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): Fiction
Cassandra L. Thompson
Cassandra L. Thompson has been creating stories since she got her grubby little hands around a pen. When she is not busy managing a house full of feral children (human and canine) with her beloved husband, you can find her wandering around cemeteries, taking pictures of abandoned things, or in the library researching her latest obsession. She has a B.A. in History and an MLIS, but she ignores her degrees to focus on writing and running Quill & Crow Publishing House, both of which require copious amounts of coffee and crows.
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
Rich J. Tilley
Rich J Tilley is a creative writer and accomplished author who likes to write about the trials and triumphs of life. He currently lives in Columbus, Ohio. Visit his website at https://www.mybooksandvids.com
His latest book is an easy-to-read, humble guide littered with easy-to-implement, sound advice, intricate word-play, and clever, tongue-in-cheeky humor, complimented with crafty illustrations by the immensely talented animator, Zachary D. Tilley.
Frank Tupta
FRANK TUPTA (TUP like UP) grew up in a haunted house in Cleveland. His favorite holiday is Halloween. He still dresses up every year. He currently lives in Peninsula, Ohio surrounded by the Cuyahoga Valley National Park with his wife, children’s book author + illustrator Lindsay Ward, their three boys, and Sally, a rambunctious pit-bulllab mix who keeps things interesting by chasing coyotes in their backyard. Most days you can find Frank writing, walking Sally with his family, driving around on his tractor, or co-running http://www.critterlit.com with his wife, a website offering free critiques and advice for up-and-coming authors and illustrators.
Judith Turner-Yamamoto
Judith Turner-Yamamoto’s debut novel LOVING THE DEAD AND GONE, a Mariel Hemingway Book Club pick, won the 2023 Independent Publisher Book Awards Gold Medal in Southern Regional Fiction. The North Carolina Society of Historians recognized Loving the Dead and Gone with the 2023 Historical Novel Award. The book was shortlisted for the 2023 UC-Berkeley Eric Hoffer Book Awards Grand Prize, where it was also an honorable mention in General Fiction and finalist for the Eric Hoffer First Horizon Award for Debut Fiction. Her novel, The Drawing of Angels, is currently shortlisted for the Santa Fe Writers Project Book Award. Her publications include StorySOUTH, Mississippi Review, Deep South, and American Literary Review, and many anthologies. Judith’s other awards include an Ohio Arts Council fellowship, two Virginia Arts Commission fellowships, the Thomas Wolfe Fiction Prize, the Washington Prize for Fiction, VCCA residency, and the Virginia Screenwriting Award. An art historian, her many articles have appeared in Elle, Travel & Leisure, AARP, and the Los Angeles Times, and her interviews have aired on NPR affiliate WVXU. A Kentucky Humanities Speakers Bureau scholar, Judith is a frequent presenter at conferences and book festivals including the Chautauqua Writers’ Center, Chautauqua Institution and the Santa Barbara Writers Conference. She has taught at the Chautauqua Writers’ Center, Chautauqua Institution, the Writers’ Center, Bethesda, Maryland, and the Danville, VA Writers Conference. She lives on the Ohio/Kentucky border where her love of travel and place continues to inspire her writing.
Learn more at http://www.turneryamamoto.com. Follow her on Facebook and Instagram.
Beverly Twomey
Beverly Twomey was born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio. For over ten years, she has worked as a used bookseller which has greatly expanded her personal Tolkien collection. When she is not lost in the stacks, she can be found drinking vast amounts of tea, snuggling with her two cats, reading fantasy novels, writing in the wee hours of the morning and plotting ways to play more Dungeons & Dragons.
Tara Tyler
Tara Tyler has had a hand in everything from waitressing to rocket engineering. After moving all over the US, she now writes and teaches math in Ohio with her husband and one boy left in the nest. She has two novel series, Pop Travel (sci-fi detective thrillers) and Beast World (fantasy adventures), plus her UnPrincess novella series where the damsels save themselves. She’s a commended blogger, contributed to several anthologies, and to fit all these projects in, she economizes her time, aka the Lazy Housewife—someday she might write a book on that… Make every day an adventure!
Dana Ullom-Vucelich
Dana Ullom-Vucelich’s study of child development and gerontology nourished a deep appreciation for the remarkability of both little people and big people. She has benefited from a career highlighting vibrancy in aging. Her #1 qualifier to write this book was growing up close to her four grandparents, two greats and watching her parents morph into grandparents. These GRANDS offered acceptance, encouragement, compassion, and support. Her very deepest inspiration for her first book has been the journey of her mom’s walk with Alzheimer’s and her fiercest commitment to honor intergenerational relationships and inspire the memory makers and the memory keepers.
Suzy Ultman
Suzy Ultman has been creating toys and books for family and friends since childhood. A born storyteller, Suzy is an illustrator, product designer, toy creator, and bookmaker of sophisticated and simple objects that inspire and delight. Suzy’s signature products center connection, community, and finding your place within our global family. When she isn’t in her studio folding paper, designing textiles, or creating toys, she can be found strolling through antique shops, finding treasures at flea markets, and communing with nature. She’s nested with her husband and three sons in their cozy home in Ohio.