< Back Rigel Ailur Literary Author Rigel Ailur wrote her first novel—all of seven pages!—at the age of seven and hasn't stopped since. Now with twenty-four novels and ninety short stories published, including for Star Trek and Shadowrun, she writes mostly science fiction and fantasy. Her series include: otherworldly adventures and intrigue in Tales of Mimion; Gods and magic in Sorcery & Steel; an intergalactic worldship with the most diverse crew in history in A Little Piece of Home; enigmatic aliens threatening millions of lives in Curai'Nal; and interstellar exiles working together in Escapes. Her non-genre work includes The Vagabonds' Adventures, about two millionaires living in a luxury double-decker RV; the historical Last Abbot of Lin Duachaill; the romance Masquerade; and the hockey novel Breakaway. She's contributed essays to the Outside In series. Most importantly, she dotes on her astronomically adorable feline kids. For more information including a bibliography and cover gallery, visit her website. Other Socials http://BluetrixBooks.com

< Back Dr Gillian Polack Literary Author Dr Gillian POLACK is an award-winning Jewish Australian speculative fiction writer. She was the 2020 recipient of the A. Bertram Chandler (lifetime achievement in science fiction) award. Her most recent novel is The Green Children Help Out. Her next (much-delayed) novel will be released in 2025 and contains chocolate. In 2023, her short story from Other Covenants was a finalist for the Sidewise Award, which is wildly appropriate because she is also an ethnohistorian with a special interest in how story transmits culture, both Medieval and modern. Her current research is into how Modern western Germany sees its Jewish past, and also into what speculative fiction novels tell us about world building. Her study of culture in speculative fiction, Story Matrices: Cultural Encoding and Cultural Baggage in the Worlds of Science Fiction and Fantasy was released in 2022. Gillian and her books can be found on much social media under her own name. Other Socials https://gillianpolack.com/

< Back Jennifer R. Povey Literary Author Jennifer R. Povey lives in Northern Virginia with her husband. She writes a variety of speculative fiction, whilst following current affairs and occasionally indulging in horse riding and role playing games. She has sold fiction to a number of markets including Analog, and written RPG supplements for several companies. Her most recent novel is Araña, a space opera romp that echoes Star Trek and golden age science fiction. Other Socials

< Back LH Moore Literary Author LH Moore’s speculative fiction has been published in all three Dark Dreams anthologies of Black horror writers; Bram Stoker Award Finalist anthology Sycorax's Daughters; Black Magic Women; the collaborative Chiral Mad 4 anthology, as well as in Apex, FIYAH, and Fireside Magazine. A DC native exiled in Maryland, Moore is a historian with an M.A. in historic preservation and loves classical guitar, graphic novels, and video games. She is a member of the Diverse Writers and Artists of Speculative Fiction creatives group. Other Socials

< Back T. C. Weber Literary Author T. C. Weber has pursued writing since childhood, and learned filmmaking and screenwriting in college, along with physics and ecology. His latest novel is The Others, an undersea science fiction action-adventure set off the Florida Keys. His other published novels include Sleep State Interrupt (the first book of the near-future War for Reality cyberpunk trilogy), The Wrath of Leviathan (the second book of the trilogy), Zero-Day Rising (the trilogy finale), Born in Salt (a character-oriented alternate history novel), The Survivors (a post-apocalyptic cli-fi horror novella), and The Council (a satire of local government and politics). Mr. Weber is a member of Poets & Writers, the Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers Association, the Horror Writers Association, and the Maryland Writers Association. By day, Mr. Weber works as an ecologist, and has had numerous scientific papers published. For book samples, short stories, and more, visit his website. Other Socials https://www.tcweber.com/

< Back Jean Marie Ward Literary Author Jean Marie Ward writes fiction, nonfiction and everything in between, including novels, art books, and military strategy. (That one surprised her too.) Her first collection of short fiction, Dragons, Cats, and Formidable Femmes, was published in 2024. The former editor of Crescent Blues and currently author interviewer for BOOKBALE.com, she co-edited the six-volume, 40th anniversary World Fantasy Con anthology UnConventional Fantasy Learn more at JeanMarieWard.com. Other Socials

