology, he is the author of Four novels, multiple novellas and a ton of short stories in science fiction, fantasy, horror, steampunk and contemporary genres, and a new release on faerie faith and mythology in film.
He is the founder of Author Essentials, a company dedicated to education of authors and author services. His latest release in this series is Business Essentials for Writers: How to make money in an ever-changing industry, with 2020 releases in book marketing, and tools and technologies for authors, and also a founder for the Speculative Fiction Academy.
He is also one of the founders and technical director for ConTinual: The Never Ending Convention, the host of Books and Beer, and of the Creating Pros podcast under the Author Essentials brand.
Non-fiction, speaking and consulting at https://JamesPNettles.com
Short stories, new releases, and more can be found at: http://www.jim-mcdonald.net/
Twitter | Facebook & Alt | Instagram
JD Blackrose
J.D. Blackrose has a new urban fantasy trilogy with BellBridge Books. She’s published The Soul Wars, The Devil’s Been Busy, and the Zombie Cosmetologist novellas through Falstaff Books. She’s published short stories such as “Don’t Fool an Earth Witch,” in Mother’s Revenge, “The Book Burning,” in Curiosities, and “Poisoned by Sugar,” in Witches, Warriors, and Wise Women. “The Ghost Train,” was published by Third Flatiron in their Spring 2019 Anthology and Best of 2019 Anthology.
She blogs, reviews books, and does author interviews on http://www.slipperywords.com.
John G. Hartness
John G. Hartness is an author, publisher, and podcaster from Charlotte, NC. He is the author of multiple novel series, including the award-winning Quincy Harker, Demon Hunter series. He is also the co-founder and publisher of Falstaff Books, and a member of the Authors & Dragons live play Dungeons & Dragons podcast.
Judy Black
Judy Black is a writer who makes her home in Atlanta, Ga. She loves games, books, cats, and most things with caffeine. Her current series, The Finnegan Cabinet of Aberrations, is published with Falstaff Books. She also writes and publishes Dungeons and Dragons modules.
Kyoko M
Kyoko M is a USA Today bestselling author and a fangirl. She is the author of The Black Parade urban fantasy series and the Of Cinder and Bone science-fiction series. The Black Parade has been reviewed by Publishers Weekly and New York Times bestselling author Ilona Andrews. Kyoko M has appeared as a guest and panelist at such conventions as Geek Girl Con, DragonCon, Blacktasticon, Momocon, and Multiverse Con. She is also a contributor to Marvel Comics’ Black Panther: Tales of Wakanda (2021) anthology.
Stay up to date with Kyoko at http://www.shewhowritesmonsters.com
Leia Powell
Leia Powell is a Master Stained Glass Artisan and former JordanCon Best in Show winner. She is the creator of all the stained glass dragons and faeries flying around, as well as the maker of fused glass jewelry and a menagerie of other items. Not only can you find her wares in the Art Show and Dealer’s Hall, she can also be found in the Workshop Track for an entire sold out day teaching some of our JordanCon Family how to cut glass!
Her studio Wildcat Mountain Artistry is in Florence, Alabama and can be found on Facebook.
M.M. Schill
M. M. Schill currently resides in North Florida. She’s a writer, traditional Japanese artist and illustrator. She is an associated editor for Pseudopod, a horror, short fiction podcast in the Escape artists network of pro-paying short fiction podcasts. When she’s not creating, she studies martial arts. Outside of those pursuits, she’s an outspoken advocate and activist for DV and SA survivors and victims. She maintains close ties to local survivor volunteer groups and help-centers. She often writes on the topic when she isn’t crafting in her speculative fiction worlds.
Twitter: @mm_schill
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/mmschill
Mark R McCray
Mark McCray is an award-winning television writer who has been in the broadcasting industry for over 20 years. He has a passion for animation, television programming strategy and comic books. McCray is also the author of The Best Saturdays of Our Lives, a book that chronicles the origins of competitive Saturday morning animated programming. In addition, Mark McCray is the host of The Best Saturdays of our Lives Podcast along with cohost Dan Klink. McCray has been interviewed on the “Gilbert Gottfried’s Amazing Colossal Podcast,” “Drawn: The Story of Animation” Podcast, and was a featured guest speaker at The SCAD AnimationFest giving an historical view of Saturday morning programming. Prior to his work as an author and podcaster, Mark McCray was the senior manager of Programming Operations for Adult Swim overseeing Adult Swim’s on-air promotions and scheduling strategy. McCray also worked as a television programmer for Cartoon Network, and was a key member of the team that launched the Boomerang Network. Mark McCray resides in Powder Springs, Georgia with his family.
Follow him on his website: www.tbsool.com | Twitter
Marlena Frank
Marlena Frank is the author of books and novellas that span genres from young adult fantasy to horror. Her debut novel, Stolen Book 1 of the Stolen series, has hit the Amazon bestseller charts multiple times. She has several books coming out in 2022 including the first four books of the YA dark fantasy series, The Wolves of Kanta: The She-Wolf of Kanta, The Blood of Kanta, The Hunters of Kanta, and The Fury of Kanta.
