Author Profiles
Ohio has a rich literary heritage as well as some wonderful contemporary authors. Learn more about them here! You can sort by various categories and see who has participated in our annual book festival by using the category search on the left, or search by keyword (including partial author names) by using the search field on the right.
- You are searching within category(ies): Young Adult
Heather Shumaker
Heather Shumaker is the author of books for children and adults.
Her newest book, The Griffins of Castle Cary, is charming and slightly spooky adventure for middle grade readers, ages 8-12 (Simon & Schuster, 2019). The story features three plucky siblings, a ginormous, drooly Newfoundland dog, and a bit of a ghost problem.
Heather is a nationally known speaker who frequently keynotes and teaches workshops. She speaks at early childhood conferences around the U.S. and Canada, as well as schools, libraries and writing conferences. She loves to share her joy of books and children with audiences everywhere.
She’s the author of three nonfiction books, including Saving Arcadia, a narrative nonfiction book about Great Lakes land conservation. Saving Arcadia (Wayne State, 2017) has won state and national awards including: Michigan Notable Book Award, Eric Hoffer Award finalist, and Next Generation Indie Book – Environment Winner. Her nonfiction parenting/ education books (It’s OK Not to Share, Tarcher Penguin, 2012 and It’s OK to Go Up the Slide Tarcher Penguin RandomHouse, 2016) have been translated into Arabic, Chinese, French, Korean, Romanian, and Russian.
Heather was born and raised in Columbus, Ohio. She holds a BA in sociology/ anthropology from Swarthmore College and an MS in land resources from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Today Heather lives in Traverse City, Michigan with her husband and two children.
Terri-Lynne Smiles
Possessing “a native talent for imaginative storytelling” (Midwest Book Review) and being “skilled at crafting a nuanced page turner” (The Kirkus Review), Terri-Lynne Smiles creates novels filled with realistic characters, a quick pace, and a puzzle for the readers and characters to chew on. Her writing is diverse, ranging from The Rothston Series (2012-2016), a set of young adult/new adult urban fantasy novels, to Mirror Protocol (2016), a psychological murder mystery without a murder, to the sci-fi thriller Sarandipity (in development), set in a future in which sources of strife have been banned on Earth and humankind is spread across the stars.
Raised in a family of educators, Terri is passionate not only about writing but also teaching the craft. While she speaks on and teaches a wide variety of topics, her favorites include How to Develop a Plot; Crafting Believable Heroes and Villains; Pacing and Tension; and Race in Non-Racial Fiction. She has appeared at book clubs, participated in panels across the country, and has taught workshops at a variety of venues such as the Thurber House, the Upper Arlington Public Library, and the creative writing conference Imaginarium.
Terri-Lynne is committed to the charitable sector, serving as board chair for the Ohio Association of Nonprofit Organizations as well as volunteering with numerous community organizations.
For more information or to contact Terri-Lynne, see her website at http://www.terrilynnesmiles.com.
Lucy A. Snyder
Lucy A. Snyder is the author of 15 books and over 100 published short stories. Her most recent titles are the apocalyptic horror novel Sister, Maiden, Monster and the collection Halloween Season. She lives near Columbus, Ohio with a jungle of houseplants, a clowder of cats, and an insomnia of housemates. You can learn more about her at http://www.lucysnyder.com and you can follow her on Twitter at @LucyASnyder.
Linda Sohner
Linda Sohner is a retired speech therapist currently living in Greene County, Ohio. She shares her fascination with ancient worlds through engaging stories for children.
Amy Spears
Amy Spears (she/her) graduated from Denison University with a degree in cinema and creative writing. She lives in Columbus, Ohio, where she is in her second decade as a skater with Ohio Roller Derby. She spent several years active in the leadership of the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association and has given presentations, workshops and talks about the sport at Pecha Kecha Columbus, the Roller Derby World Summit, and Rollercon. Her digital essay (with Julie Driscoll) “Worlds Collide! facebook, family & George Costanza” was published in Harlot: A Revealing Look at the Arts of Persuasion, and her prose and poetry have appeared in Columbus Alive, Lynx Eye, and Wine X. A self-described “collector of hobbies,” she’ll try just about anything once.
Andrew Speno
Andrew Speno is a teacher and the author of “The Great American Foot Race,” as well as this year’s “The Many Lives of Eddie Rickenbacker.” He enjoys cooking, attending live music and theater performances, and playing Go. He lives with his family in Cincinnati.
Phil Stamper
Phil Stamper is the bestselling author of Golden Boys, The Gravity of Us, and other queer books for kids and teens. His stories are packed with queer joy, and his characters are often too ambitious for their own good. Born and raised in a rural village near Dayton, Ohio, he now lives in New York City with his husband and their daughter.
Cindy Thomson
Known for the inspirational Celtic theme employed in most of her books, Cindy Thomson is the author of six novels and three non-fiction books, including her newest Celtic Son. A genealogy enthusiast, she writes from her home in Ohio where she lives with her husband Tom near their three grown sons and their families. Visit her online at http://www.cindyswriting.com
Scott Tracey
Scott Tracey lives just outside of Cleveland in Sheffield, Ohio. He is the author of Moonset and the Witch Eyes trilogy with Flux.
Read MoreScott Tracey lives just outside of Cleveland in Sheffield, Ohio. He is the author of Moonset and the Witch Eyes trilogy with Flux.