Barbara Linn Probst: I’ve embraced many sides of life. I’ve been a teacher, therapist, qualitative researcher, educational advocate, “serious amateur” pianist, and full-time mom. I’ve run a not-for-profit organization, mentored PhD students, counseled families, done webinars and radio interviews on how to nurture out-of-the-box children, and much more!
Author: Author's Answer
Richard Alther
Richard Alther was born and raised in suburban New Jersey. He graduated as an English major from Cornell University and pursued twin careers as a writer and painter. He is the author of five novels: THE DECADE OF BLIND DATES (2008), SIEGFRIED FOLLIES (2010), THE SCAR LETTERS (2013), ROXIE & FRED (2017), and BEDSIDE MATTERS, published by Rare Bird Books on March 23, 2021.
Susan Devan Harness
Susan Devan Harness is a member of the Confederated Salish Kootenai Tribes and award-winning author of Bitterroot: A Salish Memoir of Transracial Adoption, as well as an American Indian transracial adoptee. She has written and presented nationally and internationally about American Indian assimilation policies, including adoption. Ms. Harness holds MAs in Cultural Anthropology as well as Creative Nonfiction, both from Colorado State University, where she is an affiliate of the Department of Anthropology and Geography.
Hilary Hauck
Hilary Hauck is the author of From Ashes to Song, her debut novel. A writer and translator, her work has appeared in the Mindful Writers Retreat Series anthologies, the Ekphrastic Review, Balloons Lit. Journal, and the Telepoem Booth. She moved to Italy from her native UK as a young adult, where she mastered the language, learned how to cook food she can no longer eat, and won a karate championship. After meeting her husband, Hilary came to the US and drew inspiration from Pennsylvania coal history, which soon became the setting for her debut novel. Hilary is Chair of the Festival of Books in the Alleghenies, past president of Pennwriters, and a graduate of RULE. She lives on a small patch of woods in rural Pennsylvania with her husband, one of their three adult children, a cat with a passion for laundry, and an oversized German Shepherd called Hobbes—of the Calvin variety.
Saul A. Lelchuk
Saul A. Lelchuk holds a B.A. in English from Amherst College and a master’s degree from Dartmouth College. He lives in Berkeley, CA. Lelchuk’s debut, Save Me From Dangerous Men, is the start of a series, which has been optioned for film and television and the foreign rights have sold in multiple countries around the world. Save Me From Dangerous Men was named a USA Today Best Book of 2019, a Booklist Top 10 Crime Debut of 2019, a Kirkus Best Mystery/Thriller of 2019, a Hudson Booksellers Best of the Year, and also has been short-listed for a Barry Award to be named at Bouchercon 2020. The sequel, One Got Away, will release in April 2021. Lelchuk is a member of the Mystery Writers of America (MWA) and International Thriller Writers (ITW). He is represented by the LGR Literary Agency and his film/television rights by the Gersh Agency.
Anne-Sophie Jouhanneau
Anne-Sophie Jouhanneau has published 17 books with French publisher, Fleurus Éditions. Her YA series, Journal de Los Angeles(paperback, 2018), has sold tens of thousands of copies. Her nonfiction books about fashion, beauty, and wellness for teens have been translated into Russian, Czech, Italian, Portuguese, Hungarian, and Spanish to name a few. Her writing career began as a freelance journalist and now includes articles in Women’s Health Mag, Refinery 29, Yahoo Style, Yahoo Travel, and several other print and digital publications in both French and English. She also works as a copywriter and content creator in the lifestyle, beauty, fashion, and travel industries. Kisses and Croissants is her US debut.
Kris Clink
Kris Clink is the author of Goodbye, Lark Lovejoy (Book 1, The Enchanted Rock Series) and writes about relatable characters who rely on humor and tenderness to navigate their complicated relationships. Set in middle America, her novels are laced with love, heartbreak, and just enough snarky humor to rock the boat.
Leslie A. Rasmussen
Leslie A. Rasmussen was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. She graduated with a bachelor’s in communications from UCLA and went on to write television comedies for Gerald McRaney, Burt Reynolds, Roseanne Barr, Norm McDonald, Drew Carey, and Ralph Macchio, as well as The Wild Thornberrys and Sweet Valley High. Later, she earned a master’s degree in nutrition and ran her own business for ten years. Most recently, Leslie has written personal essays for online magazines such as Huffington Post, Maria Shriver, and SheKnows. She loves dogs and besides having two adorable Labradors, she volunteers at the Burbank Animal Shelter in Burbank, California. Leslie lives in Los Angeles and has two sons, and a husband she’s been with since college. This is her debut novel. She lives in Los Angeles.
Jamie Beck
Jamie Beck: My childhood writing dreams featured a Hollywood career in the television or film industries. I’d finish watching a dramatic family saga or love story and think, “I want to write something like this!” But a creative writing career seemed like a pipedream, so I went to Tulane University assuming I’d figure out what to do with the rest of my life by graduation day. I fell in love with psychology coursework, but psychiatrists go to medical school, and subjects such as biology and chemistry weren’t my forte. Alas, another career eliminated.
Shelley Nolden
A graduate of the University of Minnesota, Shelley Nolden is an entrepreneur and writer, now residing in Wisconsin. Previously, she lived in the New York City area, where she first learned of North Brother Island. At the age of 31, Shelley was diagnosed with leukemia and completed treatment three years later. The sense of isolation and fear she experienced during her cancer ordeal influenced her debut novel, THE VINES.