Although she was born in Tennessee, Marlena has spent most of her life in Georgia. She lives with her sister and three spoiled cats. She serves as the Vice President of the Atlanta Chapter of the Horror Writers Association and is an avid member of the Atlanta cosplay community.
She is also an INFJ, a tea drinker, and a wildlife enthusiast.
Maureen/Mashiara
Maureen Carr is a published author. Under the name Foster Bridget Cassidy, Maureen has eight novels ranging from romance to sci-fi/fantasy. She has also published five short stories, including “Tokimimizu” in the JordanCon 2019 anthology. She is a podcaster on “Dragonmount: The Wheel of Time Podcast.” She loves crafts, costumes, and dachshunds.
Michael J. Allen
A star-lord and USA Today bestselling author of detail-rich, multi-level science fiction and fantasy, Michael J. Allen lives in central Georgia with his Labradors Myth and Magesty. When not writing or working in technology, the former submarine reactor operator and present-day Starfleet International officer is an avid public speaker and cooking enthusiast. He enjoys helping people chase their own dreams through financial coaching, infusing his quirky sense of humor – and the occasional sneaky pop-culture reference – into both real life and fiction. At over two dozen published stories, he’s contributed to both the Four Horseman and Starflight universes and released books across the whole gambit of the SF/F genres from space opera and military science fiction to urban, western and contemporary epic fantasy.
Michael Livingston
MICHAEL LIVINGSTON is a two-time winner of the Distinguished Book Prize from the international Society for Military History (2017, 2020), an author of best-selling fiction, an award-winning professor at The Citadel, and a star in Contact, which aired on Discovery and Science Channels worldwide.
A frequent speaker and featured expert in medieval warfare and military history, he is also the Secretary-General for the United States Commission on Military History and sits on the Board of the South Carolina Academy of Authors.
Website: https://www.michaellivingston.com/
Twitter: @medievalguy
Instagram: @livingstonphd
Michael Mammay
Michael Mammay writes science fiction. He is the author of the Planetside series and THE MISFIT SOLDIER, all from Harper Voyager. He is a retired army officer and literature teacher and he now writes full time. He lives with his wife in Savannah, Georgia.
Find out more about Michael on his Twitter and at www.MichaelMammay.com
Milton Davis
Milton Davis is an award winning Black Fantastic fiction author and owner of MVmedia, LLC, a publishing company specializing in Science Fiction, Fantasy based on African/African Diaspora culture, history, and traditions. Milton is the author of twenty-one books and publisher/editor of ten anthologies. His stories The Swarm (2017) and Carnival (2020) were nominated the for the British Science Fiction Award. His story, The Monsters of Mena Ngai appears in the Black Panther: Tales of Wakanda anthology.
Misty Massey
Misty Massey is the author of the Mad Kestrel series of rollicking magical adventures on the high seas. She is a co-editor of The Weird Wild West and Lawless Lands: Tales of the Weird Frontier, and her short fiction has appeared in many anthologies. Misty appears on the Authors & Dragons sister podcast, The Calamity Janes, as the sundrenched cleric Malibu. In between wacky podcast recording and her own writing, Misty also works as a copy editor for Falstaff Books, and is an acquisitions editor for Loreseekers Press.
You can keep up with what Misty’s doing at www.mistymassey.com, Facebook and Twitter.
Nicole Givens Kurtz
Nicole Givens Kurtz is an author, editor, and educator. She’s the recipient of the Ladies of Horror Grant (2021), the Horror Writers Association’s Diversity Grant (2020) and the Atomacon Palmetto Scribe Award-Best Short Story 2021. She’s been named as one of Book Riot’s 6 Best Black Indie SFF Writers. Nicole has over 40 short stories published as well as numerous novels and three active speculative mystery series. She hails from the south where gothic and strange are part of the culture. You can support her work via Patreon.
Paige L. Christie
Paige L. Christie is originally from Maine and now lives in the North Carolina mountains. While she is best known for her Legacies of Arnan fantasy series (#1 Draigon Weather), her work can also be found in several anthologies, including Galactic Stew, Witches Warriors & Wise Women, Passages (Valdemar #14), and Boundaries (Valdemar #15). When she isn’t writing, Paige runs a non-profit soup kitchen and food pantry, walks her dogs too early in the morning, and is teaching herself to crochet (badly). She is a proud, founding member of the Blazing Lioness Writers.
Find out what she’s up to at www.PaigeLChristie.com
Patrick Dugan
Patrick is the author of the award-winning Darkest Storm Series published by Falstaff Books. Other titles include Fate & Flux: A Steampunk Adventure through and Watchers of Astaria series from Distracted Dragon Press. Other publications include Fairy Films: Wee Folk on the Big Screen, a collection of fairy essays from August Night Press.
An avid gadget user, Patrick is also the Director of Technology Services for Author’s Essentials LLC providing solutions and advice for writing professionals. Patrick writings delve into software, hardware, social media, and all things web-related. The primary focus of Author’s Essentials is how and when to employ technology to enhance your writing process.
