KEYNOTE SPEAKER:
We are pleased to announce that our keynote speaker is Suzanne Young, New York Times bestselling author of The Program series. Originally from Utica, New York, Suzanne moved to Arizona to pursue her dream of not freezing to death. She is a novelist and an English teacher, but not always in that order. Suzanne is the author of The Program, The Treatment, The Remedy, The Epidemic, Hotel Ruby, and All in Pieces. Visit her at www.authorsuzanneyoung.com
We are pleased to announce that our keynote speaker is Suzanne Young, New York Times bestselling author of The Program series. Originally from Utica, New York, Suzanne moved to Arizona to pursue her dream of not freezing to death. She is a novelist and an English teacher, but not always in that order. Suzanne is the author of The Program, The Treatment, The Remedy, The Epidemic, Hotel Ruby, and All in Pieces. Visit her at www.authorsuzanneyoung.com
Back by popular demand, Jonathan Maberry, New York Times bestselling author Nancy Holder and Ryan Bradford will present a horror panel titled: Things That Go Bump in the Night.
The following is the line-up of speakers:
The following is the line-up of speakers:
Ryan Bradford - Author of the novel Horror Business, as well as the founder and editor of Black Candies, a journal of literary darkness. His writing has appeared in Quarterly West, Vice, Monkeybicycle, Hobart, New Dead Families and [PANK]. Ryan grew up in Park City, Utah and currently lives in San Diego. He writes the biweekly column "Well, That Was Awkward" for San Diego CityBeat and acts as Creative Director for the non-profit arts-advocacy organization So Say We All.
Lee Coulter - Lee Coulter is a singer/songwriter whose soulful performance and memorable songwriting have landed him opening spots for music legends Tom Jones and Chuck Berry, critic favorites Martin Sexton and Griffin House and had Sirius XM’s Coffee House channel dub him “the discovery of year” in 2011 for his debut album. Originally from Brisbane, Australia and based in San Diego since 2006, he uses the combined power of lyrics and music to promote the idea that conscious connection is what separates us from the rest of the matter in the universe. He has spoken to audiences about this at three TEDx events. As one of his songs suggests, “Stardust and forces of attraction, that’s all we are.” His latest album, People Like You, will be available worldwide via digital platforms including iTunes on July 9. Lee records and produces all of his own work and the album took two years to record. It is comprised of a wide variety of tracks from acoustic feel-good with “A Glorious Day on the Planet I Love,” to T-Bone Burnett-esque blues with a feminist kick in “Boss Senorita,” to dance floor rock in “Move You,” to folk meets reggaeton in “Live a Litte,” to lo-fi retro ballads like “Kindred Blips.” The glue that keeps it all together is the distinct lyrical themes and a unique baritone voice that seems to come from another time and a soul much older than he. “A lot of people tell me I look nothing like I sound. Like it’s a compliment to my voice. So I’m always wondering how bad I must look.” Lee lives in Carlsbad, CA with his wife and their 6 year old son and continues to write and produce music for himself and others artists.
Susan Dennard - Susan Dennard has come a long way from small-town Georgia. As a marine biologist, she got to travel the world—six out of seven continents, to be exact (she’ll get to Asia one of these days!)—before she settled down as a full-time novelist and writing instructor. She lives in Michigan with her husband and two dogs, and she is extremely active in social media. Dennard is incredibly personable and knowledgeable, and her easygoing and candid manner makes her an asset to any event. You can find her on her blog (www.Susandennard.com), The Witchlands website (www.thewitchlands.com) twitter (@stdennard) or contributing to Publishing Crawl. Susan Dennard’s debut, Something Strange and Deadly (2012) was set in an alternate 1800s Philadelphia, where a 16-year-old girl’s brother is taken by a necromancer and his army of walking dead. Two more books follow in the series, A Darkness Strange and Lovely (2013) and Strange and Every After (2014). Susan also co-writes an online novel with friend and New York Times bestselling author Sarah J. Maas, called The Starkillers Cycle.