< Back George Hrab Music Musician Best known in his home town of Bethlehem, PA as the longtime drummer for The Philadelphia Funk Authority, George Hrab is also an accomplished guitarist, pianist, and songwriter; having written and released nine albums. His larger works include, “Occasional Songs for the Periodic Table”—a 118-song cycle featuring one tune for each element of the periodic table as well as “The Broad Street Score,” a re-imagining of his most popular compositions arranged for string quartet and voice. His streaming series entitled “Seven Songs with George Hrab,” has him expounding on the theory, history, and trivia of seven songs around a common theme. George is also the sparkling personality behind more than 900 episodes of “The Geologic Podcast.” Ranging in tone from incredibly serious to unbearably silly, his award-winning show features weekly musings about science, music, comedy, and life at large. After nearly two decades of producing the show, he was recently inducted in The Podcast Hall of Fame. Other Socials

< Back Evelyn Lewis Pocasting Podcaster Evelyn Lewis is the producer, editor, and one of the hosts for the podcast Tolkien About It. Evelyn's father, Professor Robert Lewis, has used Tolkien and Lord of the Rings in his masters and doctorate publications, along with now using it in the college courses he teaches. Evelyn, despite reading many fantasy books, never read Lord of the Rings before. Starting as a pandemic project, Evelyn and Robert started the podcast discussing the Lord of the Rings chapter by chapter as Evelyn reads it for the first time and Robert for about the Hundredth. Now, Evelyn has been converted into a Tolkien fan and the Podcast continues talking about all things Tolkien with the aim of having interesting topics for new and seasoned fans from a multi generational perspective. Evelyn is also a comic and fandom historian, as well as part of the LGBT+ community and works for inclusion of everyone in fandom. She also is a multi-award winning cosplayer and an experienced GM for ttrpg. Other Socials

< Back Paul Bove Gaming Gamer Paul Bove is a Maryland based World History Teacher with an M.A, in International Relations. An author with articles published on military history, and social studies education, He has more than 30 years of experience has a game master primarily running various editions of Dungeons and Dragons with a strong interest in campaign world design. He currently lives in Maryland with his wife Meredith and two dogs. Other Socials

< Back Sarah Avery Literary Author Sarah Avery's first book, Tales from Rugosa Coven, won the 2015 Mythopoeic Fantasy Award. Her short fiction has appeared in Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Nowa Fantastyka, Space and Time, Fantasy Scroll, and Black Gate, where she was also a regular contributor on series fantasy and teaching fantasy literature. With David Sklar, she coedited the Trafficking in Magic, Magicking in Traffic anthology. Thanks to a hundred-odd (and perhaps also just plain odd) Kickstarter backers, you can read her novella, The Imlen Brat. Grants from the Maryland State Arts Council and the Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County helped her to design and release much of her short fiction backlist in ebook form. An escaped academic, she lives in Maryland. Other Socials

< Back Elwin Cotman Literary Author Elwin Cotman is a storyteller from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He is the author of three collections of speculative short stories, The Jack Daniels Sessions EP, Hard Times Blues, and Dance on Saturday. His work has appeared in Electric Lit, Weird Fiction Review, Black Gate, The Southwestern Review, and Buzzfeed, among others. His debut novel, The Age of Ignorance, is scheduled for release by Scribner in 2023. Other Socials

< Back Michael R. Underwood Literary Author The Ree Reyes books: Geekomancy (2012), Celebromancy (2013), Attack the Geek (2014), Hexomancy (2015), Genrenauts The Shootout Solution (2015), The Absconded Ambassador (2016), The Cupid Reconciliation (2016), The Substitute Sleuth (2016), The Failed Fellowship (2016), Genrenauts: The Complete Season One (2016), The Wasteland War (2021), Shield & Crocus (2014), The Younger Gods (2014), Born to the Blade (2018) – written with Malka Older, Cassandra Khaw, and Marie BrennanAnnihilation Aria (2020), TTRPGs The Only Logical Solution is Hijinx (2022), Candela Obscura (2023 - consulting designer & additional writing), and Daggerheart (2025 - additional designer) Other Socials