Patrick resides in Charlotte, NC with his wife and two children. In his spare time, he’s a PC gamer, homebrewer, 3D printer enthusiast, and DIYer. You can usually find him in the Hearthstone Tavern or wandering Azeroth as a Blood Elf Warlock in the evenings. He is represented by Andy Zack of The Zack Company.
You can find out more at www.patrickdugan.net | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter
R.R. Virdi
R.R. Virdi is a two-time Dragon Award finalist and a Nebula Award finalist. He is the author of two urban fantasy series, The Grave Report, and The Books of Winter. One of his short stories was part of a collection of artists’ works to go to the moon aboard the Astrobotic Peregrine Lunar Lander in 2022. His love of classic cars drove him to work in the automotive industry for many years before he realized he’d do a better job of maintaining his passion if he stayed away from customers.
He was born and raised in Northern Virginia and is a first generation Indian-American with all the baggage that comes with. He’s offended a long list of incalculable ancestors by choosing to drop out of college and not pursue one of three pre-destined careers: a lawyer, doctor, engineer. Instead, he decided to chase his dream of being an author. His family is still coping with this decision a decade later.
He expects them to come around in another fifteen to twenty years.
Should the writing gig not work out, he aims to follow his backup plan and become a dancing shark for a Katy Perry music video.
Redfield
I spend my day teaching high school students what it takes to be a professional seamstress as well as the ins and outs of technical theater, but in my free time I build award winning cosplays and just nerd out over anime, general nerdom but mostly books. Most recently she has represented the book cosplay community with her version of an Aes Sedai from the books. Winning third place intermediate at Ultimate Online Cosplay Championship, honorable mention and audience choice in a cosplay contest hosted by Singer Sewing Machine and being recognized by Tim Gunn as one of his favorite book themed costumes at the New York Library Virtual Halloween Party in 2020.
Rey Nichols
Rey Nichols is a writer from North Carolina who specializes in urban fantasy, sci-fi noir, and supernatural horror. She often spends her days drinking cocoa and is a board game aficionado. She plays a mean game of Carcassonne and has an unhealthy addiction with Eldritch Horror. Her recent novella about a vampire hunter in Vegas, Apollo Grant, has been picked up by Mocha Memoirs Press.
Rey has several works in progress, which you can learn about by visiting her website at www.ReyNichols.com.
Richard Fife
Richard Fife lives in a house by the sea. Well, not by the sea, but near it. Like, a short drive. He hasn’t visited said sea in years, and should probably live in the mountains instead. He enjoys malty Scotch, open world RPGs, and devouring the patriarchy. He always wanted an airship of his own, but knows he can’t afford it. He was offered one on timeshare once, that just sounds like a pyramid scheme. He’d totally go halfsies with someone, though. He is the author of Conflict Born, a Gaslamp fantasy releasing in April 2022, and has thoughts on all the things and would love to talk your ear about them (and listen to your thoughts, probably).
Sara T. Bond
Sara Bond is a science fiction and fantasy author who is an unapologetic extrovert and consumer of tall-tales—the wilder, the better. After dabbling in careers in academia, non-profit research, politics, and even a short but lucrative job in high-end fashion, she released her debut novel, Gravity’s Heir, a space opera in 2020. Sara now lives in Seattle with her husband and two children, who moonlight as advanced agents of Chaos. Visit her website at www.saratbond.com for her latest projects, essays, and even a book review and cocktail pairings blog series.
Sarah J. Sover
Sarah J. Sover writes fantasy crossover stories. Fairy GodMurder, starring a fairy godmother with a vendetta and a killer pair of Doc Martens, is the first in her noir Fractured Fae Series from Falstaff Books. Sarah’s debut novel, Double-Crossing the Bridge, released from The Parliament House in 2019, hitting the Amazon bestseller list in humorous fantasy. Additionally, Sarah writes short fiction about bumbling knights and impossible baby krakens.
Don’t ask Sarah where she’s from if you’re looking for a straight-forward answer. In any given conversation, you may pick up a midwestern accent with random English pronunciations offset with a y’all or two. Despite all the places she’s lived, Sarah feels most like she’s come home when she visits family in Michigan.
A degree in Biology from Georgia Southern University and a background in animal care help Sarah craft worlds capable of turning the strongest stomachs. In addition to fiction, she’s written about worldbuilding with ecology for Dan Koboldt’s Putting the Fact in Fantasy and about her love of tropes for Writer’s Digest Magazine.
When she’s not writing, Sarah is busy raising two small tyrants with her husband Alex in John’s Creek, Ga. Rescue pup Gandalf the Grey and danger noodle Santana are freeloaders in their house. Sarah enjoys listening to groove metal, dancing to blues, creating art, binging superhero shows, battling through Hyrule, and sipping a good IPA. Having mostly conquered her fear of public speaking, she’s been found geeking out on panels for conventions. Her stories have appeared in the first two JordanCon Anthologies.