T. Greenwood - T. Greenwood is the author of ten novels. She has received grants from the Sherwood Anderson Foundation, the Christopher Isherwood Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Maryland State Arts Council. TWO RIVERS and GRACE received San Diego Book Awards. Five of her novels have been Indie Next picks. BODIES OF WATER, was a 2014 Lambda Literary Awards Finalist. WHERE I LOST HER will be released on February 23, 2016. She teaches creative writing for San Diego Writer's Ink, Grossmont College, and online for The Writer's Center. She and her husband, Patrick, live in San Diego, CA with their two daughters. More information on T. Greenwood can be found at her website: http://www.tgreenwood.com
Christopher Hamilton - Christopher Hamilton’s second-grade teacher called home to verify his reading log because, “No one could be reading that many books.” In high school he kept his obsessive reading a secret from his friends on the soccer team, discussing Jane Eyre discreetly after school with his favorite teacher, Mrs. Teegarden. This love of Literature led to graduate degrees in English Literature at UCLA, specializing in 18th and 19th century British Literature and Critical Theory. Christopher Hamilton taught hundreds of college students at UCLA in courses ranging from Introduction to Literature to seminars on Crime Fiction, and earned awards for his scholarship and his teaching. Christopher jumped ship from academia to commercial magazine writing, eventually becoming Editorial Director of a magazine focused on food, wine, and cooking. After gaining a few pounds but missing the energy and atmosphere of the classroom, Christopher became a partner in an international college consulting and test-prep company, and eventually went on to create additional companies devoted to helping ambitious student find a path to great colleges. In 2014 he founded Hamilton College Consulting, helping local and international students apply to selective colleges.Christopher Hamilton has helped literally hundreds of students gain access to Ivy-level universities, and thousands find a path to colleges of all descriptions.
Nancy Holder - Nancy Holder is a New York Times bestselling dark fantasy and horror author. She has sold more than 80 novels and 200 short stories, essays, and articles, and has received 5 Bram Stoker awards from the Horror Writers Association, of which she is a trustee. She has also received a Scribe award from the International Association of Media Tie-In Writers and a Young Adult Pioneer Award from the RT Booklovers Convention. She is also well known for writing episode guide books, original novels, and novelizations for TV shows and movies such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Teen Wolf, Beauty and the Beast, Crimson Peak, and the new Ghostbusters movie starring Kristen Wiig and Melissa McCarthy. She writes and edits comic books and graphic novels for Moonstone Books, and teaches in the popular fiction department of the Stonecoast MFA in Creative Writing program offered through the University of Southern Maine. Forthcoming is The Rules, a young adult teen thriller in the manner of Scream, in June. She lives in San Diego with the writer Mark Mandell and their Corgi Tater. Socialize @nancyholder.
Courtney Kilian - Courtney Amber Kilian received her MFA from UCSD. Her work appears in the anthologies, California Prose Directory: New Writing From the Golden State and Ancestors, Place, and Memory… Our Stories Will Never Die. She was recognized in MARY as their New Voice in Nonfiction and by Terrain.org: A Journal of the Built & Natural Environments as their fiction contest winner. She writes on mindfulness and writing on her blog, Om & Ink. Her work has been nominated for a Pushcart and she has received travel grants to do research for her writing in Spain. She loves yoga near trees, teatime, floating in the Pacific, and working with others to inspire their creativity. To learn more about her work visit www.courtneykilian.com and follow her @CAmberKilian.
Anthony King - Anthony King is an Emmy-nominated writer, director, and performer. He co-wrote the Off-Broadway show, GUTENBERG! THE MUSICAL!, which also enjoyed a run Off-West End in London and is now being performed all over the world. The show received Lucille Lortel, Outer Critics Circle & Drama Desk Award Nominations, and won a NYMF Award for Excellence in Musical Theatre Writing (Book). Anthony has developed television shows for CBS, HBO, A&E & AMC and has written for shows like Broad City (Comedy Central), Playing House (USA), Wet Hot American Summer (Netflix), Best Friends Forever (NBC) and more. Anthony performs regularly at UCBT in shows like Asssscat, Brand New Ball, Reuben Starship, Shut Up! I Hate You! and many more. He was the Artistic Director of the UCB Theatre in NYC from 2005-2011.
Natalie M. Lakosil - An honors graduate of the University of San Diego, California, Natalie holds a B.A. in Literature/Writing. After nearly four years at the Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency and a brief dabble in writing author profiles and book reviews for the San Diego Union Tribune, she joined the Bradford Agency in February of 2011. She is drawn to talented, hard-working new authors with a fresh, unique voice and hook.
Jenny Lane - A California-based playwright and novelist originally from Troy, Michigan. Her work has been presented at or developed by the terraNOVA Collective, the Gulfshore Playhouse, Sightline Theatre Company, Artistic New Directions, IRT, The Bridge Theatre Company, the New Ohio Theatre, 3LD Art & Technology Center, the Gene Frankel Theatre, Theatre 54, Manhattan Shakespeare Theatre, The Washington Rogues, Gorilla Tango Theatre, Columbia Stages, LiveGirls! Theatre, Mission to (dit)Mars, NYCPlaywrights, The Actors Theatre of Charlotte, The Culture Project and the Inkwell Theatre. She received her MFA in Playwriting from Columbia University, and her BA with a focus in Fiction and Theatre from Sarah Lawrence College. Currently, Jenny is a teaching artist with the Playwrights Project, UCSD Extension and San Diego Writers, Ink. Her dramatic writing is represented by Amy Wagner of Abrams Artists Agency in New York City.
