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.
Nick White
Nick White is the author of two books of fiction: Sweet & Low, a collection of stories, and How to Survive a Summer, a novel. His fiction and essays have appeared in The Kenyon Review, Indiana Review, Catapult, The Literary Review, Guernica, and elsewhere. He is an Assistant Professor of English at The Ohio State University.
Julie Whitney
Julie Whitney is a public relations professional with forty years of experience in public relations and marketing, having worked on both the agency and client side as well as in the television industry. Her company, Phillippi-Whitney Communications, LLC, founded in 2000, represents both large and small clients in a wide variety of industries. She has promoted dozens of authors throughout her career, often supplementing the efforts of the internal PR teams of their publishers. She also works as on-camera talent, appearing in both television commercials and video podcasts. She even appeared as an extra in the movie Grease, which was shot on location in the summer of 1977 in Los Angeles. Learn more at: https://astrathelonelyairplane.com/
Annette Januzzi Wick
Annette Januzzi Wick is an author, writer and community connector. She grew up in northern Ohio. She graduated from the University of Akron with a Computer Science degree yet still sighs when her cell phone doesn’t work. For a time, she made her home in the Pacific Northwest until firmly planting her feet in Cincinnati. When she’s not writing, she is walking Cincinnati’s fifty-two neighborhoods or finding and making connections in the community.
She is the founder Three Arch Press, and has previously published I’ll Be in the Car (2006). I’ll Have Some of Yours (2019) is based on her award-winning blog, Find You in the Sun (http://www.findyouinthesun.com), where additional essays appear.
Her writings have appeared in the Alzheimer’s Association’s Cornerstone, Erma Bombeck Humor Blog, Grief Becomes You: A Narrative of Loss, and Movers and Makers, and have received awards from Writer’s Digest, National Society of Newspaper Columnists, Sinclair College, and USA Book News.
Annette is available for speaking events, book signings and writing workshops. Visit annettejwick.com to purchase her book or learn more. I’ll Have Some of Yours is also available for order through Amazon and major distributors.
Kathy Wiechman
Kathy Cannon Wiechman is a former teacher and a lover of American history. She was awarded the 2015 Grateful American Book Prize for her debut novel LIKE A RIVER. Her newest novel NOT ON FIFTH STREET is loosely based on her father’s experiences during the record-breaking Ohio River flood of 1937.
Dan Wilbur
Dan Wilbur is a comedian, writer, and avid video game player living in Brooklyn, NY. He only eats fast food on weekends and occasionally exercises by accident (police, fire). He has read nearly half of nearly half of all the books he owns. If you like Dan, even a little, it’s probably because you’ve seen his writing or you’re his parents. His writing is featured on Collegehumor.com, McSweeney’s, and the Onion News Network. His is also the creator of Better Book Titles on Tumblr and author of the humor book How Not to Read.
Brieanna Wilkoff
Brieanna Wilkoff (she/her) believes wholeheartedly in the power of kindness, the importance of theatre, and the awesomeness of ’80s rock. She married her husband onstage at the oldest surviving theatre in central Ohio, and their first dance was to Bon Jovi’s “Thank You for Loving Me.” Her favorite musical is a three-way tie between Les Mis, Wicked, and Hamilton.
I’ll Be There for You is Brieanna’s debut young adult novel. It was inspired by her family’s commitment to kindness, including performing 100 kind acts in a single day. Brieanna lives in Westerville, Ohio, with her husband, daughter, and dog. You can visit her online at brieannawilkoff.com or follow her on Twitter (@BrieannaWilkoff), Instagram (@brieanna_wilkoff), or Facebook (Brieanna Wilkoff).
Mark Willenbrink
Mark and Mary Willenbrink, best-selling authors of the Absolute Beginner series, have been working as a team in the publishing industry for decades. Sharing the fundamentals of art in understandable terms, they enjoy encouraging others to pursue their creative potential. Mark is also a fine artist, illustrator and teaches art classes and workshops. Mary is an author and a home school mom. Mark and Mary live with their family and two mischievous cats in southwestern Ohio.
Mike Williams
Mike Williams has used five decades of experience to help individuals, companies and organizations strategize, succeed, and grow, according to their unique vision. After working in media, marketing, and professional development, he founded Mike Williams Solutions in 1981. Mike is a marketer with a broad, unique reach.
In fall, 2021 Mike published his second book, The Road to Your Best Stuff 2.0, outlining his unique approach to achievement. The book focuses on guiding the reader through an in-depth process of choosing, entering and rising in their chosen fields.
Over the years, Mike and his company have developed unique processes to carefully assess, strategize and deliver for a variety of clients and situations. His clients have included business owners, public and non-profit leaders, public speakers, medical professionals and freelancing, high achievers, always helping to break new ground.
Mike is best known for his work with motivational speaker Les Brown. Les attributes his success to Mike’s role as the “mentor” and strategist who helped him launch and grow his speaking business to international prominence, reaching its first million-dollar-year in 5 years. Mike became Les’ big-picture business strategist in the ‘80s and continues today.
In 2008, Mike wrote and published his first book, The Road to Your Best Stuff. Mike’s new book, the 2.0 version, is an updated and more in-depth version of the initial book. So now, The Road to Your Best Stuff 2.0, allows fresh perspective and a deep dive into Mike’s insights and experience, developing the skill set and mindset for achievement.
In recent years, Mike’s role in coaching, which began in the 80s, has taken on a major focus, with clients around the US and internationally. The coaching role takes the focus from organizations to key individuals, either within organizations, or freelancing in ventures of many kinds.
Mike Williams brings more than 50 years of experience and insights, grounded in media, marketing, personal/career development and organizational effectiveness to each situation. Mike uses his know-how to guide clients through a broad range of challenges, helping them perform and/or achieve at their highest levels.
Learn more at https://www.mikewilliamssolutions.com/self-coaching.html
Carol Williams
Carol Williams has a long history of writing: ad agency copywriter, healthcare content wordsmith, insurance marketing scribe—you name it, she’s written a ton of it. She’s also managed to raise two children, creating lots of her own stories for kids along the way. Carol lives in Ohio with her husband and maybe a dog if she can ever talk said husband into it. The Supernatural Files of CJ Delaney is her debut.