For appearance information, social media links, and pictures of Gandalf, check out www.SarahJSover.com
Sarah Madsen
Sarah Madsen is an author and freelance TTRPG writer/designer living in the wilds (okay, suburbs) of north Georgia. She has contributed to various RPGs for publishers like Wizards of the Coast, Kobold Press, and Cubicle 7. Her cyberpunky urban fantasy novel, Weaver’s Folly (Book One of the Shadowspinner Chronicles), is out now with Falstaff Books. She enjoys playing video games and TTRPGs in her spare time, and loves gin cocktails, fancy lattes, and romanceable NPCs. When she’s not at Starbucks, you can find her on Twitter (@UnfetteredMuse), Facebook (facebook.com/SarahMadsenAuthor) or WordPress (unfetteredmuse.com).
Sargon Donabed
Sargon Donabed is a graduate of the University of Toronto and professor of history at Roger Williams University in Rhode Island. He works on cultural heritage and history as well as mythology, folklore, and wisdom literature of the ancient, medieval, and modern world. His contemporary focus consists of indigenous and marginalized communities but also threads of continuity from the ancient to the modern period. He is an expert on the perennial history of Assyro-Mesopotamian culture. He is a proponent of eco-centrism as well as the notions of re-enchanting, re-wilding, and importance of storytelling. A proponent of panentheism and haecceity, Donabed has created a notion of panenhistoricism as a new historical paradigm in an effort to reimagine divine immanence in the “ordinary,” and its transcendence through mystery – rekindling wonder in/of a more-than-human world.
Steve Murphy
Steve Murphy has spent much of his life in some sort of uniform, starting with four years in the Navy as a GMM (Gunners Mate Missiles) – earning the Navy Expeditionary Medal and Navy Unit Commendation – even picking up Scuba Diver along the way. Afterwards he did a stint in the Army National Guard. As if he hadn’t had enough, Steve then became a police officer in a large suburban city where he spent 23 years. Fourteen of those years he was on the SWAT team, 9 of which he worked as a sniper.
So naturally he writes in the genres – science fiction, fantasy and space opera.
He has two novels in the Knights of the Flaming Star series, with three more different novels coming out soon with writer and producer Paul Barrett. Paul and Steve have written several screenplays some of which have placed highly in national competitions. In the film industry, Steve has worked as a consultant and set decorator.
Steve is an outdoor enthusiast who enjoys camping, backpacking, whitewater, skiing, sailing and motorcycle riding. He has also been accused of enjoying good bourbon, wine and cigars; of which he would give all up for a decent cup of coffee.
The father of two boys, Steve lives on a 12-acre farm somewhere in North Carolina with his wife, two dogs and an allusive cat.
Venessa Giunta
Venessa Giunta is a writer of weird things, an editrix extraordinaire, and a little bit of a nerd. She is a published author, with non-fiction essays, short stories, and the urban fantasy Soul Cavern Series. She is a dedicated viewer of the show Supernatural and was devastated when Sense8 was cancelled (Damn you, Netflix!).
She lives in Atlanta, GA, with her husband — also known as her muse — and three cats who basically rule the house, but won’t pay the mortgage.
She’s been called the kind of evil that inspires hugs.
Vincent E.M. Thorn
Vincent E.M Thorn is a fantasy author of mixed Japanese and European descent living in the metro-Atlanta area. He made his novel debut with Skies of the Empire, Book One of the Dreamscape Voyager Trilogy, in 2019, and his short story debut in JordanCon’s 2021 anthology with The Witch Hunter. He made the decision to become an author at 11 years old and has no intention of stopping before his heart does.
In addition to books, Thorn is passionate about music, particularly metal and show-tunes. He is an avid fan of art and animation. In particular, he is a life-long lover of Disney and anime. He also enjoys video games and has lost much time to Final Fantasy and The Legend of Zelda over the years, just to name a couple.
Will Kenyon
For over 20 years, Will Kenyon was a freelance writer and editor operating out of New York City and Atlanta. He managed to publish a number of poems and a handful of short stories, and has worked for such high profile clientele as Smithsonian, Martha Stewart Omnimedia, Cisco Systems, and Conde Nast.
Now, though Will still writes professionally (his latest published short story, “”Civilized Orcs Cook Their Food””, appeared in a recent story anthology for the RPG world The Awakened, Isle of Bones), his focus is now on board games and role-playing games. He was co-designer of the popular 2016 Lovecraftian deduction game Mythos Tales, and he is the writer of upcoming expansion scenarios for Gale Force Nine’s Firefly Adventures game and for Van Ryder Games’ Detective: City of Angels. Additionally, Will’s party game What To Where is forthcoming in 2023 (thank COVID for the delay) and he has several other board game designs being considered by a variety of publishers.
Last year, Will, his girlfriend Sara, and his daughter Madeleine won JordanCon’s 2021 Module Writing Contest with a d20 Modern module that, if things go smoothly, should see publication in 2022. A sequel is in the works.