Jonathan Maberry - Jonathan Maberry is a NY Times bestselling novelist, five-time Bram Stoker Award winner, and comic book writer. He writes the Joe Ledger thrillers, the Rot & Ruin series, the Nightsiders series, the Dead of Night series, as well as standalone novels in multiple genres. His comic book works include, among others, CAPTAIN AMERICA, BAD BLOOD, ROT & RUIN, V-WARS, and others. He is the editor of many anthologies including THE X-FILES, SCARY OUT THERE, OUT OF TUNE, and V-WARS. His books EXTINCTION MACHINE and V-WARS are in development for TV, and ROT & RUIN is in development as a series of feature films. A board game version of V-WARS was released in early 2016. He is the founder of the Writers Coffeehouse, and the co-founder of The Liars Club. Prior to becoming a full-time novelist, Jonathan spent twenty-five years as a magazine feature writer, martial arts instructor and playwright. He was a featured expert on the History Channel documentary, Zombies: A Living History and a regular expert on the TV series, True Monsters. Jonathan lives in Del Mar, California with his wife, Sara Jo. www.jonathanmaberry.com
Viet Mai - Viet Mai is an Educator, Artist and Consultant who works to enhance the lives of others through community engagement and youth empowerment. As a member of the 2013 ELEVATED! Slam Team, he represented San Diego to rank 4th place at the National Poetry Slam in Boston, MA. Viet began exploring his creativity by writing poetry while a student at the University of California in San Diego. With influences from Ethnic Studies and Music classes, as well as lyrics from Hip Hop artists, Viet focuses his writing and performing towards education, community development, self reflection, and empowerment. Also known as vKnowledge, Viet began performing spoken word around San Diego in 2001 at open mics. As his talent and creativity bloomed, he was sought after as a featured poet at many events and venues in Southern California, and has appeared in venues across America. In an effort to inspire others through art and culture, Viet is a co-host and organizer of San Diego's largest Spoken Word event, ELEVATED. Ultimately, Viet's mission is to collaborate with community members to educate, motivate, and inspire the youth through spoken word, art, and culture. He has facilitated numerous workshops with various organizations and youth programs. After obtaining his BA in Math-Computer Science from UCSD, Viet currently serves as a Program Facilitator with the Village of Promise Collective Mentoring Program, and as an Independent Consultant, specializing in School Data and Assessment. Furthermore, he devoutly continues to edutain his audience as a member of Collective Purpose.
Sylvia Mendoza - Award-winning journalist Sylvia Mendoza absolutely believes in the power of the written word—and that every person has a story to tell. When she wrote The Book of Latina Women: 150 Vidas (Lives) of Passion, Strength and Success, on inspiring Latinas who impacted the arts, politics, science, entertainment, sports, education, and more, the women’s stories changed her life. The experience made her want to be a better writer and person. First released in 2004, the book was selected for the 2007 California Collection for High Schools by the California Readers Association. In 2014, the updated reprint won 1st place in the International Latino Book Awards “Best Women’s Issues” category. For 30 years she has worked as a freelance writer with hundreds of her articles appearing in publications such as Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education, Baja Traveler, Uptown, OurCity San Diego, Los Angeles Times, San Diego Union-Tribune, Decor & Style, Kids' Wall Street News, Siempre Mujer and Hispanic. She has won numerous awards for Journalistic Excellence, including 1st place in the 2015 San Diego Press Club Excellence in Journalism Awards for Magazine Writing in the Multicultural Category. She is currently under contract for a two-book deal with Zest Books to write biographies for middle grade readers and is ghost writing a project for a private client. She teaches journalism at several colleges in San Diego. Recognized as a 2006 “Woman of Distinction” at California State University, San Marcos for her contributions in promoting awareness of gender issues, Sylvia is an advocate of diversity, literacy and women's empowerment through education. In her spare time, she writes novels and continues to write women’s stories to inspire and be inspired, to empower and be empowered. Sylvia earned an M.A. in Digital Journalism, a B.A. in Print Journalism and certification in Women’s Studies and Copyediting. She is a member of Society of Professional Journalists, San Diego Professional Editors Network, San Diego Press Club, American Society of Journalists and Authors, Novelists Inc., and the National Women’s History Project
Laura Preble - an award-winning author and teacher, Laura is the author of the young adult series, Queen Geek Social Club, and Out. She also won the Kurt Vonnegut Fiction Prize and was published in the North American Review, Hysteria and NEA Today. She is currently finishing up her newest novel, The Memory of Water and hopes to release it in 2016.
