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.
Laura McDermott
Laura published her first book, Lessons from a Birdbrain: Summer, Ohio in November 2020. She is an avid birdwatcher, videographer, kitten foster mom and student of mindfulness in her free time. Her other career is in Information Technology Program Management, and she is also passionate about building technology solutions to solve business problems. Let’s just say, these two careers help balance the right and left sides of Laura’s brain.
Yolanda McElroy
Yolanda McElroy is an Ohio native and a graduate of the Ohio State University. She is the owner and founder of MochaPrism LLC, a publishing company which features a diverse mix of children of color as primary characters within fun, fictional stories for young people. She is glad that you found her work! Yolanda is available for author days and school visits. Books are available for purchase at Amazon.com and MochaPrism.com.
Mindy McGinnis
Mindy McGinnis is an Edgar Award-winning novelist who writes across multiple genres, including post-apocalyptic, historical, thriller, contemporary, mystery, and fantasy. While her settings may change, you can always count on Mindy’s books to deliver grit, truth, and an unflinching look at humanity and the world around us. Learn more at: https://www.mindymcginnis.com/.
Jennifer McGowan
Jennifer McGowan was born in Ohio, grew up in Montana, and studied in Paris. She has held numerous writing jobs over the years, but author is by far her favorite. A past Romance Writers of America Golden Heart winner, Jenn is the author of the Maids of Honor series, which currently includes Maid of Secrets (2013) and Maid of Deception (2014).…
Read MoreJennifer McGowan was born in Ohio, grew up in Montana, and studied in Paris. She has held numerous writing jobs over the years, but author is by far her favorite. A past Romance Writers of America Golden Heart winner, Jenn is the author of the Maids of Honor series, which currently includes Maid of Secrets (2013) and Maid of Deception (2014). She lives and writes in Ohio, and you can connect with her online at JenniferMcGowan.com, find her on twitter via @Jenn_McGowan, or visit her Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/AuthorJenniferMcGowan.
Tanny McGregor
Internationally-known teacher and conference speaker Tanny McGregor brings over 30 years of professional experience to her popular sessions. Her workshops are known for their creative and engaging style. Originally an elementary school teacher, Tanny has served as a literacy coach, gifted intervention specialist, and preK-12 staff developer. She is the author of three books, Comprehension Connections: Bridges to Strategic Reading (Heinemann, 2007), Genre Connections: Lessons to Launch Literary and Nonfiction Texts (Heinemann, 2013), and her newest release, Ink & Ideas: Sketchnotes for Engagement, Comprehension, and Thinking (Heinemann, 2019). Tanny was also a contributor to the seminal work, Comprehension Going Forward: Where We Are/What’s Next (Heinemann, 2011). In addition to writing and consulting, Tanny serves as a teacher on special assignment for West Clermont Schools in Cincinnati, Ohio. She and her husband Miles have four daughters and four grandsons. Follow her on Twitter @TannyMcG!
Thomas Scott McKenzie
Raised on a thoroughbred horse farm in Bourbon County, Kentucky, Thomas Scott McKenzie received a master’s degree in creative writing from the University of Mississippi. He is the author of Power Chord: One Man’s Ear-Splitting Quest to Find His Guitar Heroes and the co-author of The Man Behind the Nose: Assassins, Astronauts, Cannibals, and Other Stupendous Tales. McKenzie’s work has appeared in Tin House, Laptop, Premier Guitar, Stuff, The Aethlon: Journal of Sport Literature, Columbus Monthly, Salon.com, MTV’s The Hive, and others. He has been a reviewer for PopMatters.com, a staff writer for the longest running internet drama Crimescene.com, and a contributor to TechCrunch.com. He founded and runs Slushpile.net, a books and publishing blog.
Stacy McKitrick
Stacy McKitrick fell in love with paranormal romance, decided to write her own, and found her passion in life. She used to work in accounting, now she spends her time with vampires and ghosts. Born in California, she currently resides in Ohio with her husband. They have two grown children. You can find more about her at http://www.stacymckitrick.com or her blog, http://www.stacysrantings.blogspot.com
Leticia McKnight
Leticia McKnight has a life full of joys and blessings. She shares her life with her husband, Brian L. McKnight. Her family includes her children, Gabriella, Alyssa, Dalton and Hannah. Her love continues to flourish as they grow their families with great partners, and she gets to enjoy being Amá to beautiful grandchildren. Her family fur babies include Gracie (Pom-Poodle), Tito (Chihuahua), Sage (Domestic Shorthair), Camila (American Siamese) and the late Topaz (American Siamese). Leticia enjoys traveling the world, lounging by the pool, and spending time with family and friends. Mrs. McKnight served in the United States Air Force, 1994-1998. She worked in the information technology industry for many years until she returned to college to pursue her degree in Education. She graduated from Wright-State University for both her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Middle Childhood Education. She has spent most of her career teaching middle school math. She is a service and support-minded leader and loves inspiring others to find the best versions of themselves, which led her to pursue her Principal’s License at the University of Dayton in 2022. Her work passions include STEM learning, and diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging practices. Reading and writing have become a later-in-life passion for Leticia. With all her experiences, and the joy of listening to the stories, fantasies, and imaginations of others the time was right to step into the role of an author. Settling into her writing era, Mrs. McKnight has been enjoying learning and navigating the book-loving space. She is thrilled to connect, collaborate, and inspire others of literary joys.
Claire McMillan
Claire McMillan is a novelist, most recently of Alchemy of a Blackbird, published by Atria/Simon & Schuster in July of 2023. She is also the author of The Necklace, which was published by Touchstone/Simon & Schuster in 2017, as well as Gilded Age, published by Simon& Schuster in 2012. A native of Pasadena, California, she practiced law in San Francisco for six years before moving to Cleveland in 2003. As well as a JD, she holds an MFA in creative writing from Bennington College. She was named the Cuyahoga County Public Library Writer in Residence for the 2017-2018 year. During that time, she taught four classes on craft that were open to the public at the Skirball Writing Center. Additionally, she held monthly office hours for aspiring writers that were open to the public. She was also a Writer in Residence onsite at the Mount, Edith Wharton’s home in Lenox, Massachusetts. Her enthusiasm for her time there led to her being asked to serve as a Trustee on the Board of the Mount, where she still serves today. McMillan currently lives on her husband’s family farm outside of Cleveland, Ohio with their two children.
Wendy McVicker
Wendy McVicker, 2020-2022 poet laureate of Athens, Ohio, is a longtime Ohio Arts Council teaching artist. Her previous books include the dancer’s notes (Finishing Line Press, 2015), the self-published collaboration with visual artist John McVicker Sliced Dark (2018), Zero, a Door (The Orchard Street Press, 2021), and Stronger When We Touch, a collaboration with poet Cathy Cultice Lentes (The Orchard Street Press, 2023). Her poems have appeared in numerous journals and anthologies over the years, including Pine Mountain Sand & Gravel, Sheila-Na-Gig Online, Gyroscope Review, and Northern Appalachia Review. She loves collaborating with artists in many mediums and performs with instrumentalist Emily Prince under the name “another language altogether” whenever she gets the chance. Her children having grown and flown, she lives surrounded by the green hills of southeastern Ohio with her husband and a Hemingway cat named Dora.