Alexandra Klimek
Alexandra Klimek’s work includes abstracted portraits, twisted creatures, and fantastical monsters from myth and fandoms alike. Alexandra specializes in alcohol ink paintings and hand painted boxes, and has shown her work in various art galleries in Greenville, SC, as well as the Oddities and Curiosities Expo and other conventions across the country.
Amanda Makepeace
Amanda Makepeace is an award-winning artist whose work has appeared on the covers of both fiction and nonfiction books, in several ENnie award-winning games, and in genre magazines like Amazing Stories and Fireside Fiction. Through her art, she explores mythology, magical beings, our connection to the planet, and even distant worlds. She works in both digital and traditional mediums, sometimes combining the two. Her illustrations have won two Chesley Awards in 2019 and 2020 for Best Cover of a Paperback/eBook. Her art will be seen next in the officially licensed Hannibal Artbook from Printed in Blood.
Amanda is an active participant in Fantasy and SciFi conventions in the southeast. When she’s not in the studio, she can be found reconnecting with nature and the woods that inspired her as a child.
Find more out about Amanda here! http://amandamakepeace.com
Andrea of Ariescapes
Andrea has been a hobby-based artist all her life, and web-based since 1999. Her work often comes in bursts of inspiration which leads to many new and innovative styles and techniques. Both have become more defined over the years along with the ever-evolving technology that is available to the public market. Recent work has been exploring acrylic and oil paints as a medium and refreshing her use in watercolor and pencil sketching. Her weakness for unique crafting materials also had her delve down the enamel pin, resin and washi-tape creation road.
April Robinson
April Robinson is a self-taught artist who started drawing as a child (mostly ghosts with a purple crayon) on every surface, walls, sheets, everywhere. The first piece of art she sold was a pen Pegasus she did in Junior High, soon after parents started commissioning her to do portraits. In 2010 she started showing in Science Fiction/Fantasy Conventions. In 2021 she received certificates of recognition for best black & white and best fantasy for artwork exhibited at Philcon.
Ariel Burgess
Ariel, a D.C. area native and dyslexic, was an Official Wheel of Time artist for eight years and has been published internationally. Ariel uses a hyper-realistic digital painting style, focused on fantasy art. She is known for often including easter eggs for her fans. Her first publication was in “Stan Lee’s How to Draw Comics”. Ariel has won a Geeky award for “best licensed Toy/product for the Wheel of Time playing cards”, published in “The Wheel of Time Companion” which was nominated for a World Fantasy award, Won both Judges Choice and Best in show at 2021 Multiverse and won a Gold award for digital expression in 2019 at international film festival, DC Web Fest.
Carmanda
Carmanda is an illustrator, writer, and teacher who is perhaps best known for her comedy podcast “What the Folklore?” Her work tends toward the whimsical and often explores the intersection between fantasy and the quiet moments of mundane life, featuring frequent depictions of woodland creatures and cozy book times.
Craig Campbell
Craig Campbell is an indie RPG designer/publisher and the owner of NerdBurger Games. He is the designer of the award-winning CAPERS RPG, as well as Die Laughing, Good Strong Hands, Low Stakes, Secrets of the Vibrant Isle, and others. Craig has been playing RPGs for over thirty years and has freelanced for games such as Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, Iron Kingdoms, Heavy Metal Thunder Mouse, Pip System, and Never Going Home. He co-hosts the RPG R&D podcast, where game designers talk GMing and game design. He is a staunch believer that there is no such thing as “too many games.”
Find more things Craig at https://www.nerdburgergames.com/ | https://www.drivethrurpg.com/
Debbie Hughes
Debbie Hughes Since 1989, Debbie Hughes has created covers and interiors for over 80 nationally published books, magazines and CD rom Titles, completed 100 illustrations for the Collectible Game Card Market and over 100 illustrations for CD Rom games and learning publications. Debbie has exhibited her work at numerous Science fiction Art shows and Mainstream Galleries across the US. She was the guest Artist at 14 SF Conventions. Her works have been used in College courses on Illustration courses on Illustration in the Science Fiction Field both in the US and the UK. Debbie is listed at The Gunn Center for the Study of Science Fiction at The University of Kansas, the Internet Science Fiction Data Base and The Internet Movie Database for her work with Paramount Pictures Interactive. She is also listed in Science Fiction and Fantasy Artists of the Twentieth Century: A Biographical Dictionary, by Jane Frank, 2009. On November 14, 2019 Debbie was inducted into NAWA, The National Association of Women Artists. Since that time, Debbie has exhibited her work at 5 different shows, all in New York, NY. Debbie received the Bernadette Award (yearly privately funded) in 2021 for her painting “Impedance in Slumber” at the 132nd NAWA’s Annual Members Exhibition. She also received an Honorable Mention for her painting “Seasons of Wither” in 2020 at NAWA’s Grand Visions Exhibition at the Grand Central Library in NY. That year her painting remained on lock down in New York due to Covid and was not returned until the end of 2020. Debbie received the 2020 ASFA, Association of Science Fiction Artists Chesley award her painting, “The Raven the Wolf and the Maiden” . “The Raven, the Wolf and the Maiden” is part of a series of works that Debbie hopes to put in Book form by the end of 2023. Debbie is grateful for her husband of many years, Dean Erickson, who has gone above and beyond in supporting and helping her through many years of struggle and hardship. They live in a small cottage on Lake Lanier with two cats.