James Matlack Raney - James Raney grew up all over the world, in Europe, Latin America, and Africa, leaving him with a lifelong love of adventure that escapes through his daydreams and lands on the pages of his stories. He is the author of the Jim Morgan series, including Jim Morgan and the Door at the Edge of the World, which was the 2015 Writer's Digest Self Published Book Award Winner for Middle Grade/Young Adult. He is currently working on new novels and visiting as many schools and bookstores in Southern California as will put up with him. James loves spinning yarns he would have howled at when he was a boy, eating sushi, strumming his guitar, and wishing he had a dog to play frisbee with on the beach
Allan Retzky - Allan Retzky has advanced degrees from Harvard and Long Island University (the latter in creative writing). His mystery "Vanished in the Dunes" is an Amazon best seller. He is currently working on a historical novel involving a World War II conspiracy.
Kendall Sherwood - An LA-based playwright/screenwriter who is currently staffed on “Major Crimes,” a spin-off of TNT’s hit crime series “The Closer,” where she worked her way up from an internship in 2010. She's represented by CAA and The Cartel Management Group. Despite the transition into the land of TV, Kendall keeps a foot in the world of playwriting, with – most recently – a workshop production of The Record Breakers in Denver’s inaugural festival for women's voices, the Athena Project, a month-long run of Devil May Care in Chicago (Wishbone Theatre Collective) and the honor of being named a finalist two years running for the Eugene O’Neill National Playwrights Conference for Found Religion and The Record Breakers. She received a BA in Theatre from Clemson University and an MFA in Writing for the Screen and Stage at Northwestern University, where she taught Foundations of Screenwriting in the Radio/TV/Film department.
Chantal Sicile-Kira - Chantal Sicile-Kira’s passion for empowering others, her love of writing, and her personal interest in autism has led her to become a leader in the field, an international speaker, award-winning author of five books and the founder of AutismCollege.com. Chantal’s award winning books include the recently revised Autism Spectrum Disorder; Autism Life Sills; Adolescents on the Autism Spectrum (all published by Penguin); A Full Life with Autism (co-authored with her son Jeremy, published by Macmillan); What is Autism? (Turner). Chantal also blogs on PsychologyToday.com and HuffingtonPost.com. Chantal has won numerous book awards including two San Diego Book Awards, Award for “Best in Health/Fitness” for Adolescents on the Autism Spectrum; an Outstanding Literary Work of the Year Award from the Autism Society of America and was nominated for the 2005 PEN / Martha Albrand Award for First Nonfiction. Chantal has served on the Taskforce on Transitional Services & Supports reporting to the California Legislative Blue Ribbon Commission on Autism, and was appointed by the California Senate Select Autism Committee to co-chair the South Counties Autism Regional Taskforce. Chantal’s recent awards include the 2013 Jo Pike Believe Award from the National Autism Association; and being named a 2013 Top Ten Autism Blogger and Social Health-Maker by Sharecare. Chantal and her family have been featured in the MTV documentary “True Life” series and a wide variety of media, including NPR, PBS, The Chicago Tribune, Newsweek (cover article), and Fox News. For more information visit http://autismcollege.com/
Greg Van Eekhout - Greg van Eekhout is the author is the author of six published novels and over two-dozen short stories. His work has been nominated for the Nebula Award for Best Short Story, the Andre Norton Award for Best Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy Novel, and the Locus Award for Best First Novel. His most recent book is Dragon Coast, the conclusion to the Daniel Blackland Trilogy (Tor Books). He lives in Pacific Beach with his wife and dogs. www.writingandsnacks.com
Eliza Wass -Eliza Wass is a freelance writer, editor and journalist. Her debut novel, THE CRESSWELL PLOT, is released on June 7 from Disney Hyperion. She has worked—pause for breath—as a front desk hostess at Disneyland and the Magic Kingdom, a camp counselor, a children’s tutor, a riding instructor, actress, waitress, bartender, bookseller, in real estate, retail and accounting. In fact, there is every chance she prepared your breakfast this morning and after she took your kids to school, she did some light dusting around your bookshelves. Follow her on Twitter @lovefaithmagic and visit her website at www.elizawass.com
Kiersten White - A New York Times bestselling author of the Paranormalcy trilogy; the dark thrillers Mind Games and Perfect Lies; The Chaos of Stars; and Illusions of Fate. She also coauthored In the Shadows with Jim Di Bartolo. She lives with her family near the ocean in San Diego, which, in spite of its perfection, spurs her to dream of faraway places and even further away times. Visit Kiersten online at kierstenwhite.com and follow @kierstenwhite on Twitter.
Matthew Wolf - Bestselling author of YA epic fantasy novel The Knife’s Edge, book one of The Ronin Saga. He is a graduate of UCSB with a specialization in medieval studies and Japanese, which strongly influence the world of The Ronin Saga. He was also a Kung Fu instructor, a health nut, and a hobbyist of woodcraft, archery, and other old worldy things. He enjoys giving rousing speeches and encouraging others on the exciting path of writing.
Mysterious Galaxy Bookstore will be selling speakers’ books with a portion of the proceeds going to the conference.