Emilie Carlson(Gibson)
Emilie is a pet portrait artist who specializes in creating work with mythology and the macabre. Emilie does commissions for any style,including ornaments and memorial paintings. You can contact her on Facebook for information on prices and sizing.
Erika Perry
Erika Perry creates needle felted magic through her wee witches and wizards, fairies, and angels. Influenced and inspired by traditional European doll making techniques, her wee dolls embrace simple and neutral features. As such the doll’s personality and mood is directly created by the viewer. These unique dolls are made from merino wool, glass beads, and love. In 2019, Erika found a new passion in broom making. Her brooms are both perfect for practical and ritual work, ranging in size from small whisks and besoms to full kitchen sweepers.
Galadriel Coffeen
Galadriel is a fantasy artist who loves painting digital and acrylic character illustrations. She’s particularly fond of creating realistic digital portraits with minimal backgrounds and a strong contrast between light and shadow. She also designs book covers and paints murals. When she’s not painting, she writes fantasy novels, cosplays her favorite characters, and teaches high school literature. She lives in Huntsville, AL with a tiny dog named Squid.
Joe Slucher
Joe is an artist best known for his digital paintings of fantasy and surreal subjects. He loves to paint the drama involved in gaming art and enjoys the beautifully melancholy in his personal work. These days most of his art is created digitally using Paintstorm Studio although some work is created in oils. Joe lives in the Cincinnati area with his wife, son, and dog.
Find more out about joe on his Website www.joeslucher.com
k.r.wesel
k.r.wesel is an artist specializing in pen and ink drawings. She creates pieces with painfully tiny details, often incorporating her unnatural love of symmetry. She loves trying new techniques and tends to dive in head first. Though she has sold art in private auctions and worked on commissioned pieces, JordanCon will be her first art show and she looks forward to displaying her work alongside the many talented artists there. She resides in Syracuse, NY with her husband, 3 kids, and 2 cats.
Kalyani Poluri
Kalyani Poluri is an East Indian. She loves the fusion of different techniques to make unique and brightly colored art on canvas, mugs and jewelry that has origins from Hindu mythology. She calls her art business Art InFusions.
You can see and purchase her latest art and prints at her Facebook page below.
Kelly Keuneke
Kelly is a Mechanical Engineer in the daytime and struggling artist by night. Studying under the Watts Atelier personal courses with Jeff Watts and Smartschool with Donato Giancola, Kelly aspires to rise to the mountain top where artists such as Frank Frazetta and N.C. Wyeth have planted their flags on the summit. Kelly works in all mediums, but personally loves the look of a good old graphite pencil.
To see more of Kelly’s work, you can find her on Instagram | Patreon
Laura Bielaczyc
Whenever Laura has a new spark of creativity, which is often, she follows that spark to see where it goes! She has experimented with many different materials throughout the years, and this most recent iteration happens to be felt! She has been making life-like felt flowers for you to enjoy. The best thing about these flowers is the ease in which to care for them. Unlike some of Laura’s sad house plants, you don’t even have to think about watering these!
Leia Powell
Master Stained Glass Artisan Leia Powell has been creating glass masterpieces, breaking down barriers, and rejuvenating the old world craft for over 25 years. The first stained glass artist to be nominated for the coveted Chesley Award, Leia is also the first glass artist in history to be the sole maker of an author’s trademarked characters: Edgar Rice Burroughs. Additionally, this year Leia has been licensed to make licensed JordanCon stained glass! Her three-dimensional dragons can be seen flying around the convention along with a host of other glass creations. Her intricate stained glass windows and fantastical builds have won her multiple art show awards at both LibertyCon and JordanCon. Her fused glass jewelry is a testament to how glorious melting glass at 1200 degrees can be. Leia keeps apprentices and interns on staff at her studio, Wildcat Mountain Artistry, in Florence, Alabama, and is determined to teach everyone she can to ensure the flame of stained glass creativity keeps burning.
Lori Morrow
Lori Morrow is a former preschool teacher who has never gotten her fingers out of the paint. Working primarily with acrylics she creates pieces bursting with color and symmetry. From mandalas, to ornaments, to traditional symbols, and Celtic knots, Lori adds her unique style on any design she creates. Although she sold her work on Vendors row for several years, this will be her first time in the art show. Lori resides in Lilburn, GA with her husband, youngest daughter, and her two dogs.
M. M. Schill
M. M. Schill resides in North Florida. She is a writer, victim’s rights activist, martial artist, and a student and practitioner of traditional Japanese arts.
M.M. is also a tentacle (associated editor) at Pseudopod, a pro-market, short horror story podcast.
Marc Gunn
Marc Gunn plays Irish, Scottish, and folk music. But he adds a twist. He fuses his love of science fiction, fantasy, and comedy with his Scots-Irish heritage.
He calls it Sci F’Irish music. You will laugh and smile to songs inspired by Lord of the Rings, Firefly, Star Wars and Star Trek, dragons and cats, plus traditional Irish drinking songs.
His musical weapon of choice is the autoharp. This obscure instrument is great for singing along. Gunn makes his shows fun and accessible with a sonically unique rhythm & folk musical style.
For Gunn, it started small, wearing a kilt on campus at the University of Texas. As one half of the acclaimed Brobdingnagian Bards, Gunn and partner Andrew McKee developed a loyal following with weekly performances on campus. This quickly led to gigs at renaissance faires and eventually science fiction conventions, where their popularity exploded.
When the Bards split up in 2008, Gunn left Austin and began producing albums in overdrive.He now has over 20 solo albums on his homespun Mage Records label. His most-popular albums include Irish Drinking Songs for Cat Lovers, Don’t Go Drinking With Hobbits, Firefly Drinking Songs, Scottish Songs of Drinking & Rebellion, and Sci Fi Drinking Songs. He has released over fifty albums in his catalog.
Selcouth is Gunn’s newest album. “Selcouth” means, “when everything is strange and different, yet you find it marvelous anyway.” That nails Gunn’s strange but marvelous mix of Sci F’Irish music.
Martin Powell
Martin Powell has written many of the most popular characters in the industry, including Superman, Batman, Popeye the Sailor, and Tarzan of the Apes, in comics and in prose, for Disney, Marvel, DC, Dark Horse, among many others. Nominated for the prestigious Eisner Award for his work with Sherlock Holmes, he is also the creator of The Halloween Legion, a nominee for the Stan Lee Excelsior Award, and his Tall Tale of Paul Bunyan won the coveted Moonbeam Golden Award for Best Children’s Graphic Novel. As the author of almost a dozen different Edgar Rice Burroughs online comics series, and the critically acclaimed Jungle Tales of Tarzan graphic novel published by Dark Horse, Powell has written more ERB characters than any other contemporary writer. In 2017, he received the coveted Golden Lion Award for his on-going contributions to the legacy of Edgar Rice Burroughs. His newest children’s books, Private Eye Princess and the Emerald Pea, and Rapunzel vs. Frankenstein, twist familiar fairy tales into original adventures for 21st Century readers.
Melissa Gay
Melissa Gay is a Chesley Award winning illustrator of books and tabletop roleplaying games. Her work has been featured in ImagineFX Magazine, io9, tor.com, and several of the Infected By Art anthologies. She co-founded the Birdwhisperer Project, and she is a member of the Changeling Artist Collective. She is currently working on “Earth and Water”, a book of ink art, and “I Dream Of Space”, a book of acrylic space paintings. A former scientific illustrator, she constantly seeks the perfect balance between precise detail and hazy obscurity to better engage the imagination of the viewer.
You can see her work here: Website |Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Patreon
Michael Bielaczyc
Michael Bielaczyc has been working professionally in the art field since 2001 when he founded Aradani Studios with his brother Paul. Together they have exhibited across America selling both their artwork and costuming. He works in many mediums from oil paint to latex prosthetics, video to graphite. In 2012, Michael started Lone Wanderer Entertainment with his long time friend Dane Clark Collins to publish books based in their dark fantasy world – Atheles. Since then he has authored 4 books and created the SagaBorn RPG system.
You can see his complete work here: Website
Nick Stapleton
Nick has been using woodworking and pyrography to escape the stress and boredom of his day job for over a decade. He has made award-winning props for himself and others, but without conventions in 2020, he began to branch out into artwork. His work this year includes pyrography, layered 3d artwork, and handcrafted wood carvings.
Paul Bielaczyc of Aradani Studios
Starting in 2002, Paul Bielaczyc joined with his brother Michael and sister Sara to form Aradani Studios. What started as just fun experiment at the Tennessee Renaissance Festival has grown significantly over the past 20 years. Aradani is known for 2 rather unique aspects, elven ear prosthetics and fantastical artwork. Michael and Paul both have won numerous awards over the years for their costumes, and Aradani’s ever-growing line of elf ear prosthetics and masks has helped other cosplayers win countless awards worldwide.
But it is his artwork that truly provides a glimpse into what defines Paul and where his passion lies. Paul uses charcoal, chalk, pastels, and more recently watercolor to create traditional artwork. He strives to achieve a level of detail in his works, pushing the boundaries of what is typically seen with charcoal and pastel.
Over the past 2 decades, Paul has worked for Wheel of Time, White Wolf, Dragon Lance, Sagaborn, and many other independent publishers. His art has won many awards at various conventions, including GenCon and Dragon*Con, and his work Nightmare, one of his earliest professional pieces, won the prestigious Chesley Award in 2005 for Best Monochrome Unpublished. Starting in 2012, Paul became a licensed artist for The Wheel of Time, joining a select few artists who had the blessing of Robert Jordan’s wife to illustrate scenes from his epic work.
Find more on Paul and Aradani Studios at www.aradanicostumes.com
Rachel Rieckenberg
Rachel Rieckenberg grew up in a tiny country town in Southern Illinois surrounded by her families misfit farm and huge backyard forest. It was there her imagination and love of fairy tales blossomed. Rachel is a Traditional Mixed Media Artist focusing on Pyrography, Watercolor, Oils, and Pencil. Her work explores the worlds of Myth and Magic that she has dreamed up since she was a child and quiet moments of what it is like to be human. Her work is not always what it seems at the surface and a glimpse of the poetry that comes with each piece, touches on the inner meanings. Rachel is an award winning artist spanning DragonCon, ChattaCon, and local Art Galleries. Her work can be seen at Conventions in the Southeast and online at www.RachelRieckenberg.com. When she’s not in the studio in Georgia, you can find her exploring the outdoors for inspiration with her husband Kevin and her sweet puppy Devi.
Ribbon & Charm
Ribbon & Charm features unique and whimsical handmade bookmarks and jewelry. The bookmarks are made with premium velvet ribbon and feature unique charms. Jess Taylor, the owner and crafter behind Ribbon & Charm, loves doing custom work, so feel free to message her on her Etsy shop or talk with her at the Con!
Rick Martin
Rick produces artwork using lego and lego-compatible bricks. He specializes in custom printed minifigures, immersive scenes, and building instructions. He especially enjoys making fan art based on the works of Robert Jordan, Brandon Sanderson, and Cat Valente. His style is whatever works, insofar as he will drill, sand, paint, or print on bricks as needed to achieve the desired effect. When he is not building, he is a professor of electrical engineering in Dayton, Ohio.
Ris Harp
Ris Harp (they/them) is some kind of triple threat. Linguist, baker, candlestick maker. Runner, blademaster, candlestick maker. Warder, swearing enthusiast, candlestick maker. Veteran, cat-lover, candlestick maker. Singular they, deaf-ish, candlestick mak— you get the idea. Real talk, Ris does a lot of stuff. But mainly they act, create digital art, and write stories and screenplays based on their experiences living in life’s vast grey areas. Not a candlestick maker.
Roy Coker
An artist is somewhat like a magician or shaman. We communicate and connect with others by what we create. From an early age, he has been interested in creating art related to his love of magic, myth, and the extraordinary. After graduating with an art degree in the mid-70s, he worked in the graphic arts and design. He also entered science fiction and fantasy convention art shows, occasionally winning awards. Currently he primarily expresses himself with miniature paintings, silver-point drawings, sculptures, and jewelry. He has pieces of art in private and college collections. He hopes to express and share his creativity for the rest of his life
Sara Glassman
Sara’s interest in jewelry design started at a very young age, but her career began with a job at a bead store in Tuscaloosa, AL. Access to other artists and a wealth of materials allowed her to develop her personal style as well as the skills to realize her designs. An interest in textile techniques such as weaving, knitting, and crochet heavily influenced her design aesthetic.
She was able to refine some of these textile techniques into jewelry applications thanks, in part, to a workshop at the Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts. Her day jobs as a bookseller and then librarian provided an entirely new source of inspiration in the books she works with.
Sarah Clemens
Sarah’s early love of science fiction and fantasy art came even before she could read, from looking at the covers of science fiction magazines. She has been attending science fiction conventions since the late seventies. The artwork she most enjoys creating are those connected with the fantastic and she is gratified at the response of con-goers to her award-winning paintings of Magnus & Loki, the cat and dragon companions, which have been the most fun of all her fantastic creations.
After a twenty year career as a medical illustrator, she feels herself truly lucky to be able to be a full time fantasy artist. “It’s a complete reversal,” she says, “from painting what other people want to creating my own work the way I want.”
Sarah is a graduate of Florida Atlantic University, with a degree in Art History and Fine Arts.
Sarah works in a photo-real style in oils and acrylics. She has exhibited and won national awards at the Seattle Erotic Art Festival and her erotic paintings are published in Volumes 2 and 3 of The World’s Greatest Erotic Art of Today. Growing up in a darkroom contributes to her love of photography.
She has also sold short stories to Ellen Datlow anthologies and Asimov’s Magazine.
Sarah and her husband and cats and terrariums and carnivorous plants live in Mesa, Arizona.
Make sure to visit Sarah’s Website for more updates!
Shannon O'Day
Dr. Shannon O’Day received her Bachelor’s degree in Humanities with a specialization in medieval literature from the University of California at Berkeley, and her Masters in Reading Education from California State Fullerton where she was awarded outstanding graduate student. Her doctorate in Language and Literacy is from Georgia State University, and was given a Doctoral Award for excellence in scholarship, outstanding service to the department and the educational community, and demonstrated professional excellence. Dr. O’Day’s first book, Setting the Stage for Creative Writing, Plot Scaffolds for Beginning and Intermediate Writers is a combination of her love of myth, plays, and writing. This book won the International Association Book Club Award for August, 2006. After 30 years of work in education, Shannon retired from teaching and currently makes one of a kind whimsical coats. Her company is called WhmZcoats. She also loves to sew, travel, go to conventions, and enjoys theatre.
